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Chloe
Raft Guide
Echo Staff & Guides
Matt
Raft Guide
Berto
Raft Guide
Ricky
Raft Guide
Freddy
Raft Guide
Alfredo
Raft Guide
Thor
Shuttle Driver
Ben Sack
General Manager
Joe
Raft Guide
Charlie
Raft Guide
Spencer
Raft Guide
Michelle
Office Staff
Jac
Raft Guide
Andy Neinas
Owner
Don
Shuttle Driver
Craig
Raft Guide
Josh
Raft Guide
Gerj
Raft Guide
Jenny
Raft Guide
Lex
Raft Guide
Stephen
Raft Guide
Truelove
Raft Guide
Bridget
Raft Guide
Grant
Raft Guide
Jake
Raft Guide
Kieran
Raft Guide
Lillian
Raft Guide
Kaycee
Raft Guide
Nick
Raft Guide
Trevor
Raft Guide
Ellis
Raft Guide
Dillon
Raft Guide Dillon
Gil
Raft Guide
Karl
Raft Guide
Karson
Raft Guide Karson
Mikayla
Raft Guide
Patrick
Raft Guide
Ritchie
Raft Guide
Jef
Raft Guide
Colton
Raft Guide
West
Raft Guide
Wilco
Raft Guide
Peter
Raft Guide
Chloe
Raft Guide
Chloe is from Tucson, Arizona and trained in 2011. Before guiding on the Arkansas she spent time guiding in Oregon, California, Idaho and Washington. When Chloe was six years old she met a guide named Amy on a rafting trip through Gates of Lodore. She describes her as short but strong and it left an impression so lasting Chloe herself was inclined to be a guide. She refers to a quote “no man steps in the same river twice” explaining how, as a guide, we may do the same thing everyday, but the river is constantly changing. In the winters, Chloe resides in Breckenridge, Colorado working as a dog sled guide.
Matt
Raft Guide
Matt is a Cañon City native currently working at Cañon City High. He teaches U.S. history, woodshop and coaches football. He has been rafting on the Arkansas River since 1999, making him one of our most senior guides! Matt especially enjoys the massive waves that inhabit the Royal Gorge during our high water season, and come low water season he fly fishes his way through the sheer cliff walls. He enjoys other rivers in Colorado as well including: the Animas, the Blue, and of course the Colorado River. In his free time you’ll almost always find Matt outside, skiing, fishing, mountain biking or spending time with his wife, son, and dog.
Berto
Raft Guide
He’s been guiding rafts for over 30 years! That’s not a typo, folks; more than 30 years of guiding experience! There’s no place he’d rather be than rafting the Royal Gorge with a paddle crew. As Berto says, “It just keeps getting better every year.” Believe it or not, he has other interests aside from rafting. He enjoys going for hikes with his dog while camping in the Cañon City area, and during the heart of winter he heads to Arizona where he and his parents search out and map Native American ruins. He’s also an avid reader and makes weekly trips to the library to feed that passion. He’s a talented and very knowledgeable senior guide and we feel fortunate to get to boat with him.
Ricky
Raft Guide
Coming all the way from Orlando, Florida, Ricky joined Echo in 2015. He came to Colorado after working as a cook in Alaska, in order to be outside and out of the blazing hot kitchen! Ricky thoroughly enjoys travelling; he has visited many places including Australia, Thailand, Japan, Columbia, and the Caribbean. Ricky’s favorite part of the river is the noise the water makes, as it ebbs and flows and becomes incredibly enchanting. Ricky plans to continue rafting and travelling in the future, he hopes to eventually run the Futaleufú in northern Patagonia. In the winter, Ricky works as a dog sled guide and his favorite dog and best friend is Dragon.
Freddy
Raft Guide
Freddy is originally from Brookfield, Wisconsin and loves cheese. He has been a guide since 2015 and his favorite part of the river is getting to meet people from all over the world. In his free time, Freddy enjoys hanging out with the boys, playing poker, watching baseball, and wine tours in the Catalina. Freddy is one of our most creative guides and loves to plan activities for the Echo family. One day, he hopes to see world peace.
Alfredo
Raft Guide
Alfredo is from Beaumont, Texas. He currently attends Lamar University, is a member of the University Cheerleading team and is ultimately pursuing a career in physiology. Rafting has been a passion of his ever since he went for the first time with his Boy Scout troop over a decade ago. Now Alfredo is one of our trainers here at Echo! One fun fact is that he is fairly fluent in Spanish. So if you want to come rafting but are more comfortable in that language have no fear! In his free time he enjoys fishing, cycling, working out and Disney movies.
