Posts by Andrew Skurka
Guide profile: Christy Rosander
Apply for 2021 trips starting December 14
Next Monday, December 14, 2020, I will start accepting applications for our 2021 trips. Initially, it’s an open process, and all applications received will be considered mostly equally. The open application period closes on Monday, December 28 for Utah and Alaska trips; and on the following Monday, January 4, for our trips in Colorado, California,…
It’s live: Our 2021 guided trip schedule
76 testimonials about our 2020 guided trips
Since 2014 I’ve asked our clients to complete a post-trip survey to gather feedback about our guides, locations, meals, and curriculum, plus their overall satisfaction. Reviewing the results is a multi-day project but entirely worthwhile: they confirm what we’re doing right, and they give me a checklist of improvements for the following year. Among our…
Major redesign: Salomon X Ultra 4 preview
The Salomon X Ultra is the favorite hiking shoe of fellow guide Dave Eitemiller, and it’s one of my recommendations for high routes, early-season conditions, and Alaska. It stands out for its durability, traction, support, and protection, all in a reasonably lightweight package. The X Ultra 4 will be released in spring 2021, and it…
I’m hiring: Backpacking guide position(s)
For the 2021 season I plan to hire up to three additional backpacking guides. If you would like to join our team, read on. Position description The work will be short-term and seasonal, and should be considered a supplement to steadier full-time work, an additional contract in a larger freelance portfolio, or a fun and…
In Oden’s best interests
Amanda and I have long known that our fur baby Oden would not outlive us, and in 2020 we began to acknowledge that he probably had only months left, no longer years. The ultimate timing or cause was unclear, but his trajectory was visibly downwards — his weight was dropping, his arthritis was worsening, his…
Why is the West on fire?
My fire season started in August, when our views were badly obscured on a seven-day trip in the San Juan Mountains by smoke from the Pine Gulch Fire, which briefly became the largest wildfire in Colorado state history. In September, I cancelled five trips in Yosemite because of toxic air quality due to the Creek…
Tutorial: Smoke forecasting in Yosemite & the High Sierra
For five of the past eight years, we’ve guided trips in Yosemite or Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Parks in September. Wildfires have occasionally affected us — like with trail closures and hazy air — but we’ve typically found ideal conditions: comfortable days and crisp nights, no bugs, and low backcountry traffic. September 2020 has presented us…
