About Alaska Backcountry Guides

Mike, aka Barn-Dog, is the Chief Guide at ABG and has been ski-guiding in Alaska for 20+ years. He is an avalanche forecaster for the San Juan Region of Colorado, and an avalanche safety instructor. In addition, Barney spends his summer as the lead guide of Valle Nevado Heliskiing, just outside of Santiago, Chile. He is a Black Diamond athlete, and one of the most experienced heliski guides in the world, spending about 9 months each year heliski guiding. In the off-season, Barney lives in Silverton, Colorado, with his wife and 2 daughters.

Joey is the owner and founder of Alaska Backcountry Guides. He is a diehard, passionate, and experienced heliskier who has skied in every corner of the globe. After working for, and skiing with heliski operators around the world, Joey has taken his knowledge and expertise to form ABG. When not in Alaska, Joey lives in Aspen with his wife, Kaely, and their German Shepherd, Eva.

Max comes to Alaska Backcountry Guides with 15+ years of experience working in the Valdez heliski industry. He is our Director of Snow Safety, and has guided and taught in Alaska, California, Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, and New Zealand, which has allowed him to hone his skills in a wide range of terrain and snowpacks. Aside from his work in Valdez, Max owns West Wind Collective, a mountain safety consulting company which specializes in custom avalanche education for professional athletes, film crews, and recreationists. He is a nationally registered emergency medical technician and spends his summers working in EMS near his home in Truckee, CA.

Stan is a river and mountain guide based between Carbondale and Silverton Colorado. His love for mountains and rivers began at a young age, while skiing, climbing, and paddling with his older brother. He moved to Durango in 1998, and earned a degree in English from Fort Lewis College, where he also began his professional guiding carrier. He started working as a river guide, ski patroller, and mountain guide while developing his own hut-based backcountry guide service which he owned and operated for 13 years. Since then, Stan has guided all over the world. A constant learner, Stan is active with avalanche education, the ACA, and the AMGA. When he’s not in the mountains or on a river, he’s probably producing an action sports event, or building a chairlift. Stan can also be found in the garden with his wife, Cat, and their dogs Chauncey and Niño.

Sally comes to Alaska Backcountry Guides with a decade of experience as a pastry chef & baker. Born and raised in Alaska, she has lived all over the country, but couldn’t resist returning to her wild and wonderful home state. Before coming to Valdez, Sally owned and operated a bakery on the east coast that was featured on Sugar Rush Netflix, The Food Networks Holiday Wars, and in The National Gingerbread Competition. She loves walking the line between sweet and savory, specializing in traditional classics with fun flavor twists. She’ll be sure to fill you up and send you on your way, well stocked with snacks to fuel your full-on day in the mountains!

In the off season, Sally spends her time up in Hatcher Pass with her husband and adventure cat, Lily. She is an avid skier, rock climber, and paddler who enjoys all that the mountains have to offer!

Chris started his guiding career when he was eighteen years old, which then snowballed into a lifetime of guiding and adventures. His work experience includes being a heli, snowcat and ski touring guide, ski patrol director and snow safety director. Chris has had the good fortune of guiding all around the globe while providing guests with world class experiences and memories. He is a certified ski guide, EMT and is certified at the highest level of professional avalanche training in Canada, New Zealand, and the U.S.

Meesh comes to Alaska Backcountry Guides with nearly a decade of experience working in the Valdez heliski industry. During the fall and winter, she works for NOLS in their mountaineering and backcountry ski program, and has instructed and guided in Alaska, Wyoming, Utah, Canada, and Chile. She has ski patrolled in both Wyoming and New Zealand. Michelle spends her summers in Alaska, guiding on Denali.

After graduating from the Expeditionary Studies program at SUNY Plattsburgh, Rob made Silverton, CO home. First an intern at Silverton Mountain and now a guide at Silverton Powdercats, Rob works as a ground crewman and tail guide for ABG. Apart from work, Rob has successfully completed multi-day expeditions in remote regions of Japan and Mongolia. When he’s not skiing and traveling to obscure corners of the world, Rob can be found in the southwest biking, climbing, and running around the mountains with his wife and dog.

Melina is our Massage Therapist and Wellness Coordinator at ABG. Melina has a thriving interest in helping people reach their health and healing goals. She has been practicing in the beautiful state of Utah for over 10 years; during the off season you’ll find her working in Park City, in the yoga studio, traveling, or enjoying wine with some girlfriends.

Drew, aka Waterboy, aka Little Steps, is our master ground crewman. His background is in farming and ski resort maintenance. He can run a chain saw, snowblower, and powerdrill like no other and can fix a diesel engine on the side of the road. He’s a devoted snowboarder, who brings endless stoke when he is riding. In the off season, he can be found fishing remote areas of the High-Sierra, and lives with his wife and pups in Lake Tahoe.

