In this episode, we dive into About Damn Time, Dana Romanoff’s powerful film that follows Cindell “Dellie” Dale and a crew of boatwomen as they navigate handcrafted wooden dories down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. They spent 17 days and 277 miles running the river and filming the story. Their journey becomes a vivid exploration of women reshaping a river culture long dominated by men. We ask: How did they work together to tell this story? What wisdom flows from these women to the ...
Jul 15, 2025•45 min•Ep. 115
Every July, more than 500 paddlers push off from Kansas City down 340 miles of massive Missouri River current, paddling day and night across the state in one of the world’s longest nonstop river races. This is the MR 340, an event of endurance, suffering and transformation. From solo racers chasing records to 10-person canoes grinding it out over four brutal days, every paddler faces the same river. In this episode, we sit down with Kate Mansker, a racer from the very first MR 340 in 2006 who st...
Jul 01, 2025•56 min•Ep. 114
Live from the River Management Society’s Annual Symposium in Ashland, Oregon, we bring you a live conversation with Paddle Tribal Waters . This powerful project is paddling the entire length of the Klamath River from its headwaters to the Pacific Ocean during the summer of 2025. We dive into the vision and logistics behind this month-long river journey. Hear how Paddle Tribal Waters is weaving together stories of ecology, culture and river life. SPONSORS Northwest River Supplies @nrsweb Facebook...
Jun 17, 2025•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 113
Katie Veteto is a river guide with quiet calculated confidence and a sharp eye for water. Within a few years she was navigating one of the most difficult crafts on the river—the massive sweep boat. NRS's new film Driving Sweep, directed by River Radius Contributing Host Greg Cairns, follows her journey of learning, doubt, and determination as she takes on a role historically dominated by men. Through her story, the film offers a powerful reflection on resilience, mentorship, and making space in ...
Jun 03, 2025•35 min•Ep. 112
Two friends become enamored with R1 rafting and together began running class 5 runs to include waterfalls. Then they decide to spend a summer R1ing and making a river film about their fun. Kenny Beauchamp and Ryan Huck tell their story of being friends, running scary fun water and learning to make a film. GIVEAWAY Enter Here GUESTS Ryan Huck @hucknstuff29 Kenny Beuachamp @steep_creek_kenny Film Acct @steep_creek_productions_llc Website: www.steepcreekproductions.com EPISODE SPONSORS SOTAR @sotar...
May 28, 2025•55 min•Ep. 111
This is the 3rd and last episode about the Tijuana River. The Tijuana River is a story of trade, immigration and international borders. This is a river that flows across the US Mexico border and carries pollution and sewage. Our guest is Dr Maria-Elana Giner; she served as commissioner of the International Boundary and Water Commission and upon request of President Trump, she resigned from this position in April of 2025. In this 3rd episode we look for solutions to this epic challenge for the US...
May 20, 2025•52 min•Ep. 110
Many of our favorite rivers run through public land, land that is owned and managed by the Federal Government, and so therefore owned by the citizens of the United States. There is renewed chatter in Washington DC suggesting that major sales of public lands can create significant revenue for the Federal Government. This episode hosts experts on this topic from the Idaho Outfitters & Guides Association, and the Greater Yellowstone Coalition to learn more about who wants this, why this is bein...
Apr 30, 2025•45 min•Ep. 109
Do you ever wonder if bots are being used to acquire river permits during the annual cancellation lotteries each year? So do we. So we built a bot to see if it works to secure permits. And we tried talking with rec dot gov to get their input. Check out this episode for a tour of bots, permits, bureaucracy and access to public rivers. SURVEY ABOUT THE RIVER RADIUS PODCAST RUNOFF EMAIL LIST SIGN UP 2021 EPISODE ABOUT RIVER PERMITS GUESTS Hayden Blackford American Whitewater Kevin Colburn River Per...
Apr 08, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 108
The Tijuana Rivers courses through the City of Tijuana Mexico where 2 million people live. Several hundred thousand homes in Tijuana are not connected to the city sewage system and this leads to significant pollution of the Tijuana River. And because the city of Tijuana butts right up to the US Mexico border, the path of the river sewage and the responsibility for managing is not always clear. This episode goes into Tijuana to learn more about why the pollution exists, where it comes from and th...
Mar 18, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 107
This episode is on site where a beautiful desert mountain river flows through an estuary and into the Pacific Ocean. Before the Tijuana River meets the ocean, it navigates through a dense urban border region with 5 million people. The outcome is a river that is carrying toxic sewage and pollution to the ocean, closing beaches and creating illness in the river and beach communities. This is the first episode in a series about this beautiful place, the epic pollution, and the incredible people who...
