INTERESTED IN BECOMING A RAFT GUIDE?
Get paid to play! Guides paid a daily rate, plus tips!
Learn new skills and participate in new activities!
Flexible Work Schedule
Free Housing/Camping
Free Training (training deposit refunded once completed) No Experience Necessary!
Become a part of a passionate community of outdoor enthusiasts!
Cheat River Outfitters has been in business for over 40 years, showing off the Cheat River of North-Central West Virginia to guests from all over the country! We take pride in our guide staff and are always looking for bright and enthusiastic individuals to join Cheat River Outfitters family. If you are interested in training to work the Cheat River, we want to hear from you! Below are some documents that you can read or print that will give you some specifics of our training. If you want to join our staff training and have questions, you can contact us using the form at the bottom of this page. If you are ready to sign up, click the button above to get signed up!
A few of the basics…
- No experience is necessary! However, you need to be adventurous and have a fun personality…liking water is a plus too!
- A positive attitude and good people skills are requirements of the job. We can teach you whitewater skills, but you need that fun personality is a must!
- This is a physical job that requires you to be in decent physical condition. You need to be able to lift rafts, lift people back into rafts, carry equipment, etc.
- The training program requires a fully refundable training deposit. Finish work, and you will get your deposit back.
CHEAT RIVER OUTFITTERS TRAINING DOCUMENTS
- The whitewater industry in West Virginia is overseen by the WV Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Here you can read the DNR regulations as they pertain to becoming certified as a whitewater guide in the state of WV. WV DNR Regulations (after you click, scroll down to the Trip Guide requirements)
MORE OPPORTUNITIES WITH CHEAT RIVER OUTFITTERS
LIKE PAINTBALL?
We have a paintball field and we are always on the lookout for Paintball Referees. If you are interested in that position, please complete the form and put in the comments that you would like to ref for us.
NEED AN INTERSHIP?
We are happy to work with you and your internship requirements. We are believers in experiential learning and think the best way to learn something is to try it out. We love to get fresh perspective on marketing and technology. We would especially love intern help with social media and youtube. Let us know if you are interested.
Here is how it works… If you have never worked as a whitewater guide, or if you have worked on a river that does not require a guide in every boat, then you need to complete a minimum of 17 training trips on the Cheat River. Some are ready to be certified after the minimum runs while others will need some extra runs to check out. A trip guide needs to be able to handle a raft full of guests as well as being able to give safety briefings and knowing safety and company protocols. In order to be certified, you also have to have current First Aid and CPR certifications.
If you have worked as a whitewater guide on another river that requires a guide in every raft, then you will have to do significantly less training runs to be certified on the Cheat River.
As a general rule, you will spend the spring training and be ready to start working the river in the summer. We pay per trip. Summertime trips are mostly on the Narrows and we have the possibility of 2 trips per day. You only have to be certified once, not every year. You just have to do occasional refresher runs and keep your medical certifications current.
This is a fun and flexible job. You can work a little or a lot once you get certified. You get to work in the great outdoors. You get to work with all sorts of people, many of whom are on vacation.