The best guides on the river.

Dave Hansen Whitewater river guide on the Snake River, Jackson Hole

Our dedicated river guides put in a wild amount of effort to ensure your river experience is safe and fun from put-in to pull-out. With enthusiasm and warm smiles, our energetic river guides will keep you entertained throughout every bend of the Snake River. Dave Hansen maintains strict standards for our river guides. Each guide undergoes training at the Dave Hansen Guide School, which offers thorough, practical instruction in river safety and local ecology.

  • A family of adults and young children smiling and holding up Dave Hansen River Trips patches at the end of a scenic float trip, with the blue raft and green trees behind them.
  • A Dave Hansen guide in a teal jacket rows a raft full of smiling families through a lively rapid in the Snake River Canyon, with rocky walls and green vegetation on the riverbank behind them.

Meet your guides.

Delaney Laramie

Walpole, MA Years Guiding: 11

Alex Nelson

North Yarmouth, ME Years Guiding: 19

Ben Obertacz

Toledo, Ohio Years Guiding: 9

Eagen Keeley

Madison, Wisconsin Years Guiding: 7

Brian Becerra

Jackson Hole, WY Years Guiding: 6

Vlad Dandu

Romania Years Guiding: 7

Zach Williams

Gresham, OR Years Guiding: 7

Sandy Feuer

New Hampshire Years Guiding: 8

Tyler Babcock

Salt Lake City, UT Years Guiding: 6

Mike Farrell

Marshfield, MA Years Guiding: 5

Hailey Stines

Jackson, WY Years Guiding: 3

Nick Bahamonde

Berryville, VA Years Guiding: 3

Tucker Pierce

Saratoga Springs, NY Years Guiding: 4

Tabby Burke

Westport, Connecticut Years Guiding: 2

Julien Langshur

Boston, MA Years Guiding: 2

Lili VanZutphen

Healdsburg, CA Years Guiding: 2

Margaret Starr

New York Years Guiding: 2

Jordan Ibarra

Laramie, Wyoming Years Guiding: 1

Rose Adrat

New York Years Guiding: 2

Max Palmer

London, England Years Guiding: 1

Mady Seeber

Fort Collins, CO Years Guiding: 2

Emery Rheam

Jackson, WY Years Guiding: 1

Logan Blackburn

Flower Mound, TX Years Guiding: 1

Charlie Hoelscher

Jackson, WY Years Guiding: 1

Ashton White

Memphis, TN Years Guiding: 5

Lauren Douglas

McKinney, TX Years Guiding: 1

Abby Terrel

Texas Years Guiding: 7

Ian Lynch

Meet the rest of the crew.

Bud Chatham — Dave Hansen Whitewater owner and river guide

Bud Chatham
Owner

Bay Area, CA Years Guiding: 25

Kyle Vosmus
General Manager

Keith Vosmus
Operations Manager

Delaney Laramie

Delaney knows the Snake River inside and out as a Senior Guide after spending 11 years guiding, 7 of them at Dave Hansen. After finishing her degree in electrical engineering at Trinity College, she got the rafting bug, and her life was forever changed. In addition to the Snake, she’s rafted on the Gallatin, Green, Colorado, Marañon, and Salmon Rivers. These were epic adventures that included basically getting kidnapped on a 17-day rafting trip in Peru! When she’s not on the river, you’ll find her hiking in mountains or practicing her rollerblading. In the winter, she’s navigating the snow by skis or snowmobile. Delaney loves blazing new trails. She was a part of the first all-female officiating crew to work the D1 women’s NCAA college hockey championships in 2019 between Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Guide Gratuity

Alex Nelson

With 19 years of guiding, you can say Alex has found his calling! Originally from North Yarmouth, Maine, Alex got his degree in international studies at the University of Denver before finding his way to Jackson Hole. Alex is returning to DH for his 13th season, and he is one of our most experienced river runners. If you’re lucky enough to get him as a guide, ask him about the 21 different rivers he has guided on all over the world! Alex is always in search of adventure and usually migrates south for the winter, so ask him about his most recent travel to New Zealand or his past adventures in Honduras, Costa Rica, and Chile! Also ask him about his most recent adventure driving his motorcycle from Jackson to Patagonia. If you can’t find Alex on the river, don’t worry, cause he’s most likely on his way there.

