Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, August 21, 1994 TAG: 9408230026
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: E11 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOSEF FEDERMAN ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Idaho's crystal-clear Salmon River runs through God's country. And when travelers float down the Salmon's Middle Fork with guide Mark Finley, they ride with a Roman Catholic priest.
``Once people find out, they want to ride with me. They say, `If anybody's safe, it's got to be this boat,''' Finley said.
Finley is among thousands who spend their weekends and vacations working as river guides, leading about 2 million tourists a year through the nation's white water from the New River in West Virginia to the Grand Canyon in Arizona.
Most of America's 20,000 river guides are part-timers, said David Brown, executive director of America Outdoors, a trade organization with members in 32 states.
Guides must know first aid and complete a number of practice runs mandated by the states, Brown said. But individual outfitters often have much higher standards.
``We require five to six years of whitewater experience. They also must go through a week of advanced wilderness training and learn how to talk to guests,'' said Ken Howle, spokesman for Nantahala Outdoor Center in Bryson City, N.C.
Year-round guides often spend their winters on warmer rivers in Australia or South America.
Teachers and college students, off for the summer, drift toward summer jobs. But doctors, accountants, executives and priests can be found on the river part-time.
``It doesn't require a tie. It's a great way to blow off the stress from the business world,'' said Don Freeland, a USAir marketing executive in Cleveland. ``It's also very rewarding to be part of someone's vacation, not only keeping them entertained, but keeping them safe.''
Two weekends a month, Freeland flies 300 miles to his native West Virginia to guide tours along the New River and Gauley River, home of some of the roughest rapids in the country. He receives little more than minimum wage.
Such dedication is not uncommon.
``Most guides were introduced to whitewater rafting at a young age, decided it was something they wanted to pursue during their college years and never entirely gave it up,'' said Greg Edson, a partner in Middle Fork Rapid Transit in Twin Falls, Idaho.
Edson's nine guides lead excursions along the Middle Fork of the Salmon River, a 100-mile trip over several days that passes through forests, desert and canyons in the largest wilderness area in the contiguous United States.
His guides include a doctor, a lawyer and Finley.
``I started when I was 19, did it during my summers in college and even spent my four summers of theology school guiding,'' said Finley, 40, who leads two or three tours a year. ``It kind of gets in your blood.''
Finley, who runs the Roman Catholic student center at the University of Idaho in Moscow, spends most of the year behind a desk. He said his experience as a spiritual guide is helpful as a river guide.
``I always try to remind people you have to let the river take you. Let it sort of cleanse you and take out the things that are burdening you,'' he said. ``Most people seem to be enamored by the whole thing. They find it refreshing because it's not their typical experience with a priest.''
Every guide has his own way of showing his crew a good time. Sometimes it's a history lesson.
The New River, for example, is lined with abandoned mining towns from the turn of the century. There are tales of the Civil War, labor wars and the world's longest poker game (14 years).
The guides have to be ready for almost anything in the river, including unexpected boulders and currents.
Just don't ask the guides about their regular jobs.
``This is an escape from the real world,'' said Jeff Maxwell, 32, a veterinarian from Oak Hill, W.Va. ``I get bummed out when people call me `Doc.' I just want to be a river guide.''
The Colorado River, which snakes through the Grand Canyon, seems to attract scientific types as guides, said Mike Denoyer, owner of Grand Canyon Expeditions Co. in Kanab, Utah.
``We have folks who teach at universities, some engineers, geology type of folks and Ph.D.s,'' he said.
In the East, where trips tend to run a day or two, it's easier for professionals to find the time to guide.
``They have a common thread of love for the river,'' said Dave Arnold, a managing partner of Class VI Ltd. in Lansing, about 50 miles east of Charleston, W.Va., ``and love for showing people a good time.''
by CNB