ABOUT OREGON RIVER EXPERIENCES

Ted was born in California but raised in the Kansas City, Missouri area. Graduating from Northwest Missouri State University with a degree in Economics he devoted the next 30 years to various companies in the business world and his family. After moving around chasing the business dream, Ted ended up in the Portland area in the late 80’s. Retiring in 2008 he found his way to river guiding with O.R.E. As the Senior Lead Guide and part of the O.R.E. management team he is focused on making sure every O.R.E. guide has the training and attitude that ensures our customers get the most out of their river adventure. When not working on the river or company projects he enjoys kayaking, fishing, rock climbing, skiing, and hanging around with his close friends and family.

Ross has been a resident of the PNW since age 3 and currently resides west of Portland in the foothills of the Oregon coast range. He grew up playing in Oregon’s rivers and has been a casual boater since his teenage years. In his opinion, there’s no better place to be than “down by the river”. When he’s not on the river, you can find him leading hikes and bike rides for our sister company, NW Discoveries. If he’s not playing outside, you might find him exploring Portland’s vibrant craft culinary scene or geeking out on the Marvel multiverse.

Reid discovered his passion and aptitude for whitewater rafting at age 29, and became a guide at age 30, after attending school for outdoor leadership. He has been with Oregon River Experiences since the 2018 season. His favorite river is the Clackamas in Estacada. It’s easy access from Portland and the amount of low-risk but fun and exciting rapids is a huge draw. He spent most of his life moving around the country working in restaurants, but is now in Oregon for the long term, each year counting down the days until the next rafting season!

Peter is from Vassalboro, Maine, where his dad got him into canoeing at a young age. He likes exploring new places and spending as many of his days on rivers as he can.

Natalie was born and raised by the Colorado River in Southern Nevada where she gained her love of water. She got her bachelor’s degree in civil engineering-hydraulics/hydrology from Purdue University and then went on to get her Master’s degree in water resources at Oregon State. During the week, she is an engineer doing hydraulics planning and design with rivers, potable water, sewers, and storm drainage. She tries to get out on the rivers on weekends and evenings as much as possible. She started guiding because she was excited about rafting and rapids, but has since discovered that there are so many more wonderful things to a river trip than just the rapids. She is excited to show all the joys of the river to everyone she meets. When not rafting she can be found coaching a rowing team, rowing, kayaking, or swimming in water that is way too cold to swim in.

In summers you can find me on the river and the off season at the University of Oregon. I love multi-day rafting trips and originally found an interest for outdoor sports on a month long kayaking trip in Patagonia. This will be my second year rafting with O.R.E, and I hope to see you out there!

Eric developed his love of rivers from a young age on the rivers near the Smokey Mountains in TN and NC, where he grew up. Every summer, the Lee family would make a journey to the mountains, rent a boat, and head down the Nantahala River with Dad at the helm. As he grew older, Eric begged and got the chance to get his own boat (an inflatable kayak!). Since then, his love of the outdoors and rivers has only continued to grow. During summers while at college, Eric got his first taste of guiding while taking crews on 7-10 day flatware canoeing trips in the Boundary Waters area of Northern MN. During the rest of the year, Eric teaches engineering at a local community college and enjoys cycling, rock climbing and skiing. This is Eric’s 2nd season with Oregon River Experiences and he is excited to meet more amazing people and enjoy the thrills on the incredible rivers of Oregon!

Amber’s love of all things outdoors started at a young age when she was camping with her family in Central Oregon, always next to a creek or river. She then moved to Boise, ID where she started hiking the surrounding foothills and floating the Boise River regularly. Her first whitewater rafting trip was on the Payette River in ID. Visiting snowy Crater Lake, hiking Cape Lookout on the Coast, climbing to the top of Mt. Hood, and becoming a river guide are just a few of the adventures she has enjoyed since moving to the Northwest in 2013. She considers Oregon’s outdoors to be the biggest playground ever! She looks forward to sharing her excitement and knowledge of the outdoors with ORE guests