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6
Moderate to Challenging

Traveller Rating

 

Activities
  • 7 days rafting
  • 1 day sailing
Accommodation
  • 7 nights camping
Meals
  • 7 Dinners
  • 8 Lunches
  • 7 Breakfasts

ON SALE

$4495 AUD

8 Days$3596AUD

View Inclusions
Trip Code: FFR

Franklin River Trip highlights

  • Raft the Franklin on the river, first descended commercially by us in 1978
  • Commit to the Great Ravine - the Churn, Coruscades, Thunderush and the Cauldron
  • Stand at Rock Island Bend, the photograph that helped save the river from being dammed
  • Camp in caves and under rock overhangs, the way the river has always been travelled
  • Walk into the Lost World, a rainforest amphitheatre with no road and no track to it
  • Sail out under the Gordon’s cliffs and across Macquarie Harbour to Strahan
  • A week with no phone reception, no crowds and nobody else on the water

Why Book With Us

  • We ran the first commercial rafting descent of the Franklin in 1978, years before the campaign that saved it, and longer than any other operator on the river.
  • Two professional rafting guides on every departure, with three to four paddlers and a guide in each raft.
  • High-quality self-bailing rafts, with wetsuit, paddling jacket, helmet, buoyancy vest and a 65-litre waterproof gear bag provided.
  • Grade 5 and 6 rapids are inspected and portaged on every trip, regardless of who is on it.
  • Every meal cooked fresh in camp, all dietary requirements catered for when advised in advance.

The Franklin is the river Australia chose to keep. It runs through the heart of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, and there is no road to it, no track beside it and no way to see the gorges it carves except from a raft on the water.

Tasmanian Expeditions ran the first commercial descent of the Franklin in 1978 - before the dam campaign, before the World Heritage listing, before anyone was selling trips here. We have been running them ever since.

You put in at Collingwood Bridge and the wilderness closes behind you. The river builds through Descension Gorge and the Irenabyss, then commits to the Great Ravine, where it drops through the Churn, Coruscades and Thunderush and the day becomes as much about carrying rafts over wet rock as paddling them. Below it the valley opens into rainforest, past Rock Island Bend - the photograph that helped save the river - and the vast overhang of the Lost World.

This is true wilderness travel. There are no huts and no campsites. You sleep in caves and under rock overhangs where the river offers them, and under tarpaulins where it does not. There is no phone reception, no road access and nobody else on the water.

The river ends the way nothing else does. You leave the Franklin at Sir John Falls, board a yacht, and sail down the Gordon and across Macquarie Harbour to Strahan - the only way out, and the finish everybody talks about afterwards.

Activities:

Carbon Footprint

20kg of CO2-e PP per day

(142kg of CO2-e PP entire trip)

Itinerary

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We pick you up early this morning in Launceston, from one of our two pick up locations. Our first pick up point is at 6:15am from the Grand Chancellor and our second pick up point is at 6:30am at the Penny Royal. We then drive to our put-in point at Collingwood Bridge. We aim to be there around 12:00pm and here we will inflate and load our rafts and have lunch. Before getting on the water the guides will provide a safety briefing and instruction on paddling the raft. Today we will tackle the Log Jam, Nasty Notch, Descension Gorge and float calmly through the Irenabyss and camp just on the side of the river below the gorge. We spend the evening relaxing at our idyllic camp deep in the wilderness. While your guides prepare a hearty evening meal, why not take a cup of tea down to the river to look for the wildlife that comes out at dusk. *You will need to arrive in Launceston the day before your trip, ensuring that you arrive in time to attend the 1:00pm pre-trip briefing.

Meals:  L,D

Today is a long and beautiful day of rafting, with some interesting paddling and numerous campsites along the river banks. The mood of the river depends completely on how much rain has fallen recently. Keep your eye out for the red flowers of climbing heath cascading down the surrounding rock faces. Tonight we enjoy another feast prepared by your guides, then turn in for a night under the open sky.

