Tucked away in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina is the Nantahala Outdoor Center. Sitting on the bank of the Nantahala River, the NOC has been working with paddlers and rafters for the past 30 years, through its outdoor programs and camps. Its excellent service is world-renowned and people continuously return. Many expert paddlers are born at the kid, teen, and adult kayak camps and programs. Sam Fulbright, a New river Academy alumnus, professional photographer, and an avid playboater, attended two of the teen kayak camps. The beginner camp gave him more confidence that backed up what he already knew. The intermediate camp helped him delve more into the sport of freestyle kayaking, and by the end he was hitting stern squirts and cartwheels. He believes the “NOC was [really big in] solidifying my boating skills. I found that their programs gave me a lot of confidence in my kayaking and they worked really hard to get all the fundamentals of kayaking built up, and built up well.” For the experienced paddlers to the rookies who are scared to run Nantahala Falls, the Nantahala Outdoor Center is the perfect place to have a good time and life-changing experience.