Your instructors, Gord Pincock and Bruce Wilson, have combined their teaching abilities and leadership styles to offer this unique training program. Their individual approaches to guiding, instructing and leadership are respectfully brought together on this course to provide participants with a rich perspective of experiences.
Both Bruce and Gord operate their own guiding businesses and have been professionally leading kayak tours on the BC coast for decades. In 2008, Gord and Bruce will celebrate the fourteenth anniversary of their leadership course.
Our suggested reading list is provided for your interest.
Bruce Wilson
"Since 1989, I have professionally guided on the waterways and in the mountains of British Columbia and Alaska. I feel privileged to live my passion as my vocation.
I have paddled the outer coast of Alaska, kayaked from Prince Rupert to Tofino and enjoyed numerous ski tours through the mountains of British Columbia. I have been continually inspired by the majesty of the land, wildlife and people that call these places home.
The past two years have found me guiding in South East Alaska and the Yukon. These places capture the soul, inspire the imagination and provide a sense of perspective that one only gains through being truly alone.
Winters find me guiding and educating as a Professional Member of the Canadian Avalanche Association. I also teach at Capilano College in their Outdoor Recreation and Tourism Management Programs. Additionally, I own and operate my business, Wild Whisper Consulting and Guide Services, where I practice the art of alchemic leadership.
Over the years, I've come to discover that my best friends all sleep on the ground. My elemental life philosophy is; living an unexamined life is far riskier than sleeping on a beach near bears."
Certifications:
- Association of Canadian Sea Kayak Guides - Class III Full Guide, Instructor & Examiner
- Sea Kayak Guides Alliance of British Columbia - Class 3 Full Guide
- Canadian Federation of Ocean Kayak Educators - Founder, Full Guide & Examiner
- Association of Canadian Mountain Guides (ACMG) - Hiking & Backpacking Guide
- National Outdoor Leadership School - Instructor
- Association of Nordic Ski Guides of Canada - Nordic Ski Touring Guide
- Canadian Avalanche Association - Level 2 Professional Member
- Advanced Wilderness First Aid & CPR
- Swift Water Rescue Technician - Level 1
Gord Pincock
Gord was born in 1964; a native of Vancouver, British Columbia.
Many of his childhood summers were spent playing in small boats on Ruby Lake (near his current home in Sechelt), where his family still owns a cottage. During high school, Gord attended an alternative, outdoor education program This five-month program provided him with his first canoe-touring experience; a ten-day wilderness journey across lakes and down rivers through the interior of British Columbia. Since that trip, Gord has been an avid canoeist. Kayaking was soon to follow...
As a teenager, Gord joined British Columbia's Junior Whitewater Slalom Kayak Racing Team. After several months of practicing manoeuvres through slalom gates in swimming pools and rivers, Gord's boat handling skills became well polished. Partially as a result of all the great coaching he received, Gord has earned a reputation as a patient and highly skilled kayak instructor.
In 1981, Gord enjoyed his first sea kayak tour on the Queen Charlotte Islands. Every summer since, he has returned to the Islands to continue his adventures. He has launched on several extended journeys, including a month-long solo circumnavigation of Moresby Island.
Gord's introduction to professional guiding originated in 1984, when he began working as an assistant guide for Ecosummer Expeditions. After three seasons of assisting, he created his own company to fulfill his desire to lead tours with small groups, in single kayaks, on the Charlottes. Since 1987, Gord has successfully operated his company; Butterfly Tours. He has also guided numerous sea kayak tours in the Caribbean waters of Honduras and Belize.
Gord lives in the small coastal town of Sechelt, on the "Sunshine Coast" of British Columbia. He keeps busy with Evolution Guide School and also works on his two other small businesses; Swift Wave Enterprises and Butterfly Tours. During his spare time, he enjoys backcountry skiing and mountain biking through the many trails that surround Sechelt.
