The San Juan River at Mexican Hat is the focal point of the town and the reason most travellers stop. The river here is wide and fast, cutting through layers of red, orange, and cream sandstone on its way toward Lake Powell. The San Juan Inn, built in the early days of river running, sits on the cliff above — from its dining room or porch you can watch rafts drift past far below.
Mexican Hat is the put-in for the lower section of the San Juan, a stretch that passes through Goosenecks, enters the Navajo Nation, and ends at Clay Hills Crossing or continues toward Paiute Farms. This is serious desert river country — hot, remote, and spectacular. Commercial rafting outfitters operate from here throughout spring and early summer. Day trips to the Goosenecks by road are possible without a river permit.