Meals:  B,L,D

We reach the Great Ravine today and the first major portage at the Churn. There are some challenging sections along the river prior to reaching the Churn. We pass Blushrock Falls, named for the red tinge in the rock. As we paddle look out for a view of Frenchman's Cap from the river. Your passionate guides will tell you about the Franklin’s famous history, and also intriguing lesser known tales that have come to them over their years of adventuring on this wild river. Tonight we camp at Coruscades Camp within the Great Ravine.

Meals:  B,L,D

Today takes us to Deliverance Reach, the end of the Great Ravine, and on to Rafter's Basin. After breakfast we paddle and portage through Coruscades, Livingstone’s Cut, Thunderush, the Masterpiece and the Cauldron to the Mousehole – a narrow recess with a cat-like boulder overlooking the river. It is only a 2km paddle now from the Mousehole to Rafter’s Basin where we camp for the night by Interlude Creek. The terrain around our camp tonight is somewhat of a prelude of the forecoming Lower Franklin.

Meals:  B,L,D

Depending on the weather today our destination is The Black Forest or Newlands Cascades. Life on the river is extremely dominated by the weather and your guides are adaptable, with a great plan B no matter what mother nature throws down at them... it's all part of the adventure! Today we paddle through Propsting Gorge and some of the Franklin's best rapids. After lunch we navigate the longest rapid on the river: Newlands Cascades. We'll also visit Rock Island Bend. At the bottom of these rapids there is a long, large rock overhang which makes a cosy place to spend the night.

Meals:  B,L,D

Greet the morning with a hot drink in hand, watching the sun creep down the sides of the valley towards our camp. Huon Pines and Leatherwood trees drape themselves elegantly along the banks of the river. Listen and look for the birds that flit amongst their branches. The paddling today is relatively straightforward, to Blackman’s Bend through the deep temperate rainforest of the lower river that was protected by the environmental protests of the early 1980s.

Meals:  B,L,D

Today our adventure takes us past Double Fall, Big Fall, and Galleon Bluff, which is said to look similar to the sterns of several ships jutting out into the dark water. Shortly after we float under the impressive overhang of Verandah Cliffs. Today we will visit the Lost World and acknowledge passing the Kutikina Aboriginal Cave. Our camp tonight is at Sir John Falls on the Gordon River, about 5km downstream of the junction of the Gordon and Franklin. The small wharf in front of our campsite is the perfect place from which to have a swim in the Gordon River, and to look out for white bellied sea eagles, as your guides prepare the final evening meal.

Meals:  B,L,D

This morning you are collected by Stormbreaker yacht and cruise down the length of the river before reaching paralungatik/Macquarie Harbour. Take the chance to kick back on the deck and enjoy the views over the broad expanse of the Gordon River. In Strahan we are met by our bus, which will transfer us back to Launceston (driving time is approximately 4.5 hours). Arrival in Launceston may vary from late afternoon to late evening though usually around 5pm. Our two drop-off points in Launceston are the Grand Chancellor and the Penny Royal. We usually celebrate with a group farewell dinner this evening (own expense).

Meals:  B,L

Map

Elevation

The map and elevation chart are for illustrative purposes only and meant to provide general guidelines.

Inclusions

What's included

  • 2 professional rafting guides
  • 7 nights camping
  • 7 breakfasts, 8 lunches & 7 dinners
  • Transport by private minibus
  • Sailboat from lower Gordon River to Strahan
  • All rafting and safety equipment
  • Wetsuit, paddling jacket and helmet
  • 65L waterproof gear bag
  • Group camping equipment including all cooking & eating equipment
  • Emergency communications & group first aid kit

  • Travel to and from Launceston
  • Accommodation before or after the trip
  • Items of a personal nature such as alcoholic beverages, car parking in Launceston etc
  • Travel insurance
  • Face masks and hand sanitiser

Accommodation

Wilderness Camping

On the Franklin River you will be camping as a group either in caves and rocky overhangs, or under dry, airy Tarpaulins. Tarpaulins will usually only be used when it's raining. There are no toilets or showers along the Franklin. Traditional bushwalking tents are not used on the Franklin as they get wet and do not provide the best shelter for the conditions. Rock shelters and tarpaulins are the most appropriate shelter for this type of expedition. A self-inflating sleeping mat is very useful for comfort in camp. A folding chair-back such as a Crazy Creek chair also adds to comfort in camp.

