Triad River Tours approaches guide training in a different way than our competition. Using a selective approach, we search for self motivated people with high enthusiasm for the outdoors, people, and facilitating the relationship between their guests and the phenomenal world through whitewater. Sometimes this comes in the form of an experienced private boater looking to take it up a step, and sometimes it's someone who has never been on the river before. The most vital part of selecting guide trainees for us, is passion; sharing in our passion for the safety and overall experience and joy of the river is key.
We choose 3 trainees at a time, enough to fill a training raft, and proceed with a basic 50 hour (state legislation mandated) guide training curriculum based around fundamental aspects of river running. Outside of your time on the river you'll need to do research and study risk management, as well as take advanced first aid course(s) as well as a Swiftwater Rescue course (SRT-1) through the Swiftwater Safety Institute.
Triad River Tours has an online database with select information from sources within the outdoor industry. As a partner of the America Outdoors Association, we also have access to a larger database which allows trainees to study incident response case studies, as well as numerous risk management analysis tools and rescue response frameworks. Trainees who spend the time preparing are the ones who give themselves the greatest chance of being successful.
While we hold permits on the Sauk, Suiattle, Skagit, Skykomish, and Wenatchee Rivers (typically), we are not limited to those rivers, legally, for guide training. It is very common for our team to set out to run rivers such as the Elwha (Olympic Peninsula), the White Salmon, the Nooksack, as well as other training opportunities in Idaho on the Lochsa, Salmon, or Snake Rivers, and in Oregon on the Owyhee River.
Guides who already have a guide training certificate from another company will be asked to prove their skills on and off the water, as well as complete our company guide training exam. Guides who are accepted into the program are given the option of paying for it up front, or applying for a 100 hour internship, which concludes with the receipt of their guide training certificate.
