Oregon River Guide School

Destination Wilderness' Spring River Guide School is scheduled over a seven day period during late March. It takes place on rivers throughout the Northwest, and is designed in part for those seeking comprehensive instruction during school spring break.

The first days of the school take place on the Umpqua river, a fun and lively class III-IV river that is perfectly designed for a guide school. The morning of the first day we raft a relatively calm stretch of river, with instructors teaching by example. In the afternoon, each student takes turns captaining the raft, learning the art of ruddering and using your crew. Note: Depending on water levels and weather we may substitute the Clackamas or McKenzie rivers on these days.

Over the next two days we raft different stretches of the Umpqua, running rapid after rapid, participating in numerous on-river seminars that include swiftwater rescues, flipped raft drills, toss-bag safety, swimmer rescue, eddy catching and hopping, and on and on. Students rotate often into the captain's seat and learn through their own and other's guiding experiences.

During this portion of the school evenings are spent participating in seminars that present information related to other aspects of river guiding. River first-aid, Dutch oven cooking, knot tying, raft extraction/Z-pulley systems, and countless other topics are presented each day and evening. In all seminars students are invited to participate in each activity, as hands-on learning is emphasized.

On days four through seven we raft the Rogue river, in southwest Oregon. The Rogue, one of the original Wild and Scenic Rivers, provides exceptional opportunities for students to learn the art of wilderness river guiding, where all camp and personal gear is carried down river on the rafts. Seminars during this portion of the school include rigging and rowing gear boats, wilderness first aid, and more. Students will also run a trip within the school on the Rogue, during which the instructors step back and let the students manage the trip. This evening we will head to a nearby restaurant where we will enjoy a Dutch-treat celebration dinner.

An optional bonus day of the school is offered the day after the school formally ends. For this day we head to the McKenzie river and students are given the opportunity to captain their own rafts down this playful class II-III river.

Following this school, students are awarded a certificate indicating the successful completion of the course. We will also assist those who are interested in finding work as river guides for the upcoming season.

$760 per person. Includes all meals, personal camping equipment, and transportation between the airport and the river before and after the school.

Spring School - March 23-29, bonus day March 30.

Please add 3% land/government use fee to the above prices. NOTE: Other dates may be available. Please contact our office for more information.

The Summer Guide School and Rafting Workshop is offered over a seven-day period in late May or early June. It takes place on some of the best rivers in the world for learning how to river guide. These rivers are excellent settings in which to build skills and confidence for aspiring professional guides and personal rafters alike.

The first three days of this school are spent on the North Fork Umpqua, a Wild and Scenic River located between Roseburg and Crater Lake, Oregon. During this portion of the school we learn the basics of captaining a raft through current, calms, and various class II, III and IV rapids. Each day each student gets countless opportunities to captain the rafts, as we rotate student-captains frequently. Instructors provide ongoing, positive feedback and important reminders to all students about guiding techniques. Note: depending on water levels we may substitute the Clackamas or McKenzie river for the Umpqua river.

Numerous mini-seminars are presented on an ongoing basis, providing information such as the correct use of a throw bag, hypothermia prevention and care, knot tying, and swiftwater rescue techniques. These seminars are true hands-on learning experiences, giving each student the chance to participate in the actual techniques required to safely run rivers.

We then head south to the Rogue River, where we spend the next four days of the school in one of the premier wilderness canyons on earth. The Rogue, with its variety of class III+ rapids, is an ideal place to further refine new guiding skills, learn techniques related to wilderness river travel, and captain student-only boats. Over 30 miles long, this river features an abundance of wildlife, stunning scenery, and most important, exceptional opportunities to learn as much as possible about guiding wilderness river trips.

An optional bonus day of the school is offered the day after the school formally ends. For this day we head to the McKenzie river and students are given the opportunity to captain their own rafts.

This school is designed and structured for both professional and private river guide instruction. Students who participate in this school are awarded a certificate indicating the successful completion of the course. We will also assist those who are interested in finding guiding work with companies throughout the U.S. for the upcoming season.

