RAFTING GUIDE SCHOOL MISSOULA MONTANA
If you would like to become a river guide or you’d love to learn or increase your skills to run rivers with family and friends, Rafting Guide School in Missoula Montana with us is a good option.
Guide curriculum is designed for potential professional raft guides. We focus on safety, reading water, and guiding paddle rafts through Class II & III and at times IV whitewater. Topics include trip preparation, safety talks for your boaters, equipment, rigging, boat handling, river communications, paddle commands, and basic rescue techniques. First days begin with an introduction to equipment, risk management, reading water and boat rigging. We run the Alberton Gorge on the Clark Fork River on paddle rafts, stern, and center frames where participants will swim rapids, rescue swimmers, and recover from a flipped rafts and navigate water flows by paddles and oars. Some springs, we are on the Blackfoot River for these activities. Learn about the right gear, how to rig boats, safety basics, avoiding hazards, and guiding your own boat!
Adventure Missoula hires our guides directly from our Guide School but it is not a guarantee. Once you’ve completed the required 80 hours we’ll issue a certificate of completion and potentially employment.
We offer this course each spring and is a commitment of 8-9 days (80 hours) in the Missoula Montana area. Rafting Guide School instruction includes:
Rafting Guide School – Missoula Montana
- Reading river characteristics including currents, eddies, rapids, and hazards
- Communicating with clients/people in your boat, including paddling and safety instruction and talks
- Paddling strokes and techniques
- Rowing strokes and techniques
- Boat design and boat/river interaction
- Equipment preparation and boat rigging
- Equipment storage and care
- Vehicle and trailer prep and inspection
- Guest and river etiquette
- Personal equipment
- On river communication
- Trip and shuttle flows
- Food prep and packing
- Boat control and multiple days of practice
- Self rescue and participant rescue
- Flipped raft recovery
- Managing and retrieving swimmers
- Knots
- Trailer Managements
- Boat rigging and unrigging and stacking
- and more!
Tuition for Guide School: $400
*Reimbursement If you are offered employment from us we will reimburse you $200 for the cost of this course plus pay you an additional $5 per trip if you keep your employment commitment to your predetermined end of season with us; usually Labor Day. If you return a second year, we refund you the additional $200.
Both the general public (ages 18+) and interviewed potential guides for Adventure Missoula are welcome to register for this class.
2026 Spring Dates: June 6-15th, 2026 with day break in-between
General Public: 40 hours, water and rafting education certificate issued 4 days; $400
Potential Staff for Adventure Missoula: 80 hours, Guide School, guide school certificate issued; $400
Already a Guide But You Want to Work for Adventure Missoula? If you are already a commercial guide looking to work for us – Please send us your resume, cover letter, certifications, verification of previous guide employment, and interview. If we are interested, the next step is to join us for 40 hours, 4 days during guide school; $200* fee.
This class is a pre-hire requirement for guides for Adventure Missoula. Participants are not guaranteed a spot on Adventure Missoula staff. Some people need more practice until they are ready to take commercial guests down the river. This often means more laps on the river, shadow guiding other veteran guide, assisting trips, rigging and de-rigging trips, and a host of other details that you’ll learn as you progress. Please view the guide requirements.
What to Bring for Guide School:
- wool or synthetic base layers top and bottom
- warm non cotton socks (multiple pairs to change into between river runs)
- warm hat
- water bottle with attachment point
- bathing suit
- warm mid weight layer (like a zip up fleece or equivalent mid layer) NO COTTON
- rain coat
- gloves
- drinks/snacks/food
- wet suit*
- booties*
- pfd*
- splash jacket*
*These four items can be rented from us for total $25 cleaning fee charge and are checked out on day 1 of Rafting Guide School. During registration this add on can be applied.
Car camping/tent camping with us is optional or you will want Missoula accommodations. If you decide to camp, consider bringing:
- a tent or car or camper or trailer (some other form of shelter at night)
- sleeping bag
- cook set
- utensils
- headlamp
- dry clothes
- lots of food and beverages of choice (tobacco/drugs/alcohol are not allowed on site at Adventure Missoula)
Location: Adventure Missoula Clark Fork River Headquarters and Raft Shop: 39 Juniper Lane, Alberton MT 59820.
Questions? Email or Call us.
Here at Adventure Missoula we like to have fun. As staff increase their skills we often have a few fun runs where we hit and practice skills on different rivers in the Western Montana and North Idaho corridor. Here is an example of us having some post training fun on a beautiful spring rainy day and allows for some excellent bonding moments and forces quick learning curves post Guide School.
