Boreal River - Magpie River
Join us for a Rafting and Kayaking trip on the Magpie River

Boreal River – Wilderness trips and training

When you join any of our programs - from river expeditions to training courses – you can expect:
  • Fun – You will join a group of friendly people with positive attitudes who enjoy life
  • Learning – Whether joining a training course or a trip, your program will involve learning. Our instructors and guides are experts in their fields and excellent teachers; passionate about exploration, discovery, and lifelong learning.
  • Professional service – From your first contact with us onwards, you will be impressed by our professionalism and service.

    • What's New in 2011...

    Protecting the Magpie
    Want to join in the efforts to gain protected status for the Magpie River and its surrounding wilderness? Boreal River supports the work of a local group called Association Eaux Vives Minganie and of CPAWS/SNAP Quebec (the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society - Quebec chapter) and its Big Wild program. See the video that filmmaker Skip Armstrong (and Boreal River Guide) produced to contribute to the Big Wild effort and learn about the cause and what you can do to help.

    The Big Wild Magpie Campaign

    More courses and guide training programs
    Sharpen your paddling, rescue, wilderness first aid, and emergency management skills with great training courses. We work with the best organizations when it comes to skills training with Wilderness Medical Associates, Rescue 3 International, Paddle Canada, and ORCKA offerings. Have a look at the courses available and stay tuned for more. If you would like to organize private or custom training programs for your company or group, we will bring the instruction to you.

    The Whitewater Expedition Leader program is one of a kind training for river canoe trip leaders. Spend eleven days at the end of May on the beautiful Dumoine River getting high end skills and international certifications in whitewater paddling, wilderness first aid, swiftwater rescue, and expedition emergency management.

    More multi-day whitewater trips
    The coming paddling season will be an exciting one. Along with the 8-day Magpie River Adventure, a white water trip that's great for just about everyone, Boreal River is also pioneering a new program for experienced rafters: the 13-day West Magpie Expedition.

    The first ever West Magpie Expedition, open to anyone with some rafting and wilderness camping experience, will run in August of 2011. Expedition members will paddle the river from its upper reaches, near the Quebec - Labrador border, to its outflow into beautiful Lake Magpie. The trip will then continue down the classic section of the Magpie River to the Saint-Lawrence Gulf, for a total of over 180 kilometers (112 miles) of world-class rafting.

    And more to come...
    Raft expeditions in Nunavik, Quebec's far north. The Nastapoka River runs from the Boreal forests of interior Quebec into the tundra on its way to the Hudson Bay. The river is on the migration route of the Leaf River Caribou Herd, has a wild salmon run, contains big rapids, and falls directly into the ocean with a one hundred-foot waterfall! The sea here provides nesting grounds for marine animals like beluga, narwhal, and seal. The Nastapoka ends near the Inuit village of Umiujaq on the Richmond Gulf where plans are underway to develop a National Park that will protect the area's wilderness.

    This hard to access river has been paddled by a few people in whitewater kayaks and canoes but has not yet been rafted. Stay tuned for more details on the Nastapoka River Expedition or if you'd like to be the first to go, contact us and we'll set up a custom trip.

    The Boreal River StoryDanny and Leetha on the Magpie River

    Danny Peled and Letha Henry wanted to put their experience working throughout the world in adventure travel and education towards creating and delivering programs in Canada. Danny has led rafting trips, instructed swiftwater rescue, and guided canoe expeditions across Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Chile, and Costa Rica and Letha has worked as a guide and travel company manager in Canada, Mexico, and Greece, and has taught in Costa Rica and Nunavik.

    Boreal River was born out of a desire to run one of a kind trips and courses. We are fueled by the excitement of connecting with new people and communities, sharing experiences, exploring wilderness, and learning about ourselves and our environment. The Boreal River family of trip participants, students, guides, and instructors is ever growing and we look forward to the new experiences that lie ahead.

