As a teenager, my mind exploded with possibility, awe and confidence when I discovered the joy and simplicity of spending time in the mountains.

My passion for the outdoors drove how I spent every spare moment and eventually my decisions to move to Alaska and then Switzerland.

In my twenties, I spent many years working as a guide, outdoor educator and wilderness trip leader for both youth and adults in North Carolina, across the American West and in Alaska. I worked restaurant and odd jobs in the off seasons so I could pay for personal wilderness trips. I even accepted my first desk job in Alaska politics in large part because it left me free for summer trips each year in that amazing place, of which I did many.

I spent the last twenty-plus years working behind a desk, crafting strategies to frame debates and influence policies to conserve nature and otherwise make the world a better place. Now, I want to make that my side gig while I spend more time outdoors, sharing the awe and joy of the mountains with others. 

I am a certified Wilderness First Responder, a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, and a member of L'Association Suisse des Accompagnateurs/trices en montagne. I am working toward my International Mountain Leader certificate. I have led professional wilderness trips in North Carolina, Maine, Montana and Alaska, and personal trips in Alaska, New Zealand, Ecuador, Scotland, Canada, Mexico and across the American West and European Alps. I speak English and French, although my French is a continuous work in progress :). 

With my family, friends, dog or on my own, I have been fortunate enough to have hiked, biked or backcountry skied in almost every Swiss canton from our home base in Geneva. The mountains have given me so much, and I look forward to helping more people get out from behind their desks to experience the wonder of nature and the awe of the mountains, safely. 

I hope you will join me.

Mark Gnadt