“SWIMMER, SWIMMER!!! SWIM OVER HERE! ROPE ROPE ROPE!!!” Yelling rang over the river as a rescuer tried to get the attention of a desperate swimmer fighting the whitewater. Though a normal observer would see this as an emergency situation, it was just another day for a student at O.A.R.S. California Whitewater Guide School. Though the majority of the guide school was focused on actually guiding rafts through rapids and flat water, three very important days were devoted to certifying students for Swiftwater Rescue, an international certification course taught by Sierra Rescue. This certification, though not required by many rafting companies, equips guides with excellent skills for customer care and overall safety on the water.

Entering guide school as a new student with very little river experience, the Swiftwater Rescue course was an excellent way to dive in (pun intended) to the life of a river guide. Nothing other than personal experience could have more adequately prepared me for the life of a boater. Our team of thirteen was taught rope technique, knot tying, correct responses to emergency situations, and so much more. Most importantly, we were introduced to the feeling of swimming in fast whitewater. The entire class gained a healthy respect for the power of the water, as well as solid planning skills for what to do in the case of an emergency.
 

Written by Tianna Stieglitz

Stieglitz is a Hospitality/Tourism Management student from Purdue University. She's from Indiana (born and raised) and loves traveling and seeing new places. Among other hobbies, she love people, being outdoors in creation, and good laughs with friends.

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A simple question for an even simpler answer, the phrase “I’m okay…are you okay?” was readily repeated during the first few moments of my initial whitewater rafting safety talk. Little did I know how strongly those words would resonate through every conduit of the O.A.R.S. California Whitewater Guide School. In its simplicity, the slogan was used when river guides needed to pose the question to other guides or people swimming through the current for dear life. Several pats to the top of your head in someone’s direction would communicate information regarding safety, concern and sometimes humor. If the recipient reached upwards to pat their own head, you knew they were okay too. That’s all it took – no additional complications or loss of message.

Our first day on the river we used this “instant message system” to understand the dangers of whitewater and the importance of taking care of each other. From that point forward, as we began to study more, we took the question/answer development to an entirely exclusive level. Thrown into an environment of initially very cold, wet weather, intense physical activity and limited sleep, we began to evolve. A group of strangers molded into one cohesive group.

Written by Brita Olson

Raised on a small island in Northern Michigan, Olson's love for running water developed at an early age. This love drove her away from the Midwest to California to begin work preserving sustainability and delving into the O.A.R.S. segment of adventure travel. Brita enjoys learning about other people, spending time on the water, excursions on her road bike and - when at all possible - combining the three.

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George and Pam Wendt, founders of O.A.R.S., moved to Angels Camp in 1974 to set up a base of operations for the Stanislaus River and offer guided rafting trips.  But George recalls that it was the Class II San Juan River in Utah where they took their two sons Clavey and Tyler, aged 7 and 5 at the time, on their first rafting adventure.  This trip instilled a passion for the outdoors and rivers in their children that they now want to pass on to others.   

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Written by Cari Morgan

Cari Morgan is a freelance writer and founder of Evoke PR. She currently lives and plays in the Sierra Foothills.

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It was a foggy night on the Tuolumne River, with average evening temperatures settling in the low 50s. We had decided to set up camp at Indian, just under a mile downriver from Powerhouse. My fellow rafting mates were finally asleep after a long night of sharing jokes by the campfire and enjoying a brewski (or three). I decided to hit the hay a bit earlier than them, along with my excuse to relax with a good book and the sounds of the river—too ashamed to admit how my angina occasionally controls my social decision-making.

I had been avoiding a trip to the groover for almost 15 minutes now, so slipped on my flip-flops and stumbled half asleep towards the eastern side of the beach. It had been a while since the others had gone to bed. The fire was lifeless and the wood had already turned to ash—or so I thought. As I was approaching it, I tripped on a huge pinecone and before I knew it, had seared my left forearm well and through. I let out a scream that sounded more like a shriek and our river guides came rushing out of their sleeping bags, headlamps glaring me in the face.

Written by Lauren de Remer

O.A.R.S.' Marketing Communications Coordinator & Waterblogged Editor

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Have you heard the one aboot the Canadian who migrated to California for the summer? That’s right, our California & Oregon regional manager has come down to foster the camaraderie of a tight California rafting guide crew and wow everyone with his off-the-charts Karaoke renditions of Sinatra. Avoiding the bitter cold each winter, James Rodger escapes to Patagonia to raft the wild Class V whitewater of the Futaleufu River. Having started river guiding in 1996, Rodger has worked for O.A.R.S. now for seven years. He loves to cook a variety of local, organic dishes and enjoys casting a fly rod into a river or stream on his days off. He is known for his friendly personality, can crack a joke in any crowd setting and takes pride in his Canadian heritage – still watching the Canadian news at night. Rodger has the confidence you want on a river trip; he is always happy to share his knowledge about a given area, and goes out of his way to make sure that our guests have a trip of a lifetime.

