The Ridgway RiverFest is a family-friendly celebration of the Uncompahgre River, our watershed and river recreation with all-age river races, live music, local food and drink, kids’ activities, watershed educational and cultural programs. The highlight of the day is the infamous “Junk of the Unc” race in which boaters maneuver their craft, constructed from scrap materials not intended for river travel, through whitewater rapids and others’ junk, trying to keep it all intact until the finish line.
RiverFest is produced by the Uncompahgre Watershed Partnership, a Ouray County nonprofit watershed group dedicated to helping protect the economic, natural, and scenic values of the Upper Uncompahgre River Watershed.
2026 Schedule – Saturday, June 27
ROLLANS PARK | RIDGWAY, CO – Festival Map Coming Soon
9:30-10:30 a.m. Riverside yoga led by Hansa Devi
12 p.m. River race registration at UWP Information booth
12:15 p.m. Boat/SUP Race registration ends. Safety briefing next to river.
12:30 p.m. Races start on river
1 p.m. Afternoon break, Volunteers, sponsors & info booths set up the rest of the festival
3 p.m. Festival opens, including Silent Auction bidding, Scavenger Hunt, and Booths with giveaways, interactive learning, and more!
Food by Ouray 4H Club, Armando’s Tacos, Mountain High Ice Cream, and Backcountry Kettle Corn
Beer by Ouray Brewery & Ska Brewing and Margaritas & non-alcohol beer by The Liquor Store
3 p.m. Introduction of Emcee extraordinaire Colin Sullivan
3:30 p.m. Watershed talk by Dr. Jake Kurzweil on stage
3:45 p.m. Junk of the Unc competition on river. Grand Prize: Pontoon Boat Rental at Ridgway State Park (value $500!)
4 p.m. Ute Elder Roland McCook talk, supported by a donation by Circle of Dreams Foundation
4:45 p.m. Announcement of winners of the Boat/SUP Races and Junk of the Unc
5:00 p.m. Live music by Cousin Curtiss on the river stage co-sponsored by OCPAG
5:45 p.m. First Silent Auction wave closes, Band break
6 p.m. Live music by Cousin Curtiss on the river stage co-sponsored by OCPAG
6:30 p.m Second Silent Auction wave closes
7 p.m. Festival closes and sales end for drinks, food, silent auction, etc.
See you soon!
2027 Ridgway RiverFest: June 2027 – Date TBD
We are a food truck and are interested in participating in your 2020 festival. Can you please send information and the entry fee amount. We do baked potatoes, wraps, and sandwiches.
The information and fee for the 2020 festival should be same as 2019 festival so you can look at this sheet: https://ridgwayriverfestival.files.wordpress.com/2019/05/2019-ridgwayriverfest-food-vendors.pdf. Where are you located? Our festival is in Ridgway, Colorado (between Montrose and Ouray). You can contact me (Tanya) directly at ridgwayriverfest@gmail.com. Thank you!