603 Whitewater

Motivated by a bet in the late 1940s, two Swiss brothers on small wooden folding boats raced 57 miles down the Arkansas River through the Royal Gorge from Salida to Cañon City. The race would inspire what is now the oldest and longest whitewater festival in the United States. 2018 marks the 70th anniversary of the “First in Boating the Arkansas” whitewater festival, or FIBArk. Discover the adventurous evolution of the festival and how it has shaped whitewater sports across America and fortified a small town in central Colorado.