Guide Gratuity

Ben Obertacz

Originally from Toledo, Ohio, Ben has been with the DH crew for 9 awesome seasons! An avid outdoorsman, Ben spends his winters working at the local ski resort and his summers on the river. In his spare time, he loves hike, climb, and anything else that gets him outdoors. You'll only find Ben inside for Wing Night at the Bird or when he's purchasing very unnecessary river gear. Ben joined us originally as a shuttle driver and soon decided to hang up the van keys for a paddle! We are thrilled he chose to do so, as all of his rafters get off the boat happy and wanting more. If you get Ben as your guide, you're sure to see plenty of wildlife spotted by Ben's eagle eye!

Guide Gratuity

Eagen Keeley

Eagen is a true outdoorsman. Whether it’s rafting 2,300 miles last year for DH (2.5x the length of the entire Snake River) or completing Jackson’s most extreme challenges—like doing the “Picnic” on the Grand Teton or biking “Around The Block”—Eagan was made to spend his days in the mountains. These adventures are best when he’s with his wife, Burçin, and 2 dogs, Bemo and Çiya. Their new favorite activity is bird-watching, they are trying to identify as many birds as possible this summer. Beyond spending 6 years as a river guide on the Snake, he’s also rafted in Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mexico, Guatemala,Arizona and Idaho. Eagen got into rafting when he coincidentally ended up rooming with a DH guide who took him along on a 21 day Grand Canyon float trip. The next season, Eagen was ready to join the crew, and now he’s worked at the company for 7 years!

Guide Gratuity

Brian Becerra

After working his way from a wetsuit washer in middle school to the office in high school to finally a bonafide raft guide, Brian is heading into his 9th year with DH and 6th year as a guide! Brian grew up right here in Jackson Hole and has spent the majority of his life on the river. Ask his seventh grade English teacher (who just happens to be an owner), and she will tell you Brian is one of the kindest, coolest cats she's ever had the good fortune to teach. You can always count on Brian to keep you laughing with his contagious smile and sense of humor. 

Guide Gratuity

Vlad Dandu

Vlad has always been a free spirit. He was born in Romania and spent his childhood in Spain. Growing up, he loved to hike and camp in the Carpathian Mountains in Transylvania which led to his enthusiasm for the outdoors. After college, he traveled to Mexico where he started his own climbing tour service in the Chiapas mountains. He started running rivers in Moab, Utah and spent some of his happiest days guiding multi-day trips in Cataract Canyon. Eventually, Vlad made his way to Wyoming, the best place to explore whitewater, birds of prey, and national parks. He’s now been with DH 7 awesome seasons! These days, Vlad soaks up as much summer as he can. After the DH season, he goes to the Southern Hemisphere to guide on the Futaleufu River in Chile.

Guide Gratuity

Zach Williams

Originally from Gresham, OR, Zach is back at DH for his 6th season with us and 7th year as a river guide. Zach is an open-minded thrill seeker (the best combination, of course) and will try anything twice. After numerous inquiries, he would like to make it known that, unfortunately, he is not Casey from Yellowstone…though he did once give sunscreen to Usher's kids so if that doesn't qualify him for celebrity status, we don't know what will! Zach graduated from the University of Portland with a degree in accounting and got into river guiding after making the realization that living life on the river seems a lot more fun than crunching numbers. Zach's big advice to his rafters is to 'never trust a guide'... but hopefully that advice doesn't apply to us!

Guide Gratuity

Sandy Feuer

Sandy is returning for his 8th season with DH and 11th season as a river guide across the Snake, Salmon, and Selway Rivers. When he’s not on the river, you’ll find him camping with his wife, Sarah, and two dogs, Tater Tot and Charlie. While Sandy loves the river, he explored many careers before landing in Wyoming including working on fishing boats in Alaska and playing soccer in Africa. Now settled in Wyoming, he still makes frequent trips, including to raft the Grand Canyon. It was that trip nearly a decade ago that got him hooked on rafting, and he’s since done the stretch six more times! Beyond his extensive outdoor resume, Sandy’s hidden talent is that he can juggle.