$840 per person. Includes all meals, personal camping equipment, and transportation between the airport and the river before and after the school.

Summer School - May 31-June 6, bonus day June 7.

Please add 3% land/government use fee to the above prices. NOTE: Other dates may be available. Please contact our office for more information.

Destination Wilderness' Whitewater Rafting Workshop is a great week of learning and practicing skills needed to guide personal rafts down wild rivers. Those seeking a comprehensive seminar that deals largely with technical river running skills and dealing with emergencies should consider this workshop. This school does not present information relative to customer care and commercial outfitting, focusing instead on how you can most safely and enjoyably guide river trips with family and friends.

Participants in the Whitewater Rafting Workshop can choose between oar boat guiding and paddle boat captaining, or can split time equally between the two. We also have segmented this workshop so that those with some experience can learn advanced guiding and safety practices necessary to run more challenging rivers while beginners can learn more fundemental techniques.

The first two days of this school are spent on the Umpqua river, an ideal place to learn a variety of skills related to reading rivers, swiftwater rescue, and river first aid. The Umpqua is perfect for this type of learning, as it is laced with a great number and wide variety of class III and IV rapids. Note: depending on water levels we may substitute the Clackamas or McKenzie rivers for the Umpqua river.

The next three days we run the Rogue river which is a excellent place to learn about the nuances of wilderness river journeys. During this portion of the trip participants are asked to "run their own trip" which includes simulated rescues, logistical problems, wilderness raft repair, and dealing with troublesome trip members. In short, we use this time to enact many of the possible problems and issues that can arise on private wilderness trips.

The final two days of the school we tackle a much more challenging river, likely the Upper Klamath, as we further investigate advanced rafting techniques. During this portion of the school we focus on comprehensive safety practices on river trips, such as boat order, river communication, and teamwork.

Throughout the school numerous on-land seminars are presented. Topics such as advanced raft repair, hypothermia detection and treatment, river emergencies, Tyrolean rescues, knot tying, and more are covered each morning, noon, and night.

$790 per person. Includes all meals, personal camping equipment, and transportation between the airport and the river before and after the school. Also included is a copy of Paddling Oregon, a guidebook to rivers of the Pacific Northwest.

Whitewater Rafting Workshop - April 26-May 2

Please add 3% land/government use fee to the above prices. NOTE: Other dates may be available. Please contact our office for more information.

Destination Wilderness' August Rafting School provides five days of fun, learning, challenges, and comeraderie. This school was designed for individuals with little or no rafting experience who want to learn the basics of rafting as part of a fun, summertime river running vacation. It is well suited to individuals, friends, families, and others seeking more knowledge about rafting and guiding for personal or professional river running desires.

The first three days of this school are spent on the Lower Klamath river, a warm and peaceful place with just enough whitewater to grasp basic concepts and to feel the challenge and rewards of guiding rafts through energizing whitewater. The stretch of the Klamath that we run features great scenery, pleasant campsites, and a mix of calm and churning water. Introductory skills such as reading currents, manuevering rafts, and emergency procedures are all covered. In addition, aspects of river trips such as raft preparation, camping techniques, river trip group dynamics and equipment repair are also presented.

The final two days of the school we run a more challenging river, likely the Upper Klamath or North Umpqua, as we further investigate additional rafting techniques. As part of these two days the instructors captain the more demanding rapids and share information while teaching by example. We focus on comprehensive safety practices on river trips, such as boat order, river communication, and teamwork.

As with all of our schools we present numerous on land seminars over this five day period. Each of these seminars is designed to teach skills needed to run a river trip with a foundation of safety on which is built a house of fun!

$690 per person. Includes all meals, personal camping equipment, and transportation between the airport and the river before and after the school. Also included is a copy of The Basics of Rafting, an excellent river running primer. The minimum age is 12.

August Rafting School - August 3-7

Please add 3% land/government use fee to the above prices. NOTE: Other dates may be available. Please contact our office for more information.