Our Instructors and Guides

Meet some of the Instructors and Guides who will be leading you though your course or trip, and the Companies who's products help us along the way. We came to kayaking from completely different places in our lives but met each other from the seat of a kayak and haven’t looked back. We have made many treasured friends in kayaking through our students and fellow instructors. We’ve taught countless people to kayak; from a few over seventy year old women who couldn’t swim but were determined to kayak at the cottage whether their husbands would join them or not, to 16 year old triplet boys who we couldn’t get to stop rolling long enough to teach them a forward stroke! We’ve had too many laughs to count, and shared and heard life stories as the sun goes down that we’ll treasure forever.  We are so lucky that we are able to share the joy and exhilaration of all of our students as they achieve their dream of becoming a kayaker, and that, as they say, is priceless.

Happy Paddling!
James and Dympna



James Roberts

 

Born on the Isle of Wight just off the south coast of England, James grew up in and around the water and can’t imagine his life without it. James’ first kayaking experiences were the eight years he spent surf kayaking in the English Channel and North Devon. James became certified and worked as a carpenter/joiner but spent all of his free time in his kayak, riding the waves alongside his surfer mates.

Although James loved the rural beauty of the Isle of Wight, he had visited Canada many times as a child and felt drawn to come and explore a life here. Thanks to his dual citizenship he immigrated to Canada in 2003. He attended Algonquin College one year later.  Graduating with honors as an Adventure Naturalist there was only one path he wanted to travel and that was the way of the paddle. For the last six years, James has guided countless trips on Lake Superior, Georgian Bay and taught loads of Paddle Canada skills courses.  As well as in the surf or on beautiful wilderness beaches you may have seen him on the cover of a National Kayaking Magazine, paddling in an IMAX movie of the Great Lakes or giving his Keynote speech at the Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival.  James is still happiest playing in the waves and now enjoys mastering new Greenland rolls as well.  He’s combined his two skills and recently built a custom Greenland skin on frame kayak. James is a Paddle Canada Level 4 kayaking skills, Level 3 Skills Instructor, Wilderness First Aid Responder and is an AESKO certified great lake sea kayak guide.

Dympna Hayes

Dympna bought her first kayak in 2001 and began her time in a kayak as a weekend warrior. Working in the corporate world, hauling back and forth on the Go Train into Toronto each day, she dreamed of getting out of the office and into her kayak. Her dream trip was to paddle Pukaskwa National Park on Lake Superior but knew she needed to improve her skills.

She began improving her paddling skills through Paddle Canada courses. She is currently a Paddle Canada Level Three skills, Level Two Instructor and Level 1 Instructor Trainer. She took her Wilderness Advanced First Responder Training and AESKO Guides Training then proceeded to certify as a Paddle Canada instructor. Along the way she somehow convinced herself she could make a living at it, so she left her job in the city and never looked back! She began guiding trips on Georgian Bay and has also had the opportunity to guide the Pukaskwa section of Lake Superior she had always dreamed of paddling.

Dympna is also a Yoga Alliance certified yoga instructor so don’t be surprised if you do a few yoga postures before settling into your kayak.

Dympna takes particular pride and enjoyment in finding the student whose is struggling and helping them to relax through laughter and gain some confidence. Her main goal is to give her students the paddling skills and outdoor skills they need to paddle their own dream trips. Dympna loves to kayak, loves tripping, and truly enjoys the privilege of introducing anyone to the joy of kayaking.
 

Ian Peters

(Photo to follow)
 

Ian fell in love with paddling from the seat of a canoe and spent many days tripping through the beauty of Algonquin Park. His first experience in a kayak was when he spent some time on the West Coast paddling from spots such as Deep Cove and Tofino. Kayaking immediately reeled him in and he was hooked! Ian was serious about developing his skill in a kayak and worked through the Paddle Canada system to develop to a Level 3 Skills paddler. Ian’s patience and kindness make him a natural teacher so he also pursued his love of helping others through instruction. We are thrilled that he is teaching for Learn To Kayak as a Paddle Canada Level 2 instructor. 

Through kayaking, Ian also developed a strong interest in Greenland Paddling and he has even custom made his own tuilik. He has quite a few rolls up the sleeve of his tuilik and loves to coach fellow rolling enthusiasts whenever he gets the chance.

We met Ian through his love of Greenland Paddling and became friends with Ian because, like all Learntokayak instructors, he never passes up a chance for a laugh or a joke. Paddle alongside Ian and learn from the best as you explore the beauty of Georgian Bay on your Paddle Canada Level Two Skills. 

Brett Kril

 

On a day trip with his family, in July of 2003, an unsuspecting Brett climbed into a kayak for the first time.  Scorned by the guide for paddling ahead and leaving the group, Brett realized he was hooked. Within a matter of months he had bought a kayak and taken a couple of courses to gain some preliminary skills.  A few months later he upgraded his first kayak to another, than another, and another.  The local paddling shop staff took notice of his interest and offered him a job. 

Over the next four years, he spent his time between York University, studying for a bachelor of environmental studies degree, and The Complete Paddler, working in sales, repairs, and instruction. 