Feb 18, 2025•45 min•Ep. 106
River runners became paramount for river rescue in many parts of Appalachia when Hurricane Helene inflated the rivers to record levels. People were stranded in buildings, bridges blew out, and houses were swept downriver. This live episode at the America Outdoors Conference hosts 3 river runners who immediately engaged in the rescue of people stranded by the floods, and, the rescue of the rivers from their own floods. They tell the stories of their work beginning at daybreak on day 1 of Hurrican...
Feb 04, 2025•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 105
In September of 2024 when Hurricane Helene arrived in the mountains of North Carolina, Tennessee and South Carolina, it landed where the ground and rivers were already saturated and swollen with rain. The result was “the storm of record” taking out thousands of bridges, sending thousands of landslides down the mountains and taking human life. This episode hosts the National Weather Service and the Lower Mississippi River Forecast Center to explore the storm and the river reaction, and then Dr Ph...
Jan 21, 2025•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 104
Dr Len Necefer opens up 2025 for The River Radius. Len is the mind and perspective I wanted to welcome me and you both into this 6th season of The River Radius. We talk through the relationship of rivers and elections, of books for this year, the work and impact of Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, and other river and life layers. Len is the founder of Natives Outdoors, the Sonoran Avalanche Center, runs rivers, is articulate and intelligently humorous. This is the 2nd episode with Dr Len N...
Jan 07, 2025•45 min•Ep. 103
To move from 2024 into 2025, we have one guest in two episodes for you. Our guest is Dr Len Necefer. This is the first episode. We talk through life wrapped in intellect and self facing humor, 6th grade reading levels, native art and the modern retail market, an upriver bike ride, and river runs at the northern most reaches of the North American continent. Len is the “star” of his Outside TV show where he is riding his bike up the Colorado River from Mexico to Colorado. He is the founder of Nati...
Dec 30, 2024•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 102
Do rivers have rights? Should they have a set of rights that guide how they are used? In September of this year, 2024, the Biobio River in Chile was assigned a Declaration of Rights. This non binding document allows for work to be done towards making the Declaration influential and even binding at a later date. We speak with International Rivers and Malen Lebu in Chile to understand this more. SPONSORS Denver Area Nissan Dealers @nissanusa Over It Raft Covers @overitraftcovers promo code, free s...
Dec 26, 2024•30 min•Ep. 101
Darby McAdams holds many places in the river world: kayaker, film maker & instructor of both kayaking and film work for young paddlers. In November of 2024 her new film NEAR THE RIVER went public. In this episode Darby moves through her kayak path, her film path and talks about NEAR THE RIVER and its story about the people of the Zambezi River in Africa. DARBY MCADAMS Near the River film IG River Roots Film Production NRS Dirtbag Diaries: “Darby McAdams & the Evolution of Passion” by Cha...
Dec 03, 2024•49 min•Ep. 100
Georgia has rivers and streams running from the mountain country of the Southern Appalachians to the Gulf of Mexico, totaling about 70,000 total miles of waterways. Whitewater and flatwater. Clear water and Black water. And a long history of publicly accessible rivers and streams. That access is being debated by the State of Georgia and bills have been proposed that would curtail access for the public. We talk with Georgia Rivers to learn more about this topic and about the public meeting and co...
Nov 12, 2024•39 min•Ep. 99
25 years ago the Edwards Dam was removed from the Kennebec River in Maine allowing alewives and sturgeon to return to their spawning grounds in force, revitalizing the ecosystem and delighting the paddlers and local communities with the sturgeons’ explosive breaching displays. In the summer of 2024, 2 separate source to sea trips ran the lengths of the Sandy and Kennebec in Maine. Contributing host Clark Tate was part of the Sandy trip and tells the on river story of both source to sea trips. CO...
Oct 24, 2024•44 min•Ep. 98
In the summer of 2024, the Chilcotin River in British Columbia had a landslide that completely blocked the river creating a natural dam. For the next 6 days the river water backed up behind this dam until the waters finally worked over the top the of the landslide, creating a breach that would exceed the previous historical flows by 5 fold. 3 people share their experience and knowledge of the landslide in this episode. EPISODE GUESTS TŜILHQOT’IN National Government Jenny Philbrick, Executive Dir...
Sep 25, 2024•54 min•Ep. 97
Why have cases of reported bat encounters at the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon drastically increased in the last several years? What are the chances of contracting rabies from a bat encounter? How is the safety of helicopter crews wrapped up in the physical location of a bat encounter? What does the vaccination process look like? In this episode, we utilize the personal story of a river runner's bat bite in the Grand Canyon, the expert perspectives of 2 ecologists, a CDC rabies expert, and ...
