Profile of Stanislaus River pioneer Bryce Whitmore by Dick Linford

A very engaging and eye-opening chapter in the second of his two books of river tales (Halfway to Halfway and Back) by Dick Linford (Echo) and Bob Volpert, this chapter is a richly drawn profile of Bryce Whitmore, who pioneered rafting on the Stanislaus (along with ARTA’s Lou Elliot) and went on to create a durable rafting company (Wilderness Waterways, the California part of which is now Sierra Mac River Trips). Bryce first kayaked the Stanislaus in 1962 (he may have made the first fiberglass kayaks), then in the later 1960s ran commercial trips featuring his unique “Huck Finn” SuperSport rafts.  In 2023, Bryce was inducted into the International Whitewater Hall of Fame.