Aaron Buckingham is the newest member and director of the Canoe Trail team, he is a white water adrenaline junkie loving both white water kayaking and white water rafting.
Aaron started off paddling at the age of 9, doing canoe slalom with his local Viking Kayak Club. His passion for kayaking soon led him to be the junior British champion in the double canoe (C2 Slalom) with his brother Dean. Alongside the slalom kayaking, Aaron also played polo for Viking kayak club, giving Rich a good run for his money!
At the age of 15 Aaron swapped slalom kayaking for white water rafting and represented Team GB at the U23 world championships in Costa Rica in 2011, a fantastic experience that has put him off rice for life (rice for breakfast, lunch and dinner was too much) . Aaron has known Richard from a young age and was a team member of his Big 5 kayak challenge, paddling the source to sea of the river Thames when he was just 14 in 33 hours. After finishing school Aaron moved to Wales to pursue his outdoor instructor dreams, gain qualifications and expanding his experience.
Aaron now holds a wide range of qualifications from first aid to climbing and mountain biking to kayaking. Alongside this, Aaron has spent many months travelling in New Zealand and Europe paddling famous grade 5+ white water sections like the Wellebruke on the Ötztaler Ache and the Nevis Bluff on the Kawarau. Aaron returned to Canoe Trail biannually to help with the Bedford River festival and do kayak displays off the ‘big air ramp’. He is now back for good to help with the expeditions and courses that Canoe Trail runs.
Aaron is a qualified First Aid Trainer providing First Aid Qualifications from simple 1st Aid at Work through to 2 day National Governing Body (NGB) courses and 3 day wilderness courses. His experience of remote locations and real emergencies adds to the benefits of our tailored programmes and courses.
Ash “Aaron has always been like an extra member of the family and is one of the world’s best whitewater paddlers and coaches. Having him as part of the team is a real coup for us and our customers.”