Thor
Shuttle Driver
Thor has been here at Echo since before most of our guides were born. He’s known for his impressive trailer backing skills and his awesome handlebar mustache! He’ll always volunteer for the longer drive assignments and he can’t wait for the next river season to start. Thor lives in Cañon City and is a proud Dad and Grandpa. We hope he sticks around Echo a long time.
Ben Sack
General Manager
Ben is the General Manager of Echo Canyon and began working with us in 1994 as a first year raft guide. He keeps busy at Echo with staffing, marketing and social media, but his favorite part of the job is guiding rafts. His home town is Omaha, Nebraska. And in his free free time he likes spending time with his wife, two sons and furry canines. Ben feels very lucky have been able to take so many wonderful rafters down the river, and also that he gets to work with a great group of people.
Joe
Raft Guide
Joe came to Echo in 2014. Originally from New Hampshire, Joe spends his winters working for Ski Patrol at Arapahoe Basin. Not only does Joe enjoy shredding the gnarliest lines on the snow but also on the river. Rafting entices Joe because sometimes (a lot of times) you get to go places that you can only get to on a boat; the Royal Gorge being a prime example. Aside from being remote, the Gorge also creates a draw for Joe by virtue of the spectacular scenery, numerous bighorn sheep, and adrenaline pumping rapids. Why raft with Joe? He will tell you a tale of the van he used to live in and comfort you with his safety talks.
Charlie
Raft Guide
Charlie is from Miami, Florida, attended Florida State University and graduated with a degree in Sociology. He was inspired to be a River guide on his very first rafting trip on the Inn River in Austria while on a backpacking trip through Europe; after which he knew he would be a raft guide. He came to Colorado to train with Echo in 2012 because he had read so much about our superior safety standards and intensive training. Charlie loves rafting because of the challenges it presents. He is a huge chess fan and it turns out you can use many of the same skills in both avocations. Both rafting and chess require you to think several moves ahead, if your opponent unravels the puzzle before you, you lose. Charlie enjoys exploring these challenges. He is also passionate about Political Science and skiing and spent last winter living and working in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Spencer
Raft Guide
Spencer has been guiding for the last two decades. He is an eccentric renaissance man, artist, painter, illustrator, poet, playwright, actor, writer, director, MC, photographer, and all around creative whirlwind. Spencer is also an accomplished Eagle Scout, mountaineer, chocolatier, rock climber, mountain biker, snowboarder, skier, and whitewater ninjedi lunatic. When in the real world, Spencer is a librarian in downtown Cañon City, Colorado. Spencer is always hard at work and play.
Michelle
Office Staff
Michelle is our most experienced reservationist at Echo Canyon. She’s worked here since 1996! Michelle can help a guest with questions and complete a phone reservation faster than the average raft run through Sunshine Rapid (average Sunshine run time is 16.9 seconds with a light breeze and moderate river flow). Okay, maybe we’re exaggerating a little, but she’s pretty fast! She’s a teacher at RE-1 School District when not at Echo. She also likes to travel, spend time with her niece and she’s a huge fan of anything Disney.
Jac
Raft Guide
Jac is from Columbus, Ohio, and studied Social Work at Capital University. Her mom took her on her first rafting adventure down the Gauley when she was 16 years old and ever since she was hooked. She came to Echo in 2015 to train, and earned the nickname “Corndog” after eating 38 corn dogs after a particularly long day of training. One day, Jac hopes to climb all of Colorado’s 14ers, powered exclusively by corn dogs.
Andy Neinas
Owner
Andy is our fearless leader and owner of Echo Canyon. He grew up in Boulder, Colorado, and started guiding rafts while in school, just like a lot of our guides today. Now let’s not do any math on his age, but he’s been working in the rafting industry for the past three decades years, the second half of which as the owner of Echo. He’s very active and dedicated to the industry as a whole, involved in the Colorado River Outfitters Association, Arkansas River Outfitters Association, Pikes Peak Country Area Attractions and Colorado Springs Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, just to name a few. He absolutely loves floating rivers (he picked the right profession, right?), and he gets on the river every chance he gets. He and his wife, Karen, have three kids who all play a role in the business as well. They love being able to raise their kids in the fun environment of a rafting company. In his spare time he enjoys spending time with family. All of us here at Echo feel fortunate to work with Andy.
Don
Shuttle Driver
Don worked for the federal government for 22 years, retired, and then he realized that he’s not very good at being retired. So he got his Commercial Driver’s License and started driving buses for Echo Canyon in the summers and for the school district the rest of the year. Before and after work, Don enjoys riding ATVs, checking out old ghost towns, and visiting his four daughters.
