O.A.R.S. Seeks to Bolster Student Education and Tourism in the Sierra Foothills

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.   

The leading adventure company—O.A.R.S. operates on more than 30 rivers, lakes and coastlines in seven western states and in seven countries around the world—has their eye on the Mokelumne, a Class II river closer to home that has the potential to expose a new generation of children in the Foothills and beyond to watershed education, while also bolstering the local economy through tourism.  

The company is waiting for commercial use authorization to operate on the Mokelumne River, which would come in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding between the managing agencies that control access to the river—PG&E, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)and  the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD). Pending final approval from EBMUD, O.A.R.S. would immediately begin to offer daily trips on the 5-mile section of the river known as the “Electra – Middle Bar Run.” From 3-miles north of the Highway 49 Bridge to 2 miles south of it at the Middle Bar Bridge take-out, this scenic stretch that runs along the border of Calaveras and Amador counties would offer a fun whitewater rafting opportunity for all experience levels and ages.

For nearly a decade, O.A.R.S. has been able to offer annual fundraising trips on the “Electra-Middle Bar Run” to help raise money for organizations like the Calaveras Youth Mentoring Program (CYMP) and Foothill Conservancy.  According to George Wendt, O.A.R.S. currently has permission to guide three benefit trips per year on the Mokelumne.

Kathryn Eustis from the CYMP and Chris Wright from the Foothill Conservancy both said that the annual fundraising trips have been popular for locals and visitors, mostly from the Bay Area, who have helped raise more than a combined $60,000 in 8 years for their organizations.

Wright says the Conservancy’s fundraising trips attract over 200 people.  “They fill up really fast with locals and a wide range of folks from the Bay Area and Sacramento,” he said.

O.A.R.S. hopes to make the Mokelumne even more accessible and projects up to 1,500 people will come to experience the river annually via their day trips.  The Conservancy, which has long been working to protect the Mokelumne, isn’t concerned about more people recreating on the river.  

In fact, the organization, along with a handful of other river advocates, recently won a lawsuit to stop EBMUD’s proposed Pardee Reservoir expansion that will keep the Mokelumne viable for recreational uses.  

Wendt says that he sees this victory as great news for the river, the community and all the people who are yet to discover the beauty of the Mokelumne.

The Conservancy now hopes to win Federal Wild and Scenic designation and thinks O.A.R.S. trips could help.

“Working to protect the river goes hand in hand with getting people to know the river is there, use the river and then fall in love with the river,” said Wright. “If you open up a limited commercial run, there’s going to be a few thousand people that are going to become your allies.”  

“To have it accessible to a broad population is good,” said Eustis from CYMP. “They’ll feel like they have a relationship with the river.”

O.A.R.S. agrees and wants to put a particular emphasis on creating a relationship between kids and the river—an initiative that was started with the development of the O.A.R.S. Foundation, which was created to provide programs that will educate and inspire future stewards of the environment.

“Most kids in California don’t know where their water comes from,” said Wendt who cited a story about a 16-year-old Bay Area honor student who didn’t know what a reservoir was.

Eustis believes O.A.R.S. trips on the Mokelumne would be a phenomenal educational opportunity for young people in the area.

“The guides who lead our trips know a lot about the area we’re traveling through…the history, geology, ecology, etc.,” she recalls from past fundraising trips.  “They model respect for the environment, and are always careful to ‘take nothing but pictures and leave nothing but footprints’.”

If O.A.R.S. gets the proper permits in place by May, they would like to start right away and offer mid-week educational trips for local school groups. Trips for the public would begin in June and run through August.  

Wendt says that Hazel Fischer Elementary School has already approached them about a trip for their students, which could be an all day program including land-based watershed education during the morning and rafting in the afternoon.  

“If we developed an all-day program, it would also be worthy of school groups from the Bay Area,” said Wendt.

When school groups aren’t being guided down the river, O.A.R.S. Mokelumne trips will continue to give back to the community in the form of tourism dollars.  In addition to creating more family-friendly activities that will keep visitors in the area longer, O.A.R.S. says that every $1 spent on rafting will bring $2 to $3 to the local economy afterward.  

As Angels Camp in Calaveras County begins to promote itself as the Mountain Sports Base Camp for the Sierra, and more tourists visiting the Foothills look for outdoor adventures that accommodate all ability levels, time is of the essence.

Written by Cari Morgan

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