Recent Posts from ECHO Staff
We Raft by Jacob Judd
In that valley, where eagles fly Where the river cuts our path Where flies buzz And fish swim We raft We start in the morning We end before dark Through rapids and forests And sometimes just floating We raft We start off the day By packing our tents And then we are ready To head out again We raft We reach the new camp We set up again Maybe take a nap In a chair by the bank We rest When all is quiet And the...
Lake Creek Blowout on the Middle Fork
First hand account of the Lake Creek blowout and Pistol Creek logjam that occured on July 26, 2006 by ECHO guide Colleen Winters. We camped at Fire Island, the night before Lake Creek blew out and caused the total closure of the river, due to a logjam. Lightning colored the sky in the early morning, but few raindrops came down on our camp. We left Fire Island around 9:30 and started floating down the river just like any other day. As we approached Lake creek, a...
Special 3 or 4 Day Middle Fork Trips
The Middle Fork of the Salmon is normally a 5 or 6 day trip covering 75 or 100 miles. There is no road access to the river between the put-in point and the take-out. But there are some airstrips along the river, and we are using two of these to offer shorter trips. MIDDLE FORK 4-DAY TRIP August 20 - 23, 2006 $1295 per person On this trip we begin by flying in to the Thomas airstrip at the Middle Fork Lodge and floating 65 miles...
What's Up With the Guide School?
From the ECHO World Headquarters in Oakland, we can only speculate how the Idaho Guide School is going, but we spend plenty of time discussing it. The Idaho school is a 9-day guide training course on the Middle Fork of the Salmon and the Main Salmon. Both rivers have been flowing at mid-to high water levels this past week which adds an extra element of excitement and challenge to their river adventure. We are sure they are finding plenty of opportunities for learning, gaining experience, and...
Guide School Ends on April Fools Day
We just finished our 2006 Oregon/California guide school on April Fools Day after a week of rain and boating. Our Oregon crew reports a good time, cold weather, some great new friendships, lots of boating, and a great April Fools Prank. One of our younger students, Mack, came to us with a serious cold and a 100 degree fever which he failed to mention to us until our third day on the Rogue. His parents called the office a number of times worried about him, but...
ECHO Guide School Featured in Paddler Magazine
The March/April issue of Paddler Magazine features an article about ECHO's 2005 guide school. Written by Laura Stavoe, the article is from the point of view of a forty-something mother of twin boys who joins the school in part to overcome her fears of white water. Laura tells a good story of having to deal with the cold, the rain, the hard work and the anxiety of spending eight days learning the basics of guiding on the Rogue and Tuolumne in March. The learning curve is...
In Search of Brokeback Mountain
Many of our guests ask what our guides do in the off-season. Well, this season Jeremy Matlock and Adam Farmer spent their time working on a short film titled "In Search of Brokeback Mountain." Jeremy sent a copy to ECHO World Headquarters here in Oakland a few weeks ago and we loved it. We are very proud of the many surprising talents of our guides. The following is a synopsis of the film: A desire he couldn't ignore. A love they wouldn't deny. Jeremy Matlock stars...
Skunkcapades: ECHO Guide Traps Dangerous Beast
Adam Farmer, ECHO guide and Oregon River manager, is spending the winter at ECHO's luxurious doublewide mobile home near the Rogue River. All was well until a very distinct smell told him that skunks had moved into the space below the trailer. Now Adam had a challenge that would put his degree in business from UC Davis to the test. How does one get rid of a skunk without hurting it or making it mad? The first ploy, recommended by the local game warden, was to...
Rogue River peaks at 100,000 cfs
The Rogue River peaked last night at 100,000 cfs after a few days of warm rain. During the summer, we float down the river at 1,000 to 5,000 cfs so this is as much as 100 times as much water than we normally see floating down the canyon! This is great news for the Rogue because these high flows are above the level of most of our camps. The high water revitalizes the sandy beaches by depositing more sediment(sand) and making our camps bigger and cleaner....
2006 Bluegrass on Whitewater
Laurie Lewis and Tom Rozum will once again be joining us for a three day trip on the Tuolumne River that we like to call "Bluegrass on Whitewater." We spend each day paddling down the Class IV rapids of the Tuolumne during the day. When we reach camp, our guides prepare delicious meals while the group goes swimming, hiking, or simply taking in the beautiful setting. Each night Laurie and Tom play their favorite tunes. On the last day, we wake up by the North Fork...