Guide Gratuity

Tyler Babcock

Originally from Salt Lake City, UT, T-bone is back at Dave Hansen for his 6th season with us and his 24th season as a river guide. He gained his passion for the river from his older siblings. He has guided on the Salmon, Hoback, Snake and Colorado in the Grand Canyon! In addition to guiding he helps train guides and river users in swiftwater rescue. When he’s not guiding you can find him hiking, biking, skiing, or kayaking. In the winter he is a ski patroller at Jackson Hole mountain resort. He has a former avalanche named Dolly. For college he went to University of Utah, Rutgers. He has an honorary doctorate in River Running. Dont forget to ask him about his time in acting school in New Jersey!

Guide Gratuity

Mike Farrell

Mike graduated from Merrimack College with a degree in Environmental Science and Biology. Like many of our guides and locals around the valley, Mike has a passion for the outdoors. But, when he’s not on the river, you’ll most likely find him at his computer taking online karate classes…which he has been doing for three years! If you get Mike as your guide, you are guaranteed an outrageously fun time! However, we would advise that customers heed caution when approaching certain subjects like baseball…Mike’s promising baseball career ended unceremoniously on a random day back in 4th grade after only making contact with the ball one time in two years (it was a foul tip). We aren’t still bitter…but seriously, so much potential wasted! Lucky for us, Mike has now channeled his passion and enthusiasm into his customers on the Snake!

Guide Gratuity

Hailey Stines

Hailey is carrying on the family tradition as a second generation raft guide! Her parents were both local river guides, so this has always been her dream job! In her first year guiding, she won silver in the Best of Jackson Hole Best River Guide category, and now she’s back for her third season. While Hailey was born to be on the river, she spent her teenage years washing wetsuits and working in the office waiting for her moment. Her river resume includes kayaking the whole Grand Canyon at age 15. Growing up in Jackson, Hailey was a competitive nordic skier for 9 years, and she climbed the Grand Teton with her high school mountaineering club when she was 15. When Hailey isn’t on the river, she’s trail running, hiking, or biking. Hailey is fluent in Spanish. You should ask her about her 4-H accomplishments or her hot dog eating skills!

Guide Gratuity

Nick Bahamonde

Unlike some of his fellow raft guides, Nick didn't grow up on the river. His first time whitewater rafting was on a family vacation to Jackson when he was 11. The river trip and his dad's comment that 'Being a raft guide in Jackson is probably the best job in the world' is all he remembers about the vacation. That memory led him to quit his job at the farmer's market and become a guide on the river 20 minutes from his hometown, the Shenandoah. After his first season guiding, he moved to Jackson and joined the DH crew. This will be his 3rd season on the Snake! Before guiding, Nick attended Ithaca College where he majored in television and digital media. There, he was a two-time All American kicker. Nick is also quite the traveler having been to 49 states and skied on 3 continents. If you get Nick as your guide, be sure to ask him about that time he won a dating show.

Guide Gratuity

Tucker Pierce

Tucker is floating into his 4th season with DH after moving to Jackson the summer after he finished his degree at SUNY Cortland. While ski instructing at Greek Peak, he met fellow DH guide, Nick, and he jumped at the chance to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a raft guide. Tucker’s dad spent the 80s and 90s raft guiding on the Moose and Black Rivers and even took a trip to Kenya to guide. Beyond rowing and skiing, Tucker is a skilled athlete. If you get him as your guide, be sure to ask him about being a Section 2 Volleyball All-Star in 2017. These days, though, the sport that makes Tucker’s heart sing is a spirited game of cornhole. This year, Tucker is very excited about grilling on his “Raftstone” grill (be sure to ask about it) and hosting cheeseburger picnics with his fellow raft guides. If you ever get bored on the river ask him to sing you a tune, he has the voice of a songbird.

