Michael Hughes
Recent Posts from Michael
Pro Tip: Prepping For The River Season
With the days nice and long, the temperatures warming up, and the snow starting to melt it is almost river season. Unless you spend the winter months on the river your first day on the river may be coming up soon. Here are some helpful tips to make sure your first day on the water isn't a flop. Inflate Your Boat For those that keep their boats inflated and on a...
Paddle Sports in the COVID-19 Era Wrap Up
When COVID started shutting everything down just over a year ago it seemed like there would be two possible outcomes. Things would be back to normal in a couple of weeks or things would turn to a Mad Max-esque post-apocaliptic world. While neither of those scenarios played out, it has been fun to chat with people from different corners of the paddling world to see how it played out for some....
Paddle Sports in the COVID-19 Era Pt. 7
This week I chatted with my friend Val over at LEAP to see what sort of challenges she faced in the 2020 season. Tell me a little about yourself and your job with LEAP? Maybe include a little how you got to your current job as well as what LEAP does. Well my name Val Pufahl. I am the Executive Director at LEAP. I started with LEAP in 2017 as the...
Paddle Sports in the COVID-19 Era Pt. 6
We continue our journey through the paddle sports world this week with my friend David "Wawi" Alejandro Riquelme Vega from Futaleufu Chile. An international guide extraordinaire that has had his eyes on the COVID situation from Chile to Canada. Tell me a little about yourself and your job both as a guide and campground owner. River guide for the past 19 years guiding day trips on the Futaleufú River with Patagonia...
Paddle Sports in the COVID-19 Era Pt. 5
This week our journey through the paddle sports world in the COVID era has brought to raft training and education. I chatted with international training guru Mark Hirst about what this last year as looked like. Tell me a little about yourself and your job/company? Maybe include a little how you got to your current job. My name is Mark Hirst. I am originally from the city of Manchester uk. I...
Paddle Sports in the COVID-19 Era Pt. 4
This week I spoke with the Executive Director of American Whitewater, Mark Singleton. As we have learned over the past few weeks, getting outside was popular in 2020. Let's see what Mark has to say from the river conservation side of things. Tell me a little about yourself and your job with American Whitewater? Maybe include a little how you got to your current job. I’ve been a life-long paddler, as...
Paddle Sports in the COVID-19 Era Pt. 3
The U.S. saw record numbers of unemployed people last spring, into the summer, and through now. While everyone was wondering what was going to happen many people in the recreation and tourism sector were trying to see if there was a way to keep travel open. Guides across the country sat and wondered what was going to happen to their season and the number of cases and deaths rose around the...
Paddle Sports in the COVID-19 Era Pt. 2
This week I chatted with my friend Seth over at Next Adventure to see what has been going on with COVID there. Stay up to date with them via Instagram @paddlenextadventure. Tell me a little about yourself and your job? Maybe include a little how you got to your current job. My official title is Next Adventure Paddle Sports CenterStore Manager, I also manage and create the paddling content for Next...
Paddle Sports in the COVID-19 Era Pt. 1
I have been curious how COVID-19 has impacted the paddle sports world. While it has closed some doors, some areas seems to be thriving. My buddy Jake over at Immersion Research happily gave me his insight to how 2020 went, how 2021 is looking, and what the roller coaster of the last 12-months has been. Tell us a little about yourself and your current job at Immersion Research. My name is...
Classic River Books
While none of these books made the New York Times Best Seller list, at least I am going to assume that, I found some real gems amongst the books shelves. All of these books are long out of print, and a little outdated, but worth taking a look at. These books are filled with great photos, drawings, river information, and gear to check out. The Big Drops: Ten Legendary Rapids Robert...
