Carrying Forward the Esprit Rafting Legacy
For over 30 years, Esprit Rafting has been a cornerstone of the Ottawa River paddling community. Founded in 1992 by Jim Coffey, Esprit built a reputation for top-tier rafting trips and international adventure travel.
Danny Peled & Ty Smith purchased the Ottawa rafting operations of Esprit Rafting in February 2025, continuing its legacy under the Boreal River Expeditions banner.
Ty and Danny started as raft guides with Esprit in the early 2000’s. Over the past two decades, they’ve led expeditions across Canada and internationally, and trained thousands of people in whitewater rescue and wilderness first response.
Danny founded Boreal River in 2008, launching rafting expeditions on the Mutehekau Shipu (Also known as the Magpie River) in northeastern Québec.
Ty managed rafting operations for a company on the Elaho River in Squamish, BC and has now spent 8+ seasons leading expeditions on northern Patagonia’s Futelefu River, in Chile.
Now, Ty and Danny are excited to be back on the Ottawa — and looking forward to continuing Esprit’s rafting legacy and also evolving new trips and instructional programs that allow more people to have amazing experiences on the river.
Jim continues running canoe trips, outfitting services, and training courses on the Ottawa’s tributary rivers (the Coulonge, Noire, Dumoine, and Petawawa), leading international trips for kayakers and canoeists, and courses as Esprit Whitewater.
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Jim, Ty, and Danny are all thrilled with the way things have come around full circle. We’re excited about the future and hope to see you on the river!
