quiet waters paddling adventures

We went to Albuquerque to experience the International Hot Air Balloon Festival. I came across Quiet Water's website and knew this would be the perfect way to watch the mass ascension of hundreds of balloons. You start the morning at Quiet Water, you get your gear and instructions. We all rode in their vans to the lauch site.The sun rose as we got our final instructions. The Rio Grande is a calm river and very shallow at that time of year.Only one couple dumped their canoe-so have a dry bag for your cameras and phones. At first, we only saw a few balloons in the air over the trees but soon hundreds filled the sky. There were a least a dozen balloons that graced us with splash and dashes in river.It was so cool to have a basket filled with people coming down into the river 10 yards away from you. We were all taking pictures of them and they were taking pictures of us. We stopped for a breakfast of granola, yogurt and muffins before we headed to the pick-up place. The canoe/kayak trip is about 3 hours except several of us got stuck on sandbars a number of times, it was probably more like 3 1/2 hours. By the time we returned to Quiet Waters to get our cars, we missed all the traffic problems causes by the thousands leaving the Festival. I would do this trip again in a heartbeat.

When I lived in Albuquerque, I went kayaking several times with Quiet Waters Paddling. I thought they were pretty good. Recently I had a chance to go on a similar outing with a guide service in my new location, and I have revised my opinion of Quiet Waters to SPECTACULAR. When things are done right, you don't always notice. But for (1) safety considerations, (2) condition of equipment, and (3) communication/awareness on the water, Mike and his staff set a standard that I suspect will be hard to meet. Another big round of applause!

My husband and I just spent a wonderful day paddling on the Rio Grande with the help of Quiet Waters Paddling. Since the current did most of the work for us, it seemed more like a float than a paddle but the scenery was beautiful with all the trees in golden yellow. Michael was super about letting us join the excursion on short notice. The staff was very enthusiastic about the river experience making it all the more interesting for us. The only problem we had was actually finding the place. The directions are perfect - the first right after the General Store, but the sign is not visible from the street. Pull into the parking lot inside the stockade fence and look to the left. We drove away thinking the GPS lead us wrong. Fortunately we came back! We both would have missed a terrific opportunity for a relaxing day.

We went to Float the Fiesta that was offered by Quiet Waters Paddling. This company is great. They are friendly, knowledgeable and very helpful. The weather was beautiful. The balloons were unable to take off due to the winds but we still had a great day paddling. This is a great group of people to go with. Thank you!!

Well, it's the Rio Grande, so it's shallow and dirty, but my family of 5 still enjoyed a nice, quiet paddle (about 1 hour and 20 mins) down the river on a Sunday morning. The operation, while small, runs smoothly and was a great first experience with kayaking.

This past weekend I took the Fast Track to Stand Up Paddleboarding course. I really enjoyed the detailed website with course descriptions and reservation requests. The site was really user friendly and detailed. The course was thorough and really educational for those who don't have a lot of experience with SUP. Instead of just floating down the river, students learn technical skills of paddling, maneuvering in and out of eddy's, ferrying to the river bank, and mounting the board. The guide was very knowledgeable and fun to be around. I was challenged and had a fantastic day on the river.

Great folks at Quiet Waters. Mike and his team are first class. We took the two hour self guided trip. The actual travel time was somewhat less. Isek and Kalika transported us. Isek provided a bit of area history during our ride. They are both really nice young people who obviously enjoy their work. Grandchildren ages 7 and 4 enjoyed their first canoe trip. We took plenty of kid snacks and water. Very easy float. Beautiful scenery and wildlife. We will be back.

We had a delightful day floating and easy paddling with our amazing friendly guide, "Rio".Highly recommend this adventure! Michael, thank you for the fresh and healthy lunch!!

When we booked the "Fast Track the Kayak" experience here we expected a much more corporate, cookie-cutter environment. We were pleasantly surprised to see that Quiet Waters is not a gigantic operation but rather a well-run shop with passionate and competent people working there. Michael, the owner, gave us a great 2-hour course on the basics of kayaking, including lots of good points on how to develop it into an activity (buying vs. renting, etc.). We then proceeded to the river, where we spent 4 great hours both practicing different strokes and techniques but also just enjoying the amazing Rio Grande itself. Michael was present but never pressing, allowing for plenty of time to enjoy the day while still learning a lot. He carried water and other necessities in dry bags, and just made the whole day "flow" in the right way.

We took a guided girls trip with Steph. She was awesome- super helpful throughout the whole trip. To keep us warm and dry, they gave us suits to wear. None of us were experienced kayakers. We were working against some serious wind, so at our snack break she gave us the option to bail out and cut our trip short and we were grateful. Mike came to pick us up and they got all the gear themselves...didn't make us lift a finger. Once back to the office, Mike offered a partial refund since we shortened the trip, which I thought was a very stand-up move. I'd absolutely recommend Quiet Waters to anyone looking for a unique experience with knowledgable guides.

We had planned this trip for months to coincide with the balloon fiesta. Mike and Steph were the best guides for all of us - newbies and veteran kayakers. With the river having a sufficient flow, gorgeous blue skies and hot air balloons descending to "kiss" the river, we knew we had a grand adventure in the making. Mike and Steph kept us in the right channels throughout the trip. My husband did get dunked after hanging up on a submerged obstacle but with the shallowness of the river, he was never in peril. Our whole group had a great time getting to know each other while we paddled. This trip was a great value and we were blessed with some wonderful memories to cherish. We would definitely recommend this excursion for anyone looking for a fantastic Albuquerque memory.

Great guides and very knowledgeable about the area and waters. Beautiful trip and learned a lot about the area and wildlife. Would strongly recommend doing a guided tour with the snack break!

Just returned home from the Float the Fiesta kayak trip down the Rio Grande. We took the morning trip on the first day of Balloon Fiesta and what an amazing experience it was. Trip started at Quiet Waters Headquarters with coffee, tea, hot chocolate, cider, donuts, fruit and granola bars and an introductory video (snacks were also provided half-way through the trip). Loaded up the van and drove down to the river. Put into the river was full service---this outfit really knows what it is doing. Kayaks were delivered river side by the crew and then each person was carefully helped into their kayak. Steph and Isaac were our guides and know how to expertly read the river. By following their lead we were able to avoid most of the sand bars while other trips were grounded in the middle of the river. This trip provided us with a breathtaking sunrise over the Sandia Mountains, calm waters, beautiful cottonwoods lining the river and balloons in the distance. It was a magical fall morning in NM...something that must be experienced. Many thanks to Mike for his exceptional execution---everything ran perfectly which is not always the case on these types of trips but you can tell that this operation is well organized and completely experienced. Can't wait to meet up on the river again soon!

Nice quiet water with careful helpful guides.I'd barely canoed and never kayaked previously. Toasted marshmallows over a warm campfire at the end.

We were lucky enough to be in town when Mike was able to offer one of their sunset canoe floats. Mike and Isaac were top notch! Even though we had one person in a kayak who had no experience, Isaac was so patient with her. Before long, she was leading the pack on the river! The float was wonderful and the scenery along the river was beautiful! The campfire with snacks and smores following the float was the icing on the cake - just amazing! We would definitely recommend Quiet Waters Paddling to anyone wanting to take a canoe/kayak float on the Rio Grande.