AN EXPERT TURN

Edmonton’s Greg Zinter ran river trips commercially for more than a decade in Western Canada under the moniker Tooloose Latreks.

Why Alberta? “To paddle on any river, there is no better way to plug into a whole level of awareness that is rare in our modern times. If one is open to it, every river has a wonderful natural energy that revives and recharges. The river is a Zen experience in that it is here and now. On the river, you hear the bird song, you paddle into the wash of diamonds formed by the sun glinting off the rippled water, and, in the words of that Texas troubadour Rodney Crowell, you can ‘listen to the sun going down.’ ”

Vancouver’s John Geary, a former Calgarian and longtime canoeist and paddling/travel writer, misses our rivers and lakes but continues to paddle around the world. You can see photos of his adventures on his Facebook page.

Why Alberta? “I have to waffle and go with a tie — one lake and one river. Maligne Lake in Jasper was a great trip, we were out four nights, canoed to Spirit Island, camped out at both the backcountry campsites. … Coming back, we began early in the morning in a real mist coming off the lake, you couldn’t see more than 10 feet in front, it was quiet except for the dipswish of our paddles. It was magical!

“The second best Alberta paddle was a three-day trip on the Red Deer River ... We paddled and camped along a section through the Badlands of Dinosaur Provincial Park. Our group had obtained permission to be there. We saw hoodoos, fossils, my first rattlesnake (!) and the biggest beaver I’ve ever seen!”