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| MORE ABOUT BACKCOUNTRY FOUND . . . Backcountry Found's mission is to provide an outstanding escape from urban life while promoting environmental awareness, conservation and self-discovery through the conduct of custom and preplanned guided backcountry- backpacking trips in America’s most spectacular National Parks and Forests. [More on Backcountry Found's LEAVE NO TRACE Ethic] Backcountry Found was formed in 2004 in order to provide the type of backpacking trips that currently seem unavailable. My goal, in all of my trips, is to provide a deluxe backpacking experience where freeze dried meals and obsolete gear are things of the past. [More on Meals] My goal is to take all the guess work out of your outdoor vacation planning by providing a one stop location for quality gear, professional guides, gourmet cuisine and numerous destinations in places like Yosemite, the Grand Canyon and the Big Island of Hawaii. Backcountry Found provides both custom or private backpacking trips and prescheduled backpacking trips for individuals, groups and families The prescheduled trips have a pre-set date, location and route. All the work is done for you. All you have to do is sign up individually or with a friend. Spaces are first come, first serve. Our custom trips are built specifically to suite a group or family. You pick the date! You pick the Group! You pick the location! Our custom trips are great for business or corporate team building, family vacations or just a group of friends looking for some adventure. Backcountry Found also provides in dept Wilderness Survival Skills Workshops for people interested in learning how to survive in the wilderness or simply just looking for learn more about backpacking and the outdoors. The Workshops include an actual Wilderness First Aid (WFA) certification and includes topics on Land Navigation, Fire Starting, Water Creation & Purification, Eating Off the Land, Backpacking and Gear Essentials. Finally, Backcountry Found provides full partial and custom backpacking gear rental packages both on the trips guided by Backcountry Found and for individual trips located in or near the San Francisco Bay Area. BACKCOUNTRY FOUND OBJECTIVES . . . 1. Provide quality exciting adventures and vacations in the great outdoors. At Backcountry Found our goal is to ensure that every participant consistently receives an amazing vacation where they can escape civilization and truly discover the great outdoors in the hands of experienced and knowledgeable guides. 2. Improved environmental awareness and self- discovery through experience. Backcountry Found is a small business aimed at improving the environment one person at a time. Ideally, each person that participates in a BF trip receives an invaluable experience where they are educated and even humbled by nature’s vastness and beauty. By participating in these trips, each individual must actually practice concepts integral to conservation and ecology. This hands on approach to environmental awareness provides an educational experience that goes much deeper than anything that can be learned by reading a book or attending a lecture. In the end, this improved awareness is brought back to urban life and is hopefully incorporated into their daily life. To aid in application of these principles, our goal is to empower each participant by both pushing them to their physical and mental limits and by demonstrating that they can be self-sufficient and survive in the wilderness. 3. Educate about and help preserve our National Parks. While participating in these trips, each participant can either discover or rediscover the splendor of our National Parks. Traveling through our National Parks is one of the best ways to learn about them and the essential need for their preservation. |
Eden Slezin - Owner and Lead Guide
At an early age I knew I wanted a career that revolved around my
passion for the outdoors. To make this a reality, I started by getting a
Bachelors of Science degree in Botany from the University of California
at Davis (UCD) in 1997. Following college, I tried a number of jobs
that allowed me to discover a path that was right for me. I worked in
laboratories, greenhouses, and even door-to-door canvassing to
promote environmental participation. Eventually though, I opted to
discover myself and the world as a United States Marine Corps
Intelligence Officer.
In 2004 it was time to move on and I chose to focus on two things that
had remained constant throughout all my life: my passion for
backpacking and the environment. Whether it was alone, leading
groups of my friends and family or leading a platoon of Marines, I
always found perspective and solace in the backpacking and the great
outdoors. Backcountry Found is the manifestation of my passion and
represents my desire to share my deep respect and knowledge of the
intrinsic value of nature and the environment.
Certifications: Wilderness First Responder (WFR), CPR for the
professional rescuer, Food Safety Handler
Hobbies: Triathlons, Snowboarding, Rock Climbing, Mountain Biking,
Personal Training
Contact Eden: eden.slezin@backcountryfound.com
At an early age I knew I wanted a career that revolved around my
passion for the outdoors. To make this a reality, I started by getting a
Bachelors of Science degree in Botany from the University of California
at Davis (UCD) in 1997. Following college, I tried a number of jobs
that allowed me to discover a path that was right for me. I worked in
laboratories, greenhouses, and even door-to-door canvassing to
promote environmental participation. Eventually though, I opted to
discover myself and the world as a United States Marine Corps
Intelligence Officer.