Craig
Raft Guide
From Akron, Ohio (home of LeBron James), Craig trained at Echo Canyon in 2015. He has previously taught history at Northwest High School in Ohio. Craig loves history; he feels the greatest thing about it is that it’s made everyday. His favorite historical event just might be the Cavaliers 2016 NBA Championship run, we aren’t sure we’ve ever seen someone more excited! Craig enjoys rafting because he gets to crack jokes with the boys while also crushing big waves. Eventually he dreams of going down the Grand Canyon and the Congo River. Craig also wants to eventually visit all the National Parks, he has already knocked out 17 of them! DOWN WITH THE DAMS! FREE THE RIVERS!
Josh
Raft Guide
Josh has been a guide since 2016, hails from Cañon City and is attending University of Colorado, Boulder. When training at Echo we spend a substantial amount of time swimming and cultivating the skills to flip boats over that occasionally capsize. Josh found this component of training to be especially exhilarating! Travelling will likely be a big part of Josh’s future; until then if you’re lucky enough to have him as your river guide you’ll see that he has the biggest dimples on the Arkansas River.
Gerj
Raft Guide
Gerj (we know, sounds like a made up name) joined us in 2016 from Libertyville, Illinois. He graduated from Illinois State with a Bachelor of Science and Environmental Health. Throughout college Gerj was a member of the Gamma Phi Circus, now how about that! He hopes to eventually be an adventure guide, which would allow him to take all the outdoor skills he has acquired to places all over the world. Gerj is particularly drawn to the beauty of nature and the intensity of the rapids the Arkansas holds. He also has a passion for snowboarding, backpacking, hiking, in addition to a deep awareness of being environmentally conscious.
Jenny
Raft Guide
Jenny graduated from Kansas State University where she ran cross country and track. She is from Fulton, Missouri, and has been guiding at Echo since 2016. Jenny had been studying all night and at 3 am in the morning googled cool jobs in Colorado; the rest is history! She loves being outside all day and can’t wait for the upcoming summer!
Lex
Raft Guide
Lex is from Sarasota and Athens Greece. She recently started whitewater kayaking and fell in love; and from that point she knew she wanted to work on the river. Lex wants to do something that allows her to teach people who don’t normally go outdoors how to be outdoors. She graduated from Clemson with a degree in Parks and Recreation and Tourism Management and has been guiding at Echo since 2016. During the winters, she has lived in Breckenridge, Colorado, and Jackson, Wyoming.
Stephen
Raft Guide
Stephen is from Muskogee, Oklahoma, attends Oklahoma State and is currently studying Finance and Accounting. He came to raft in 2016 because he wanted to learn how to read whitewater, once he did he realized how valuable his experience here as a guide has been. Stephen wishes more people knew how to read water, to know why you are where you are at any given moment in time. Someday Stephen hopes to own his own business; until then, he spends his free time hunting and having a good time with his friends.
Truelove
Raft Guide
Morgan Truelove is from Traverse City, Michigan. He attended Central Michigan University and studied Secondary Education, English and Math. Truelove works as a teacher in Loveland at Lucile Erwin Middle School and has been guiding since 2010. When he isn’t rafting you can probably find Truelove rock climbing, ice climbing, or drinking copious amounts of coffee. Rocky Mountain National Park is his favorite place in the world, he could spend an infinite amounts of time there with his wife. When it comes to rafting he of course loves all the big waves during our high water season and the family aspect the river community lends.
Bridget
Raft Guide
Bridget is from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. She majored in psychology in school and plans to get her master abroad in Ireland and then teach. Bridget had never done anything like raft guiding before coming to Echo Canyon River Expeditions in 2017 and she was ready for a new adventure. Being able to learn new skills during the summers is probably her favorite part about her time here. Aside from rafting, Bridget also plays lacrosse, field hockey, and the guitar. Eventually she wants to hike the El Camino trail through the entirety Spain! Her advice for those of you looking to come train, “use your fear to fuel you!”
Grant
Raft Guide
Grant is originally from Chicago but spent most his childhood in Utah. He studies film at Utah Valley and ultimately would like to direct movies. Grant has always liked movies, especially the artistic side. Grant was inspired to be a raft guide after going on a class V rafting trip in New Zealand. His guide’s name was Ants, which is short for Anthony in Kiwi. Grant decided right then and there that he wanted to be doing the same thing, and trained at Echo in 2017. In the future he wants to go to Gauley Fest and Gore Canyon. His favorite movie is No Country for Old Men and if you hop on his boat you can discuss all the great movies with him!
