Rent & Ride - Huguenot Flatwater to Pony Pasture

When the James River is running below 5′ (on Westham Gauge) this is a great route that will take you about 2-3 hours to float. Tubing is not really for folks who want to show up and have us provide instruction throughout the trip… if that’s what you’re looking for one of our guided trips is a better option for you! However, if you’re up for an on-your-own adventure where you take care of yourself out there, tubing could be your ticket! Tubing this stretch of the James is great for anyone ages 9+.

**Important** Park your car at “Pony Pasture Parking Area“– (searchable on Google Maps) — and our shuttle will meet you there with your tubes.  This trip meets at Pony Pasture Parking, not at our business location!

We’ll give you a ride up to the Huguenot Flatwater parking area, where we’ll review your route and furnish you with a river map. Then it’s off you go on your tubing adventure!  There is only one Class II whitewater section at the end…the rest is flatwater with varying current speeds at different water levels. About half way through the route is the William’s Island Dam (Z-Dam), a low bulkhead dam that you will need to portage around. There is a marked trail on Williams Island that we will point out to you during the shuttle ride where you exit the river and use a trail to easily walk around the dam. Trying to run the dam is a terrible idea and has led to people not making it off the river. It’s easy enough to get around, so do yourself a favor and don’t ruin your day… Portage and have a blast!

As the name suggests, for this service we are renting  you a tube and providing a shuttle from the take-out to the put-in.  You will need to deflate your tubes and return them to us at the end of your trip. This is easily done as our location is right up the hill from where your outing ends (by your car).  At the end of your trip, just deflate the tubes and drive them back up the hill to our location at 6836 Old Westham Rd.

Again,  park your car at the “Pony Pasture Parking Area” and our shuttle will meet you there with your tube. We strongly suggest arriving at least 30 mins early on weekends and holidays as parking is very limited and it might take awhile to find a space in the lot or on the road.

The tubes are 44″ highly durable PVC river tubes developed by Rocky Mountain Rafts who also make whitewater rafts. The thicker-gauge and abrasion resistance makes encounters with any rocks much better than lightweight floats you would find at a big-box store. Want a tube for your cooler? At checkout, increase your headcount by the number of cooler tubes you want…We’ll give you a partial refund on that cooler tube to make the price $25. You can fit a small cooler into the donut hole of the tube. Bring your own rope if you want to connect tubes using the D rings attached to each tube. At the end of your trip, drive your deflated tubes back up the hill to our location at 6836 Old Westham Rd.

* Must be 9 years old or older

* Park policy is that alcohol is prohibited on the river. All drinks should be in cans or plastic containers…No glass please!

* People’s biggest regret is getting dehydrated and sunburned. So, do yourself a favor and pack ample water and sunscreen.

* Likewise, leave all towels, change of clothes, etc. in your car and have a plan for car keys and phones- we have NO storage for them…. there’s nothing worse than getting to the takeout with a phone and keys at the bottom of the river.

* We must have at least two customers to run a given shuttle- we’ll combine groups to make that happen. If you don’t see dates/times available, please feel free to call the shop at 804-560-0068 during business hours