Moving water has always held a fascination for me. I remember marveling at the way the streams tumbled off the slopes of Ben Nanaimo, my first Munroe aged 12. I can sit for hours and watch water move mesmerized by its dance.

My first experience of whitewater was a family rafting trip on an unknown class II river somewhere in Colorado in 1994. I was inspired.

My next whitewater did not come until Yam (see Climbing Canada) and a 2 week intro to whitewater canoe course in Sept 02. Although I enjoyed the learning experience I did not find the paddling a highlight of the Yam semester but it was a great introduction to the art of paddling in moving water.

And an art form it is. Paddling is a two tiered skill. First the paddler must understand the water. By this I mean the paddler must read the water, see past what the untrained eye observes to unlock the subtle nuances of the water to negotiate safe passage. The best I can do would be to compare it to learning a new language, to read water well comes with time and perseverance. The ability to read water normally grows concurrently with a paddlers paddling abilities. For kayakers and canoests this is the physical understanding of what is required to make a move and then the execution of this move. For a raft guide it involves the added complication of getting your crew to make the necessary moves for the desired outcome.

After I finished the winter of Rockies climbing, skiing and bartending, I sought something engaging for the summer. Memories of my Colorado raft trip some 8 years previous encouraged me to apply to some local raft companies. A company called Rainbow Riders got back to me and a couple of weeks later I started their 10 day guide course. I have come to realise guide courses are a funny phenomenon. The good, the bad &the wananbees. No guide course in the world genuinely prepares you for guiding and learning on the job is part of the deal. Anyhow, the season was awesome, the boys at RR and the other Kanbeizi outfitters were great and we had a total laugh. The river is fun, the weather was great and the money decent. I worked 2 nights a week on the door at the Canmore Hotel (See Bars) and the other 5 drinking there. 538b was a total shit fight of river scum, unemployed scum, big dogs and parties. Canmore in the summer, what a place!
 
The end of the summer meant another change was on the cards and Australia was the chosen destination.