nantahala outdoor center - pigeon outpost private adventures

Took a group of Girl Scouts ages 11-12. Great guides, safe and fun. Had a ball. Wish we could go back today.

Tim was an awesome guide on the Upper Pigeon River! The rapids were primarily class 3 rapids. It was exciting and and trip we definitely want to do again next year!

Kids as young as 3 can raft the lower river. All rafts have guides. It's more like a lazy river but just right for the little ones.

I was nervous about rafting and spend hours researching the different tour companies and reading reviews. Really they all go down the same river so how do you choose? I liked that this was a smaller outfit yet they had several different rafting outfits/posts throughout the region. Their website was excellent plus the price convinced me, we got a great deal. I was right to choose them. We got there and from beginning to end had no worries. Lara was our guide and we had a blast. It was just the four of us in the raft plus Lara which was great. We were a little sore after the ride but that's to be expected. Everyone agreed this was the best part of the trip and we had to do it again as soon as possible.

I've never rafted before and was slightly nervous about starting on II-III rapids. Once we checked in and received instruction from our guide, Johnny, all my fears were gone. We were lucky enough to get Johnny as our raft guide (there were two other rafts/guides in our large group). His instruction was absolutely SPOT ON and everyone knew exactly what to do and when. He approached every section of the river perfectly and made the trip a total blast. Seriously, it exceeded all expectations I had of white water rafting! Johnny had us paddle back up to a drop and "surf" the rapids with our raft! So cool!!!! We all laughed and screamed the whole time! The affordable price is also a HUGE bonus. I will definitely be back and will ask for Johnny! Highly recommend this guy and NOC Pigeon Outpost!!!!

This was the most fun we had in Tennessee this trip. It was always something we said we would wanted to do, so when I came across this option on our trip to Gatlinburg we put it on the itinerary. Convincing our teen age daughter to go on the Upper Pigeon River with sections of four and five classes of whitewater was a little challenging. But after it was all said and done she was happy we convinced her to face her fears. We purchased our rafting packages which were "Super Affordable" from the Nantahola Outdoor Center (NOC) in Gatlinburg. That place is worth a visit even if you do not plan to whitewater raft, especially if you enjoy hiking, camping or other outdoor sports. You will not get a better value for half a day of adrenaline rushing through veins activity in Tennessee. If you are staying in the Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge area like we were. You will have to travel approximately 40 minutes to get there. But once you get there it is all taken care of (except you do need closed toed shoes or rafting water shoes). We are very happy we went with NOC. We chose the Upper Pigeon River 5 mile rafting trip. This had an intermediate rating with several four and five rated whitewater sections. It was just awesome fun from the moment you arrive at the camp until you pull back into their camp on your raft. Ryan our guide had his hands full because our two friends and the three of us had not done this before. With his calm demeanor and advice we made it through the sections of rapids without an issue. I highly recommend you take advantage of this opportunity should it present itself. It is a Major Rush of adrenaline. It was definitely the most adventurous thing we did on our trip. Live a little and go for it!

We went with our entire family of 9 people including 3 generations from age 10 to 67 and had a FANTASTIC time! Everyone one of us came away excited, thrilled, and wanting more! We were on an hour and a 1/2 trip with class 3 and 4 rapids. It was a first time white water rafting trip for all of us except our younger son who had been on 2 previous trips. Our guide Johnny was fun and skilled and guided us through the experience with obvious knowledge of the river. Would do this again in a heartbeat and recommend it as a "Must do" adventure!

We are a family of four (kids are 3 & 6) and did the lower pigeon forge river. The river guides are professional and make the experience fun for the kids. Our kids loved it & wanted to go again. Will definitely use NOC again!

Our family of six (4 kids age range 9-12) went on the upper Pigeon and had an awesome experience. Lots of outfitters to choose from but NOC offers the best and clearly demonstrated that safety is first and clearly wanted everyone to have a great time! Our guide Misty was great and gave us facts and told kid jokes along the way. Class 2, 3 and 4 rapids were awesome and no problems for the younger kids. We will definitely use NOC for future trips.

This is a very well run rafting company. The guides were all friendly and helpful. Safety was the number one concern. We went on a 2 1/2 hour "Intermediate" trip and it was not nearly as scary as I thought it would be, as this was my first time ever rafting. There are showers and a dressing area to clean the river water off, but don't expect it to be like your home. No doors, just curtains on the shower, toilets and dressing rooms.

We booked our NOC White water rafting adventure using the VIP GAA pass - and we were able to get all 7 of us in for free using the pass on behalf of Bill Gladwell (the Mentalist) (-Go see his show as well if you get the chance!) But we took our 4 and 5 year old boys, 6 year old girl, and 11 and 13 year old boys. We had Hans as our guide, and it was a wonderful and relaxing trip. We wound up forgetting our Water shoes, and they were available to purchase there - for a decent price - so we all wound up getting them for the trip. The kids had a blast, and would have paid full price for the adventure.We can't wait until the younger boys are older so we can go on the higher class rapids! :) Great for the whole family!

My family and I did the Big Pigeon rafting with NOC. Canyon was our guide. The are very professional. We were trained on what to do and safety precautions. We had a great time. We will be going again with NOC on a more advanced river next time. Thanks for the family memories.

Whether it's a warm checker game by the fire or rock climbing, a good time can be had. The younger grandson climbed the wall for a reasonable price of $5.99 (less with my GSMA discount), and the older grandson bought him a great pair of gloves!

What a wonderful place deep down in the mountains of North Carolina! We spent a good part of the Labor Day weekend here just watching people have fun on the river! The shop was very nice and there is abundant hiking in the area, which we will do next time. Great restaurant right on the river! We'll be back!

We were traveling with 2 other families with 3 kids ages 5-7. We chose the lower pigeon river tour and had a great time! Our guide, Casey, did a nice job of entertaining the kids and the adults. He even took the time to give us some local hiking tips that were great. We enjoyed the hike up to Midnight Hole ond Mousecreek Falls. Can't wait to come back and do some rafting with just adults on some other rivers.