    Danny on the 'North Shore' of Quebec and the Magpie River:

    "The people in this region are so friendly, the adventure opportunities varied and beautiful, and the landscape continuously described with the same expressions: vast, untouched, green, mountainous, and full of water. So much water that we are still amazed when we drive down the highway and can't help but say 'wow another river', 'look another river!'

    On every Magpie trip, from the moment the float plane takes off, to our arrival at the end of the river by the coast, everyone is entranced the landscape, the rapids, and the nature. This trip has challenges and huge rewards and with each descent it seems to get more beautiful and special. We feel very lucky to be doing this and are excited to share the Magpie River with more people soon."

    - Danny Peled -

    Guides and Staff

    Our staff are chosen for their passion for meeting and working with people.

    Boreal River guides are skilled whitewater paddlers and experienced professionals. They are also excellent instructors, interpreters, cooks, and friends. They come from diverse backgrounds and have guided wilderness trips throughout the world.

    Course instructors are experienced in their fields and have incredible teaching qualities and experience. They are always innovating new, student-centred methods for facilitating courses. Our instructors share a passion to make every course they lead, 'the best one yet'.

    Cal HughesDanny Peled
    Born in Montreal, Danny has been paddling whitewater since the age of twelve. He has spent the last ten years guiding people down rivers in rafts, kayaks, and canoes throughout Canada, the United States, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Chile. He is a whitewater and flood rescue instructor with Rescue3International, a wilderness first aid instructor with Wilderness Medical Associates and an ORCA Moving Water instructor. When not working on programs with Boreal River, Danny can be found guiding rafts and teaching courses on the Ottawa River with Esprit Rafting and leading adventure travel trips with Costa Rica Rios in Turrialba, Costa Rica. His sense of humour, high energy, and experience make every program he's part of a great time for everyone.





    Leetha HenryLetha Henry
    A native of Toronto, Letha has also called Greece, Mexico, France, Costa Rica, and the U.K home. After studying Journalism, she worked as a travel guide and managed a backpackers tour company. Currently developing her teaching career, Letha has taught high school in Costa Rica and Nunavik and has completed a degree in education at the University of Ottawa. On Boreal River programs, her bright smile and warm helpfulness put everyone at ease.







    David Boulais
    David Boulais - Guide
    David was born in Montreal but from an early age gained a passion for leaving town and exploring Quebec's wilderness. After beginning a career as a forest technician he returned to University to complete a degree in Adventure Tourism. David's love of nature makes him feel at home in the backcountry where he is resourceful and at ease. He works as a forest survival instructor and dogsled guide during the winter, and spends his summers guiding on Québec's countless rivers. On his days off, you will likely find him on a river, paddling for the fun of it. ''Living with nature deepens our wisdom and brings us closer to the truth".






    Skip Armstrong
    Skip Armstrong - Guide, Filmmaker
    Born in Colorado, Skip has been on the water non-stop for the past 14 years. His passion for rivers has led him around the world several times. For six years he shared the natural beauty and whitewater of Costa Rica with hundreds of paddlers as the owner/head guide of Costa Rica Rios. Exploring new rivers while shooting film is his ultimate combination and he is well known for hauling cinematic dolly's, jibs and various equipment deep into the wilderness to get the perfect shot. In 2010 he traveled around the world shooting several award winning short films. His high energy and enthusiasm for whitewater and life in general make him a lot of fun to be around.








    Jaime InnesJamie Innes– Wilderness Medicine Instructor
    Jamie has worked as a Paramedic both for the cities of Hamilton and Sudbury. A graduate of the BPHE Outdoor Adventure Leadership program at Laurentian University, he is currently pursuing his Masters degree in environmental education while working as an outdoor program facilitator at an outdoor centre in Haliburton. Jamie also has an extensive wilderness guiding background in paddling activities including a raft guide and remote site Paramedic for Wilderness Tours, a rafting company on the Ottawa River.