Aug 20, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 96
Working as a commercial river guide is one of the best jobs, day after day on rivers, helping people enjoy rivers, seeing beauty, having fun, chasing adrenaline. Creating incredible friendships, some of which might last a lifetime. And there can be a dark layer. Sexual Harassment continues to percolate, as it does in many places, in the layers of river guide culture. This episode goes there and learns about sexual harassment in the river guiding culture. We talk with Dr Maria Blevins, long time ...
Jul 23, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 95
SPONSORS American Whitewater instagram facebook American Rivers instagram facebook NRS instagram facebook High Desert Life Outdoors instagram facebook Free Flow Institute instagram facebook KSJD Community Radio instagram facebook GUEST Kevin Fedarko A WALK IN THE PARK Order the book Audio Book THE EMERALD MILE Pete McBride While Pete is not a formal guest of these episodes, he is part of the journey. Here is his work from the same journey. Book: THE COLORADO RIVER: Chasing Water Film: INTO THE C...
Jun 25, 2024•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 94
SPONSORS American Whitewater instagram facebook American Rivers instagram facebook NRS instagram facebook High Desert Life Outdoors instagram facebook Free Flow Institute instagram facebook KSJD Community Radio instagram facebook GUEST Kevin Fedarko A WALK IN THE PARK Order the book Audio Book THE EMERALD MILE Pete McBride While Pete is not a formal guest of these episodes, he is part of the journey. Here is his work from the same journey. Book: THE COLORADO RIVER: Chasing Water Film: INTO THE C...
Jun 25, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 93
As snow is melting and running down rivers across the US, this episode talks with hydrologists at 5 regions of the National River Forecast Center to gain perspectives on how much snow and rain fell over the winter and how it will melt and what the rivers will look like this spring and summer. We focus on the Northeast, Southeast, Northwest, California, some of Nevada, and the Colorado River Basin. SPONSORS ROCKY TALKIE 5 Watt Radio, Waterproof Discount Code 10% off: RIVERRADIUS10 Instagram Faceb...
May 14, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 92
Dams have been blocking rivers for decades. Is there a growing crack in the dam? This episode explores dam removal as an increasing trend. We talk with guests at the Chattooga River and Tugalo Dam, the Snake River and the Lower Snake River Dams, and the Klamath River and the active removal project there. And we look at the trends globally for dam construction and removal. SPONSORS Paddle Ways Download the Paddle Ways app on your phone, then go to the Paddle Ways website with discount link here a...
Apr 30, 2024•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 91
Each year American Rivers publishes a list of 10 rivers that hold great opportunity for river quality improvements. This year, in addition to covering the full list with Amy Kober of American Rivers, we talk with local experts to include the ocean surfers at the Tijuana River estuary in California, the river lovers at the Duck River in Tennessee, and the high desert river people overseeing the entire state of New Mexico. We hear about the unique rivers and the work happening to care for these pl...
Apr 16, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 90
SPONSORS Down River Equipment Instagram Facebook AED One Stop Shop discount landing page GUESTS John Amodio Facebook Linkedin: John Amodio Kevin Fedarko Instagram Facebook Vicki Ozaki Leonel Arguello Dave Van De Mark CONTRIBUTING HOST Samara Rosen RESOURCES Navigating Ecological Transformation: Resist–Accept–Direct as a Path to a New Resource Management Paradigm Sierra Club Oral History Project: John Amodio More Than Luck - Vicki Oazaki, Kin to the Earth Redwood National Park Expansion, Woodstoc...
Apr 02, 2024•59 min•Ep. 89
Kevin Fedarko’s book, the Emerald Mile, takes readers on the journey of the fastest ride through the Grand Canyon in a dory named the Emerald Mile. Fedarko’s book dives into the backstory of the dam, the characters, and even the record-breaking journey, and yet leaves one question remaining: what is the backstory of the dory’s namesake? In this 1st of 2 Emerald Mile episodes, the stories of Fedarko and Dave Van De Mark demonstrate the impact that words and imagery make when applied to places lik...
Mar 19, 2024•53 min•Ep. 88
Atmospheric Rivers are bands of water vapor in the sky, sometimes a few thousand miles long, bringing winter moisture to the west coast of North America and delivering it all the way to the Rocky Mountains. The Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes flies research planes above these storms all winter tracking the details and forecasting the coming storm and this episode hosts their director to learn about Atmospheric Rivers. SPONSORS Down River Equipment Raftopia 2024 Sales Event Instagra...
Mar 05, 2024•51 min•Ep. 87
American Whitewater published their Top 10 List of Stewardship issues in January 2024. This is a mix of dam removal projects, legislation and policy pushes, Wild and Scenic options, all encompassed in the work from American Whitewater to keep rivers clean and accessible. This episode is an interview Kevin Colburn from American Whitewater learning about each river on this list and the positive end goals. SPONSORS AED One Stop Shop Over It Raft Covers @overitraftcovers GUESTS American Whitewater W...
Feb 20, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 86
