Martin Blanchard

Marty was born and raised in New Brunswick, Canada, where he grew up near the ocean. He now calls Vancouver Island home, where he lives on the traditional territories of the K’ómoks First Nations, also known as the Comox Valley. At the foothills of the Beaufort Mountain range, surrounded by the ocean, lakes, and rivers, he enjoys spending most of his free time outdoors sea and whitewater kayaking, packrafting, hiking, snowboarding and Splitboard touring.

Marty completed his Primary Care Paramedic training as part of his Search and Rescue Technician training with the Canadian Armed Forces. After his 7-year career in the military, he decided to pursue his passion for the outdoors. He completed the Adventure Guiding Program with North Island College and started working as a kayak guide in 2018. He guides trips in the coastal waters of Vancouver Island in the summer and in Antarctica in the winter. Being passionate about mentorship and teaching, and after years of recertifying his own Wilderness First Responder training, he decided to step into the role of instructor with WMA.