Powell River Sea Kayak Employment Opportunities

Lead Guides at PRSK will mostly lead multi-day sea kayak camping trips in Desolation Sound, the Discovery Islands, and Toba Inlet. They also get the opportunity to lead overnight resort-based trips out of Cabana Desolation Eco Resort. Multi-day camping trips are from 3-7 days in length.

Lead guides are required to plan, purchase and prepare all meals and ingredients for their camping tours. During the season we consistently reach capacity on our multi-day tours (meaning 10 guests and 2 guides).

When guiding from our resort, we have dedicated cooks that plan and prepare all meals. On these tours the resort used it as a ‘base camp’. Tours radiate each day in different directions to explore Desolation Sound, returning to the resort in the afternoon. The first and last days of these tours are spent paddling between Cabana Desolation and our main office in Okeover Inlet.

We require our Lead Guides to be members of the Sea Kayak Guides Alliance of BC. They are required to have completed a Level Two Guides Exam with SKGABC at a minimum.

Assistant Multi-Day Guides (AOGs) perform a wide variety of guiding with PRSK. Mostly they assist our Lead Multi-Day Guides on camping tours into Desolation Sound. They also have the opportunity to assist larger groups to our eco-resort, and also lead and assist day trips from Okeover Inlet.

Assistant guides on camping tours do many jobs. They assist with food preparation and cleaning, attend to guests’ needs and safety on and off-water, prepare and clean gear and equipment before and after the tour under the supervision of the lead guide, and more.

AOG positions with PRSK are often filled by people looking to advance in the outdoor tourism industry. the job offers great experience for those looking to sit their Level Two lead guide exam in the future. Many of our Lead Multi-Day Guides have worked for PRSK in previous years as AOGs and made the step up to lead after a season or two of experience!

Assistant Multi-Day Guides with PRSK are required to be members of the SKGABC. They are required to have completed an Assistant Overnight Guide Exam with SKGABC at a minimum.

Day Guides lead and assist our Day Tours from Okeover Inlet. These tours are either 3 or 7 hours long and take place in Desolation Sound Marine Park. We also run 7 hour combo kayak & snorkel tours from Okeover.

As well as the on-water guiding, day guides will plan and prepare lunch for all guests for the majority of our day tours. They also prepare for and clean equipment after each tour has ended.

Day guiding is a great way to get started in the guiding industry to gain the experience needed to move up to overnight guiding in future seasons.

Day Guides with PRSK are required to be members of the SKGABC. They are required to have completed a Day Guide Exam with SKGABC at a minimum.

Our General Operations staff are very dynamic positions within our company. Duties of GO staff include (but are not limited to):

With more than 120 kayaks and countless pieces of equipment (PFDs, paddles, throw bags, etc) in our fleet, we pride ourselves on high quality and regular maintenance. Our Repair and Maintenance position is mainly focused on  maintaining our kayaks and equipment so that they are always in top condition throughout the season.

During peak season we can have 25 or more of our rental kayaks returning and launching every day, as well as our regular tours and lessons. Top organization is required keep on top of minor repairs so that we can keep our fleet at max capacity throughout the busy season.

Duties may involve gel coat repairs, replacing buckles and hatch covers, rudder cables and foot pedal adjustment and repair, basic fibreglass repair, bulkhead repair, and many other assorted repairs to kayaks, equipment, and infrastructure at our launch site.

Cabana Desolation Eco Resort employs two Head Cooks who working on a rotational basis from late May-September each year. Despite our remote location, we have a full commercial kitchen on site capable of preparing meals for 12 people or more in comfort. Our kitchen contains propane refrigerators and stoves, a commercial sink, solar powered outlets and LED lighting. The natural cedar kitchen and dining area, nestled amongst the rainforest on our uninhabited island, is a far cry from traditional commercial kitchens!

At Cabana Desolation we focus on healthy, vibrant, creative meals from fresh and locally sourced ingredients. We use a set-menu that is created and tweaked each season, but still leaves room for personal creativity and variety. Almost everything is created from scratch on site. Most ingredients are purchased by the head cook before each trip and transported to Kinghorn Island on our company motor vessel during staff changeover days.

These roles are more than simply creating good food. The design and ambiance of the resort means that our cooks enjoy a far more social environment than in the average commercial kitchen. They interact with our guests daily and add a personal touch to the service and experience that our guests enjoy. As such, a high level of interpersonal communication skills are absolutely necessary for these positions.

Cooks work on a rotational basis, with 4 or 5 days on at the resort, followed by another 2 or 3 days off. While food and accommodation is obviously included during these work days, you will need to find your own personal accommodation in the Powell River area for your days off.