Suitability

Moderate to Challenging

6

To determine the grade of a particular adventure we consider a number of factors. The Franklin River Rafting trip is graded moderate to challenging. This trip involves 6 – 8 hours of rafting (or walking while carrying the raft in sections) each day in a remote area with lots of physical activity. Rafting is an activity that any reasonably fit person can participate in. We do ask however, that all participants should feel confident in swimming with a buoyancy vest should they fall out of the raft. Our leaders will prepare you for such an event before we begin the trip. The degree of difficulty of the trip will depend on the water levels we encounter. Your guide will teach you the techniques to steer your raft. It will be up to the crew, under your guide's direction to make a successful, exciting trip. Whitewater rafting is one of the most thrilling of outdoor activities and requires a team effort. The raft guides will analyse the river and select the safest and most practical way through the rapids. For safety reasons we require each crew member to wear a buoyancy vest, helmet and footwear. Each raft is guided by an experienced river guide. We take a minimum of 2 rafts on each expedition with 3-4 participants plus a professional guide in each raft.

Departure dates


Notes

H
High Season
Note:
A high season supplement applies from 1 December to 15 February, and for any trip that overlaps a public holiday.

Priceper person from

$3596AUD

Options & Supplements*
    *Prices listed are per person

Essential Information

Ready to book? Make sure you download and read the detailed Franklin River Rafting trip notes which contains all the essential information you need to know before booking. Once you’ve booked, we will supply you with a Pre-Departure document which contains a detailed gear list and other important information to help you prepare for your adventure ahead.

Frequently Asked Questions

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It is a condition of booking a tour with us, and your responsibility to ensure that you are adequately insured for the full duration of the tour in respect of illness, injury, pre-existing medical conditions, death, loss of baggage and personal items and cancellation and curtailment. You must provide evidence to TEX that you have obtained personal travel insurance. You must ensure that your personal travel insurance covers all of the activities you expect to participate in.

The rafting season runs from around late November to March, when water levels and weather are most reliable. Departures are limited and rafting permits for the Franklin are finite, so some trips around Christmas can fill well ahead.

You leave the river at Sir John Falls on the Gordon, where a yacht meets the group and sails down the Gordon River and across Macquarie Harbour to Strahan. It is a full day, and it is the only way out — there is no road. You are back in Launceston by around 5pm on the final day.

We raft rapids up to grade 4. Anything graded 5 or 6 is inspected from the bank and portaged — the rafts and all the gear are carried around it. That rule applies on every departure, regardless of who is on the trip.

If you have never rafted, the scale means little, so here is what it feels like from inside a raft. Grade 2 is moving water with small waves and an obvious way through - you paddle, you get wet, you are never in doubt. Grade 3 is bigger and busier, with waves breaking over the bow and rocks to steer around; the guide is calling strokes and you are working. Grade 4 is powerful and technical, a drop you have to enter in exactly the right place, where the calls matter and everyone in the raft has to make them together. Grade 5 and above is water we do not run with passengers, which is why we walk around it.

On the Franklin the grade of any given rapid changes with the water level, so the guides read the river on the day rather than working from a fixed list.

We suggest asking your pre/post tour accommodation about car parking or there are secure carparks in Launceston where you can pre-book a spot.

We raft rapids up to grade 4. Anything graded 5 or 6 is inspected from the bank and portaged - the rafts and all the gear are carried around it. That rule applies on every departure, regardless of who is on the trip.

