ARTA - Key Persons
Billie tells us that when she is too old to row rafts, she is going to become one of those crazy cat ladies...
Camille was all set to go on her first whitewater rafting trip in middle school and then backed out at the last minute. Cold feet about wet feet, and one of those defining forks in the path of life. Two years later, as a remarkably aware high schooler, Camille came back to the fork, looked down the unknown path, stared down the fear, and spent a week on the river.
Turns out, she loves wet feet!
When Casey was a little kid, she spent her time watching Animal Planet, reading National Geographic, and bringing home handfuls of critters from her backyard in Bend. Crickets became lizards became toads became birds became bats became the limit. And with each interaction came an understanding of the interconnection, a sense of the nature of nature, an awareness of place and responsibility. The concern for the individual grew into a concern for the whole; save the cricket and you save the bird and you save the planet. Remove the cricket and…
So the handfuls turned into stories and the perception turned into a focus and the focus led to Cal-Poly where Casey is studying Environmental Policy and pretty set on devoting her life to making sure that her grandkids have lots and lots of crickets and bats to never bring home.
It's not good to anthropomorphize rivers, but if it was, we'd talk about how the Rogue and Emily could be twin sisters. They're both warm and gentle, but still impetuous. They're both friendly and unassuming, but still deep. They're both reliable and approachable, but still surprising. Sure, the Rogue didn't grow up in Santa Barbara, go to UC Berkeley, earn a degree in Genetics, or write articles about CRISPR for the Berkeley Scientific Journal, (and Emily isn't 215 miles long), but otherwise: twins!
Eva's not in a hurry to grow up - or at least not in a hurry to leave her childhood behind. This makes her life as a river guide the perfect delay tactic. Where else can you list "world-class cannonballs" on your resume? With a six-year-old's sense of wonder, a ten-year old's sense of fashion, and a twelve-year-old's sense of humor, Eva embodies and brings out everyone's inner child; we all do cannonballs. In tutus! But Eva also has an ageless and mature sense of purpose; she's studying biochemistry and environmental geoscience at the University of Utah and thinking (slowly) about medical school - we're guessing pediatrics.
Hanna's secret ambition is to be on Survivor; to weave her natural physical fitness and her supernatural interpersonal skills (and her self-admitted unnatural devious streak) into the next sole survivor and million dollar winner. Then, she's going to take that million dollars and buy a piece of land with a big meadow and a beautiful lake. Then, she's going to develop that land into an improv comedy camp for kids. Then, she's going to help those kids use their performance skills and confidence to make a positive change in society.
Or, if that doesn't work out, she'll fall back on her Theater, Math, and English degrees from the University of Puget Sound to do something less conventional.
Isaac's inspiration for learning to speak Spanish came from his great-grandfather, an immigrant who stopped speaking the language upon arriving in America. His interest in the natural world was fueled by his grandfather, a marine biologist, ornithologist and college professor who dragged young Isaac around the country "looking at things." And his passion for rivers was aroused by his father who showed him, at age 12, how to "mess about in boats" on a trip down the Green River. All three patrilineal paths converged when he spent last year "looking at things" in the mountains and "messing about in boats" on the rivers of South America while attending the prestigious Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, (on exchange from California State University de Chico).
Isabelle got in line twice when they were handing out kindheartedness. And she double-dipped on warmth. And she completely ignored the pessimism line; just said "nope" and headed over to pick up her red hair and freckles. Then out the door and out-of-doors into northern Idaho to spread laughter all over the backcountry and bubbles all up and down the river. In the mud since she could walk and on the water since she was eight, Isabelle is more than at-home on the river, she's at-one with the river. She calls it her "other mother."
If anyone kept track of the number of days on the water as a percentage of one's life, Jordan would be the Cal Ripken, Michael Phelps, Mia Hamm, and UConn Basketball of the category. Her mom and dad both guide for us, so Jordan got a head start when she went down the American three months before she was born and she got an early introduction when she spent the first six months of her life living in a tent within earshot of the South Fork of the American. She still lives along the South Fork and can practically swim home after a day on the river. That affinity for water makes her other aquatic accomplishments seem dry; she has been swimming competitively since she was four, she swam from Alcatraz to San Francisco when she was nine, she has played Varsity Water Polo and been captain of the swim team for all four years of High School, and, naturally, she's been guiding on the river since she was 15.
We don't know what JP stands for. We know he's a student at George Washington University (Jobless Person?) and we know he's double-majoring in Environmental Studies and Business (Joyless Pupil? Jurisprudence Possibilities?) We know he travels a lot and has been to 30 countries and 34 states (Journey Pursuer?) and that he likes to cook and isn't frightened by strange foods (Jambalaya Pioneer? Jalapeno Patron?) We know he competed in soccer, water polo, baseball, swimming, lacrosse, football, and golf as a kid (Juvenile Player?) but is now an avid rugby athlete (Judgement Poor?)
Actually, we don't care what JP stands for. We know he shows up for work on time (Job Punctuality) and he's fun to take a river trip with (Jolly Pirate).
Makayla's favorite thing to do while she was growing up (and her parents were guiding for us) was to jump off of a stack of inflated rafts at the warehouse or...
We worry about guides who know exactly what they want to do with their lives. We're not worried about Mia...
Niko works hard, smiles a lot, cares about the right things, and doesn't talk about himself very much.
Peter is next in the long, storied line of ARTA's spiritual caretakers; the philosophical guide for all ARTA guides. Just below the how of getting boats down the river, is the why, the gist, the meaning; and Peter is all about the meaning. Which makes sense since his first trip was in Utero and he knows that someday his last one will be with all of his ARTA family and their kids and grandkids. And he knows that how they all got there won't be as important as why. But obsession with the why has made finding the how more complicated. A Bachelor's in Business with a minor in math led to a suit and tie which didn't answer the question. A Master's in Education and a classroom of middle schoolers (during a pandemic) didn't either.
Is Midwestern Dude an oxymoron? Scotty was born and raised in Minnesota but has departed on a far more exotic path. 40 states, 19 countries, 5 continents; each a little further than the one before. Electrical engineer, kayak instructor, river guide, math teacher; each a little less traditional than the one before. Open water diving, triathaloning, mountain biking, snow kiting; each a little more unconventional than the one before. "I've never done that" is a temptation; "I've never been there" is a motivation. Minnesota is where he's from, but the world is where he's going.
Unsurprisingly, Scotty's spirit animal is the Common Loon, (definitely an oxymoron.)
Tess still gets goose bumps (and a little choked up) when she pulls into Blackadar Camp on the Main Salmon and remembers...
He was, and always will be, a U.S. Marine. He has served as an Infantry Platoon Commander, a United Nations Liaison Officer...
In an age of second-generation river guides, VK is third-generation (his grandfather pioneered the sport... read more
Xander's life has been going downhill since he was five. That's when...