Safety on the river relies on a few essential pieces of equipment. Whether whitewater kayaking, rafting, or packrafting, certain tools can make all the difference when a situation escalates. In this article, I share my river safety equipment for 2026, based on my experience as a guide and instructor on the Jacques-Cartier River. This article does not cover all equipment, as that would be too long for a single article. I will instead focus on three essential elements: River kn

Swiftwater rescue ≠ whitewater rescue This post is part of the current trend on the issue which translates very poorly: " swiftwater rescue " vs " whitewater rescue " and I add my two cents with the form of communication I prefer - writing a post on the Rivière Concept blog - for the French-speaking audience of Quebec. Note that this post does not represent the ideas of any training entity; it is a post written in a personal capacity. I tried different French transl

The rope bag was created by the US Army during World War II and was rediscovered by paddlers in the mid-1970s. It's probably the most basic and useful rescue tool, although it remains dangerous if misused. Every paddler should have one and know how to use it. It is a versatile tool, used in several scenarios: helping a swimmer in distress, recovering a victim stuck in the river with lateral release techniques, making a zipline to cross the river, attaching a rescuer for a rop