WHO WE ARE
Humble Beginnings
Brothers, Rick and Ron Blanchard were born and raised in Port Arthur, Texas. From humble beginnings, their trail from Texas to Cody had plenty of detours along the way including: work on the Alaska Pipeline, Pro Rodeo careers, and guiding river trips on the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. They were first drawn to Cody for its reputation as a world-renowned rodeo destination, but after spending some time in the area, they fell in love with the town, the people, and the natural beauty northern Wyoming has to offer.
Wyoming River Trips was founded in the winter of 1978 with Rick and Ron personally escorting trips that following summer. Since its inception, Wyoming River Trips is the only continually owned and operated rafting company in the Cody area, focusing on providing safe, family whitewater adventures that are accessible and approachable to all.
Culture
Besides creating family-focused river trips, in it’s 46 year history, WRT has cultivated a family culture within the business itself. Consistently hiring personable, hard-working, capable staff has not been an accident. Instead, it has been an intentional decision from day one. Couple that with high levels of training and attention to detail, and you begin to see a company that is committed to providing more than a fun trip down the river — you see a company that is committed to our clients, staff, and community.
The Blanchard family has grown over the decades and the company is now welcoming it’s third generation. What started back in 1978 as an alternative to the lifestyle of rodeo that Rick and Ron had adopted up until then, has now become a trusted, multi-generational local business in the Cody community.
Moving Forward
During the winter of 2020/2021, Landon Blanchard and Elyse Guarino took over ownership and operations at Wyoming River Trips, moving the company into its second generation of continual ownership. Additonally, Leighton Blanchard has stepped into to oversee operations. This transition period has been an exciting time for the whole family!
Landon grew up within the company and began guiding trips at an early age, growing into leadership and management with WRT. He is now in his 16th season guiding river trips on the Shoshone River, and his 4th season working as a commercial river guide in Grand Canyon National Park with Arizona Raft Adventures. Elyse has spent the last 17 years working as a professional outdoor leader and guide with NOLS, facilitating outdoor leadership courses for novices and professionals alike. Together, Elyse and Landon founded Wyoming Rivers Cooperative in the winter of 2019/2020 — a company specializing in small, customizable, multi-day packrafting and rafting trips throughout Wyoming — building upon their combined outdoor skills and their passion for water, wildlife, and land conservation. The duo brings decades of professional outdoor leadership and guiding experience to Wyoming River Trips, building upon the foundation put in place by Rick and Ron, and growing the professional guide and river community in Cody, WY.
We look forward to meeting you out on the water and helping to provide a quality, professional, and friendly river experience for your group!
Our company has been featured in many national publications such as; Condé Nast Traveler, Travel and Leisure, Better Homes and Gardens, and Mature Outlook magazines. We have also been featured with Wyoming Office of Tourism, Travel Channel, and Outdoor Life Network.
OUR TEAM
Wyoming River Trips prides itself on providing professional outdoor guiding services with a personal touch. Our guides and staff are working professionals who bring their unique skills and experience to the river. All of our guides do an excellent job of combining their river experience with knowledge and perspective of life beyond the river — including geology, natural history, biology, medicine, outdoor education, and outdoor leadership. Wyoming River Trips guides’ experience is not limited to the Shoshone River, in fact their greatest asset is the experience they bring from all other rivers they have run, and from the lives they live outdoors. Our complete guide staff is trained in Wilderness CPR and First Aid, as well as advanced Wilderness Medicine and Swiftwater Rescue. When selecting an outfitter, be sure to inquire about the training practices and protocols of the company — we feel that WRT and WRC operate at or above industry standards for safety and professionalism on and off the river.
OUR OPERATION
Wyoming River Trips is the oldest continually operated commercial river outfitter in Cody, Wyoming, now in it’s second generation. Founded in 1978, our operation began running trips through the Red Canyon of the Shoshone, then expanded to include a Priority-Use permit through the Shoshone National Forest in 1981. WRT now operates on select sections of the North Fork of the Shoshone River, just outside of Yellowstone National Park, as well as through the Red Canyon on the Main Shoshone River. Wyoming Rivers Cooperative has added permits on the Wind River, Sweetwater River, and Greybull River, which has expanded our combined offerings throughout Wyoming. WRT and WRC are proud partners with the United State Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management. We provide exceptional river experiences and practice Leave No Trace principles.