Trusted Experts

Our seasoned guides have more than 35 years of guiding experience and have been to over 150 countries safely leading hundreds of travelers to unique destinations via kayaking, hiking, boating, and biking. You will meet your guide when you talk about where you want to go, then you will have continual contact with him or her through trip-booking, readying and returning home. We think you should know them and they should know you and that takes time from the moment you book your trip to the time you return home.

Meet the experts...

Olaf Malver CEO: Chief Exploratory Officer Areas of Expertise: The Polar Regions, Europe and Indonesia Olaf has an incredible enthusiasm for exploration to off-the-beaten-path locations that have unique natural beauty and/or indigenous cultures. Olaf loves the history of the great explorers and is deeply curious about opening their...

Pierre Bester Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Madagascar, Africa and Greenland Born and raised in South Africa, Pierre became hooked on the “bush” from an early age. He added the sea to his outdoor addiction while studying law at the University of Cape Town, and became adept at surf-ski kayaking on the wild...

Hutch Brown Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Galapagos, Laos and Cambodia Hutch Brown hails from Maine USA and first cut his teeth in the wide world of adventure by through-hiking the Appalachian Trail when he was just 18, way back in 1986. Hutch graduated from Marlboro College in Vermont with a BA in...

Baldvin Kristjansson Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Greenland, Spitzbergen and Kamchatka Our beloved “Baldy” has always wanted to travel the world. He left his native Iceland to study environmental tourism in Australia. With this foundation, he returned to Iceland and for 10 years ran his own nature-focused travel...

Jamie Whiteside Arctic Guide Areas of Expertise: Arctic, Paddling, Mountaineering Jamie got his exposure to wilderness adventures as a youth in the Canadian Rockies. His dad, an Alberta rancher with a pesky habit of escaping to the mountains...

Dave Mention Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Portugal, Galapagos and the Himalayas Dave’s love affair with the outdoors began when he discovered the Three Sisters Wilderness in his native Oregon at the age of 12. In the ensuing 33 years, his adventurous spirit has spread from hiking to climbing, cross country skiing...

Jock Montgomery Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Asia, Greenland and Galapagos As a skinny eleven year old, Jock Montgomery went on a five-day canoe trip that became one of those life changing events. He discovered the magnificence of remote wilderness and the grace and splendor of paddling over water. He...

Nancy Moore Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Portugal, Galapagos, Panama and Chile Nancy’s appetite for adventure was fed at a very young age by her grandmother who would orchestrate weekend drives into the New England countryside and announce, much to Nancy’s delight, “we’re lost!” She’s enjoyed getting...

Kim Dodson Adventure Travel Specialist Areas of Expertise: Galapagos, Croatia and South America Born and raised down South, Kim is a Georgia peach at heart. Her adventures have taken her to over 40 countries, including Antarctica, the Galapagos and China. When not exploring the world, Kim can be found scaling mountains and running rivers in her home state of Colorado...

Mick O'Shea Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Southeast Asia, China and Indonesia Mick O’Shea is an eco-tourism consultant, documentary producer and author who has been specializing in the regions of mainland South East Asia for over 8 years. Mick has led exploratory expeditions on 18 of the regions rivers including...

Bob Powell Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Antarctica, Fiji and South Georgia Bob is currently pursuing a PHD in forestry and environmental studies at prestigious Yale University focusing on biodiversity conservation, sustainable nature-based tourism, and protected area management...

Eileen Powell Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Galapagos, Costa Rica and Greece With her start in guiding whitewater 23 years ago, Eileen has amassed a wealth of experience. She has led whitewater and sea kayak trips around the world including Galapagos, Costa Rica, Greece, Turkey, France, Italy, the...

Sandra Schonbachler Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Madagascar, Malawi and Mozambique A daughter of Switzerland who learned to ski almost before she could walk, it’s not surprising that Sandra developed an early love for nature. Snowboarding became her passion, but Sandra also made room for team sports, music...

Roger Schumann Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Belize, Baja, Galapagos and Alaska Roger's fascination with exploring the sea, especially islands, began with family camping vacations at the beach. Surfing, kayaking, diving, hopping from tide pool to tide pool; he learned to love the sea from many angles. As a young man...

Chris Starbird Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Belize, Baja, Costa Rica and Alaska Chris grew up on his grandmother’s ranch in the hills above San Francisco. It was there that his fascination for the outdoors grew to the level that propelled him through biological studies in graduate school. Sea turtles became his focus...

Myles Farnbank Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Norway, Sweden and Madagascar Myles is an experienced wilderness guide with many years of sea kayaking, canoeing, sailing and mountaineering in many of the worlds wildest places. A Fellow of The Royal Geographical Society and a Master Educator of Leave No...

Dave Weir Senior Guide Areas of Expertise: Arctic Dave was born in Switzerland, on the way to Zaire (now the Congo) where his parents were missionaries. He rode the Dempster Highway on his mountain bike at age 16 and climbed Mt. McKinley at age 18...