Our Guides
Sophia Rouches • Owner • Guide (she/her)
Sophia was born and raised in the pacific northwest, where she splits her time between the mountains and the sea. Her early years were spent exploring the nooks and crannies of the Snoqualmie Valley, before moving to Bellingham to attend Western Washington University where she earned a degree in Environmental Education. During these years she spent summers in Oregon as a white water raft guide and her passion for guiding evolved. She spent many years working as an environmental educator, a naturalist, a server, a farmworker and a handful of other odd jobs that allowed her to spend as much time as possible outside. When she found Moondance, she didn’t expect it to grasp a hold on her life in the ways that it did. Blending her passions of kayaking, guiding, marine ecosystems, and education, Moondance quickly became a large part of her life. The other half of her life is found in the mountains where she works as a professional big mountain skier. She’s spends the winter chasing snow, pushing her skiing and building relationships with the brands she represents. When the opportunity came to become the new owner of Moondance, it felt only natural for her to carry the paddle onwards. The mix of her experience as a professional skier and a long time guide allows her to see the value of working with community, managing a widespread of risks, and building memorable experiences outdoors. As owner, she will continue to ensure that Moondance provides meaningful and premier sea kayak experiences in the Bellingham area and San Juan Islands.
Hayden Peck • Guide (she/her)
Hayden was born in Bend, Oregon and grew up in Denver, Colorado. She has always been drawn to the outdoors, chasing the sun through the seasons between the Pacific Northwest and the Rocky Mountains with her family since she was a kid. She attended the University of Oregon where she graduated with a degree in Human Physiology & Business Administration. After working with the Oregon Ducks Football Team, the realization that Professional Athletic Training was not the right fit set in and she moved up north. Since then, she has worked as a kayak guide in Kenai Fjords National Park in Alaska and on San Juan Island. In the sunny seasons you can find Hayden on the water, camping, mountain biking, and rock climbing. In the winter she works as a Professional Ski Patroller at Stevens Pass, and in the spring you’ll find her in SW Colorado working to put on the annual Mountainfilm Festival in Telluride. When not pursuing the outdoors Hayden spends her time diving into her photography and passion for film. She looks forward to her second season with Moondance and another magical summer on the Salish Sea!
Dominique Edgerly • Guide (she/her)
Dominique grew up in the urban canyons of New York City and has been seeking out more natural spaces ever since. She’s worked as an educator, guide, and/or instructor of various outdoor activities for over fifteen years, including rafting, horse wrangling, skiing, mountain biking, whitewater canoeing, backpacking, etc. She has lived in almost every region of the country, along with having traveled to almost every continent, and has worked for non-profit environmental advocacy groups and public schools. Her love of sea kayaking began on the rocky shores of the Maine Coast, where she led multi-day trips for teenagers, and she has been so delighted to take that passion to the expansive and wildy biodiverse Salish sea. During the winter you can find her up at the Mt. Baker Ski Area, teaching skiing and snowboarding, and in the summer months she is also a guide for Dig Deep Bike Tours and a coach for Radical Roots MTB. She loves spending as much time outside as possible, and can’t wait to get out and paddle with you!
Ella Hall • Guide (she/her)
Ella grew up in Madison, Wisconsin where she was surrounded by many, many lakes (and cows). She began taking trips to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area with her family as soon as she could walk, which instilled a passion for nature, especially water, in her. Pursuing this passion, Ella began guiding sea kayak trips in the Apostle Islands of Lake Superior where she fell even more in love with paddling and all of the beauty that could be witnessed from a kayak. She spent two summers on the Lake before heading West to attend the University of Colorado-Boulder, where she majored in Environmental Studies, minored in Geology, and got a certificate in Arctic Studies. Throughout college, Ella worked at the CU Outdoor Program where she honed her guiding skills, leading rock climbing, backpacking, and backcountry ski trips in the Rocky Mountains. Feeling a little water-deprived in Colorado, she made the move to Bellingham where she is excited to be able to get back in a sea kayak again. Ella is happiest on human-powered adventures, and can be found romping around the PNW on her bike, skis, or kayak!
Izzi Lavallee• Guide (they/she)
Izzi, also known as Isabel (they/she), is a queer, white-passing Irish and Mexican-American with ancestral roots in the U.S.-Mexico borderlands of the Chihuahuan Desert and County Sligo on the west coast of Ireland. They were raised in Seattle on Coast Salish territories. They hold a Master’s degree from the University of Washington’s School of Marine and Environmental Affairs, where they collaborated with the Makah Ocean Policy & Fisheries Staff on a thesis examining how international border policy impacts access to Pacific Halibut. Currently, Izzi works part-time as an environmental educator with Garden of the Salish Sea Curriculum. Their work has long been grounded in relationship with water, including roles as Maritime Education Coordinator at Maritime High School, Dive Master in Quintana Roo, city-wide environmental educator in Seattle, research and teaching assistant at UW, instructor at Northwest Indian College, and kayak guide with both San Juan Kayak Expeditions and the Duwamish River Access Paddle Program. Outside of work, they enjoy kayaking, open-water swimming, painting, foraging, reading, cooking, and spending time with friends, family, and four-legged companions.
Erica Baril• Guide (she/her)
Erica was born and raised in Issaquah, Washington right along the cascade foothills. Growing up, she was introduced to backpacking, skiing, lake kayaking, mountain biking and living with a curiosity of nature. In 2018, she started attending Western Washington and got a Bachelors in Recreation Management and Leadership, as well as minored in Sociology. During college in the summers, she got into sea kayaking on San Juan Island to complete an internship for school. From there she unlocked another world of opportunity in learning about the Salish Sea. After a couple summers of trying out different types of guiding throughout Montana, Oregon and Washington and ski patrolling in Utah, she was drawn back to the gorgeous summers in Bellingham. Erica is looking forward to her fourth sea kayaking season in the San Juan’s and exploring with lovely folks!
Ava Olsen• Guide (she/her)
Born and raised in Everett Washington, Ava grew up learning and playing in the San Juan Islands and North Cascades from a young age. She discovered her love for kayaking at 14 as a participant on YMCA Camp Orkila teen expedition trips and got her footing as a guide returning to lead the same adventures that instilled the love for paddling in the islands. After spending 2 years as a kayak instructor for WWU, Ava continued her guiding journey with a new challenge and significantly more adrenaline as a whitewater overnight guide in West Glacier, Montana and discovered a love of snow sports working as an instructor up at Mount Baker Ski Area in the winter. Attending Western Washington University studying environmental policy led to a passion for stewardship and conservation and has guided Ava’s goal to integrate these values into outdoor work and education. Outside of school and work she can be found mountain biking, climbing, playing guitar and blasting through books while relaxing in a hammock. Ava feels honored to introduce people to the islands through kayaking and strives to make the outdoor community a more welcoming and inclusive place!