Russell Schubert
Professional River Guide
Where did you grow up?
Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts
Where do you call home now?
Park Silly, Utah in the “off” season.
Year started at OARS?
2007
What’s the best part of your job?
Getting to use one of the primal forces that shape the planet to travel through spectacular landscapes while helping to facilitate the enjoyment and appreciation of the natural world by others. That and all the good clean fun!
Tell us about your favorite rapid, hike or camp and what makes it special
Any true “adventure” hike, as in one where neither the guests, nor the guides, truly know where they are going. It’s amazing how much time you can spend somewhere and still find new places to explore. They are unusual and uncommon, and it is extra special to travel together without a determined destination.
Do you have a lucky charm or special river tradition?
Not really a lucky or tradition but if there happens to be any leftover d.o. brownies I would love one (even just a bit) with my morning coffee.
What can you not live without on a trip?
Sunglasses for my sensitive blue eyes. And jokes and riddles! There’s some for every occasion.
Fun fact, special talent or favorite guiding memory
A fun fact could be the special talent of keeping most of those guiding memories where they belong; on the river. Tales told by the campfire under the stars does them justice.
But get this: Last year at the put-in early in the morning, I saw a coyote and a raven across the river. The coyote was on a sandbar running and yipping after a raven that was flying close overhead and cawing. Far out. It was something straight outta some native folklore; the Southwest and Northwest Tricksters romping about up to who knows what. I don’t quite know why, but that was a very special moment.