Employment at Three Rivers Resort

**Now hiring for summer of 2024!!

Have your best summer in Almont working for Three Rivers Resort! We are one of the largest summer employers in the Gunnison Valley and we are always looking to fill our positions with excellent staff.  Our company is not corporate or billionaire owned. We have been family owned and operated since 1983. When you join our team, you become part of the family! We offer internships, raft guide training, a fishing guide school and a slew of positions in guest services. Positions include: Housekeeping, Front Desk, Activities Desk, Fly Shop, Restaurant Cooks, Restaurant Kitchen (prep, bus, dishes, etc.), Restaurant Servers, Photographers, Shuttle Drivers, Maintenance/Grounds/Auto Mechanic, Raft and Fish Guides, Accounting Office. We begin hiring up to a year prior to the following summer season, with our big push starting around the first of the year. Please send us a cover letter stating your interests along with our application (see below) to: [email protected]. We will review applications as we receive them. Most positions start in late May and end around Labor Day weekend. We do bring some staff on early and keep some through October, depending on position and performance. On site housing is available for some qualified full-time employees. We are interested in people who are committed first to giving the guest a great experience. Then we are committed to giving our employees a great experience. Many of our employees get together for activities, campfires, parties and events outside of work. When you work with us, it’s not just a job. It’s a resort lifestyle!

Three Rivers Outfitting has been offering Raft Guide Training for over 30 years. The 2024 will be held from May 20th – May 31st. Participants are encouraged to participate in both Raft Guide Training as well as the River Rescue Course (RRC). This intense course is held in both classroom and river environments and is recommended for those seriously interested in guiding commercially in Colorado. Class is held from approximately 8:00 am to 5:00 pm each day.  After completing the course, participants will meet the bare minimum requirements to commercially guide rafts in Colorado. Before taking commercial trips trainees must also take a ‘check-out’ run with an instructor in the raft before guiding paying customers on their own. We strive to put only our safest guides on the river with our customers. Additional practice beyond the raft course is mandatory if you wish to guide commercially at Three Rivers. Once the course is complete, guide trainees are invited to hone their skills on our commercial trips that go out twice daily at no charge. Completion of the course does not guarantee employment but if you successfully complete the course and have the desire to guide commercially, we will give you every opportunity to join our guide team. Since you will be working in a resort environment, there are plenty of other jobs available in addition to guiding if you would like to apply for supplemental work (see above). If needed, you can check out gear for the entire class: PFD (personal flotation device), neoprene booties, splash top/bottom, wet suit. After the class, you will need to purchase your own gear in order to guide commercially. Pro deals are available to all guides at Three Rivers.

Course Highlights & Information:

• Equipment orientation, boat rigging, repair, maintenance, and safe boat loading techniques
• Ample time spent on both oar and paddle guiding.
• Basic and advanced guide strokes
• River dynamics and characteristics of moving water
• River Hazards
• Types, causes, and classifications of rapids
• Self rescue and whitewater swim techniques
• Introduction to Rope Rescue Systems
• Commercial Passenger Orientation
• First Aid and CPR Certification included 
• All day trip on the Class IV Lake Fork of the Gunnison River. (*Dependent on the river conditions)
• Over 100 years of guiding experience collectively among instructors
• PFD, helmet, splash gear, booties, and wet suit provided.
• Minimum 18 years of age
• Cost = $400.00 (Refundable if employment commitment is met)

**If you are already a certified river guide, you will still be required to attend certain days of our raft guide training course and become proficient on our local rivers. There may be a minimal fee associated with this training depending on your experience and whether or not you have gained trip leader status. Please call for more information and ask for Dirk Schumacher.

Each day, students should bring lunch (unless noted below), snacks, plenty of water and extra dry clothes to stay warm. You will end up getting wet, and most likely cold, each day. Wear quick dry clothing, extra layers and avoid cotton shirts and socks. You can’t learn when you’re cold!

*Online First Aid/ CPR courses are not valid for river guiding certification in the state of Colorado.