In 2004 it was time to move on and I chose to focus on two things that
had remained constant throughout all my life: my passion for
backpacking and the environment. Whether it was alone, leading
groups of my friends and family or leading a platoon of Marines, I
always found perspective and solace in the backpacking and the great
outdoors. Backcountry Found is the manifestation of my passion and
represents my desire to share my deep respect and knowledge of the
intrinsic value of nature and the environment.
Certifications: Wilderness First Responder (WFR), CPR for the
professional rescuer, Food Safety Handler
Hobbies: Triathlons, Snowboarding, Rock Climbing, Mountain Biking,
Personal Training
Contact Eden: eden.slezin@backcountryfound.com
_________________________________________________
Ashley Eagle-Gibbs - Guide
I have been backpacking for the past
10 years and camping even longer. I
deeply enjoy the outdoors and
traveling. I graduated from the
University of Puget Sound in 2004 with
a B.A. in Comparative Sociology, as
well as minors in French and
Environmental Studies.
Before working with Backcountry
Found, I had previously guided
university trips throughout Washington
State. I have received training in
Advanced Alpine hiking (mountain
safety, mountaineering, self-arrest
technique and snow camping),
Outdoor Leadership Experience and
Experiential Education.
Certifications: Wilderness First
Responder (WFR), CPR for the
professional rescuer
Hobbies: Snowboarding, Rock
Climbing, Mountain Biking, Running,
and Sailing.
I have been backpacking for the past
10 years and camping even longer. I
deeply enjoy the outdoors and
traveling. I graduated from the
University of Puget Sound in 2004 with
a B.A. in Comparative Sociology, as
well as minors in French and
Environmental Studies.
Before working with Backcountry
Found, I had previously guided
university trips throughout Washington
State. I have received training in
Advanced Alpine hiking (mountain
safety, mountaineering, self-arrest
technique and snow camping),
Outdoor Leadership Experience and
Experiential Education.
Certifications: Wilderness First
Responder (WFR), CPR for the
professional rescuer
Hobbies: Snowboarding, Rock
Climbing, Mountain Biking, Running,
and Sailing.
Geoff Witek - Guide
I have been camping and exploring the woods my whole life, and my
fascination with the natural world and our relationship to it led me to
graduate from Middlebury College in Vermont with a BA in
Ethnobotany. After college I worked as an outdoor education
facilitator, as well as teaching classes on plant science at the New
York Botanical Garden and Brooklyn Botanic Gardens, before moving
to rural Japan for three years. I have devoted much of my free time to
the exploration of backcountry New England, the Southwest, the
Pacific Northwest and California, as well as Hokkaido, Japan, with a
backpack on my back. Wanting to share my love of the outdoors, I led
student hikes for Horizons For Youth in Massachusetts, and more
recently led a group of adults to the summit of Mt. Whitney. Also
completed training in Leadership and Group-Building.
Certifications: Wilderness First Aid (WFA), Adult CPR
Hobbies: Snowboarding, wild edible and wild mushroom collecting,
and wildflower photography.
I have been camping and exploring the woods my whole life, and my
fascination with the natural world and our relationship to it led me to
graduate from Middlebury College in Vermont with a BA in
Ethnobotany. After college I worked as an outdoor education
facilitator, as well as teaching classes on plant science at the New
York Botanical Garden and Brooklyn Botanic Gardens, before moving
to rural Japan for three years. I have devoted much of my free time to
the exploration of backcountry New England, the Southwest, the
Pacific Northwest and California, as well as Hokkaido, Japan, with a
backpack on my back. Wanting to share my love of the outdoors, I led
student hikes for Horizons For Youth in Massachusetts, and more
recently led a group of adults to the summit of Mt. Whitney. Also
completed training in Leadership and Group-Building.
Certifications: Wilderness First Aid (WFA), Adult CPR
Hobbies: Snowboarding, wild edible and wild mushroom collecting,
and wildflower photography.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Destinations for guiding and personal backpacking include Napali
Coast State Park, Yellowstone NP, Grand Teton NP, Yosemite NP, Mt.
Whitney, Sequoia NP, Channel Islands NP, San Gorgonio Wilderness,
Mt. Rainier, Grand Staircase Escalante, Zion NP, Dark Canyon
Wilderness, Grand Canyon NP, Havasu Falls, Lake Powell, Death
Valley NP, Bob Marshall Wilderness, High Uintas Wilderness, Espiritu
Santos NP (Mexico), Banff NP (Canada), Vulcan Tajumulco
(Guatemala), Baltoro Glacier/Concordia (Pakistan) and Fiordland NP
(New Zealand).
I am also a certified sailor, with experience in Southern California, Tahiti
and the Virgin Islands.
Certifications: Wilderness First Responder (WFR), CPR for the
Professional Rescuer
Hobbies: Astronomy, triathlons, rare palm trees
Coast State Park, Yellowstone NP, Grand Teton NP, Yosemite NP, Mt.
