Maine Whitewater Rafting Guide Molly Stirk

Name: Molly Stirk
Hometown: Silver Cliff, Wisconsin
Age of First Rafting Trip: 17
Year you started guiding at Northern Outdoors: 2023

What type of guiding do you do? Whitewater Rafting

What do you enjoy most about working at Northern Outdoors?
I love meeting new people everyday and getting to share the river with them. Meeting a group of people and then taking them down class IV and V rapids moments later is a very special experience and there’s nothing else like it!

What is your favorite river to guide, and your favorite rapid on that river?
Penobscot River, The Cribworks

What’s your classic Northern Outdoors memory?
Level I and II Training, some of the most intense yet rewarding days of my life. I couldn’t have asked for better trainers and trainees to guide me along the way. No matter how tired we were, we’d always find something silly to laugh about at the end of the day.

Where do you adventure when you are not working?
Typically still on the river, hiking the White Mountains, or finding a peaceful spot to paint.

What do you do in the off-season when you’re not guiding for Northern Outdoors?
I’m a college student at Plymouth State in NH, majoring in Adventure Education.

Tell us about any certifications, special talents, guide awards.
Swiftwater Rescue Technician II
Wilderness First Responder
LNT master certification
CPR/First Aid
Using Russian Guiding Commands

What rivers have you run outside of Maine?
I began my whitewater career guiding on the Peshtigo River and the Menominee River in Wisconsin.

From there I have ventured down the Winnipesaukee River, Pemigewassett River, Mad River, Ammonoosuc River, and the St. Croix River in my Ducky kayak.

Which Kennebec River Brewery beer is your top choice after a day on the river?
Big Mama Blueberry