Peter Zyniewicz

Born on the bayou of New Orleans, Louisiana, Peter grew up with a strong taste for Cajun food and an unlikely longing for mountains – perhaps the frequent flooding made him long for higher ground! His family moved to Michigan, and after exploring several beaches, Peter went off to Purdue University, gained some book smarts and, upon graduation, headed west to work for the Forest Service as a Wilderness Ranger, hiking thousands of miles of trails and educating visitors on the merits of Leave No Trace camping. Shortening a much longer story, he eventually made it to Seattle where he has had fun working in the outdoor industry, playing in the Puget Sound / San Juans, exploring Washington’s trails and climbing Washington’s rock walls (and a few other walls around the world). He is a Wilderness First Responder, Director of Cascade Adventure Guides, and the best friend of his dog, Jesse James.

 

Suzanne Allen

After camping a whopping two-times growing up, when Suzanne decided to switch careers to the great outdoors, she submerged herself in the mountains. Over the past six years she has made up for lost time. Utilizing her skills as a former music teacher, she regularly seeks the natural rhythms and beauty of backpacking, glacier and rock-climbing, bicycling and skiing. Specifically, Suzanne has hiked the PNT (Pacific Northwest Trail) from Montana to Washington, cycled across Washington on a converted rail-trail, climbed some rock in the Southwest, and has passionately explored the Washington Cascades. She is a certified Wilderness First Responder, doesn’t believe in freeze-dried food, and although she’s tried most outdoor Adventures, she’s saving kayaking for when her knees won’t carry a pack any more.

 

Kim Hood

Kim should be in his nineties given the amount of experience he has. He’s the climber we all dream of being when we grow up. His accomplishments include summits on all seven continents, two unnamed peaks in Antarctica, 14 Mount Rainier summits, Denali (three expeditions), the Sahara Desert, Monch (Switzerland) and Aconcaqua (Argentina) – and this doesn’t even cover half. Besides the busy, ‘normal’ activities of being happily married with a 16 year old daughter, Kim enjoys taking advantage of every opportunity he can to grow, learn, & experience life. Whether he’s in the backcountry skiing, deep underwater scuba diving, or falling from a plane skydiving, you’ll find him smiling… and you’ll wonder what other Adventures he’s dreaming up. And with degrees in fine art (painting), education, & philosophy, the best part is that Kim not only lives the Adventure for himself, he also enjoys sharing the Adventure with others.

 

Tisha Satow

Northern California’s rugged coastline started Tisha’s love for the outdoors and after ten years of Seattle-city living, Tisha continues to escape to the mountains where she finds solace sleeping beneath the starry sky. Whether she’s in the Cascades leading adolescents, backpacking abroad in Honduran cloud forests, scrambling up Nicaraguan volcanoes, or ascending Mt. Fuji, you will find this social worker / yoga teacher / guide enthusiastically enjoying every moment. When you join Tisha on an adventure don’t be surprised if you get caught up in that enthusiasm… it’s contagious!

 

James Rowe

James knows more fun, random bits of information and stories than most people you’ll ever meet. With a background that includes becoming an Eagle Scout as a kid, graduating with a degree in Journalism from the University of Texas, college level tennis competition, working for Outward Bound, and over ten years experience as a sailing instructor, it’s not hard to see how James has gathered so much information. Add to the mix his experience as a Wilderness EMT, ambulance staff, member of the Snoqualmie Ski Patrol, and his continuing career as a Seattle Fire Fighter, and you can’t help looking forward to his stories. James is a certified EMT and Outdoor Emergency Care provider with over twenty years of backpacking experience.

 

Mary Juliano

Mary doesn’t ease into things, she jumps. Over 10 years ago, Mary went on her first backpacking trip: 200 miles on Montana’s Continental Divide trail. (Don’t worry, none of our entry level Adventures are quite so long!) Since then, although Mary goes through withdraw if she can’t squeeze in a 100 to 200 mile solo backpacking trip every now and then, she enjoys tempering her long-distance backcountry addiction by sharing her insight, enthusiasm, and stories with folks on more ‘reasonable’ Adventures. Along with her hiking, Mary will also take off and climb any mountain that looks at her funny and has been known to do a few international backpacking trips as well... however, she’s not quite sure if one of those trips -- being evacuated by raft on a flooded trip in Patagonia -- should count...well, whether it's counts or not, it sure sounds like a great Adventure story!