Women Worth Following Downriver Grande Ronde River | Summer '26
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We sent nine women river rats down the Grande Ronde River to see what it really takes to pull off a five-day rafting trip and photoshoot, and see if our Best of Fall could handle the send (spoiler: it crushed).
For our second annual river trip, we headed back to the Pacific Northwest, this time to Oregon's Grande Ronde River. Forty miles of rapids, five days on the water, and the kind of perfect chaos you only get with a crew like this.
Our crew looked a little different than your average river trip: A firefighter and a professor, certified river guides, a producer and a photographer, two entrepreneurs, and one exceptional dog. Different paths. Same reason for showing up: one more adventure together.
There’s nothing like getting humbled by a river, only for the right crew to lift you back up.
Meet the Crew Behind the Chaos.
Freya chased the action with a camera. Ingrid somehow made the chaos look easy. Kirsten made sure we could focus on the next rapid instead of what could go wrong. The rest of the crew hauled dry bags, set up camp, cooked dinner, paddled hard, and jumped in wherever they were needed. Shiva handled morale.
Our 2025 Pitchfest winner, Emily LaPlume, dropped in to see what really goes into a T9 river expedition. Founder of Saturday Swimwear, she brought adventure-ready suits and left with a whole new appreciation for what it takes to pull off five days on the river.
Our community of badass women has grown so much since our first T9 expedition—we’re stoked to keep doing this with more adventurers, mamas, and entrepreneurs who say “hell yes” to more chaos with more send-it energy.
New Water, New Crew. Same Wild Attitude.
What Earned a Spot in our Dry Bag
Trips like these are a real test for gear. So we only brought the best:
- Saturday Swimwear: Big on function, and made with planet-friendly fabrics. Tested through rapids, swimming holes, and everything in between.
- Plaiditude Long Sleeve Flannel: Our official layer-slayer. Not too heavy, not too light, juuust right.
- Scout Pants: Our camp MVP. Tough enough for hauling dry bags, comfortable enough to keep on long after we pulled off the river.
- Swim Shorts: Because wet seats are part of the job. Quick to dry after every splash, comfortable enough to wear from the raft straight into camp.
- UPF sun shirts: The river doesn't care about your SPF routine. These kept us covered from the first paddle stroke to the last.
- Denim that doesn’t mind a ‘lil dirt: Strong, stretchy, and the kinda denim we wish all our jeans could be made of. Campfire approved.
Meet the Grande Ronde Crew
Emily LaPlume:
Newbie river rat. Founder, designer, planet-protector rolled into one.
Our 2025 Pictivist writing and the brains behind Saturday Swimwear, Emily joined our crew of guides, photographers, and athletes to experience everything that goes into a T9 shoot and brought the hard-working suits to keep up. What she didn’t expect was what five days on the river would do. It reminded her why she started Saturday Swimwear in the first place: to build gear that helps more women say yes to adventures like these.
When she’s not running rapids with our crew, Emily does it all from her home base in Bend, Oregon: designing suits that are big on function, low on fluff, and made with fabrics that won’t outlive the planet.
Kirsten Mathers:
Firefighter. Mountain goat. Snack-slinging mom. Training for something.
Or everything.
Kirsten’s been making her mark in male-dominated industries since day one, bouncing between river guiding and ski patrol before finding her way into the fire service. She’s now a career firefighter and the first woman on Snohomish County's Technical Rescue team. Oh, and a two-time NCAA D2 national rowing champion.
These days, she also leads workshops for women and nonbinary folks pursuing careers in the fire service. Equal parts ferocious and grounding, she’s exactly the kind of woman you want calling the shots on a class III rapid.
Freya Fennwood:
Outdoor adventure photographer. Expedition paddler. Feral upbringing in the best way.
Freya grew up surrounded by boats, paddles, and half-built kayaks. As a kid, she’d help assemble kayak pieces for ten cents each before spending summers out on long paddling expeditions. She got deep into Greenland-style kayaking along the way, eventually competing at the Greenland National Kayaking Championships in a boat her dad designed specifically for her.
Honest, adventurous, and fully there for the send, Freya shoots exactly the way she likes to be out there.
Rachel Dean & Shiva
Rachel: Creative by trade, resourceful by nature. Built a jewelry business & runs it out of a converted school bus.
Shiva: Rachel’s adventure buddy, our star pup on set.
Rachel grew up on these rivers, spending every summer on the South Umpqua. She’s the kind of person who says yes on the spot and is always down for the adventure. All it took was one trip to Baja at 10 years old, crammed into a Volvo station wagon with her family, for her to know outside is where she’s happiest. It’s still the place she goes to reset, surf, eat ceviche on the beach, and stay out a little longer.
Ingrid Granlin:
Producer, paddler, Canadian-born logistics wizard. Makes chaos feel nothing like it.
Nafeesa Andrabi:
River-rafter, health equity researcher, powder hound in Pakistan. The definition of well-rounded.
Paulina Peña:
Adventure photographer. Storyteller. Licensed skydiver. Do-it-all-outdoors-er.
Brooke lawrence:
Gal-pal to Rachel, and now our bestie, too. There for the ride and the good energy.
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