July 8- 14

Summer time here on the Salmon River and warm clothing seems a thing of the past. Strong group with a lot of solid progress and this, combined with a super amiable group, made the guide's jobs very rewarding! Perone was in full court this week and it was a pleasure seeing Karen as well as Michael Cummings and Bill Kraft. The food just seems to get better and Dan and Mary have set the bar on welcoming guests into the kitchen. We were mostly still on the salmon with a finale on the Dillon to Sandy Bar stretch. I have been seeing lots of Salmon in the deeper pools and the diving/swimming has been wonderful. Thank you all for coming!  p

July 1 - 7

       Fantastic week. Very solid crew with some strong beginners who rocked it this week. Weather, flows, instruction, food, comraderie, etc were off the charts. We were, once again on the Salmon all week with a finale on the Dillon to Sandy bar section. The Klamath has finally come in and it is great to be able to get on it as the flows have been too high previous to this week. Superb wildlife sightings down there with the birdlife and fish action in abundance. Great having Pete and Cathy back in addition to the Stephanie and Jennifer team who kept the guides on their toes. Lots of new folks this week, as well and the father son team of Jordan and Ethan were a delight to watch excel at the sport. Mike raised the bar, as well, on the beginner front! Not to forget the amazing B-Rad and Milling's roll at the bottom of sandy Bar took the cake. Thanks for coming!!

June 24 - 30 2012

    We are midway through are season and, thanks to groups lie this one, business has been good! A super fun and amiable group of folks this week and the comraderie and vibe were over the top. Lots of repeats and it was fun having Beth and Bill and Sheryl back again! Nahanni also kept us entertained as well as the antics of Frank Colver who spent the week testing his electric motor cycle in the high elevations around the lodge. We had nine new folks, as well and special mention goes to John Moragne who generously plied the entire group with wonderful wines all week. In the culinary department Dan and Mary really hit their stride this week and their open and loving approach to the entire food experience was duly noted by all. Of course, without the instructors I would really be loving life (just kidding) and they were spot on with the program on all levels. We will miss Grum sorely, although Kristy and I plan to catch up with him at some wedding in Virginia. Thanks for coming and making this life possible for us!

June 17 - 23

We were on the Salmon all week and the flows have, once again, been perfect. Lovely blue/green week with a spot of rainy weather at the end of the week Solid group of people and it was a great week of paddling, eating and comraderie. There was a significant women's group consisting of Ione, Carol, Denita and Linda who paddled together and kept the guides (Grum, PK, Daan, Jess and Mary) on their toes and the hilarity meter was pegged. It was great seeing Joanne do so well in her prep for the Grand Canyon! Good on ya Joanne! It was a pleasure having Dan and Elizabeth once again (nice photo Dan) as well as Tristan (great kid) and Kurt all long term repeat guests. Lots of cool people this week who were a pleasure to have around and some super nice new folk as well! The days were spent mainly on the Salmon with the lower river, the Ikes and Butler as the highlights. Dan and Mary once again did a slam dunk in the kitchen and we so appreciate their super personal approach and terrific food! They ROCK! Thank you all for coming!!  peter

June 10 - 16

It was quite a week! The Cheney clan didn't disappoint,once again, as non stop laughter and fun was the norm. We also had Gordon Bainbridge, Amanda Tucker and Drew Thate who were great sports to put up with all the hilarity complete with musical accompaniment. Drew did a spectacular exit via his private helicopter as the children were wearing on him towards the end of the week. I guess that's how those Montana people roll. He was sorely missed and we wish him well.  Craig Cheney gave a wonderful but subtle final speech that will never never be forgotten for, what he didn't say was clear to all. Great flows, weather, food and instruction reigned supreme. And, not only was it Carolyn's birthday, but the joyous news of a new addition to the family was announced early in the week! THANKS FOR COMING!!

June 3-9

         Solid week for us with a full group! Heidi and Brian Oblander with Mark Cenovich made the scene once again and their passion for the sport is obvious. Fun seeing leslie Iorillo again (thanks for the killer newsletter) as well as Marie Monrad and her super fun daughter Zoe who haven't been here for a few years. We had great flows but it turned out to be a pretty chilly week towards the end with the advent of a cold front. Very game crew, though, as everything was in! Tony Lunt and his good friend Ariane were a delight and seemed to really love the scene here. Great meeting Thom Stineman, Barry Krumholz and Peter Niemczyk for the first time. Last but certainly not least we had a great time watching the dynamics between Colby and Ginger. Colby may have been the star student but Ginger was super game and it was a pleasure to see her excel to such a degree. The culinary staff kicked butt once again and, of course, our intrepid instructional staff (Jess Daan, Bin and dave) were over the top. OK, I know it's more effusive BS but... we really have fun with people here. Thank you all for coming and THANKS for being so over the top supporting our staff! p

May 27 - June 2

A bit slow posting this as we are busy busy here at OB. It was a wonderful week with the "old home" crew and it seemed better than ever. I suppose I always say things like that but we had a number of effusive accolades from the gang like "best week ever after all these years"! Great seeing Pete Peterson and Henry Louderbough and all the other folks who have been here so many times. Thank you so much for sticking with us for the past 30 years! It was a stunning week weather wise ( 80's) and we got out on many of the runs up and down the North Fork and South Fork, as well as the main canyon. It was just plain magic last week and Mary and Dan punched out some wonderful meals as usual!  Graham, Daan and Jess (sorry we missed you in the photo) and PK were on hand to steer the ship and were amazing. This week is always a benchmark for us and I think the team delivered a five star product! We even managed to pull of one dinner outdoors at the request of Pete Peterson. We just can't do enough for him!