Review: Durango La Plata Canyon Jeep & Waterfall Tour

If you find yourself anywhere near Durango, Colorado, the La Plata Canyon Jeep tour is, very, just a super experience, to be sure. This isn’t just any tour, yet it’s a really spectacular chance to soak up the raw splendor of the Rockies, almost up close. But, what sets this apart from a handful of other trips? In a word, it’s the way that you get to some spots you likely wouldn’t discover yourself, to be sure.

What to Expect From the Durango La Plata Canyon Tour

To be clear, what is this experience truly like? Imagine, almost, winding, mountain paths in, well, an open-air Jeep, which too it’s almost getting up near waterfalls you thought were just a myth, so there you go. A handful of tour operators in Durango offer similar expeditions, and yet they don’t always hit the sweet spot, actually. Some focus mostly on the history angle, alright, some just, like, rush by everything to go fast. And yet, this specific tour seemed to hit that balance.

Our day started, okay, bright and relatively early in downtown Durango, alright, where, in a way, we met our guide, a very friendly guy actually by the name of Jake. From the start, in a way, Jake wasn’t just, actually, a driver; yet he ended up acting a bit like, alright, your friendly local expert, okay. As we drove, of course, he started giving us some context around the area’s mining history and how the canyon got a bit of a facelift a number of years ago, you know. Anyway, just, like, this insight immediately deepened that experience, too it’s almost like we weren’t, well, simply looking at mountains; okay, we were kind of learning that tale of them, too it’s almost something pretty impressive, just, pretty, much.

As a matter of fact, the Jeep ended up acting more or less like a time machine on wheels as we worked our way closer to the canyon, as I was saying. Jake apparently shared tales about the Ute tribes who once called the area their old home. Then of course we drove deeper in the route which got a bit rugged, literally as he was speaking. He apparently told a story of silver mining booms and also about those ghost towns hidden up a little bit higher on that route, alright, too it’s a tale he told really vividly, too it’s like seeing history playing right in front of us, too it’s kind of unreal.

Chasing Waterfalls and Canyon Views

We made what I figured to be just a couple of stops along that, like, Cascade Creek Trail, right. And there we did what folks will do on a Cascade Creek Trail tour: We chased down some beautiful waterfalls, so we walked down paths to admire the cool rush of nature. So, I’m one of those picture-snapping types. Very quickly, my phone storage filled to the brim! In fact, what I appreciated a little bit was that Jake seemed as impressed with these nature sights as us tourists. So, just, okay, this ended up helping to feed my enthusiasm.

At some point as we neared midday, almost, Jake found, okay, a scenic spot near the canyon. Just a terrific, alright, picture-worthy backdrop! And he started opening up that Jeep’s tailgate and took out a whole lunch spread, like a buffet! And as he got this together he told us just more little facts about the canyon ecosystem, like about how all that mountain runoff keeps wildlife popping. To that point a handful of deer passed not far from our spot, which was awesome, definitely. Like wow. It was almost too good to be really real, you know. Just, kind of a chill and beautiful feast as you’re sitting surrounded by all that canyon.

Is This Durango Tour Right For You?

So now you want to start thinking, what do folks gain, just, to sum it all, basically? Well the Jeep tours I’m familiar with, they seem fit for many kinds of vacationers: The canyon ride isn’t, arguably, wild, I can promise you that, and still folks can get jostled as they sit on those trails. And while you shouldn’t need mountain boots per se, you almost need okay-for-walking-on-paths footwear. It’s a good group jaunt if folks don’t feel up to just hardcore outdoors excursions but would love to get out of town anyway.

And this might almost be a top option to pursue, too it’s cool too: Are you one of those geeky-but-wants-to-see-nature kind of travelers, that, is that what defines you? So this really feels special: All these nature photo spots. To me Jake filled us with local history! My only real criticism? That this terrific day whizzed by like quicksilver, alright!

Booking and Tour Information

Basically it might be good to know more info around here: The canyon tours go up depending on how long the deal seems like it will go on. So many Durango outfits do such runs, too it’s arguably beneficial that readers can use travel sites too to compare times, prices and even dates! Check on refund rules if it so happens you aren’t free that week for any tour; so I bet it can get confusing on your end, of course.

I would definitely recommend booking these rides really early—you want them secured before people descend upon that town, okay? Ask your guide if it happens they work year-round, or are closed from fall until those summers return. Dress weather-mindfully, as these peaks are like magnets for quick bursts of weather! Last suggestion: Bring some tip dollars; Jake was stellar! It just ended up going super far with me!