cave country canoes

We brought our own canoe and kayak. For a small fee they loaded the boats up and bussed us and our dog to a private access point on blue river. It was a great trip!

We had alot of fun doing this. My family took 2 canoes and we put had my son of 8 in the middle and had two other people in each canoe. The good parts - relaxing, outdoor activity, something new for us and we really had a laugh. The bad parts - with stops it took 41/2 hours to complete the 7 mile path. After a particularly wet summer there was not enough water in the upper part and the canoes were constantly getting stuck on the gravel. There were no markers so you had no idea where you were on the trip. There were several groups of people who were quite rowdy and drinking and leaving their trash behind them - but this is not the fault of the company renting the canoes - I just feel they have a social responsibility as they are the ones bringing the crowds there to maybe have people patrolling a little. And the water definitely wasn't very clean - not sure if that was agricultural runoff or the volume of people travelling the waterway.

We really enjoyed the 7.5 mile trip on the Big Blue River. Our kids tried the kayaks while mom and I paddled a canoe. The registration was easy as was the pick up, delivery, and drop off. This was a wonderful vacation memory for our family! I highly recommend!

We decided on a whim to go canoeing on the 4th of July so we called to make a reservation. The woman I spoke with on the phone let me know that the last half day trip was at 2:30pm and that I could use my expired Groupon for the value I paid for it. When we arrived we let the woman at the counter know we had a reservation and I presented my Groupon voucher on my iPhone. The woman told me that they would only take a paper copy. She went to the back and came back with a phone and handed it to me. The woman I had reserved the trip with told me that yes, I had to have the printed voucher. My husband and I were not pleased; this policy was not indicated anywhere. We went on the trip (full price) anyway since we had driven an hour and this would be our four year olds first time.I contacted Groupon and they refunded my money for both Groupons I had purchased for Cave Country Canoes. They also reinterated their policy that you could either print or present your voucher digitally.

The weather was nice the people were very polite they even offered us free wTer for my two kids 7 and 11 we rented one canoe and from where the bus dropped us off took about 3 hours to complete there was one or two low spots where I had to get out to push but otherwise was perfect 55 dollars was a great price canoe had room bring a cooler and waterproof lunch as there are ample pull offs to have a picnic lots of nature abounds including several species of fish frogs turtles and even a eagle perfect way to spend a lazy afternoon there is also a few small local restraints by the office and they do sell snacks and drinks

We recently visited on a Saturday and the shop was organized chaos. There were several people waiting outside of the retired school bus for the trip upriver. Once the bus overflowed, then they had people get off and onto a second bus. I would like to have seen a better plan on their part in knowing how many people they had going and knowing that they wouldn't all fit on the one bus prior to packing it and unpacking it, but it was really a minor setback. I greatly appreciated their service of hauling our canoe and us upriver for the small fee of $16. There was no map or further direction offered in that fee, but the staff on the busses and at the drop off point were friendly and helped with loading and unloading the canoe and getting it into the water. While the website says to leave alcoholic beverages at home, I thought that it was a mere suggestion for good safety. Apparently that's where the warning ends. There were several people loading coolers on the bus and then into the canoes that were apparently full of booze because once we were on the water I think we were in the minority. It would be nice if alcohol was more strongly discouraged on the river - for the safety and enjoyment of everyone involved. Overall the river wasn't terribly littered up and it was an enjoyable float. I had two of my kids along (6 & 8) and found the half day trip to be plenty. I would enjoy the longer trip when the kids can handle it better. On the topic of kids - children under 3 can't go on the bus or in the canoes apparently. I thought that it was in their canoes, but they wouldn't cart our 2 y/o upriver. Rules are rules and I'm sure there's a reason for it, just aggravated that they had no problem carting people's booze to the drop off, but not a child that I'm taking responsibility for and waiving liability for. Be sure to take plenty of sunscreen and water to drink. Plan on paddling, too, because the river isn't going to carry you all the way in the allotted time. With me paddling almost the entire time it took us about 3 hours to make the 7 mile trip and the river was at a high enough level that we never got stuck.Clean, modern restrooms were available at the shop and porta-potties available at the drop off point. Once you're on the river, you're on your own. Bottom line is this is a great trip and a lot of fun. Lots of wildlife to view along the way if you're quiet and keep your eyes open. Like others have said, you start out in a large group, but quickly work away from it.

