We really enjoy all the fun activities at Clas Ropes. There are some great family cruises at Halloween and Christmas. But our new favorite boat ride is perfect for date night. This is a moonlight trip down the river in a canoe for two. We loved the peaceful ride under the moon, and we even saw a few fun animals. Add Moonlight Canoeing at Clas Ropes to your list for a fun date night, or teen outing.
Clas Ropes is located near the Provo Airport and Utah Lake State Park. They have river access right down near the mouth of the river above the dam. Our cruise started at 8:30pm just as the full moon started to rise over the mountains to the east.
A worker checked us in at the small kiosk and then walked us down to the edge of the river. While we picked out life jackets, she put the canoe into the water. We grabbed a paddle, and she made sure we got safely aboard.
At first, it was light enough to see pretty well. We saw a beaver swimming in the river, and he smartly slapped his tail on the surface we approached. We also spotted a smaller muskrat, and quite a few ducks and geese. There were even a few stray cats watching us paddle slowly past.
We oared down river, just the two of us. The Provo is pretty much stopped at this point, and there is very little current. There are however large snags in the water, and in a few places, the trees hang out in your way, so we had to carefully pick our course. It helps if you have a little know-how with steering a small watercraft. It is also really helps if you take headlamps or flashlights. We had a rower in the back, and a headlamp in the front to help navigate, and it worked perfectly.
We paddled all the way down underneath the bridge to the dam. It only took us around 25 minutes to get that far, and we were going pretty slowly, enjoying our ride. Then we turned around and headed back. It was fully dark, and we hoped to see an owl flutter through the light of our headlamps, but we only saw a few skittering ducks.
Back at the dock, the same worker helped us out of the canoe. While we’d enjoyed the river, she had started a fire and set up some s’mores. We roasted marshmallows and chatted around the fire until 10:30. This made for the perfect date night, unique and special! We really loved our time together, letting someone else take care of the details.
A few things that you won’t want to forget when you take your moonlight cruise are bug spray and flashlights. The bugs mostly left us alone after we used the spray, and the lights were essential to help us navigate the river safely. A headlamp or a flashlight will work.
You can enjoy Moonlight Canoeing at Clas Ropes on the weekend of the full moon from May to September. Check their website for current dates and prices.