If you have never rafted, the scale means little, so here is what it feels like from inside a raft. Grade 2 is moving water with small waves and an obvious way through, you paddle, you get wet, you are never in doubt. Grade 3 is bigger and busier, with waves breaking over the bow and rocks to steer around; the guide is calling strokes and you are working. Grade 4 is powerful and technical; a drop you have to enter in exactly the right place, where the calls matter and everyone in the raft has to make them together. Grade 5 and above is water we do not run with passengers, which is why we walk around it.

On the Franklin the grade of any given rapid changes with the water level, so the guides read the river on the day rather than working from a fixed list.

"Challenged? Yes. Safe? Always." - Roger Davis, Franklin River, March 2022

There is a COMPULSORY pre-departure briefing at 1pm on the day before departure in Launceston, where equipment is issued and fitted, you meet your guides and you pack your gear bag. Attendance is not optional — plan to arrive in Launceston the day before at the latest.

The trip finishes back in Launceston at approximately 5pm on the final day. Do not book onward flights or connections for that evening. The last day depends on the sail out from Sir John Falls and the drive back from Strahan, both weather-dependent. Book onward travel for the following day.

The Franklin is a wild river in south-west Tasmania, flowing through the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park inside the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area. There is no road to it, no track alongside it and no way to see the gorges it runs through except from the water. It joins the Gordon River, which flows out to Macquarie Harbour on the west coast.

The Franklin is famous twice over. It is one of the world’s great wilderness whitewater journeys - US based Outside magazine called it "The World’s Best River Journey" - and it is the river that was saved from a hydro-electric dam by the campaign of the early 1980s, one of the defining environmental campaigns in Australian history. The rainforest you raft through on day six exists because of it.

Yes. A hydro-electric scheme would have flooded the lower Franklin. It was stopped by a sustained public campaign and blockade in 1982–83, resolved by a High Court decision in 1983. Tasmanian Expeditions ran the first commercial rafting descent of the Franklin in 1978, before the campaign began.

The Franklin River is approximately 129km (80m).

The trip starts and finishes in Launceston, with a compulsory pre-departure briefing at 1pm the day before departure. You are driven to the put-in at Collingwood Bridge by private minibus, and you leave the river at Sir John Falls, where a yacht carries you down the Gordon River and across Macquarie Harbour to Strahan.

No previous rafting experience is required, but it is handy as this is a full commitment. You don't want to realise you don't like rafting 3 days in. What you do need is a good level of fitness, the confidence to swim in a buoyancy vest if you come out of the raft, and a willingness to take instruction quickly. Two professional rafting guides run every trip, with three to four paddlers plus a guide in each raft, so you are taught what you need as you go.

We grade it Moderate to Challenging. Expect six to eight hours a day of paddling and portaging, with heavy lifting over rocks around the rapids we do not run. The difficulty changes with the water level rather than with the calendar, so no two descents are the same. It is a genuine expedition, not a day trip with rapids.

We raft rapids up to grade 4. Anything graded 5 or 6 is inspected from the bank and portaged, the rafts and gear are carried around it. Grade 2 and 3 rapids are read-and-run whitewater; grade 4 is powerful, technical water where the guide’s calls matter. The rule is the same on every departure regardless of who is on the trip.

Portaging means carrying the rafts and all the gear overland around a rapid that is too dangerous to run. On the Franklin it happens most often in the Great Ravine, where the river drops through a series of rapids in a narrow gorge. It involves lifting, scrambling over wet rock and working as a team, and it is the physically hardest part of the trip.

Yes. You must be confident swimming in moving water while wearing a buoyancy vest. You do not need to be a strong or fast swimmer, but you must be calm in water and able to follow instructions if you come out of the raft.

There is no mobile reception anywhere on the river. Guides carry emergency communications equipment and a group first aid kit on every trip, and both guides are trained for remote-area response. Evacuation from the Franklin is a serious undertaking, which is why the trip is graded the way it is and why the pre-departure briefing is compulsory.