Jake
Raft Guide
Jake joined Echo in 2017. Hailing from the great state of Missouri, weighing in at 145 lbs, Jake enjoys ice cream, labradoodles, and silks from the Orient. He was inspired to become a raft guide because his father was a river guide, and his grandmother worked on a fishing boat in Nova Scotia. When he is not on the river, Jake enjoys working as a reservationist in our office, answering your questions about the Arkansas river and its world class whitewater. Contrary to popular belief, Jake is not, in fact, Jake from State Farm.
Kieran
Raft Guide
Kieran, born and raised in Alaska, graduated from CSU Boulder where he studied mass communications. Before coming to be a raft guide in 2016, Kieran worked in Echo Canyon’s photo department, producing and editing videos. Watching his friends go raft everyday wasn’t easy though so he made the decision to train. He just couldn’t sit in a dark room while all his friends were on the river. Aside from rafting, Kieran likes snowboarding, rock climbing, and mountain biking. Goals for the future? He hopes to travel internationally, and experience as much as possible.
Lillian
Raft Guide
Lillian, another California local, attends UC Boulder. She is currently studying environmental studies and geography. Lillian plans to pursue outdoor education. She decided to come guide so that she could spend an entire summer outside. Lillian loves to be on the water; working a job that allows her to be on the river everyday, live with her peers, and become close with the people that she works with turned out to be the best profession choice she’s made yet! Before guiding, she was working an equally exciting job as a backpacking guide at Filmont in New Mexico. Why raft with Lillian? Well, she’s got spicy lines, a positive mental attitude and a little bit of mystery, you’ll just have to get on her boat to find out more!
Kaycee
Raft Guide
Kaycee is from Lake Forrest Washington and attends CU Boulder. She is currently studying Sociology and hopes to make the outdoor industry more accessible in the future. KC became a guide to spend all summer outside, but one of the best parts was the fantastic group of people she got to spend it with. While her future is currently open ended she does plan to go back to school, and wait until next summer, where her only responsibility is to go rafting.
Nick
Raft Guide
Nick is a Canon City local, currently attending Colorado Mesa. He studies Radiologic Technology and hopes to work in a hospital after he graduates. Nick has a brother that was a guide on the Animus in Durango, which was a large contributing factor in Nick wanting to be a raft guide; that and the fact that he gets to spend all his time with his best friends Phil and Josh. Nick loved growing up in Canon City and it’s even better when he gets to take people out on a trip and show them the beautiful area he grew up in. He will be back in school this winter, and then back to rafting in the summer!
Trevor
Raft Guide
Wisconsin born and bred, Trevor is a second year guide with us here at Echo Canyon. The drive to be a guide was sparked by a rafting trip in Aspen where Trevor says he had the time of his life. Perviously, he’d been working a salary job when he realized he needed some years of adventure under his belt. Aside from being on the water Trevor participates in as many outdoor sports as he can. Mountain biking and rock climbing being a few of many. This winter Trevor plans to travel to California then the Virgin Islands, in hopes of avoiding the Wisconsin winter. You’ll know it’s Trevor if you ever see a 1984 Volkswagen with a license plate that says “pizza”, if you see him give him a wave!
Ellis
Raft Guide
Ellis, from Mocksville, North Carolina, is a student at Appalachian State University and is studying Recreational Tourism Entrepreneurship. In his free time he volunteers at the local nursing home teaching knitting classes. Ellis loves to brag about how great he is at knitting scarves and is gung ho to share his story of the knit-off he had with a woman named Diane. Some of his other hobbies include running really fast, playing fortnite with his pals, and hiking.
Dillon
Raft Guide Dillon
Dillon a.k.a. Big Pickle is another Kirschbaum brother and is also from the land of 10,000 lakes. Dillon is our most famous employee here at Echo because he was in a brief relationship with none other than Kylie Jenner (yes we’re serious). He is known for his classic “WOOTIEWOOP” saying which you will probably hear if you’re on a raft with him. Dillon is also sponsored by Monster and you probably won’t find him without one in the mornings, between his trips, and of course with dinner. He is headed out to Hawaii in the off season to become a snorkelling guide.
Gil
Raft Guide
A native to Cañon City, Gillian is the youngest guide at Echo Canyon! She is going into her first year of college at the University of Denver and is going for a major in international studies. Gillian was the valedictorian at her high school and has been playing soccer for as long as she can remember. She has a special place in her heart for Cristiano Ronaldo and hopes that he’ll see this and give her a call. In her freetime, Gillian likes to hang out with Rosa, her best friend in the entire world, go rock climbing, and go hiking.