Brett’s interest in traditional Greenland kayaking was ignited in 2005 when he first learned a standard layback roll using a Greenland paddle.  From there he delved into Greenland Inuit history, rope gymnastics (Qajaasaarneq), paddle construction, and boat design.  He has twice traveled to Michigan for the Qajaq USA training camp (2006 & 2008) learning from top North American Greenland instructors including Dubside, Turner Wilson, and Cheri Perry.

Brett has been teaching Greenland kayak lessons for the last three years.  This is complimented by his status as a certified teacher with the Ontario College of Teachers.  Brett is now a Level 2 skills paddler and one of our Level 1 instructors.

 

Alan Drummond



Alans first kayaking experiences were up in Cottage Country in his teens.  After taking a sabbatical for a little while he has come back to the sport with a passion. Alan is a Paddle Canada Level 3 paddler, and a Level 1 instructor. You can regularly find Alan out leading trips to, among other places, the Toronto Islands, shamelessly promoting learntokayak.ca or helping out new paddlers which is where his passion and skills lie. Alan also loves kayaking wherever his travels take him, most recently in Scotland with castles in the background and to Florida to paddle with manatees and to watch the space shuttle blast off. After taking a long time to solidify his roll, now that he has it, he HAS it!  Alan is now the king of the combat roll, try and capsize him and see what happens! :)

Scott Robinson

Scott’s our resident Artic adventurer. Unlike many of us who’s dream is
to someday travel to Greenland, Scott’s first kayak trip was on the east
coast of this beautiful country where he was instantly hooked!
Scott travels to the Arctic ever year on a new adventure. He has been
to such places as Iceland, Baffin Island, Ellesmere Island, Axel Heiberg
Island as well as stops in Resolute, Arctic Bay and Eureka.
Scott is a Level Two paddler and a Level One instructor. Scott is also a
phenomenal rolling instructor who has mentored with Cheri Perry at
Ontario Greenland Camp. Scott teaches many of our pool rolling clinics
and gets great satisfaction when he sees the huge grin of a paddler who
just got their roll.

Craig Woodall


Craig spent the first 35 years of his life wondering what was missing.....then he found kayaking! On
his way home from a Leadership Retreat just a few years ago, he spotted 3 kayakers playing in the surf
off Burlington Beach and it just clicked, this was to become his new passion. As soon as he landed at
Pearson Airport that day he browsed for ‘learn to kayak’ and within 24 hours had booked onto an Intro
Course with James and Dympna. Since then Craig has completed a number of courses and is now a
Paddle Canada Level 2 paddler and Level 1 instructor.

Craig gets immense satisfaction from introducing new people to the sport and watching them develop
from ‘newbies’ to confident paddlers. In the Fall of 2010 he attended the first Ontario Greenland
Camp where he first learnt his roll, he is rarely seen on the water now without his faithful ‘stick’. Craig
was born in the UK and moved to Canada in 2002 with his family and immediately fell in love with the
wilderness of Canada. 


Heather Stewart RMT

Heather's Bio coming soon!

Birgit Kuhle



Birgit started her paddling career from the bow of a whitewater canoe, but switched to sea kayaking when 'the ex got the canoe'.  Seakayaking has become her passion where she has taken on sea kayak instruction, guiding, and recently achieved her PC level 3 skills on beautiful Lake Superior surf. Although most of her kayaking is done on the Great Lakes, she has tripped as far south as Belize and Florida and assist guided as far east as Newfoundland. She is best known as the social convener and official photographer on trips, and is the proud owner of five kayaks ("But only for personal use, Officer!"). As a health care professional, Birgit's interest has also extended to Wilderness Medicine and a WAFA certification. She is also proud to say that she paddles year 'round in the City of Greater Sudbury, where it is not always easy to find open water (kayaking season never ends!). 

 

Mike Allen


Mike grew up on the east coast, and a lot of time spent in the forest and ocean left him with a deep appreciation of the outdoors. Undergraduate and graduate degrees in biology, and a stint as a professional birdwatcher only served to strengthen his appreciation and respect for the world around us. Mike is a Leave No Trace Master Educator, as well as an Introduction to Kayaking Instructor. Based in Kitchener, ON, Mike teaches several Introduction to Kayaking courses and gives several Leave No Trace Awareness Seminars each year to a wide range of audiences.


Todd and Sarah Fisher

 

Todd and Sarah got hooked on paddling firstly in canoes during annual pilgrimages to Algonquin park.  Eventually starting to rent kayaks instead of canoes there love flourished and they just had to buy their own.   Sarah and Todd were on the first ever Learntokayak.ca Level 1 course and have since both graduated our Level 2 skills program (Sarah while 3 months pregnant with Cole, who we gave an honorary baby level 2 award to!)  Both now Level 1 instructors they make a great team and offer plenty of laughs on and off the water.

Sophia Jambor

Sofia has been teaching Hatha yoga for 5 years. She has completed trainings in Hatha, Hot, Restorative and Anusara Yoga. Her classes are infused with an exuberant and playful nature, creating opportunities for students to overcome challenges, find acceptance and integration, and learn to act more skilfully in the face of adversity and resistance, on and off their mats. Her background includes studies in applied anatomy and physiology, multiple languages, partner yoga and Thai yoga massage. She strives to find balance between her studentship and teaching, knowing that her capacity to serve others grows from her ability to seek guidance, wisdom and peace within first. Off the mat, Sofia spends her time actively, surfing, diving and climbing in foreign lands.