Becoming a Mountain Guide

Most of the guides I know are just really poor, live in vehicles or trailers or with like 6 roommates. Pretty much all of them got into it because they love teaching climbing, and are great with people.

A lot of hate for guides, I'm sure people have heard things or read things or maybe encountered some shady people but not realistic  based on what I've seen over 20ish years of climbing... 

Deven Lewis wrote: I  finished the AAI program and I have a few things to say...

Hi Deven,

Thank you for the input. It sounds like you had a better experience at AAI than the college you attended. That said, however, I can assure you that not all college training programs are created equally. I really can’t address the training that you received at the college you attended, but, based on my experience, the quality and depth of training at Lake Tahoe Community College (LTCC) is top notch. While it’s true that some LTCC instructors are AMGA SPI and CWI certified, which is also the case at AAI, there are also adjunct instructors at LTCC who work professionally as guides and are intimately familiar with the AMGA rock, alpine, and ski guide certification process, so to imply that students attending the LTCC program will not receive quality instruction or mentorship is simply not correct.  As far as gaining PSIA level 1 certification, LTCC also offers the certification as well as a large array of Alpine and Backcountry skiing, snowboarding, and AIARE courses during winter quarter. Although LTCC does not yet offer an AIARE Pro 1 course, I have been told that the college may be offering it in the future in addition to the AIARE Level 1, Level 2, Avalanche Rescue, and Instructor courses that it already offers.

Prior to choosing the LTCC program, I did a significant amount of research, and I spoke with a number of guides.  I’ve known for a long time that I wanted to become a mountain guide I just didn’t know what I needed to do to get there, so I researched. One thing I learned is that many mountain guides have a college degree, and quite a few guides have graduate degrees. As one guide conveyed to me, being competent in the mountains is only one part of guiding, when you factor in tips as a part of your compensation, you also need the ability to have intelligent and thoughtful conversations with clients, so having a college education is a definite plus.  And, that leads me to one of the reasons why I chose LTCC over AAI: LTCC students receive college credit while learning outdoor leadership skills and preparing for AMGA certification, not so at AAI.  Another advantage that LTCC students have over those who choose AAI is that LTCC is approved for both Federal Student Aid and VA benefits.  As you may know, AMGA certification is a costly process, so any financial help in preparing for it is a godsend. Undoubtedly, AAI also has an outstanding program, but I want others to know that AAI is not the only game in town and that high-quality affordable training, approved for both Federal Student Aid and VA benefits, is available from institutions such as LTCC at a fraction of the cost of what AAI charges. I think that it’s important that people not lose sight of the fact that one major difference between AAI and LTCC is that AAI is a for-profit-business whereas LTCC is a not-for-profit educational institution. Although both AAI and LTCC provide high quality training, one is doing it to make a profit while the other one is doing it as a public service. At the end of the day becoming a mountain guide is a major financial commitment, so people need to carefully choose the program that best suits their needs and budget. For me the best choice was LTCC for a number of reasons including the quality of training, variety of courses, college credit, access to Federal Student Aid and VA benefits, and location.