CERTIFIED IN QUEBEC
Eagle Bay Big Moose
Stillwater
Beaver River in the Adirondacks
A Guiding Life
CERTIFIED IN QUEBEC
I am a certified off-road vehicle( ORV) guide. This is a special designation in Quebec, created after a tragic accident in 2020, where five tourists and a guide died after falling through the ice on Lac Saint-Jean. In the aftermath, the Quebec government made a law that anyone who accepts payment for guiding people must be certified.
The guide training does not cover riding technique, understanding the trails or how to plan trips. Instead, it teaches guides how to make the necessary decisions and deal with people who may not understand or agree with their decisions. It also prepares guides on how to deal with accidents and injuries, with lessons in emergency first aid and ways to transport an injured person.
The course reiterates that I, as a guide, bear the responsibility to make the proper decisions. I could be held legally responsible for them. A guide has some protection under Canada’ s Good Samaritan act, which protects a guide’ s efforts to provide life-saving emergency care.
The training is provided in two parts: ORV guide training and wilderness first aid training. Adventure Ecotourism Quebec provides the ORV guide training. It’ s a two-day live online class with a certification test at the end. The certification requires a minimum of 20 hours of wilderness first aid training through the Canadian Red Cross or SiriusMEDX. I opted to take the more indepth, 40-hour course. When it comes to lifesaving techniques, I want all the knowledge I can get.
The difficulties with these trainings are getting them in English. I had to be persistent, as the English-language courses were often canceled due to lack of registrants. Guides must undergo recertification every three years.
Stuck? Bruce Cody has a strap for that.
Old
Forge NY
Eagle Bay Big Moose
Snowmobile Capital of the East
Connect to NYState Trails in every direction
Stillwater
Beaver River in the Adirondacks
500sq. miles of professionally groomed trails
Ride Eat Sleep Repeat
Come lose yourself And find yourself out here
All lodgings and restaurants are accessible by snowmobile
Kurt Gardner Photography Studio Main Street
Old Forge
OldForgeNY. com
FEBRUARY 2026 / SNOWGOER. COM / 43