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Our History

[/box] PaddleFoot was founded in 1996 by a group of individuals with a passion for the outdoors. From the beginning, PaddleFoot has sought to provide an environment where individuality complements community, and a journey by canoe always provides the ideal setting. More than an adventure company, PaddleFoot strives to make a positive difference in many areas. Wilderness education programs began in 1997. Today more and more schools, public and private, are catching on to PaddleFoot’s unique brand of experiential education. From city green spaces to wilderness thickets, PaddleFoot uses the natural environment to show the interconnectedness and interdependence of ecological/environmental systems and of social groups. In 2002, PaddleFoot began a relationship with the York Region District School Board and The Learning Center to provide high school credit programs for Ontario Secondary School students. To promote safety in the adventure community, PaddleFoot has adopted the highest safety standards. To ensure quality courses would be available to wilderness guides, PaddleFoot guide school trained its first river guides in 1998. Each guide receives a minimum of 72 hours first aid training, and many are Wilderness Emergency Medical Technicians. Some guides are instructors for Wilderness Medical Associates, the company that trains the FBI. Swiftwater Rescue Technicians are on all PaddleFoot river trips. Guides complete an intensive preseason training course specific to PaddleFoot’s programs. Extended expeditions carry state-of-the-art satellite beacons. PaddleFoot trips have a high staff to tripper ratio, so individuals receive lots of attention around the campsite, on the trail and on the water! The PaddleFoot staff are the backbone of the program. They are talented individuals who have something interesting to add to the trip experience. Besides the wealth of safety qualifications, PaddleFoot guides are chosen for their compassion, humour, their passion for the outdoors, and the desire to share something of what they know with others. They are experienced in meeting the needs of people getting used to wilderness living. As kids our summer passion was always camp, and most specifically, canoe tripping. As the old saying went, “For those who have been, there are no words necessary; for those who have not there are no words possible”. Upon finishing our schooling, like any good International Development Studies students do….we travelled. Having worked and explored in far-away places and across all this wondrous earth, we found ourselves moving onward, looking for something that was elusive and precious. Pristine lakes, wild rivers and abundant wilderness; nowhere on this earth is there anywhere like Canada, our home. So upon returning to Canada in 1996 we created a Summer Adventure Camp for youth, and soon enough we had adults and school groups who wanted to come and join our Programs. Our goal was to connect people. To connect people with the natural world, to connect people with one another, and fundamentally to connect people with themselves. A River is the perfect place for all of these things to happen. Over the following years we developed our skills further as a team; continuing with our education and gaining experience in the field. It was evident that there was a need in Canada for a higher calibre of training, and increased safety standards in the areas of outdoor adventure and professional settings. We began working with the leading international training organizations to ‘raise the bar’ here at home. As a result, Wilderness Safety Systems was created as a division of PaddleFoot. Over the past 10 years, WSS has become one of the most-active Canadian year-round training providers in this field. Just before the birth of our our first son, we found a precious little lake near Algonquin Park to build a new home for PaddleFoot and Wilderness Safety Systems. Our beautiful site in Muskoka is one of our greatest accomplishments and dreams-come-true. Now with two kids, the river has taken another dramatic turn….“For those who have kids, there are no words necessary…”. An epic journey would once have involved several continents, a waterfall and at least one rickshaw. Now, hiking along the lake to chase sticks down the creek is an epic journey in itself! A perfect one none the less! Thanks for joining us on the next leg of this great adventure! Yours on the Water, Robb and Sue Mission Through outdoor adventure and education, we will teach and develop the life skills necessary for a peaceful coexistence within the natural world, and within our global community. With nature as our mentor we strive to provide the highest standards in program quality, safety, skills and staff. We aim to promote and enhance our participants’ connection with themselves, with each other and with the earth. Objectives

To be more than just an adventure company. PaddleFoot strives to make a positive difference in many areas both individually and within the community.
To provide an environment where individuality complements community; a journey by canoe always provides the ideal setting. By working together with one’s peers and new friends, a group of individuals can become stronger than the sum of its parts.
To promote safety in the adventure community; PaddleFoot has adopted the highest safety and standards.