*This course will fulfill the state of Colorado’s Minimum Requirements for river guiding. However, any employing outfitter will likely require you to go through additional training specific to their company operations.

The Swiftwater Rescue Training (SRT PRO-1) course is optional but required to guide our more advanced whitewater trips (class III+). This physically challenging course will be conducted by Swiftwater Safety Institute (SSI) out of Jackson, Wyoming.  This course is intense, containing some classroom instruction and several hours of developing and practicing rescue skills. The initial emphasis is on developing self-rescue skills. Other objectives include an in-depth look at: safety, line in water contact rescue, handling hazards and obstacles, understanding water dynamics and using basic rescue equipment. For more information, visit the SSI website at the following link; PRO-I Almont, CO – Swiftwater Safety Institute. 

2023 Dates: TBD

Equipment Requirements & Course Information:

• Dry Suit
• Lightweight helmet
• USCG approved PFD (Type III or V)
• River shoes or hard soled booties
• River Knife and Whistle
• Minimum 18 years of age
• Good physical condition
• Call or email Three Rivers directly to book; 970-641-1303 or  [email protected] 

Willowfly Anglers at Three Rivers Resort will be offering a professional fly fishing guide school from May 15th – 19th, 2023. Course size will be limited to 12 participants to ensure the highest quality experience possible. Classes will run from 8 am to 4 pm each day. Instruction includes classroom time and “on the water” instruction on local waters.

Why choose Willowfly Anglers Fly Fishing Guide School?

We offer a variety of local water not often found in one location: Tailwater, Freestone, Small Creeks and Stillwater (on-site pond and 3 local reservoirs).Willowfly Anglers is an Orvis-Endorsed Outfitter and has thrived for over 35 years with some of the best guides in the industry. Our guides have over 100 years of combined guiding and instructional experience.

• Equipment is included in the cost.
• Private water on the Taylor River, Gunnison River, East River, and Cebolla Creek.
• Thorough curriculum including: Instruction from an FFF Master Casting Instructor, entomology with an aquatic entomologist, ethics, wading, guide professionalism and client management.
• On site lodging included!
• Small class size to ensure high quality experience.
• Large network of outfitters for employment referrals.
• Great local fishing pre-runoff during May.
• Discount offered for the raft guide course (which will fulfill the minimum qualifications for float guiding in Colorado) if registered for both.
• The best value of any guide school!

Tuition for the 2022 school is $1200.00 per student without lodging, and $1850.00 per student including 6 nights of lodging. Also included are all class materials, the use of waders, boots, rods and reels, and a diploma upon completion. Not included are a Colorado fishing license, leaders, tippet, flies, and meals. The lodging included consists of a hotel-style lodge room at Three Rivers Resort. The room is spacious and includes a queen size bed, fold-out futon, private bathroom and kitchenette (refrigerator, kitchen sink/counter area, small table, toaster oven, microwave and coffee maker).

If enrolling in both the Fishing Guide School and the Raft Guide Training course, overall tuition may be reduced by $100.

Completion does not guarantee employment. As an Orvis-Endorsed outfitter, we have a large network of outfitters to which we can refer graduates for possible employment opportunities.

Registration closes May 9th, 2022.

Required for participation: Fly Fishing Experience is required. Must be 18 years of age. Must have valid Colorado Fishing License.

To enroll in the Raft Guide or Whitewater Rescue course, click here: Online Raft Course Registration. To enroll in the Fly Fishing Guide School, please call Willowfly Anglers at 970-707-7019. Please fill out the form(s), sign, then fax or mail to Three Rivers Resort. Be sure to include any deposits indicated in the course description when mailing the form. If you are faxing the form, please fill out the appropriate credit card information on the form. Do not email us your credit card information. If you intend to work as a raft guide or fishing guide with Three Rivers Outfitting/Willowfly Anglers after you have completed the course, please also send us your job application.

Click here to download a Job Application in Word. Click here to download a Job Application in PDF. Complete it and email it or print the application to complete and send by mail, fax or scan & email.

Mail: PO Box 339, Almont, CO 81210      Fax: 970-641-1317.      Email: [email protected]