MEET OUR GUIDES

Andrew started skiing on the icy rolling hills of Pennsylvania. At first chance, he loaded all his belongings into an old pickup and drove to a somewhat random spot on a map in Colorado. Years later he would see “Aspen Extreme” and chuckle.

As the Operations Coordinator of Apex Mountain School, Max oversees marketing, social media, program development, day to day operations, and gear maintenance.

Elizabeth Schwab is an east coast ski racer turned backcountry skier. She has spent 5 winters teaching, skiing, and learning in the San Juan Mountains of SW Colorado. She also works on the ambulance crew in Silverton along with Search and Rescue.

Chris Berdoulay has been a longtime guide at Apex Mountain School. He loves spending time with his family, is an active volunteer with Vail Mountain Rescue Group and works on the ambulance crew. Traveling has led him to hike and climb internationally. This lets Chris learn about other cultures.

Jack is our in house naturalist, with an incredible affinity for the world around him and everything Colorado has to offer. Having nearly completed every 14er in the State (multiple times), Jack is our Mt. Elbert specialist.

Chris has a strong passion for teaching outdoor-based skills and enjoys connecting with students while moving in the mountains.

Born in Chile, Aidan (he/him/his) spent much of his childhood living in South America before immigrating to the United States where he lives today. In the latter half of his childhood, Aidan called the mountains of Colorado home and grew up exploring his rugged backyard peaks through the lens of backcountry skiing and ultrarunning.

Josh Vincent is an avalanche forecaster and educator based in Southwest Colorado. He currently works as a forecaster for the Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC), primarily covering the Northern San Juan zone.

The first week after moving to Colorado from the flat Midwest, Kristen was walking in the Garden of the Gods, saw people rock climbing and thought, “I don’t know what that is, but I need to do it.”

Ryan grew up outside of Asheville, North Carolina, where he found his love for skiing on the icy slopes of the Southeast. He began ski patrolling in college at Appalachian State and went on to study adventure leadership and guiding in New Zealand.

Professionally, Andrew has served as an outdoor instructor for the CSU Outdoor program and as a teaching assistant for multiple outdoor leadership classes at CSU.

Candela Ramirez serves as the Administrative Coordinator at Apex Mountain School, where she plays a key role in the day-to-day organization and client experience of the company.

Growing up on the slopes of Vail, Danielle Taylor (DT) found her way into the mountain world early and has since built a career spanning high-level athletics, guiding, and education.

Jesse began his guiding journey as a teenager navigating whitewater rafts down the great rivers around the west. When there aren’t snowy mountains to guide, Jesse instructs Wilderness Medicine courses and guides multi-day bicycle trips.