Tales from the Cripps

I continue my conversation with Nathan Werner, this time delving into his transition into expedition kayaking and finding love for exploring the Rockies of Wyoming.

Today's episode's sponsors:

4Corners Riversports
4Corners Riversports is located in Durango, Colorado. They are a full service paddlesports retail and rental store! If you are looking to get on the water, look no further than 4Corners Riversports. ...

Nathan Werner has been a perennial whitewater kayaker across the Colorado and Southern Rockies regions for many years, until a tragic accident derailed his focused enthusiasm. This loquacious interview has called for a three part series. 

In this episode, we'll explore part 1 of the series, how Nathan's early enthusiasm for whitewater lead him to a career as a whitewater park designer. Find out why you keep flushing out of...

Darcy Gaechter generated a lot of talk when she became the first women to kayak the Amazon river from source to sea. That's why we're going to talk about none of that today, because Darcy has, for decades, been a core member of the whitewater kayaking scene in North and South America, with a massive resume of whitewater paddling accomplishments.

Today we sample some of her experiences, from preparing to run the S...

For some southeastern boys, the world is too big to stay in one place. Stan Prichard discovered a love for kayaking and the outdoors early in life and responded "hell yeah" to any offer that came his way. That attitude took him around the globe doing first descents, international class V classics, as well as pushing water levels on local classics. He did all this while still pursuing his love for skiing, climbing and outd...

Pedro Oliva had a dream when he was just a kid, that he was going to see the world and do something great. A good way to fulfill that dream? Be the guy that Ben Stookesberry can count on to always say "yes" to his next crazy mission.

That attitude propelled Pedro around the world on countless kayaking expeditions, gave him a brief stint as the world waterfall descent record holder, and landed him as the star of a...

From humble childhood float trips on the Colorado River to navigating some of the stoutest whitewater in Ecuador, Will Griffith has some stories to tell. In today's episode we might rattle a few cages discussing some controversial paddling behaviors, but there's no denying the paddling skills of Jamboy, and that he's made an imprint on the paddling scene. So open your ears, open your mind, open your heart, and let&ap...

Best interview with Emily Jackson of this year, or best interview with Emily Jackson ever? Take a listen, and you can be the judge.

Emily is part of one of the most quintessential whitewater kayaking families in the world today. She's an accomplished athlete, businesswoman, parent, and explorer of the world. Emily is nothing if not thoughtful and entertaining as we explore some nefarious travel stories, growing up in ...

Do we become more humble with age? My guest Leif Anderson says he has, but humility did not come easily. Let's go back to a time where a young and cocky Leif set out with a crew from Ft. Collins, CO to conquer the Arizona kayaking scene, in one short weekend.

This podcast was inspired by Leif and Evan's dueling blog entries from 2010, which you will not want to miss:
Leif's account
Evan's accoun...

Serrasolses Brothers River Co

    When people talk about the best whitewater kayaker in the world, the list is understandably short. But I doubt there's a list out there that doesn't include Aniol Serrasolses. He's made a name for himself pushing the limits of the sport in almost every aspect: inventing new downriver freestyle moves, first descents, styling huge vertical drops, and exploring the boundaries o...

Coto is back! It's been almost a year and a half since doing one of my favorite interviews with Andrey Coto in episode 9. When we last left him, he had dreams of starting a kayak school in his home town in Costa Rica, in order to pass along all the benefits he's received from kayaking to the next generation.

Coto fills us in on how to go to the Little White race and come home with a wad of cash, how to check 5 ka...

In this episode I sit down with Cody Howard for a ride through the undulations of life. Join us as we discuss: learning to kayak in the backyard pool, living through a piece of history in Fallujah,  unlocking whitewater runs in the elusive canyons of Arizona,  witnessing the world record waterfall descent in a kayak, and that's just scratching the surface.

0:00              Introduction
6:00              Learning ...

Whitewater kayaking doesn't get much more homegrown than the Demshitz. In this episode I sit down with one of the Demshitz founding fathers Dave Fusilli who proves that you can run the shit and not take yourself too seriously. Find out how Dave fulfilled his dream of living in a van down by the river and more.

If you just crawled out from a hole and this is the first time you've heard of the Demshitz, the intern...

Jessie Stone, a kayaker with a doctoring problem, joins me to talk about some of the adventures that she's stumbled into by following her impulse to go kayaking wherever it may take her. From getting lost in the jungle following Eric Jackson, to founding Soft Power Health and finding a lifelong career in Uganda, this episode is bound to make you want to grab your kayak and see where it takes you.

0:00              In...

In this episode we explore the world with Benny Clark. Benny kayaks to find peace and Benny kayaks to survive. We explore how Benny's mental health history and kayaking history have become intricately linked. And how Benny has found ways to give back both to the kayaking community and to a community struggling with their own mental health issues.

0:00               Introduction
7:05               Life in Ecuador

Who is Brad Higginbotham: Stunt man? Mad man? Lover? Naturalist? Cover boy? Educator? Family man?

Find out that and more in this episode of Tales from the Cripps with Whitewater of the Southern Rockies cover boy Brad Higginbotham.

0:00            Introduction
9:00            If I could just get off of that L.A. freeway
30:24         Rediscovering kayaking and more
43:00         Living in Washington st...

I had the good fortune to sit down with paddle maker, fitter and turner, kayaker, sailor, adventurer, and all around crazy Kiwi, Mike Nash. Listen as he shares some adventures: learning to kayak in New Zealand, sailing around the world, and his most dangerous adventure of all, learning to make kayak paddles.

Hammer Factor, eat your heart out, because in the last half of this episode we'll explore some of the technica...

As David Olson put it, when running the Jarbidge Bruneau section, a series of remote canyons in southern Idaho, "we always thought, ... what would happen out here, if we had an incident..." Well, David and his two companions decided to put that question to the test when they missed a critical portage eddy and dropped into the largest rapid on the run completely blind.

Timeline
0:00               A misadventur...

In late June through early July Orin and Rowan Gartner made their first descent down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon in kayaks. At age 10, Rowan tied Bodie Hilleke's record for the youngest known kayaking descent down the Grand Canyon. Orwin, at age 14, also made an impressively young descent. The flow for the trip was around 20,000 cfs, considered a high flow for the run.

Join me for a quick interview wit...

This bonus episode is a companion piece to episode 14 with Abe Herrera. When Abe described his experience with a rescue on the Foss River, he noted that a Canadian crew had a pin on the same log, but their river rescue took almost 2 hours.

Well, I searched far and wide and tracked down a couple of the Canucks who were involved in the rescue, and they're here to tell their story.

This story from 2014 was writ...