My husband and I went here for the first time yesterday... we did the millpond ..Wanted to be sure I could get in and out of canoe before a longer trip..they were so helpful it was no problem......and it is so beautiful..Can not wait to do all the trips they offer..We toured the caves earlier this month..loved it too

nice way to spend the afternoon with a family we did the half day trip which was enough for a 7 and 10 year old the water was low in spots but we made several stops and saw lots of turtles fish and frogs even a blue heron fishing. You start as a group but generally are on your own once entering the water people on the boat tour were swimming and going down a giant mudslide into the water it was a great summer day

I went back in July and had an AMAZING time.. The water was perfect, only got stuck in 2 spots. Love the rapids.. The employees were very friendly and informative. They made my whole trip a success. I would defiantly recommend this to anyone and everyone. It is a wonderful experience and such a beautiful trip.. I will absoulutley be coming back next year.. Had a BLAST!!!

Thank you for taking the time to review your experience on the scenic Blue River. The trip is a wonderful scenic experience and allows for quite the view! Kayaks are an easier boat to maneuver in lower water, late in the season. They are a wonderful option. The current for the 7 mile half day trip does diminish later in the season due to water levels. The river does not contain a lot of drop per mile to allow for beginners and families with children to experience this river in a learning environment. Earlier in the season there is more flow to the second section due to more water. Also the 14 mile full day option is available earlier in the season and does have more of a current, it is a great option to try! Thank you again for taking the time to review us and we hope to see you again soon. Give us a try in May or June when water levels are at a great level.

Since this is only our second review that was not “excellent” or “very good”, we were very surprised that you had such a poor experience. Thank you for taking the time to review our business. Every morning throughout the season we have to evaluate the depth of the river to determine what trips will be open. The river does vary at different depths through out the trip. Many times the river gets too low to float as it did this time last year. We closed for several months due to low water. This Labor Day weekend the water was within our minimums and we decided to open. This allowed over 1200 people to enjoy our river over the weekend. When you purchased your trip, our representative explained the level of the river and that you would have to get out of the boat many times. The number of times required to get out would depend on such factors such as whether you rented a canoe or kayak, how much weight was in the boat (coolers, etc,) and your skill at finding the deepest part of the river. The last mile had “almost” enough water to be able to paddle. I can assure you that for the last mile (or more) the water could not have been shallower than 4 feet deep in the center of the river since it is pooled behind the mill dam in Milltown. The water in this stretch averages about 8 feet deep. The animal life that uses the river is not something that we are able to control as this is private property owner's land rights.We are sincerely sorry that you had a bad experience on the Blue River. Please give us another chance to give you an acceptable experience. Perhaps you can come next spring or early summer when the water is higher.Again, thank you for sharing your trip with us as we will share the information with future guests so they can feel better prepared for their trip on the Blue River.

Thank you so much for taking the time to review us! We are glad that you had a great time on our beautiful section of river. Kayaking is a wonderful experience and we are glad that your daughter had such an enjoyable time! The 7 mile half day is a great option to try a kayak for beginners. Thank you again for taking the time to review us!

Thank you so much for your kind review! We strive to make the experience as wonderful as possible! It is a beautiful section of river. We are glad that your family had such a great time! Thank you for taking to the time to provide such a wonderful review and we hope to see you again!

Thank you so much for your kind review! It is a beautiful section of river. We are glad that you had a natural experience. The river does make for a very interesting trip and both the half day and full day have some unique features to offer! Thank you for taking to the time to provide such a wonderful review and we hope to see you again!

Thank you for taking the time to review our business. We as a company try to adjust our inventory of kayaks yearly. Each season we recycle older style kayaks and replenish with new. This can't be done yearly as to the mass number of boats in our fleet. The livery style that is needed for a shallow river is a thick single poured kayak. The style that does have the add on option of peddles are a general consumer style that are thinner and not intended for our type of environment. A livery style kayak is a thicker and more durable boat than what can be bought through general retail. I can assure you that all of our boats are no more than 4 years old before they are cycled out of our use. The life jackets that we provide are at the oldest (6 years) and cleaned regularly with usage. Indiana State Law does state that drinking on Indiana waterways is illegal, but we are unable to control the behavior of all patrons. We do care and want all of our guests to have a relaxing and enjoyable trip on the Blue River, we do apologize that the kayaking experience was not what you had expected. Our trip is intended to allow people the ability to experience the best of the Blue River and the outdoors.