Fall is great for getting into the great outdoors with the kids. Make some great memories with one or more of these inexpensive and fun excursions. And if you don’t have kids and want to venture solo, or take a friend or mate, these activities will get you in touch with your primitive inner spirit.
Dash through the treetops at Go Ape in Williamsburg, Virginia, located in Patriot Park, which is also known for its bike trails and natural setting. Go Ape offers two to three hours of wooded fun and adventure in five sections from ropes and crossings to tunnels and bridges, and concludes with a 600-foot, adrenaline-enducing zip line finish. There is also a junior course for younger adventurers 3 feet 3 inches tall and over for $25. Go Ape encourages reservations due to its high volume of customers and reservations.
Go Ape
Open through mid-December, every day except for Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Adults $55, children age 10-17 $35.
5537 Centerville Road, Williamsburg, Virginia
contact: 800-971-8271
goape.com
Located in Richmond, Virginia, River City Adventures offers exciting outdoor adventures on the James River. “We offer three different options: whitewater rafting, inflatable kayaking trips and tubing on two different sections of the river, the upper and lower. The upper section has class II rapids and the lower section has class IV. The minimum age for the lower section is 12,” says Travis Bayes of River City Adventures.
People ages 9 years and older can rip through class I and II rapids, perfect for beginners, while thrill seekers and the more experienced can navigate tougher waters in class III and IV rapids. River City Adventures is open as long as the weather permits, says Bayes, who encourages those wishing to ride the rapids to reserve by phone or online to guarantee space.
River City Adventures
Open year-round, prices vary.
100 Stockton Street, Richmond, Virginia
804-233-4000
rivercityadventure.com
Adventure Kayak Tours lets you experience and explore some of coastal Virginia’s most scenic waterways. If you’ve never kayaked, or you’re taking the family for their first aquatic adventure, all you have to do is snap on your lifejacket, grab your oars and hop in. “It requires zero skill level really,” says Kevin Fonda of Adventure Kayak Tours. “We’ve taken people from Atlantic Shores [Retirement Community] out and we’ve taken 3-year-olds out. The ocean tour bring kayakers in close proximity with marine life, like dolphins, while the inland tours buzz past owls and otters. Open year-round as long as the weather permits. Reservation in advance recommended.
Adventure Kayak Tours
Open year-round.
$50 for a 2-1/2 hour tour, $100 for a full day of paddling
Chesapeake, Virginia
757-237-8776
adventurekayaktours.net