Karl
Raft Guide
Karlyn a.k.a. Karl comes straight outta Wisconsin and is a huge advocate for everything in her state. She’s studying nursing and loves to treat everyone’s booboos here at Echo Canyon. While on the boat with Karl you’ll notice her very strong accent, so be sure to have her say “bag” for you at least 5 times. She loves to give speeches about her favorite foods like cheese curds, yogurt, and the fact that she loves eating bread in the mornings. As Karl likes to say, WISCONSIN OR DIE!
Karson
Raft Guide Karson
The Karson Kosanke is from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and has lived on a big ranch with his 7 siblings his whole life. Karson was homeschooled by his beloved mother from 1st grade all the way until high school. You’ll usually recognize him based on his one of a kind fashion sense. He is a huge jorts and cowboy boots fan and if he had it his way he would wear them down the river. Karson is taking a gap year to “find himself” while working at Keystone doing Mountain Safety. He can play four different instruments: the flute, the french horn, the guitar, and the classic piano.
Mikayla
Raft Guide
Mikayla, born and raised in Iowa City, Iowa is going to school in Ely, MN, at Vermilion College and is studying Wilderness and Parks Management. She is a strong advocate for the Boundary Waters of northern Minnesota, and decided to ditch the canoe trips and become a guide here at Echo Canyon. In her freetime she likes to go on adventures with her partner in crime, Ritchie. She also loves thrift shopping and finding random dogs to pet at the park. You’ll recognize Mikayla with her super cool sunglasses, and an extremely colorful fashion sense. GO HAWKS!
Patrick
Raft Guide
Born and raised in the wonderful city of St. Louis, MO, Patrick got tired of the midwest and decided to move out to Colorado! Patrick trained in Costa Rica whitewater rafting before joining the Echo Canyon family. He is a true Piano Man – he’s been playing for over 16 years! When he’s not jamming away on the piano, you can find him outside doing outdoorsy things. He loves backpacking, hiking, hanging out with his best friends Benji and Karson, and listening to music. Patrick works at Keystone doing mountain safety and is a huge fan of telling all his thrilling mountain stories. So don’t be afraid to ask, he doesn’t bite!
Ritchie
Raft Guide
A Colorado native, Ritchie is from the Denver area and has lived in the mountains for her whole life. She attends CU Boulder and is working on getting her degree in Biblical Studies. She enjoys long walks in the park with her pet pig, Pig Floyd. Her most recent hobby has been partaking in basket weaving at the local community center. She hopes to one day get good enough to be able to underwater basket weave.
Jef
Raft Guide
Jef is a first year guide at Echo Canyon and is going into her last year of school at the University of Michigan. She studies Behavioral Neuroscience and uses that knowledge to attempt to communicate with the bighorn sheep. She decided to become a raft guide because she believes splashing and laughing soothes the soul. In her free time Jef likes to go on long drives through the mountains by herself to see if she can find the bighorn sheep to test her magical powers.
Colton
Raft Guide
Colton “the man” Kirschbaum is from the beautiful state of Minnesota, but he spends ¾ of the year surrounded by corn fields while he attends Iowa State University, majoring in Floral Studies. He’s a HUGE frolfer guy and loves to throw disks around with his totally rad brother, Dillon. He loves going on long walks on the beach, especially when the sun is setting over the tall stalks of corn in the distance. He likes ice cream cones and enjoys a nice pair of slacks.
West
Raft Guide
West is from Richmond, Virginia, and oh man, that southern accent makes it pretty obvious that he’s just a good ol’ country boy. Currently, West is enrolled at Eastern Kentucky University and is getting his major in Recreation and Park Administration with a concentration in Natural Resource Management. As all good ol’ country boys do, West spends his free time hunting and fishing with his buddies. West decided to come out and be a guide because of the fact that he loves Colorado and he loves to spread his knowledge of fish/animal species with his guests!
Wilco
Raft Guide
Coming from the peach state, Wilco is a student at Georgia Tech when he’s not splashing his way down the Arkansas River. He’s studying Mechanical Engineering and is going into his junior year of college. He has many hidden talents up his sleeve and enjoys playing chess and rock climbing with his best friend Peter whenever he has free time. Wilco is also in a band at school and has BIG dreams of becoming a famous musician. Don’t be afraid to ask for a private concert – Wilco loves to sing to people as they go down the river!
Peter
Raft Guide
Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater is from California and is a teacher when he’s not taking families down the Arkansas River. You’ll notice that he is a very active guy and can balance on things that very few people can. Peter is one of the best rock climbers that we have here at Echo Canyon, but that’s not all that Peter does. Some other activities include surfing in CA, hiking, hitting the skatepark with his buddy Keiran, and doing random things with his bestie Wilco.