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Dave Collins

Website: http://www.tierralegre.org

Blog: Stand-Up Paddle Boarding

Country: Canada

Birthday: November 1, 1971

Gender: Male

About: “Made All American at the 1991 U.S. Swimming National Championships (Division III). From 1992 to 1995 worked seasonally as a kayak ranger for the U.S. Forest Service on the Middle Fork of the Salmon River in Idaho while earning a B.A. in anthropology from the Colorado College. Graduated with honors in 1995 and began competing full time on the pro freestyle kayaking circuit and teaching whitewater kayaking for Jackson Hole Kayak School in Jackson Hole, Wyoming (my home state). Placed in the top third at the 1997 Pre-World Championships on the Ottawa River. Returned to school to pursue an M.A. in composition and rhetoric at the University of Nevada, Reno, in 1997. Received Regent´s Award and served as an Americorps volunteer. Graduated in 1999 and went to Colima, Mexico, to teach humanities and ESL at the Institúto Technológico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (a private prepatory and university system in Mexico). Started Immersion Adventures (www.immersionadventures.com), an ecotourism company based in La Manzanilla, on the coast of Jalisco, Mexico, in 2000. Contracts included the Discovery Channel and the Earthwatch Institute (Mexican Mangroves and Wildlife Program). Started El Girasol Bistro, a restaurant and coffee shop, also based in La Manzanilla, Jalisco in 2002. In 2007, started Tierralegre (www.tierralegre.org), a non-profit organization committed to protecting the natural resources and biodiversity of Mexico´s Costalegre (southern coast of Jalisco State). Major projects include: Recycle Costalegre and La Gloria Sea Turtle Conservation and Permaculture program. Currently based in Victoria, B.C. working as Director of Tierralegre and doing freelance photojournalism. Have published articles and photos in High Country News, River Magazine, Paddler Magazine, American Whitewater Journal and Mexican Pacific. Noteable Expeditions: First solo stand-up surf paddle expedition around Cape Scott (Port Hardy to San Josef Bay) in July 2008 Self-contained descent of Turnback Canyon of the Alsek River in September 2005 Solo sea kayak expedition along Mexico´s Costalegre (southern coast of Jalisco state) in November 1999 Solo Ascent of Mount Orizaba in December 1998 ”

Interests: surfing, stand-up paddle surfing, whitewater and sea kayaking, birding, natural and cultural history, conservation, environmental activism, writing and photography, mountain biking, backpacking, snowboarding, telemarking, nordic skiing (traditional and skate), snorkeling and diving, swimming, foreign languages, outdoor sex.

Certifications: ACA-certified Whitewater Instructor Wilderness First Responder (outdated) PADI Basic