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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

8 Days

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
  • Enjoy a sailboat journey back to Strahan along the Gordon River
  • Spend 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.

There are few places left where the wilderness still writes its own story, and Tasmania’s Franklin River is one of them. This is not just a rafting trip, but a rare expedition into one of the last remaining temperate wilderness areas on Earth. Here, ancient rainforest clings to sheer rock walls, tannin-rich waters carve through dramatic gorges, and the only sounds are the river and your paddle. There’s no phone reception, no other groups, and no sign of modern life, just the quiet, commanding presence of nature, unchanged for millennia.

The Franklin River is a place of pristine beauty and raw power, where each bend reveals a new marvel. From cathedral-like gorges to thundering rapids, still pools to sculpted rock formations.

We pioneered the first commercial descent in 1978 and we have guided more people down this legendary river than anyone else. With us, you travel in the footsteps of conservationists, explorers and storytellers who fought to protect this river—and won.

Our experience sets us apart. From navigating remote stretches with absolute precision to preparing hearty, freshly cooked meals at river’s edge, we manage the details so you can focus on the journey. Our self-bailing rafts are purpose-built for the Franklin, our safety record is second to none, and our guides who local, passionate, and highly skilled, bring the river to life through their deep knowledge of its moods, history and rhythms.

Each day brings a sense of discovery, whether it’s tackling the rapids of the Great Ravine, spotting wildlife on quiet river bends, or standing in awe at Rock Island Bend or The Lost World. The final day unfolds with a peaceful sail down the Gordon River to Strahan. This is a fitting end to an expedition that takes you deep off the map, into a part of the world few ever truly know.

No prior rafting experience is needed, only a good level of fitness and a spirit of adventure. What you’ll gain is rare: a full-immersion wilderness experience that will challenge, inspire and reconnect you with something older, deeper, and undeniably wild.

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

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.

Frequently Asked Questions

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Book the 8 day Franklin River Rafting trip if the river is what you came for. Book the 10 day Franklin River and Frenchmans Cap trip if you also want to climb tuynti/Frenchmans Cap. The longer trip includes a summit day plus a spare day for weather, and the climb is a serious undertaking in its own right.

It is not suitable for people with limited mobility, for anyone under 14, or for anyone not confident swimming in a buoyancy vest. It is also not for travellers who want a comfortable base each night. If you want Tasmanian World Heritage wilderness without the water, the South Coast Track is the walk to look at instead.

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. This trip is graded 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 trips are the same. It is a genuine expedition, not a day trip with rapids.

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 swim, and your guide gets you back in, which is exactly why we ask that everyone is confident swimming in a buoyancy vest. Your guides run the group through what to do before the first rapid, and every crew member wears a buoyancy vest, a helmet and enclosed footwear whenever the raft is on the water.

You will need to fit enough to paddle 6 to 8 hours a day, climb in and out of a raft repeatedly on steep rocky banks, and carry your own dry bag over rough wet ground during portages. You do not need to be an athlete. Balance and agility matter more here than speed or strength. You will also need to be comfortable swimming in a buoyancy vest.

Swimming and upper-body work in the months before you travel is the preparation that matters most, along with day walking over steep, uneven ground carrying a load. You do not need to be an athlete, but you do need the fitness for six to eight hours a day of paddling and lifting rafts over rock.

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.

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.

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.

We supply the raft, wetsuit, paddling jacket, helmet, buoyancy vest, a 65-litre waterproof gear bag, all group camping and cooking equipment, and every meal on the river. You will need to bring a sleeping bag rated to -5°C (23°F), a self-inflating mat, thermal layers, a headtorch and river shoes.

Portaging and being wet all day. Lifting a loaded raft over boulders in the Great Ravine is the hardest physical work of the trip and it happens on days three and four, before you are used to it. Very few people say the rapids were the problem. You will be wet for most of each paddling day, and south-west Tasmania can deliver cold, rain and wind in any month of the season. We supply the wetsuit and paddling jacket. You will need to bring warm layers and an appropriate sleeping bag to keep warm overnight and while off the river.

You’d be surprised how much food you’ll eat after a day’s rafting. Our guides are experienced when it comes to preparing meals in wilderness locations. Lunches usually consist of vegetable wraps with hams, chicken or salami, while evening meals can vary from curries, stroganoff and pastas. Desserts include improvised apple pie, and even a chocolate mousse if you’re lucky! Start your day with a hearty porridge or muesli, with snacks throughout the day including fruit and nuts, muesli bars and some fruit. All types of dietary requirements are catered for, including vegetarian, gluten free, lactose free, nut free etc.

Every meal is provided from the first night on the river to the last morning and these will be cooked fresh in camp by your guides on the riverbank. There is no resupply during the trip, so everything you eat is carried in the rafts from the moment you push off.

Shoes with soft, grippy soles that you are happy to soak all day. Dunlop Volleys are our specific recommendation — they grip wet Franklin bedrock better than most technical footwear and they drain. Avoid sandals, wetsuit boots and hard-compound soles, which slip badly on polished rock.

We will camp on riverbank beaches, in rainforest clearings and under long rock overhangs. Named camps on our itinerary include Coruscades inside the Great Ravine, Rafter’s Basin by Interlude Creek, Newlands Cascades, Blackman’s Bend and Sir John Falls on the Gordon. All camping equipment is supplied.

There are no toilets and no facilities of any kind on the river. We carry a portable contained toilet system and remove all solid human waste from the catchment on every trip, without exception. Washing is done in the river, with no soap or detergent.

We run it ourselves. Tasmanian Expeditions is a self-operated brand (part of the World Expeditions Travel Group). We use our own guides, our own rafts, our own safety equipment, and no third-party operator between you and the river. Our group ran the first commercial descent of the Franklin in 1978 and has run it every season since.

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 Tasmanian Expeditions 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Franklin River Trip reviews

Franklin River Videos

Why Raft Tasmania's Franklin River?

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.