Known World Guides are fun, environmentally aware and well equipped with thousands of hours of experience in the field. They are chosen for their knowledge, enthusiasm, and attitudes as well as high levels & certification in such fields as wilderness medicine, surf & water rescue, back country evacuation & low to high angle rescue. You can be assured you are in knowledgeable & capable company. Known World Guides also teaches guide schools.

Known World Guide Service specializes in Outdoor Adventures including Whitewater River Rafting, Canoeing, Kayaking, Hiking, Backpacking, Mountain Biking, Camping, Outfitting and Peak Climbing in the New Mexico area and around the world.

John Weinmeister

Founding father of Known World Guides, John started Known World in 1994 and has watched the company grow from a very small raft company into a successful, and diverse outfitting company. John manages the day to day operations of the company and can be found leading trips on any given day. He prefers to lead the multi-day and big whitewater trips we offer but it’s not uncommon to see him on the ½ day sections and running shuttles. John’s passions are whitewater kayaking, wilderness exploration on rivers and on land, motocross trail riding and fly fishing. In the winter John is the Snowmaking Supervisor at the Taos Ski Valley responsible for getting the mountain open on time and having enough snow to finish the season with good skiing conditions.

Brad Crater

Whitewater and Mountain Bike guide Brad has been with KW since the late 90’s, weather it be day trips in the Taos Box, running multi-day river trips or leading the mountain bike program Brad is guy who is getting the job done. Brad is an excellent skier and works in the high mountains of New Mexico in the winter months at Taos Ski Valley. Brad plays Frisbee golf in his spare time as well as exploring the remote mountain bike terrain around the area. Brad is a huge fan of live music shows and travels around quite a bit to visit festivals and concerts.

Chamisa Weinmeister

Since becoming a KW Guide in 1995 Chamisa has been the strongest member of the crew and now manages the office and is charge scheduling. Chamisa still guides trips all the time and can be found running Taos Box trips, running 3 day Rio Chama trips or helping out in the Lower Gorge on the water or behind the scene activities to keep your trip running smoothly. Chamisa became a member of the Taos Ski Valley Pro Ski Patrol this past winter and works on Avalanche control programs in addition to ski safety issues and being an Emergency Medical Technician. Chamisa is an avid gardner and many of her crops end up on our tables during trips.

Jonathan Repa "DC"

Repa has been with KW for quite some time, for the past few years he has been in charge of logistics and vehicles but is taking a step back to concentrate on the Known World Kayak School. Repa is an ACA kayak instructor and is working on his instructor trainer certification along with getting Known World on the cutting edge of kayak instruction. An excellent metal fabricator and aspiring musician / songwriter Repa is a very diverse member of our team and quite often is the "go to" guy when we need something done quickly. His passions include kayaking and music.

Josh Briggs

Mountain Bike guide and professional firefighter Josh is an excellent member of our team. Josh is our Mountain Bike man and can ride the gnarliest of trails and make it look easy. He can fix a bike in the middle of nowhere with stone tools and put out a fire after you burst into flames following him up the seemingly never ending hill.

Ben Keen

Ben is one of the "New Breed" guides here at Known World. Since going through our whitewater school a few years back Ben has been honing his skills working on the Rio Grande and Rio Chama as well as private trips on the Colorado River whitewater king. Ben is an avid skier during the winter months and enjoys Rock Climbing and Mountain Biking.

Patrick Beverly

Originally from the suburbs of Chicago "Patty" has been involved in the outdoor industry for 10 years. His early career worked with the development of troubled youth in Colorado running multi-day backpacking trips. He has now moved on to guide in the arena of professional whitewater. Patrick took our whitewater school in 2005 and took to boating immediately. His interests include distance running and he is an avid rock climber.

Susan Brantley

Susan has been guiding rivers around the southwest for the past 20 years, from owning her our raft company on the Lower Gila in AZ, numerous river descents of the Grand Canyon and lots of "mo betta boating" in NM and TX Susan is a river running girl. Susan is also a Registered Nurse specializing in Trauma and Cardiac care, and worked in a major metropolitan hospital as a head shift nurse for 15+ years. Susan is a incredible artist who draws much of her inspiration from the river canyons she travels through and works in, some of the mediums for her artistic expression are pen and ink, water colors and acid wash techniques.

Come experience the best professional guiding, service and instruction in New Mexico. You will find we offer the safest and most memorable trips and expeditions. Find out why we are the safety and rescue experts from our proffesional guides.

Known World Guide Service specializes in Outdoor Adventures including Whitewater River Rafting, Canoeing, Kayaking, Hiking, Backpacking, Mountain Biking, Camping, Outfitting and Peak Climbing in the New Mexico area and around the world.