Dear Guide Applicant:
Thank you very much for your interest in working for ARTA as a guide. Please fill out this Guide Application (scroll down) and return to us by March 1st. We will contact you before the end of March regarding our decision. If you need a decision earlier than that, just let us know and we’ll do what we can to accommodate you. You can also download an application and send it in if you’re old school like that.
ARTA has been successful in the whitewater rafting business largely because of the excellent guides we have working for us. Our staff is diverse in age and background and is very experienced. We have very little turnover and hence we usually have only a few openings each year. In trying to fill those openings we look for applicants with the following characteristics:
• Safe boating skills,
• Solid work ethic,
• Leadership aptitude,
• Interpretive knowledge and interest,
• Good judgment,
• Team spirit,
• Above average interpersonal talents,
• Shining personality,
• Good humor, and
• A strong commitment to ARTA’s goals and philosophies.
We are hopeful that you possess these qualities and we look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
THE AMERICAN RIVER TOURING ASSOCIATION, INC.
Isaac Ingram
Chief Executive Officer
THE AMERICAN RIVER TOURING ASSOCIATION
A NON-PROFIT CORPORATION Who we are and what we do
We believe in looking forward and giving back.
We believe that getting away from it all brings us closer to everything.
We believe in our children’s grandchildren. We believe in Mother Nature.
We believe in minimum impact living and life-changing moments. We believe in solar power and no electricity.
We believe in family, friends, and complete strangers.
We believe you can’t have too much fun but you can have too much stuff.
We believe in river trips.
MISSION STATEMENT: To introduce our guests to the wilderness and to involve them in our trips in a manner that is safe, meaningful, and beneficial to both the individual and the environment.
GOAL: Our goal is to conduct safe river trips which promote a sense of involvement and fulfillment; foster an appreciation of the wilderness; are legendary in their professionalism and satisfaction; and are a great deal of fun.
STYLE: We run trips that are participatory in nature and which compliment the pristine natural environment through which we are traveling. Our guests are welcome to become as involved in the trip as they desire and we encourage this involvement by hiring people who enjoy sharing their enthusiasm and knowledge of the outdoors with others. Our trips are wholesome and humorous and we tend to attract people who appreciate the social and wilderness aspects of a trip as much as they enjoy the whitewater.
HISTORY: ARTA was founded in 1963 by Lou Elliott, a printer by profession and an outdoorsman by avocation. Through his association with the Sierra Club, Lou took numerous trips down the rivers of the world and founded ARTA with the purpose of exposing as many people as possible to the values of wild rivers and pristine canyons. Lou’s original motivation, which is still our inspiration today, was the belief that once exposed, people would treasure and protect these resources for future generations. ARTA is a non- profit corporation because we believe that our nation’s wilderness areas belong to everyone and that no individual should profit from their use. We were the first outfitter to offer river trips throughout the West, hence we operate on a wide selection of rivers and have a generous choice of launch dates. We have an excellent safety record and a wealth of experience under a variety of conditions.
STRUCTURE: ARTA is a mutual benefit, non-profit corporation registered with the State of California. We are not tax exempt, but our assets are held by the State. All of our profits are either reinvested in the company or donated to conservation organizations. We have a 13-person Board of Directors, a year-round staff of 3 to 5 people, and a seasonal staff of nearly 50.
SCOPE: We conduct trips in California, (the Middle and South Forks of the American, Tuolumne, Merced, and Klamath); in Oregon, (the Rogue and Illinois); in Idaho, (the Main Salmon, Middle Fork Salmon and Selway), and in Utah, (the Green through Lodore Canyon, the Green through Desolation Canyon and the Yampa).