Guide Gratuity

Tabby Burke

Tabby got her start at DH in the office but made her debut as a river guide last season and is stoked to be back for her second season! Tabby grew up in Connecticut before moving to Austin where she studied art at UT, flexing her creative muscles across painting, drawing, photography, and digital art. It was during her college years that she started coming to Jackson to ski instruct, and she’s just wrapped up her 6th year at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. Even though she came for the snow, Tabby found that she loves the summer just as much as the winter and spends the warmer months going on long bike rides and completing hikes, like climbing the Sleeping Indian last summer. As a middle child in a family of seven, she’s perfectly comfortable striking out on her own and spent months backpacking around Europe and Asia solo. Since Tabby’s mom is English, Tabby is a dual citizen and has spent lots of time exploring the UK .

Guide Gratuity

Julien Langshur

Julien comes to Jackson by way of Boston.  It was dreams of powder turns that brought him to town where he applies his degree in Outdoor Education from Ithaca College to ski instructing at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. Now, he wants to stick around for summer, so he's returning for his second year of guiding here at DH. While this is only his second season behind oars, he's already rafted the Rio Grande and the Dechutes rivers.  When he's not on the river, he looks forward to a summer full of hiking, hopscotch, and picnics with his dog, Mango. If Julien is your guide, ask him about his many hidden talents including playing piano. Or mention cheesecake. He recently discovered his deep passion for the dessert. 

Guide Gratuity

Lili VanZutphen

Lili comes to Jackson by way of Healdsburg, California. She moved to the mountains after earning her degrees in Biological Anthropology and Psychology from the University of Oregon. Lili started at Dave Hansen working in the office, and this is her second year guiding after finding her passion for the river through the job. Her love for guiding began after rafting the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. When she’s not on the river, you’ll likely find her honing her climbing skills, practicing yoga, playing the banjo or learning to how to fly fish. If your ever wondering where Lili is just follow the trail of four toed footprints. In the winter, you’ll find her teaching skiing at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort and getting in some powder turns of her own.

Guide Gratuity

Margaret Starr

Margaret is embarking on her second year as a river guide with DH! After growing up in New York and attending the University of New Hampshire, she decided to come out west after meeting fellow DH guide Nick. She found a place to land over Teton Pass and is stoked to be spending the summer in Jackson. When she’s not on the river, Margaret spends her time swimming and hiking, and her winters are dedicated to skiing. Margaret is proud to be the tallest member of her family. If you’re lucky enough to get her as your guide, be sure to ask about her bagpipe band!

Guide Gratuity

Jordan Ibarra

While this is Jordan's 2nd year at DH, it'll be his 1st behind the oars. Jordan started rowing in his grandfather's drift boat, and while he enjoyed the trips, he craved the thrill that comes from running the rapids in a raft. So after growing up in Laramie and working at the Weed and Pest department, Jordan was ready to switch jobs and get on the river! When he's not rafting, you'll find Jordan mountain biking, skiing, or antler hunting. 

Guide Gratuity

Rose Adrat

Rose is perfectly at home in the wilderness. She got her bachelor’s degree at the Environmental Science and Forestry college. She managed to hike 6,400 miles over the course of three summers. If you get Rose as your guide, ask her about all the trails she’s completed to rack up so many miles! While she’d already fallen for the great outdoors, it was her friends that introduced her to rafting. As she enters her second year guiding, she still dreams of her rafting trip in New Zealand while on an epic adventure across the country. While Rose’s outdoor resume is impressive, you’ll be surprised to learn about her other talents—like being able to unicycle. Rose is also quite musical and can play the flute. She can often be found slacklining, climbing trees and collecting bugs.