Whitney, Sequoia NP, Channel Islands NP, San Gorgonio Wilderness,
Mt. Rainier, Grand Staircase Escalante, Zion NP, Dark Canyon
Wilderness, Grand Canyon NP, Havasu Falls, Lake Powell, Death
Valley NP, Bob Marshall Wilderness, High Uintas Wilderness, Espiritu
Santos NP (Mexico), Banff NP (Canada), Vulcan Tajumulco
(Guatemala), Baltoro Glacier/Concordia (Pakistan) and Fiordland NP
(New Zealand).
I am also a certified sailor, with experience in Southern California, Tahiti
and the Virgin Islands.
Certifications: Wilderness First Responder (WFR), CPR for the
Professional Rescuer
Hobbies: Astronomy, triathlons, rare palm trees
__________________________________________________________________________________________
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Thomas Richman - Lead Guide
I feel respect and reverence
for the environment come
from understanding and
experiencing nature on a
personal level. I love to share
in that journey with friends
and clients whenever
possible. With so many
beautiful and spectacular
destinations to choose from,
guiding people in the great
outdoors is a dream job.
I have guided backpacking,
kayaking and climbing trips
around the west, from groups
of 2 to 25 clients, and have
over 15 years experience in
planning and organizing
multi-day outdoor adventures.
for the environment come
from understanding and
experiencing nature on a
personal level. I love to share
in that journey with friends
and clients whenever
possible. With so many
beautiful and spectacular
destinations to choose from,
guiding people in the great
outdoors is a dream job.
I have guided backpacking,
kayaking and climbing trips
around the west, from groups
of 2 to 25 clients, and have
over 15 years experience in
planning and organizing
multi-day outdoor adventures.
_________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Luke Johnson - Guide
My initial interest in the outdoors began when I was a child up in northern Maine.
I spent every summer for 8 years in a remote part of the forest far away from
typical household amenities. My father, a lifelong outdoorsmen and teacher,
indoctrinated me in boating, hiking, survival skills, and lumberjacking over the
years. I came to appreciate these experiences for their impact on my confidence
and developing view of the world.
I later worked as a high school crew coach and summers for an adventure
recreation program. I knew this wasn't enough and wanted to push my
leadership experiences into a more challenging environment. After graduating
from Columbia University with a BA in Psychology/Neuroscience I started
working with at-risk teenagers in a cutting-edge school in Massachusetts.
Within a year I began operating as a guide in the Costa Rican rainforest for their
experiential education program, Rio Rapido. Here, I lived in the faraway Osa
Peninsula (just featured on Man Vs. Wild) and led trips in backpacking,
horseback riding, sea kayaking, and oversaw large-scale service projects in the
rainforest communities. I also owned a horse, Augustus, with whom I competed
in rodeos (though I never won) and trekked all over the jungle with local
vaqueros. The program was a real success and left an indelible mark on the
guides and student participants. The idea of the wilderness as a metaphor for
facing challenges in life and unknown/foreign obstacles became a motivating
force in my career.
My initial interest in the outdoors began when I was a child up in northern Maine.
I spent every summer for 8 years in a remote part of the forest far away from
typical household amenities. My father, a lifelong outdoorsmen and teacher,
indoctrinated me in boating, hiking, survival skills, and lumberjacking over the
years. I came to appreciate these experiences for their impact on my confidence
and developing view of the world.
I later worked as a high school crew coach and summers for an adventure
recreation program. I knew this wasn't enough and wanted to push my
leadership experiences into a more challenging environment. After graduating
from Columbia University with a BA in Psychology/Neuroscience I started
working with at-risk teenagers in a cutting-edge school in Massachusetts.
Within a year I began operating as a guide in the Costa Rican rainforest for their
experiential education program, Rio Rapido. Here, I lived in the faraway Osa
Peninsula (just featured on Man Vs. Wild) and led trips in backpacking,
horseback riding, sea kayaking, and oversaw large-scale service projects in the
rainforest communities. I also owned a horse, Augustus, with whom I competed
in rodeos (though I never won) and trekked all over the jungle with local
vaqueros. The program was a real success and left an indelible mark on the
guides and student participants. The idea of the wilderness as a metaphor for
facing challenges in life and unknown/foreign obstacles became a motivating
force in my career.
Certifications: Wilderness First Responder
(WFR), Red Cross CPR
Hobbies: Varsity athlete, avid martial artist and
boxer, bicyclist, alpine and water skier,
backcountry sports.
(WFR), Red Cross CPR
Hobbies: Varsity athlete, avid martial artist and
boxer, bicyclist, alpine and water skier,
backcountry sports.