Six newly-hired river guides arrived at Ocoee Adventure Center in Ducktown, Tennessee, in early April to begin six weeks of training for the coming rafting season. All of them were in their early twenties. In fact, less than a year ago, Jerry and his wife Marsha were working office jobs in Bradenton, Florida. Jerry, who was then a financial analyst, and Marsha, who worked in the office of an eye clinic, knew they loved the outdoors and the water, having boated, fished, and dived for years. So, in Ravtingthey left Florida for Tennessee, and found a house in Copperhill to renovate. OAC, one of about twenty rafting outfits in the area, has 45 rafts in its fleet, each holding up to six customers plus the guide. All of which means a constant need for new guides like Jerry to fill out the roster of on staff. A post shared by hogg hoggitsoriginal on Apr guidde, at pm PDT. The first was horrible—I lost three people out of the boat at Broken Nose rapid, and I just kept running into rocks, one after the .
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Here, she unpacks the best, worst, and most bizarre things she’s seen on the job. I came to West Virginia with my mom to go rafting when I was And that was kind of it. I told her when we were leaving to go home that I needed to be a guide when I was old enough. Not that I wanted to, but needed to. When I was 18, I applied for guide training and was accepted. Destiny is a funny thing. I had no intention of working in marketing for a river company. However, there was one fateful day on the river when I hit a rock and broke my leg, which led to light duty work in the office. The following year, I continued to guide but also took on some office responsibilities. River people and outdoor folks, in general are really amazing. That, combined with having the river gorge as your office and a stream of vacationers with one goal in mind—fun—makes guiding and being a part of this business very fulfilling. Being there for guests while they experience the crazy adventures we offer here for the first time brings back memories of my first river trip.
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My niece will tell you that my job is as a convincer, and that I go to work every day to convince people to come have fun in the Big Nature, as she likes to call it. And I get to wear flip flops to work every day. One foggy morning, I get to the dam where the Upper Gauley begins to meet my crew for the day. We had a single guest who was afraid of water and decided that he was going to go rafting to cure his fear. He chose to do the toughest section of whitewater we have, not once, but twice in the same day and paid extra for the smallest raft that we have. It was just me and him in the boat, which makes it more challenging. Adventures on the Gorge, by its very nature, draws out the fun and sometimes weird!
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This article is part of an ongoing series created to help you land awesome travel jobs and seasonal work so you can travel the world and get paid to do it! Now get cozy. She took time out from being a rock star river rat to share her secrets to becoming a river rafting guide. Take it away Juniper….
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You will not be able to set aside savings from a rafting job. Sees that post trip meetings address any issues from the day. Start typing and press Enter to search. I want to thank you for an awesome week on the salt and an unforgettable experience. In addition to prohibiting illicit and abusive drugs, Wilderness Aware also prohibits the use of medical and recreation marijuana. First year guides must begin training in Colorado in the 3rd week of May. By using our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Expects to be given and completes assigned tasks while waiting for guests to arrive for trips. Other units are rented year round to local residents. Guides dismissed from employment for any reason or guides not available to work through the final day of their employment agreement will not be eligible for this bonus. Communicates well with head trainer, owners, managers and co-workers.
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What kind of adventure job besides skiing can they do in the winter. Common not to know of your non-Hodgkin lymphoma? If you are further from the raft, then you can extend your paddle to the boat and try to get someone else to pull you closer to it. Search their website to see the seasons that they offer white water rafting. Guides dismissed from employment for any reason or guides not available to work through the final day of their employment agreement will not be eligible for this bonus. Answer Save. Washes and hangs out trip rental gear and lifejackets. No rent or damage deposit refund will be given in the event of early termination or if the employee leaves without completing his or her contract. If we are not able to find a replacement, there will be no refund issued. Please do not fill out an application if you are unwilling to commit for at least two seasons. Search for reputable rafting instructors and companies.
Kevin Hart — Let Me Explain — «Kevin Horse Back Riding — Alright Let’s Ride» HD
Whitewater rafting trips are often enhanced by great river guides. River guides are often quite adept at handling the rapids on their rivers, but the great ones add so much. When running the rapids, the skill of a top notch guide determines whether you have a thrilling experience and one that keeps safety in mind at all times.
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Deos good whitewater river guide treats each guest with respect and exhibits genuine enthusiasm toward introducing their guests to the wonders of the river. A strong guide adds items such as local historical information, area wildlife or geological information to their conversation in the raft. Most importantly, an excellent guide is flexible and attentive to the needs rqfting queries of rafting guests of all ages, abilities and backgrounds. If you have enjoyed a rafting experience and feel that your guide has provided excellent service in the areas of whitewater skill, enthusiasm and care with your group, general knowledge of the river and surrounding area. It is acceptable to ask which policy is used by the outfitter that you have chosen for your whitewater rafting trip. Sizing of gratuities for whitewater river guides depends on many factors — foes include, but nuch not limited to the length of the trip, the cost of the trip and the level of whitewater on your trip. A gratuity can be based on the number of people in your rafting party or by using a percentage formula based on the overall cost of the rafting trip. Per person gratuities can then range to double that amount or more for certain expensive and high level trips day trips. Multi-day trips require an additional commitment by both the guides and the guests — care for the guests and expectations from the guests last 24 hours each day. Gratuities for these trips reflect these added layers of round-the-clock attentiveness and are usually based on a percentage of the larger trip costs. Gratuities can be given to trip leaders or directly to the guide, depending on the situation. Some guests prefer to more discreet and leave something in an envelope with a note of thanks for the guide. If an outfit is pooling tips, often the gratuities are entrusted to the lead guide of the trip and then distributed later. If gratuities are accepted by individual guides, they can be given at the end of the adventure in person or left at the service desk if the guide is unavailable because of other duties or if they have returned to the river for another trip that same day.
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