Jackpine Paddle - Yellowknife, Northwest Territories

Nathalie Gingras

I took a one day intro to whitewater paddling course with Jackpine, and it was a fantastic experience! The instructors were both very knowledgeable and the course was organized, well paced, well-equipped, engaging and fun! They even taught in both French and English since we had some French speakers. I had a great day with the and would recommend this training for anyone about to embark on a Northern river trip.

Rebecca Hirsch

We had a great time! Easy communication and pickup from the hotel made it simple. We did a canoe tour in the Great Slave Lake with Luke. He was charming and a local, so had lots of info about the area. It was the perfect amount of time for my ten year old to enjoy. Luke even took us to a great sandwich place after so we could pick up lunch. Highly recommend an activity with Jackpine!

Au__dela

I had 2x3h courses with George and Peter to learn safety, security and how to manipulate the canoe and paddling properly. I learned A LOT and I feel ready for my next canoe trip tandem or solo now! George is motivated, passionate about teaching paddling and his exercises are great to practice. Peter is attentive, focus and available to help you and teach you in tandem with George.
I definitely recommend, you will learn so much technics.

Dustin Sabiston

We had a great experience doing a 5d, 4 night trip with JackPine Paddle in 2024. The communication in advance was wonderful, the guides on the trip were amazing (A+), their boats and gear were in great shape, and the meals were like nothing I had ever had on a canoe trip. Amazing/spectacular gormet in the backcountry.
The trip was kid friendly and JackPine was even helpful to us after the trip was long over; when our flights were cancelled they loaned us gear to do local hikes. All around great experience. 10/10, 5 stars+.

Harsha Ravichandran

Had an incredible two day paddling trip up the Yellowknife river with an overnight camp on a cliff above some rapids. Dan (the owner) was an amazing guide. Very knowledgeable, well-prepared and a fun person. He asked us detailed questions beforehand and made sure we were prepped accordingly. Showed us some good paddling technique and made us feel really safe. Found us a great camping spot. Whipped up an incredible campfire meal.

He normally does longer wilderness expeditions and I cant wait to join him on one of those. If you're visiting Yellowknife and want to really get out into the wilderness, Dan is the man!

Julien Schroder

Highly recommended! Awesome experience.
My partner and I got the chance to join the Whitewater Paddling Courses, we had 4 instructors (two highly experienced guides :Sean and Dan, and two young but highly skilled helpers - Rae and Luke) which was pretty awesome as we could get personalized advice on how to improve our skills.
At the end of the two days course, We feel comfortable scouting and running rapids and learn a lot on various topic, plus we met awesome people so...
Yeah highly recommended

In the photo, two of our instructors show us how to god down rapids and how to have fun while doing so!

Abby A

Dan led my family and I on a four day canoe trip out to the North Arm of Great Slave Lake. I would not call us strong paddlers, but Dan made sure we felt safe and comfortable the whole time. The trip was tailored perfectly to us, with a mix of adventure and relaxation. Camp meals far exceeded expectations, and I would do this trip again just for the food. Jackpine really took care of us and thought of everything, so booking and prepping for the trip was stress-free. These great vibes continued once we got on the water, and I felt renewed even after four days of paddling. We couldn’t have asked for a better trip, and we will definitely be booking with Jackpine again. Thanks Dan!

Kurt Feigl

My brother and I paddled the Keele River in July. The scenery, including hard-rock geology in the mountains and braided meanders lower down, was splendid.

We had a great trip, thanks to the awesome skills of professional guides Evan Sullivan and Jack Kotaska. They make a very strong and synergistic team. Jack reads rivers the way kids read 'graphic novels’ and Evan handles logistics the way Amazon delivers packages. Together, they turned every campsite into a friendly neighborhood cafe, restaurant, and sports bar, fulfilling the roles of maitre’d, chef, sommelier, bartender, and even (camp) counselor.

This was our second trip with Jackpine, but my first on a continuously flowing river. I was very glad that my brother was paddling stern to make up for my lack of experience in moving water. At first, focussing on paddling and only paddling, seemed challenging, but then, after several days, I learned to welcome the relief from my futile attempts at multitasking back on the grid.

I would love to take another trip with JackPine.

Five stars!