Water level is the single biggest variable on the Franklin. High water makes the river faster and the rapids bigger but the portages shorter; low water means more time carrying rafts over rock. Guides adjust the route and the daily distance to the level on the day, which is why the itinerary is a guide rather than a timetable. In extreme conditions a trip may be held, rerouted or shortened for safety.

The Great Ravine is the most committing section of the Franklin; a deep, narrow gorge where the river drops through a sequence of named rapids including the Churn, Coruscades, Thunderush and the Cauldron. Much of it is portaged rather than paddled. It is the section people remember and the reason the trip needs eight days rather than four.

You camp for seven nights on the river. There are no huts and no formal campsites. We camp in caves and under rocky overhangs where the river provides them, and under tarpaulins where it does not — traditional tents are not used, because on the Franklin they are slower to pitch, heavier to carry and often impossible to peg on rock.

There are no toilets and no showers for the seven nights on the river. Guides carry a trowel and brief the group on where and how to go, and everything that cannot be buried is carried out. It is a World Heritage river with no facilities of any kind, and keeping it that way is part of the trip.

You wash in the river. There are no showers. Soap and shampoo - including biodegradable products - are not used in the water. Most people find it matters far less than they expect by about day two.

All rafting and safety equipment is provided, including a wetsuit, paddling jacket, helmet, buoyancy vest, a 65-litre waterproof gear bag and all group camping equipment. You bring your own sleeping bag and personal clothing. We recommend a self-inflating sleeping mat and a Crazy Creek-style camp chair — on a trip with no chairs and a lot of rock, both make more difference than their weight suggests.

You are wet all day, every day. A wetsuit and paddling jacket are provided for exactly that reason. Tasmanian west-coast weather can deliver and rain at any time of year, and the river runs cold regardless of the air temperature.

No. There is no mobile reception anywhere on the river, from the put-in at Collingwood Bridge until you reach Strahan, and no road access either.

Both guides carry emergency communications equipment and a group first aid kit, and are trained in remote-area response. Help can be raised from anywhere on the river. What changes in wilderness this remote is how long a response takes to arrive — which is why the trip is graded the way it is, and why the pre-departure briefing is compulsory.

Let family and friends know before you leave that they will not hear from you for the duration of the trip.

Unfortunately there are no charging facilities on this trip. We recommend bringing extra batteries or solar chargers for your phones. To conserve battery power on your mobile devices, turn your phones into flight mode.

You take only what fits in the 65-litre waterproof gear bag we provide. Everything else stays behind, and excess luggage can be stored with our team. Leave a set of clean, dry clothes in your stored bag for the trip back. After eight days on the river it is the most appreciated item you will pack.

You will be returned to your accommodation at approximately 5pm on the final day of the trip.

Unfortunately there are no shower facilities on the trip. For those who are concerned about washing, you can have a quick refreshing dip in the Franklin River when we stop in the afternoons. However, for a real cleanse we recommend you bring baby wipes (remember to take them out with you as well!).

Every meal is provided from the first night on the river to the last morning — seven breakfasts, eight lunches and seven dinners — cooked fresh in camp by your guides on the riverbank. All dietary requirements are catered for when advised in advance. There is no resupply for eight days, so everything you eat is carried in the rafts from the moment you push off.

"We dined like kings." - Roger Davis, Franklin River, March 2022

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Positive Impact Travel

By joining this trip you are directly supporting positive impact projects in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

We’ve offset the carbon emitted by this trip by purchasing credits that support important projects that address the UN’s seventeen SDGs, like reducing poverty, affordable and clean energy, reducing hunger, clean water and climate action.

Proceeds from this adventure purchase carbon credits through the world’s largest and most awarded carbon project developer, South Pole, which are invested into projects accelerating the transition to renewable energy sources in developing countries.

Supported projects are based on internationally recognised standards and are third-party audited. They entail a series of positive impacts on the ground, which benefit local communities and ecosystems, that are aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.