Entering the World of Outdoor Adventure

2007-08-18T11:03:00.000-07:00

Changing My Life

I am moving overseas for the 5th time. Eight years ago, traveling outside of the United States would never have occurred to me. Things changed in the summer of 1999 when I went to work in the office part time for ROW Adventures. The ad in the newspaper read, "Work 25 hours per week and get free rafting". I thought that that sounded like a pretty great deal so I did everything I could and finally got in to interview and was hired.
Now, you should note that at this point in my life, I had just finished University and had never thought much about whitewater rafting. After two days in the office, I was sent out for my first taste of rafting - a one day trip on the wilderness Moyie River in north Idaho just south of the Canadian border. Crashing through roller coaster waves, gliding through silent forests, spotting a moose, and rafting around the edge of a majestic blown out dam had me hooked on day one.
Having spent the summer of 1999 as the office "lackey," I returned in 2000 for another summer in the office. By the end of that summer, I had been out rafting on the afore mentioned Moyie, the St. Joe on the Idaho/Montana border, the Clark Fork River in Montana, the mighty Lochsa with its 30 continuous miles of class IV whitewater and the Snake River. I felt very fortunate to get out for a multi-day trip on the Snake through Hell's Canyon, the deepest canyon in North America.
Not only did I get my first taste of really big whitewater in 2000 on the Lochsa and Snake, but I also reacquainted myself with two ROW guides from Ecuador who were spending their second summer guiding on the Clark Fork in Montana in preparation for guiding on the Rio Upano in their home country. They were a great couple and we became quick friends. These two guides, Maria Clara and Ricardo were both guiding on the Snake trip that I was on that fall.

As we chatted on the drive home, Maria told me that she had invited all of ROW's guides to Ecuador in 1999, but only one had made it down. She said I should definitely come and I said that I would. Of course, I had no intention of going to Ecuador, but as I finished grad school that fall, my mind kept going back to the invite. January 25th found me sitting outside the Quito airport, excited and nervous. I had booked a flight to Quito for January 25th returning June 25th and I had no idea what to do in between.

On day two, I found Maria Clara and Ricardo and journeyed with them to Ricardo's family hacienda in the jungle. There, I met up with another ROW guide who had just finished guiding on two Rio Upano trips in the jungle. Our time together was short, but a pattern had been developed.
Summer of 2001 found me back in the ROW Adventures office for one more season. At this time, my responsibilities had increased, and I enjoyed another summer of helping people find their way out onto rivers while getting out on the water a bit myself.
The next few years found me traveling all over as my visit to South America snowballed into a desire to see the world. Working in Korea, the Grand Canyon, and Alaska were just pieces of my life that included visits to all seven continents. My rafting experience with ROW prompted me to raft in Peru, Chile, Korea, Malaysia, Australia, and Laos. 2005 found me back in Idaho and looking for summer work again.
Through my years of travel, I had stayed close with the folks at ROW and on one of my visits, Peter Grubb, owner of ROW Adventures gave me a new project to manage. Peter and I put together a trip in coordination with the Spokane Indian Nation that would take 35 tribal youths per week camping, rafting, mountain biking, horseback riding, and visiting of Nez Perce Historical sites. This trip had us traveling across three states while spending the majority of our time at ROW's River Dance Lodge . I finally had my chance to start river guiding after six years.
As hectic as that summer was, it was one of my favorites. Hot summer days on the Clearwater are gorgeous, full of water fights, lazing in the river, watching tadpole colonies, raft slides, sandy beaches and crystal clear, dam-free water. Nights are for campfires, songs, legends, and stories of days long ago.
Another year passed, and I found myself looking for summer work, and again, ROW brought me back into the fold. This time, guiding out on the Missouri River in Montana. My first love has always been history and what better way to explore and expand on that than by being out on the Missouri River. Lewis and Clark journeyed up this daunting and majestic river over 200 years ago. Today, the white cliffs section of the Missouri has been preserved by Congress as a Wild and Scenic section of river. The area looks almost exactly as it would have when Lewis and Clark journeyed that way.
In 34'voyageur canoes, we set out on 4-5 day trips full of Lewis and Clark, bald eagles, beavers, deer drinking at the waters edge, magical settings, pioneer history and so much more. While this is not a whitewater trip, I still believe that it can excite the adventurer in anyone. I love drifting along, listening to people joke or discuss the difference between a spear and an espontoon, between a buffalo jump and a regular mountain.
As the summer of 2007 has nearly passed, I find myself off to China in a week to teach in an international school. I have been in and out of ROW's operations all year, from the office to the river to their new store. My long association with ROW has always been enjoyable, but I never would have dreamed eight years ago that it would be the catalyst for the life that I now live. I take advantage of every river I get near, I journey to every country that I can, and I can honestly say that that first day on the Moyie in 1999 sparked this new life. I feel fortunate to have had these experiences and look forward to many more.

By Kirk Leichner

Ponderosas Interpreted

2007-02-25T15:54:00.001-08:00

It's day three on ROW's "Snake River in Hells Canyon" itinerary. You're hiking along a trail to Suicide Point for a panoramic view some 300 feet above the river. Suddenly Dustin, your guide, veers off the trail and points skyward.

"See this pine?" he asks. You crane your neck, peering up at the tree towering over you.

...Now at this point your Average Joe guide may have gone on to tell you that the Ponderosa Pine stands about 150 feet tall and that it typically has thick bark and three needles per fascicle...prompting you to a) yawn, or b) flash back to 10th grade biology class and rack your brain for the definition of 'fascicle.'

Dustin's got another take on it, though.

"This pine here-can you see the top? It's about 50 yards tall--that's half a football field. It was only 3 feet tall like this little guy over here at the time Lewis and Clark came through over two hundred years ago. In fact, they may have taken a specimen from this very tree and sent it back east to President Jefferson."

A vision of Lewis and Clark bush-whacking their way through the woods flashes in your head.

"Got any idea why the bark is so thick?" Dustin continues, patting the trunk of the tree.

Someone ventures a guess: "To keep it from freezing in the winter?"

"It's actually to be fire resistant." Dustin points to a gash in the tree: "See this scar? Here, you can touch it. Anybody know what might have caused it?" Turns out, the tree had been hit by lightning. And if it hadn't been for its thick bark, the stray bolt might have burned it to a crisp. Now that's interesting.

And that, folks, is interpretation: experiencing nature and culture in a wow-that's-really-cool-I-get-it kind of way. In a way that's relevant, meaningful. And the best part is, all of ROW's guides are Certified Interpreters. In fact, they're the only ones in the industry who are.

And you thought trees were boring.

The Compass - Interpretation

Entering the World of Outdoor Adventure

Ponderosas Interpreted