Our Guides

Martin Volken

Martin is the owner of Pro Ski Service and Pro Guiding Service and is a UIAGM certified Swiss Mountain Guide. He was born and raised in Switzerland in the village of Stalden outside Zermatt. This is where he received his formal training as a Swiss Mountain Guide. Martin moved to the Seattle area in the late 1980's. He also works as an instructor/examiner for the AMGA ski mountaineering program. Martin guides all facets of mountaineering.

Ben Haskell

Benjamin Haskell is an AMGA certified Ski Mountaineering Guide and AMGA Single Pitch (rock climbing) Instructor who has been with Pro Guiding Service since 1998. Ben has a passion for the mountains of the Pacific Northwest, which he has been exploring since the mid 1980s. He has also guided in Alaska, Canada, and Europe. Ben grew up skiing and hiking in New Hampshire. He lives in Seattle, where he also works as a firefighter/EMT.

Margaret Wheeler

Margaret Wheeler learned to ski and climb at an early age in New England, and became interested in ski mountaineering while living in Europe for several seasons. As a transplant to the Northwest, she guides ski mountaineering, alpine, and rock objectives. In 2006, Margaret became the second woman in the US to complete her full UIAGM guide certification. An active member of the guiding community, she is an instructor of guide training for the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) and serves on its board of directors and as president of the organization. She is involved in avalanche education through her work as an AIARE (American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education) instructor and trainer. View her recent article in The Avalanche Review.

Mike Hattrup

Mike is an AMGA certified ski mountaineering Guide and an aspiring AMGA alpine guide. He manages the K2 Telemark and Backcountry program and has starred in numerous ski films. Mike is a former mogul specialist on the US freestyle Ski Team.

Rinaldo Borra

Rinaldo is a UIAGM certified Swiss mountain guide and guides in the Alps, Canada and the US in all facets of mountaineering. He currently lives in Grindelwald at the base of the Eiger Nord Wand. In the winter, he is a heli-ski guide in Canada.

Aaron Mainer

A Washington Native, Aaron grew up skiing the wild hills of Eastern Washington. After getting a degree in International Political Economy from the University of Puget Sound, he developed a passion for backcountry skiing and ski mountaineering while working on the ski patrol at Crystal Mountain. He now guides year round from his home in Enumclaw, Wa and is pursuing full UIAGM certification.

Trevor Kostanich

Trevor Kostanich is a native Washingtonian who loves exploring snowy mountains. He utilized a civil engineering degree to land a career and home on Snoqualmie Pass. When not ski touring in his backyard, Trevor has spent long periods of time skiing in India, Alaska, New Zealand, and Argentina. He is an aspiring ski mountaineering guide.

Dave Jordan

Dave Jordan is an aspiring ski mountaineering guide and is pursuing AMGA certification. He grew up in the northwest and lives in North Bend, Washington. He learned to ski and climb in the cascades and spends his time exploring new ski descents and climbing routes.

Forest McBrian

Forest is a UIAGM Certified Mountain Guide based in Seattle. He grew up in Oregon where he began wandering in the mountains at a young age, and discovered mountaineering in Chamonix when he was 17 years old. Forest holds a BA in English and French and works full-time, year-round as a mountain guide. In his spare time he explores new ski traverses, ski descents, and alpine routes in the Cascade mountains.

Chris Simmons

Chris left the US Navy in 1997 and traveled the ski-bum circuit for a few years before landing in Washington and pursuing a career as a mountain guide. He has traveled, climbed and skied around the world, including memorable trips to China, Mexico, New Zealand and Antarctica. He earned a BA from Western Washington University in Interdisciplinary Studies in 2007, and became a UIAGM Certified Mountain Guide in 2011. Chris now lives in Seattle and guides rock, alpine, and ski mountaineering, year-round.

Erin Smart

Erin Smart is an AMGA certified Single Pitch Instructor, an AIARE (American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education) instructor, and is pursing the full UIAGM certification. She grew up skiing and climbing in the North Cascades, and has been ski mountaineering in the French Alps since she was 15. Erin holds a BA in Natural Resource Management, and speaks French and some Spanish.