Written by Lauren de Remer

O.A.R.S.' Marketing Communications Coordinator & Waterblogged Editor

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After living approximately 1.8 miles from O.A.R.S. headquarters just outside of Angels Camp, California for more than 2 years, I decided it was time to go on a rafting trip.  And since I had previously been on some run-of-the-mill, average Class II-III rapids in the past, I also decided it was time to up the ante and take on some big guns.   Did those other rafting trips in the past even count if there was no thrill?

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Written by Cari Morgan

Cari Morgan is a freelance writer and founder of Evoke PR. She currently lives and plays in the Sierra Foothills.

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After a career as a middle school match teacher, George Wendt, left Los Angeles, California with his wife Pam and found a home in Angels Camp. He wanted to focus more intimately on the whitewater rafting business he started in 1969, which was intended to be a weekend-only business but soon became a full time gig. As the founder and president of O.A.R.S. and recent recipient of the Adventure Travel Trade Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award, George is a true pioneer in the adventure travel industry.  His passion for running rivers was born in the 60s before the inception of his company, when he became one of the first 1,100 people to descend the seldom-traveled Colorado River through the Grand Canyon.  In the decades since, O.A.R.S. has set the industry standard for first-class rafting as well as environmentally and culturally responsible travel on over 35 rivers and coastlines worldwide. To date they’ve positively affected the lives of over 500,000 travelers and in 2008 and 2009 the company was recognized by National Geographic Adventure as “The Best River & Sea Outfitter on Earth” based on education, sustainability, quality of service, spirit of adventure and references.

Written by Lauren de Remer

O.A.R.S.' Marketing Communications Coordinator & Waterblogged Editor

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It’s 7pm on a warm mid-August evening and I’m halfway down the wall of the Tuolumne River canyon. Far below me, meandering like a silvered serpent, runs the river—still distant though I’ve already been hiking downhill for half an hour. Faint murmurs of running water and fragments of voices from a rafting party camped on a lone sand bar rise up to greet me on the delicious, velvety-soft air. 

I hadn’t planned on walking this far down—the climb back up will leave me exhausted and drenched in sweat—but the canyon pulls me in, each turn in the trail promising yet another closer view of the river, and I can’t help myself. The opposite hillside has already taken on the deepening yellows of late summer grasses, accented by the oranges and reds of the setting sun; and upriver the canyon reveals its source, a glimpse of high peaks and lingering snowy patches on the Sierra crest. The scene is utterly enchanting. 

Written by David Lukas

David Lukas is a professional naturalist and writer. For more than 20 years, he has conducted nature tours and classes in places such as Peru and Borneo. He is the author of Wild Birds of California and the newly revised Sierra Nevada Natural History guidebook, the classic hiker’s handbook to plants and animals of the Sierra Nevada. He also wrote the environment chapter for the Lonely Planet travel guide to Yosemite National Park, and several hundred newspaper and magazine articles on nature.

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Scotty Stevens is no newbie to whitewater rafting. With over 200 trips through the Grand Canyon and 28 years of guiding behind him, Stevens has become a modern day rafting icon. He readily shares his humor as well as his opinions with those willing to lend an ear. He's super easy to get along with and enjoys each rafting experience as for him it's all about the people.

Although he's a minimalist and appreciates solitude, he's not one to  be constantly dirty and will bathe in the river regardless of the weather. Stevens also enjoys gardening, horseback riding and building things whether it be his deck or an extension of his house. Although many situations on the river inspire Scotty, he explains that "when the crew is really a team, and the folks see it, the energy is so good it's contagious."

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Written by Lauren de Remer

O.A.R.S.' Marketing Communications Coordinator & Waterblogged Editor

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Dana Blanc is one of our most requested guides in California. Thankfully, I was able to catch up with him to pick his brain about his passion for rivers and what keeps him hanging around. Over the past 9 years, Blanc has also guided in, Wyoming, Texas and Alaska.

He’s an Angels Camp local and is quite fond of the outdoor life in the foothills. Blanc works at Bear Valley Ski Resort in the winter and enjoys playing guitar and bass in his free time, and lives for the rush of never knowing what the next amazing experience will be or when it will come.

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Written by Lauren de Remer

O.A.R.S.' Marketing Communications Coordinator & Waterblogged Editor

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