River News
Helfrich River Outfitters
A Historic River Trip – The Story of Eliot Dubois and the First Solo Trip on the Middle Fork of the Salmon
In 1942, Eliot Dubois was the first known person to boat the Middle Fork of the Salmon River solo. Eliot, an east coast boatman, was headed overseas for war and was determined to run the Middle Fork before he left. He had not originally planned it to be a solo trip. ...
Meet Sadie King – HRO New Office Manager
We are so excited to welcome Sadie Grossbaum-King and her baby girl Moxie to the Helfrich Family! Some of you may already know Sadie or her fiancé Blake King; you may have floated with them on the Middle Fork or spoken with Sadie over the phone or email. Blake has...
Protecting Your River Trip – The Value of Trip Insurance for Your Wilderness River Trip
https://www.travelexinsurance.com/index.aspx?location=12-0050&go=bp
The Dynamic Environment of Rivers – What Happened on the Upper Middle Fork in 2022 and Why It Happened and What it Means
The last few years have dealt us some interesting challenges on the upper Middle Fork of the Salmon River. In a domino effect of fires, storms, and mudslides, we are witnessing first hand the impacts of these events in a dynamic wilderness environment. These...
Women of Helfrich 2022
This month, we are celebrating the wonderful women of the Helfrich Team. We have some amazing, strong, smart women on our crew, and we are so proud of all of them. Each of our female crew members bring something unique and valuable to the operation. As we celebrate...
Breaking into the Current: Being a Female Guide on the Middle Fork
To be frank, being a female guide on the Middle Fork is hard. Guiding is a physically and emotionally exhausting job, and the Middle Fork of the Salmon is a particularly male dominated river. Before coming to Helfrich I had never worked with another female guide. At...
Birding Along The Middle Fork: A Personal Journey
Birding Along The MIDDLE Fork: A Personal Journey by Tim Gunderson HRO Guide The yellow-rumped warbler If you know me, you probably know me as a geologist. I have taught and studied geology for over 20 years. But, in 2018 I began to pursue an interest that had...
Staying Healthy on the River – Escape to the River Post Covid
Romance on the River – Jeremy and Laura Pisca’s Wedding on the Middle Fork
My husband, Dirk Gibson, grew up working on the Middle Fork of the Salmon, and then he owned a Middle Fork Company of his own for a time. This led to meeting many special people, including Jeremy Pisca and Laura Stott. It was on one of our trips that the two of them...
In Loving Memory of Chris Olsen
It is with great sadness we inform you of the passing of our dear friend and long time guide, Christian Olsen. Christian's legacy with Helfrich Outfitters goes back to the days of Dave Helfrich. He started working for Dave in 1961, and worked steadily through...