About Chinook Rafting

During his time studying mechanical engineering, Richard took every opportunity to sneak off and play in the water. Summers were spent guiding in beautiful Slovenia with rafting on the Soca river and also heaps of canyoning and caving. Expeditions, work and randomness brought him to Canada, La Reunion, Italy, Sri Lanka, Azores, Tropical Belgium, New Zealand, Honduras and other gems. With a total of 15 years experience in outdoor tourism, he’s now a full-time guide. When he’s not around the flowing waters outside, it is highly likely you can find him making laps in the swimming pool, discussing which Taylor Swift song is best (Wildest Dreams!), building bamboo paddles or daydreaming about ice cream, pizza or cookies, in no particular order. His all-time favourite quote: “Njom njom njom njom” – Cookie Monster.

Originally from the UK, Chris is at home on rivers worldwide having kayaked and rafted for over 20 years in places like the UK, France, Italy, Norway, Argentina, USA, Canada, Chile, New Zealand, Nepal, India & Zambia. He is a rafting examiner for the BC and AB River Outfitters Association, a certified kayaking instructor, a Swiftwater & Ice Rescue Technical Instructor for Rescue 3 International, and is an Emergency Medical and Advanced Wilderness First Responder.

Chris also has a strong background in rope rescue and has worked for the Industrial Rope Access Trade Association. Chris brings a wealth of experience, skill and charisma to our team. Asked how his rafting career began, “I suppose it all started when I was 10 years old. My local Scout Group had just bought six new kayaks, so I started testing them out on a nearby river. After a year of weekly kayaking lessons my dad bought me my first kayak, and before I knew it I was becoming hooked. My desire to combine both my passion for kayaking with my love for travelling eventually led me to train as a Whitewater Raft Guide.”

I’m known around the rafting scene for my long hair, poor sentence structures and loud Australian energy on the river. Rafting has been my bread winner (aka other adventure funds) for 8 seasons across New Zealand, Canada, India and Australia. You’ll be happy to know I’ve been couch training for over a month during the covid lockdown. This is my third season back at Chinook, and I can’t wait to have you aboard.

I am Vikram Hirani from India. I live in the lap of the Indian Himalayas in the holy town of Rishikesh.  I have been raft guiding and safety kayaking on many different rivers off and on for the last 8 years. I feel very lucky to live in the Himalayas and I was trained on the Himalayan Rivers also. My favourite river is my home river called Ganga. When I am not rafting I go hiking, kayaking &  cycling. I am practicing yoga for the last 6 years and I can now teach students up to an intermediate level. I am very excited to be the part of the Chinook Rafting team this summer.

Well I’ve been training to be part of a company as wonderful and esteemed as Chinook for years. I got infected with a love of paddling outside when I was a very small child which has only spiraled into a passion for all outdoor activities since. My dreadlocks may be deceiving, but I study economics at the University of Alberta meaning that I am either the coolest economics student or most nerdy whitewater rafting guide.

From Australia, I started working in the outdoors in 2013 as a bushwalking, rock climbing, & rafting guide! Leading 10 day expeditions all around Australia, I discovered that my passion for the wild rivers surpassed my other hobbies and I have since raft guided on the Snowy, Murrumbidgee and Barron Rivers. If I’m not out paddling I’ll be out surfing, climbing, or doing pretty much anything to stay outside.

Heather is an import to Canada, hailing originally from England.  She fell in love with all that Canada’s vastness has to offer at the age of 18, and has since spent years living and working in the Canadian Rockies.

In between being off-river manager for Chinook Rafting, Heather loves to get out in these beautiful mountains both on her own and with guests as part of her work as a qualified hiking and wildlife guide.

A keen ski-tourer and advocate of cool weather, Heather spends some of the off-season guiding polar bear and northern lights trips in Northern Canada.  Her passion is showcasing the natural world, making nature’s beauty available to everyone who visits it.

Originally from the French Alps, where I was always hanging out in the outdoors. So much actually, that I continued to get certificates to work outside in my two passions, the mountains and the river. I’ve been working in the kayak and rafting business more than 7 years now and I’ve paddled almost every river in France. I thought it was time to go and discover the ones in Canada!

My names Luka I’m from south-east New South Wales in Australia. I’m an outdoor guide who loves paddling white water in a raft, canoe or kayak. Bring on the summer.

Hello, my name is Sarah, and I’m super excited to be on the river soon for my second season with Chinook! I’ve grown up paddling in Ontario, and I’ve done whitewater trips on the Madawaska, Spanish, French and Dumoine River. I’ve been working as a Lifeguard for ten years during the summers, most recently as a member of the Port Stanley Beach Patrol. I’ve been living in the Bow Valley for the past four years now, and I am stoked to get out on the water again this summer. This past winter, I worked on Ski Patrol at Sunshine Village Ski Resort. When I’m not at work, I enjoy climbing, hiking, skiing, and biking.

G’day folks, my name is Sam Beaver. This will be my second summer guiding for Chinook, and I’ve got all my fingers and toes crossed that we’ll be able to get out on the river with you soon once all this craziness settles down a bit. I grew up in Australia and have been Outdoor guiding for four years. If you happen to run into me in the mountains, on the rock, floating down a river or just sitting on a nice patch of grass in the sun, I’m likely to have a smile on my face. I’m looking forward to getting out into the beauty of the Rockies again with you all!

Hello fine people! When I’m not paddling rivers in a raft or by canoe, you might catch a glimpse of me – long flowing cape streaming in the wind – zooming around on my lime green unicycle. If you blink and miss me whilst unicycling, I may stop for a while to enjoy an ice cream. My official classification should be part monkey because I make a hobby out of climbing trees. When the rivers freeze over, I do some laps on the ski slopes any chance I get. Did you know: Alberta is not just mountains? It’s also flat in some places, and that’s where I call home.

Veronica’s adventurer’s spirit took her from the Czech Republic across many countries to Canada, which she immediately fell in love with. She learned that home is a movable thing. That’s why she likes her way of life of collecting life experiences without worrying too much about where the road will take her. Her love of being active, passion for water sports, travel and learning about new cultures and people, discovering new places for the uncertainty of what lay ahead is contagious. She desires to bring positivity into the lives of those around her and making their lives just a little bit better along the way. If she is not out paddling, you might find her exploring hiking trails in the area or flying with her parachute over the tops of the hills. Her bucket list includes getting her pilot licence, competing in triathlons, volunteering, conquering many mountain peaks, and learning new languages. What about you? 🙂

Originally from Ontario, Shannon made the initial move out west in 2010. She has always had a passion for the outdoors, adventure sports and travel. In 2005, Shannon tried white water kayaking for the first time. After that, she was hooked. Since then, she has been able to experience rafting and white water kayaking in Canada, Ecuador and New Zealand.

I was born in Montreal, grew up in Nova Scotia, went to Fleming College in Ontario and then Acadia University in Nova Scotia. And most recently, I’ve been living in Banff for two and a half decades exploring and photographing some of the most remote areas in the Canadian Rockies.  I am Canadian!