Guide Gratuity

Max Palmer

Max is a long way from his home in London, England but he’s excited to experience Jackson. He got his degree in environmental conservation from Fort Lewis College in Durango, CO. While this is Max’s first year guiding river trips he is an experienced guide in other realms. He has guided backpacking, climbing and backcountry skiing trips among many others. He began rafting in his free time in college down in Colorado and decided that raft guiding was going to be his next adventure. When not guiding Max can be found climbing, skiing, mountain biking and of course doing more rafting. While he lives in a van down by the river now he lived in England for 10 years. Feel free to ask him questions about his time across the pond!

Guide Gratuity

Mady Seeber

Mady is originally from Fort Collins, CO. She got her degree in environmental conservation from Fort Lewis College in Durango. This is Madys first year guiding for Dave Hansen but her 2nd year as a river guide. She got her start working in a rafting office where they took her on a multi day trip down Desolation Canyon and she fell in love with guiding. She has guided on the San Juan, Lower Animas and now the Snake River! When she’s not on the river she can be found skiing, climbing, mountain biking or trail running. Mady loves some good arts and crafts and reading a good book. She’s always down for an adventure, even the heinous ones. Mady is a big fan of vegetables, but don’t ask her about brussels sprouts.

Guide Gratuity

Emery Rheam

Born and raised right here in the valley, Emery is originally from Wilson, WY. She ventured to the east coast for college. Emery got her degree in earth science and public policy from Dartmouth College. Although this is her first year professionally guiding, she knows the Snake River very well. She’s excited to be following in the footsteps of her dad, who is also a river guide! When she’s not on the river you can find her trail running, mountain biking, fly fishing, skiing, puzzling or reading. In the winter she is a ski patroller down at Alta in Utah. She hasn’t had a summer in 4 years because she’s been going back and forth between Alta and New Zealand chasing winter so she is excited to be back on the river in her hometown! Her superpower is that she can work a full day starting at 6 am without coffee!

Guide Gratuity

Logan Blackburn

Originally from Flower Mound, TX, Logan got his degree from the University of Arkansas. He used to guide week long hiking and biking trips for Backroads. On these trips one of the activities was rafting and kayaking which made him decide to hop behind the oars. This will be his first year guiding and his first year working for Dave Hansen. When he’s not on the river you can find him doing any outdoor activity including rock climbing, running, biking and paddle boarding to name a few. He also enjoys some light reading in his free time. If you’ve ever wanted to go to Europe but aren’t sure where just ask Logan, he’s been to every European country and can even speak German! In the winter Logan can be found teaching skiing at JHMR.

Guide Gratuity

Charlie Hoelscher

Charlie originally hails from Jackson Hole, WY and calls the Snake River home. He went to University of St. Thomas in Minnesota and got his degree in Psychology and Sustainability. During his time in college he played D1 soccer. While this is his first year guiding for Dave Hansen he got his start here as wetsuit washer back in the day. When he’s not guiding on the river you can find him surfing the river, sunbathing or skiing. Charlie can speak fluent Spanish. His favorite food is anything you put in front of him.

Guide Gratuity

Ashton White

Ashton is joins us all of the way from Memphis, TN where she guided on the Pigeon River for 4 years. She gained her love for the river from her dad, he grew up near the Ocoee River and brought his kids there as they grew up. When she was little Ashton loved rivers because of the frogs but as she got older she decided that rapids were pretty cool too and started her rafting career in the Appalachian Mountains. When she’s not on the river Ashton can be found enjoying a good nap. Don’t get on her bad side because she’s training an army of squirrels in her backyard. Ask her how much you have to pay her to eat a worm, she’s only done it once but she might be willing to do it again.

Guide Gratuity

Lauren Douglas

Lauren originally comes to Jackson from McKinney, TX. She went to California Polytechnic University where she got a degree in construction management. This is Lauren’s first year at Dave Hansen and as a river guide but has experience guiding backpacking trips in Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. Like some of our other guides in the winter Lauren can be found teaching skiing at JHMR. When not on the river Lauren can be found skiing, backpacking, kiteboarding, surfing, climbing, water skiing, mountain biking or pretty much anything else outdoors. Don’t forget to ask Lauren about her collegiate water skiing career!

