2017 Jim Ratz Memorial Scholarship | Paul Koubek

The 2017 AMGA Ski Guide’s Exam run by Evan Stevens and Jeff Ward at the Fairy Meadows (aka Bill Putnam) Hut in the Selkirk Mountains of British Columbia exceeded all expectations. Jeff and Evan demonstrated a skill level that well exceeded the expected standard, and conducted an exam that was simultaneously educational and rigorous. Days […]

2017 Millet Women’s Scholarship | Holly Barrass

In March 2017 I had the privilege of attending my Rock Guide Course with the AMGA. Having been through the SPI program I knew this course was the next step to expand my professional and personal climbing. Between injury and working for small non-profits with limited budgets I had not been able to make the […]

2017 F.O.R.G.E. Scholarship Recipient – Eddie Schoen

I would like to thank the F.O.R.G.E. scholarship fund, first and foremost, for giving me the opportunity to take the AMGA Ski Guide Course.  For those unfamiliar with it, the Friends of Rick Gaukel Everywhere (F.O.R.G.E.) scholarship fund is awarded once a year to an aspiring split board guide and covers the full tuition cost […]

Brooks-Range Mountaineering Scholarship Recipient – Michael Wachs

The Foundation My first AMGA course was in Joshua Tree three years ago. I was the only one that had never guided a day in my life, and at 23 I was the youngest on the course. 6 years of recreational climbing had got me there and I felt humbled watching the instructors critique me […]

2017 Fallen Guides | Strength of Character Scholarship Recipient – Erik Thatcher

In the past year I focused heavily on growth in my skills as a guide. This growth started in March of 2016 with a Level Two AIARE course. It continued last summer with the AMGA Advanced Rock Guide Course in Estes Park, CO. This past February, it culminated with the AMGA Ice Instructor Course in […]

2017 Marmot Scholarship Recipient – Japhy Dhungana

As a Nepali immigrant who moved to the US when I was 15, I’ve nurtured a life-long goal to become an international mountain guide after seeing the likes of Guy Cotter, Mike Powers, Barry Bishop, and countless other illustrious guides come through Kathmandu and set their imprints on the mountainscapes of the Himalaya. My family […]

2017 Julbo Scholarship Recipient – KT Miller

I rolled down the trans Canada highway from Rogers Pass in the dark, semi-trailers buzzed by, in a rush to transport goods from east to west. Although I couldn’t see much, I knew the mountains were big, the biggest I’d been in since Chamonix or Alaska— inspiring and intimidating big. I had wanted to visit […]

Scott Chapman – 2016 Adidas Scholarship Recipient

My first course with the AMGA was the Rock Guide Course in 2013. At the time it was still called the Rock Instructor Course and the name has since changed. We were schedule to have the course in Joshua Tree, CA but the Government shutdown moved us to Red Rock, NV. I had been guiding […]

Nelson Day – 2016 Osprey Scholarship Recipient

The Rock Guide Exam is the last and most difficult exam in the AMGA rock program. It also signifies a greatly desired standard in the rock guiding industry. My aspirations and motivations in taking this exam were both personal and professional. On a professional level, the exam was an excellent source of feedback and direct […]

Yoshiko Miyazaki-Back – 2016 Brooks-Range Mountaineering Scholarship Recipient

Brooks-Range Mountaineering generously awarded me a Scholarship for 2016, which I applied towards the Alpine Guide Exam. I have had a close connection with Brooks-Range and their products ever since I was introduced to them during the Ski Guide Course in 2010. Brooks-Range kindly supplied all candidates with a hugely generous range of product. These […]