This past month our guides have started to return from their winter slumber to prepare for what’s expected to be a very busy rafting season. With the new season also comes a fresh crop of new faces of aspiring raft guides who bring their experience, sense of adventure, and good humor. We believe that experience is the best teacher and our guides are put through the paces as we prepare for weeks leading up to the unofficial start of the summer season Memorial Day weekend.
Will leads the others back up river to scout out the line to Oak Springs
Our most experienced guides lead the others in ‘what if?’ scenarios up and down the river including exercises in swimming swift water, self-rescue, boat handling, river hydrology, and of course most importantly safety.
One of our experienced guides takes the plunge with the new recruits through Oak Springs.
It’s an exciting time of year for us here at the shop as we are a close nit group who have been working together and looking out for each other for many seasons on the river and it’s wonderful reunion. Most of the guides take off for the season and follow other pursuits including venturing off to other rivers around the country and the world. We even have guides that spend the entire winter in the snowy Cascade Mountains working for one of the three area ski resorts and others who disappear altogether and only reappear when the snow pack melts and the river begins to rise. You’ll have to be sure and ask your guide what they’ve been up to!
One of the new guides taking her crew through Wapinitia rapids.
