All 277 Miles: Why Your Grand Canyon Rafting Trip’s Ending Point Matters

When someone asks how much of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon you traveled, there’s something satisfying about being able to say: “Every. Single. Mile.”

At Grand Canyon Expeditions, every trip starts at Lees Ferry, travels all 277 miles of the Grand Canyon, and ends at Pearce Ferry. You travel by raft or dory before transferring to a jetboat for the final 40 miles.

With our trips, you get to experience something hard to appreciate until you’re there: emerging from the western end of the Grand Canyon.

Once you reach the Grand Wash Cliffs, you can turn around and look back at the towering walls marking the Canyon’s western edge. After days spent traveling inside the Grand Canyon, anticipating what’s around the next bend, suddenly you’re looking back at it.



It’s a memorable way to finish an expedition, and a good reason to pay attention to where your rafting trip ends.

What Does “Full Canyon” Actually Mean?

As you research Grand Canyon rafting trips with different outfitters, you’ll find several different ending points. Each offers a different length of trip and way out. You may also see “full canyon” used to describe different itineraries. Comparing where each trip begins and ends helps you understand what’s included.

River mileage varies slightly among maps and itineraries. The Grand Canyon’s traditional 277-mile length refers to the canyon itself; the Pearce Ferry takeout lies a short distance beyond the Canyon’s end.

Watching the Canyon Change

The Grand Canyon isn’t one view repeated for 277 miles.  Walls narrow and widen, and rock layers rise and fall.  Side canyons open around bends, and tributaries join the river along the way.

Those changes continue beyond Whitmore Wash and Diamond Creek.  Farther west, the Grand Wash Cliffs mark the transition from the Colorado Plateau to the Basin and Range province. 

A Few More Chapters of River History

Continuing west follows more of John Wesley Powell’s 1869 journey.  At Separation Canyon, river mile 240, three members of his party left the expedition.  Their ultimate fate remains uncertain.

Farther downstream, the stories stretch from the Ice Age to the present.  Rampart Cave preserved the remains of extinct Shasta ground sloths, while remnants of the Bat Cave mine’s aerial tramway recall a more recent chapter of the Canyon’s history.  Above the river, the Hualapai Tribe’s Grand Canyon Skywalk adds a modern landmark.

The Final Miles by Jetboat

For the final 40 miles to Pearce Ferry, you’ll transfer from your raft or dory to a jetboat.

Lake Mead has significantly shaped this final stretch of the river.  When the reservoir was higher, its waters backed further into the lower Canyon.  As lake levels have fallen, the river has cut through the lake sediment left behind, exposing huge banks and reshaping its channel.  Previously submerged rapids have reemerged in places.



The jetboat ride offers a final look at this ever-changing landscape, ultimately ending at Pearce Ferry.

“We Traveled Every Single Mile”

Traveling the entire river corridor doesn’t mean visiting every waterfall, hiking every side canyon, or stopping at every landmark. Stops vary with conditions and each trip’s itinerary.  The Canyon also holds more than anyone could explore in one trip.  So there’s always a reason to come back!

But you will have traveled the Colorado River through all 277 miles of the Grand Canyon, witnessed the changing landscapes along the way, and looked back at the cliffs marking the end of the western Grand Canyon. 

We may be biased, but if you’re going to experience the Grand Canyon from the river, why not follow it all the way through?

Ready to See the Full Canyon for Yourself?

Every Grand Canyon Expeditions trip runs the whole river, Lees Ferry to Pearce Ferry, all 277 miles of it. Compare our motorized and dory expeditions and pick your dates.