    Cal HughesCalum Hughes - Guide
    Originally from Toronto, Cal grew up doing long canoe expeditions on the rivers of Northern Ontario and Quebec. A master of the paddle raft, he has worked for years as a guide on the Ottawa and has paddled extensively throughout the Americas. He is a veteran of North Shore rivers, having led two twenty day expeditions on the Moise (the Magpie’s sister river). Wintering in North Bay with his wife Jen and dog Gus, Cal works as a wilderness instructor for youth at risk. Don’t let his humour and easygoing personality fool you, you don’t want to meet this guy on the hockey rink.

    Environmental Policy

    The key tenets of our environmental policy are:

    1. ‘Leave No Trace’ camping
    All Boreal River trips and courses follow the 'Leave No Trace' guidelines. We adhere to the expression, "leave only footprints, take only photographs". We carry out all of our waste and make sure to leave our campsites looking as 'untouched' as when we arrived at them. We are very careful to ensure that no foreign substances make their way into the water or forest where they could affect wildlife.

    2. Contributing to the local economy through ‘sustainable’ activities
    Tourism such as river trips can contribute to the economy of a region without destroying the natural environment for future generations. We operate with this in mind and it affects our purchasing and activity decisions.

    For example, on Magpie River Adventure programs, our guests spend the nights before and after the trips in Riviere-Au-Tonnerre instead of the bigger city of Sept-Iles. Riviere-au-Tonnerre is a small village once considered the crab capital of the world. Now with no fishery it is trying to attract travelers. This makes for a wonderful experience, is great for the town's economy, and creates local pride and attention for the world class Magpie River located in the village's backyard.

    The food for our Magpie trips is bought locally in Havre-Saint-Pierre - where it is sourced as much as possible from organic Quebec producers - and from a small farmers market outside of Sept-Iles. We hire drivers from the area, source our transportation logistics from North Shore businesses, fuel up at small local-owned service stations, and our staff and guests visit as many small shops and restaurants in the region as possible throughout the season.

    3. Assisting local people in experiencing their rivers
    We at Boreal River aren't scientists, politicians, lawyers, or lobbyists. We are a river trip company. That's why our biggest contribution towards protecting rivers is helping people to experience these amazing places.

    The people of the North Shore are very proud of their land and heritage. Many however, have not had the opportunity to paddle the area's world class rivers. We started offering special trips for local people in 2008 and we have made it an annual tradition.

    As well, in 2009 and 2010 we donated equipment and helped guide a trip on the Magpie organized by an association of local paddlers (Association Eaux-Vives Minganie), allowing them to bring new people down the river. The groups included regional politicians and journalists, and the trips received coverage in major Quebec publications, raising awareness about the plight of the Magpie.

    We look forward pitching in with the association's future efforts as well as those of other groups. We are committed to doing everything we can to help as many people as possible see the Magpie, Moisie, Romaine, Natashquan, and other North Shore rivers for themselves.

    4. Contributing to conservation organizations
    Many non-profit organizations are doing important work towards protecting the areas where we travel from unsustainable development. Boreal River is a member of '1% for the Planet', donating one percent of our gross sales to non-profit organizations working on local and global environmental issues.

    Boreal River's Safety Policy

    While wilderness trips and courses contain elements of risk, we operate with the highest level of security on our trips and courses. This begins with our guides' knowledge of the area, sound judgment, extensive experience, and understanding that the safety of our guests and students is always our highest priority.

    We are proud to lead the industry in our safety standards by maintaining the following staffing and equipment requirements:

    Every Boreal River trip has a minimum of two guides with:
    Wilderness First Responder certification (72-hour first aid course).
    Swiftwater Rescue Technician Level 1 and 2 certifications.
    A minimum of four previous seasons or 120 days guiding on grade-III or above whitewater.

    Additionally every Boreal River program has a trip leader or instructor with:
    Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician, Wilderness Emergency Medical Responder certification, or higher. (150-hour emergency medicine course)

    Equally important is our in-house training during which guides and instructors practice first-aid and rescue skills and perform emergency scenarios.

    Boreal River uses the highest quality safety equipment available. Participants on river trips use whitewater floatation devices and helmets. Every trip and course carries a comprehensive first-aid kit and an Iridium satellite phone (or a cell phone where there is coverage) for emergency communications.