Guide Gratuity

Abby Terrel

After 6 years of guiding on the Pigeon River in East Tennessee Abby is super excited to raft the Snake and join the DH family this summer! She has also rafted on the Kaituna in New Zealand. Abby is originally from Texas and studied Psychology at Texas A&M. During COVID her study abroad was cancelled so she tried to find a cool job for a gap year before grad school, she landed on rafting and never looked back! When she’s not rafting for work you can find her rafting for fun or doing anything involving water. In the winter she can be found skiing and dreaming of rafting season. Her life goal is to own her own ice cream stand. She even survived a tsunami in Hawaii one time!

Guide Gratuity

Ian Lynch

In Memoriam: We at Dave Hansen would like to memorialize our beloved Ian Lynch, a 10 year guide on the Snake and the Deerfield Rivers. In 2016, Ian passed away from a rare heart condition. Ian's smile was his superpower; he brought light and laughter to the grouchiest and grumpiest among us. Kindness incarnate, Ian only brought good vibes to all he encountered--no matter who you were. From the youngest wetsuit washer employee, to Dave Hansen himself, Ian showered all with generosity and love. When he wasn't getting people soaked on the river, you could find him at the local watering hole, cheering for his favorite New England sports teams. Ian spent his winters snowboarding and working at JHMR, spreading his joy. Ian was eclectic--he loved cooking, Tae Kwon Do, football, music, reading, and even writing poetry. We are all trying to live up to Ian! Ian loved entertaining his guests with cheesy jokes and encouraging them to jump in and have fun! No joke--if a customer happened to leave the office impatient, hot, or frustrated, guaranteed after spending a couple hours with Ian, he would come back high-fiving and loving life. Everyone who was lucky enough to know Ian felt uplifted simply by being in his presence.

Bud Chatham

A proud owner of Dave Hansen Whitewater, Bud is a river guide extraordinaire. Born and raised in the Bay Area of California, he owes his love for rivers to his father, cousin, and uncle. In high school, Bud was lucky enough to spend summers guiding fishing trips on the Truckee River and his college summers out here guiding in Jackson Hole for Snake River Park. Let us just say, Bud has never strayed far from rivers. With an impressive 15 years of guiding under his belt, Bud and his incredible, superwoman wife Kelly were lucky enough to spend a year working with Dave before taking the plunge and buying the company in 2003. 20 years later, Bud still yells out river commands in his sleep. Bud and Kelly feel eternal gratitude towards Dave and their goal is to keep DHWW thriving for yet another four decades. Oh, and if it's not too greedy, they'd love for their two girls to be on the oars by the age of 15. Yes...child labor is illegal...but we think there are ways around it if they are your children ;)

Kyle Vosmus

Hard to believe it was 2006 when Jackson Hole Mountain Resort liftee Kyle Vosmus decided to forego his homegrown Maine rivers and spend the summer on the Snake. Little did we know that he would start an epic DH pipeline of Hall of Famers from Maine that would shape the company like a Kahuna wave for years to come. 16 years and thousands of Snake River miles and soaked happy smiles later, Kyle has become one the backbones of DH. Our community is so lucky that he, and his equally awesome wife Ronnie (fellow Maine-er and stellar elementary school teacher) and their two awesome kids have rooted themselves here in Jackson. As GM of our operation, whether it's rowing a boat, driving the bus, or finding you a wetsuit, Kyle does everything at DH to make your trip with us the highlight of your vacation.

Keith Vosmus

With the last name of Vosmus and a zip code from Maine, we knew immediately that Keith was going to be an all star for Dave Hansen. Following in the footsteps of his brother Kyle, Keith guided the Snake through some of the highest river levels ever recorded. Through that invaluable experience, Keith rose from guide to Senior Guide to Operations Manager, all while helping DH rack up multiple kickball championships (along with his brother Kyle!). Keith plays the integral role of overseeing the training of all guides and drivers to make sure they are carrying on the Dave Hansen legacy. He and his wife Lily, a fellow DH Hall-of-Famer/Maine-er/Middle School Teacher, stay plenty busy with their two little boys, guides in training for the 2040 season.