Finally getting to meet Bert after all these years

Meeting Bert for the first time took time, nearly 25 years.

But getting to know Bert is something you’re not sure you even want to do at all because one never knows if he’ll be meek and calm or wild and angry.

To be precise, Bert is not a person, but “Bert’s Drop” the final rapid on the Salmo River in British Columbia. He’s akin to the fairy tale troll guarding the bridge. Every river runner who exits Shenango Canyon must pass, hoping he’s napping.

But Bert is treated, perhaps out of respect, as if he were a revered resident. “Bert’s in today,” was the word from a group of local kayakers prior...