Happy is a career heliski guide and avalanche forecaster who has been exploring the Chugach Range for nearing thirty years with his clients. In addition to running is own heli base here in Valdez, and a snowcat ski and helicopter ski operation in Lake Tahoe, he also operates a skydive business in Hawaii. Having guided additionally in Haines, Juneau, the North Chugach, Iceland, Norway, Svalbard, and Nevada by heli, sailboat, and touring on foot broadened his experience. Happy’s passions aside from skiing include travel for climbing, flying his bush plane, and building on properties in Hawaii. You will enjoy Happy’s infectious enthusiasm for the mountains, and feel comfortable in his experienced hands. They will call you Happy too when you have the opportunity to spend time in the peaks with him!

Shaun has been cooking professionally for the better part of 20 years. Originally from the flattest state in the country of Kansas, Shaun made his way into the snowy wilderness of Alaska 5 years ago to fulfill his lifelong dream of working in the mountains in remote parts of the world, while still getting to perform his favorite task of making good things for people to eat. While classically French trained from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY, Shaun's ingredient knowledge and experience spans all corners of the globe from fine dining to catering, and from major culinary environments such as Los Angeles and the equally snowy mountains of Utah. Expect to experience Alaskan Americana fare with undertones of flavors from the Mediterranean, Southeast Asia, Korea, and South America just to name a few. When not cooking for ABG, he spends the majority of his time working in Southeast Alaska and looking for the next hiking and food adventure.

Chris loves to ski and enjoys it even more so when working and riding with others that share the same passion. “Enge” has spent the past 24 winters ski guiding, patrolling, and forecasting for public & operational avalanche programs. Chris can be sighted bottoming out in the deep powder of the Chugach, San Juans, Hokkaido or carving the corn of the High Sierra. Wife Blake and Ferris the Cairn Terrier are the light of his life. They live in Bishop, California.

Drew is an IFMGA Certified Mountain Guide based in Sun Valley, Idaho. His fondness for the mountains is rooted in Vail, Colorado, where he grew up. He moved to Idaho in 2007 after earning a degree in geography from the University of Denver. He started working as a ski patroller and mountain guide while pursuing his certifications. Since then, Drew has guided skiing and climbing all over the world including Iceland, Norway, Patagonia, and the European Alps. When he’s not chasing powder days, he’s probably rock climbing or floating down remote rivers in the Idaho backcountry with his wife, Erika and their newborn Hazel.

Lisa, also known as "Lese," brings her deep immersion in the exhilarating world of skiing to ABG. Starting with her upbringing, skiing Oregon's majestic Mt. Hood to trading med school for four thrilling years in the Vail Valley before finding her place at ABG as our Guest Operations Manager.

With extensive experience specializing in destination all-inclusive events, Lese has honed her expertise in guest services and logistics management. Her strengths lie in meticulous planning, effective communication, orchestrating complex operations, and adept team leadership. Her enthusiasm for collaborating with a team that shares her love for mountain adventures drives her commitment to ensuring every guest's journey with Alaska Backcountry Guides is seamless and exceptional.

During the off-season, you'll find her in Oregon, adventuring with her family and two children, running ultras and writing for a ski publication, specializing in guiding individuals through the intricate nuances of equipment and showcasing premier ski-based travel destinations across the world.

Tori is a dedicated skier and ground crew member for ABG. Growing up in Minnesota, the mountains felt like a distant dream, but after her first ski trip to Utah, she was hooked. Committed to exploring what the mountains have to offer, Tori spent multiple seasons in hospitality at Alta. She found that backcountry skiing & learning about the mountains is her calling.

With a passion for the backcountry & love of hospitality Tori found ABG. She has always loved hospitality in the ski industry, as it allows her to share the joy she finds in the mountains with others. In the summers, she works as a seasonal canoe guide in Southeast Alaska, embracing all the gifts that this stunning landscape has to offer. 

With over 15 years of professional guiding experience, Andrew has guided skiing from the peaks of Alaska to the remote terrain of Antarctica, and across iconic locations like California, Kamchatka, Japan, and Pakistan. Whether by helicopter, skin-track, snowcat, or expedition boat, Andrew has explored it all.

Andrew is based in Tahoe City, California, and holds a degree from McGill University. He is an American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) Certified Ski Guide, holds a Level 3 credential with Heli Ski US, and is an AIARE Instructor.

Brandon is a partner and strategic advisor to Alaska Backcountry Guides. He is a former Firefighter, EMT, & Rescue Technician. In addition, he has spent over a decade working in mountain search and rescue. He is an avid snowboarder and outdoor enthusiast with over 25 years of backcountry experience from the Tetons to the Chugach. His background and experience play an integral role in implementing and maintaining the highest level of safety protocols. He also operates Talus Enterprises in addition to other entrepreneurial pursuits in Valdez, where he lives with his wife and daughter.