Tom Richman

Tom has over 23 years experience planning, organizing and guiding multi-day outdoor adventures. He has been guiding our Grand Canyon Backpacking trip since we started it in 2006, and has made over 200 trips into the Canyon. Tom has guided backpacking and kayaking trips all around the west, loves to travel and sail to exotic locations, and is passionate about astronomy and graphic design. Originally from Salt Lake City, Tom says he feels reverence for the environment that comes from understanding and experiencing nature on a personal level. Guiding people in the great outdoors is his dream job.

Todd Wiggins

Todd grew up in the countryside of south Georgia and first saw and fell in love with the American West during a backpacking trip to Yosemite. Prior to becoming a backpacking guide, Todd was a teacher in NYC and Atlanta. He has been guiding REI’s Grand Canyon north and south rim backpacking trips since 2008. Since then, he has completed over 170 backpacking trips into the canyon. Todd loves meeting each unique group and learning about people’s varied backgrounds and experiences while sharing his knowledge and love of the one-and-only Grand Canyon. A highlight of each trip is seeing the smiles on people’s faces when they reach the rim after four physically challenging but exhilarating days exploring one of nature’s greatest wonders.

Eden SLEZIN

Eden has been guiding backpacking trips for almost a decade now. He has guided and backpacked all over Hawaii, Joshua Tree, Yosemite and the Grand Canyon. He has been guiding in the Grand Canyon for almost the entire time and its one of his all time favorite places to hike and backpack in the world. He has done every South Rim route to the Colorado, many of the North Rim routes and a significant portion of the Tonto trail. He is a many times over certified Wilderness First Responder, a former CPR instructor, and a former US Marine Corps officer. In his free time he does marathons, triathlons, snowboards, ski's, manages a local outdoor gear shop and is going to graduate school in the arts. Eden can't wait to show you the unparalleled beauty of THE Canyon!

Caitlin Nave

In 2011 Caitlin backpacked the south rim on an REI trip and has been in love with the desert and this natural wonder of our world ever since. As a Nurse since 2009, Caitlin has found peace, solitude and balance in the outdoors. She is passionate and enthusiastic about this awe inspiring landscape and loves supporting others as they experience and adventure in this space. When she is not guiding she is adventuring with her husband, practicing yoga, tending to their land or frolicking in the gorgeous Rocky Mountains.

Caitlin Jaramillo

Caitlin Jaramillo is an outdoor enthusiast who spends most of her time on top of the tall mountains or in the deep canyons of the West. Growing up on the southern California coast, she had little exposure the the prominent peaks of the intermountain west or the expansive desert of the southwest. It wasn’t until she moved to Flagstaff, AZ for her undergraduate program that she really found a connection with outdoor spaces. Caitlin quickly found every way to get outside whether that be backpacking, white water rafting, rock climbing, or snowboarding. Caitlin is a lover, supporter and steward of the places she spends time in and is passionate about sharing those places with others. While she’s not backpacking, you can find Caitlin running the rivers of the southwest as a river guide. She is excited to share her love and enthusiasm for the Grand Canyon with you!

Sabrina Walz

Sabrina Walz's love for all things backpacking started on her first trip to the Grand Canyon with REI nine years ago. Since then she has backpacked stateside and internationally and can't get enough! Sabrina loves spending quality time in the great outdoors and believes it is a way to recharge and get back to the basics. She also enjoys cycling, searching for sea glass on the beaches of the west coast, anything on a lake and spending time with her husband, two cats and two dogs. When not outdoors she works as an Emergency Room Trauma Nurse and Intensive Care Unit Nurse. She is excited to see others experience and fall in love with the Canyon as she did.

Tammy Ray

Tammy is an Educator in Houston who fell in love with the mystique of the Grand Canyon as an REI client. Although backpacking in Houston is challenging, Tammy has been back to the canyon many times and now is a part time resident of Southern Colorado where hiking and backpacking is abundant. Tammy enjoys sharing her love and awe of the canyon with those who want to experience the desert backcountry.

Steve Juliani

Steve first experienced the canyon on an REI trip 13 years ago. He’s been coming back ever since. Steve grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Africa and the Philippines and went to college in Philadelphia and Los Angeles. He is now a composer, an attorney and owns a business in Los Angeles that caters to composers for film and television. Steve has shared the Grand Canyon with his wife and son and enjoys sharing the wonder of it with others.

Ronnie Carlson

Born and raised in Florida, Ronnie first fell in love with the Grand Canyon on a trip through her University, backpacking below the rim, and rafting the Colorado River. That trip was a pivotal moment that shifted her path to pursue guiding in the backcountry. She has been guiding outdoor trips for 6 years in a multitude of settings, including wilderness therapy. She fell in love with the desert through her many trips out west before moving out here. The metaphor that exists in the desert is a passion she loves to share. She enjoys getting to connect with new people and having a hand in creating meaningful experiences in the outdoors. When not in the canyon you can find Ronnie rolling around the southwest, climbing, hiking, paddling, skiing, and trying to experience all the beautiful places she possibly can. The Grand Canyon is one of the most special places on earth and she can't wait for you to experience it for yourself.

Tara Williams

Tara Williams grew up in rural Pennsylvania, spending weekends in the mountains and traveling with her grandparents. She spent winters snowmobiling and summers hiking without trails, swimming in the lakes, and floating the creeks in a big inner tube. But the West always called her, and after dreaming of the Grand Canyon for decades, she finally made her first trip, falling instantly in love and feeling an immediate connection. She has hiked some length on most trails on the South Rim and has led a Rim-to-Rim backpacking trip. Her current goal is to backpack the entire Tonto Trail. When back on the East coast, Tara spends as much time as possible outdoors, hiking the Appalachian and other trails (often with her Beagles), horseback riding with her wife, and cooking fun vegetarian meals. She loves sharing the Canyon as a guide, seeing the wonder on the faces of new visitors and the pride that they feel after accomplishing the backpacking trip.

Maddy Lamoreaux

Maddy was born and raised in beautiful Utah and always found connection & peace in the mountains near her home. After living in Hawaii for a year, her love for the ocean grew exponentially. She then ventured to Bali, Indonesia to become a divemaster and research diver. In her spare time she loves hiking, swimming, backpacking, & being surrounded by trees or bodies of water. Maddy loves that being in nature has allowed her to study and learn from different ecosystems. She is moved by the Grand Canyons history & geology and the energy there is what brings her back again and again.

Tia Kump

Tia was born and raised in beautiful Utah. She found solace in the mountains all around Utah, and spent most of her time in the wilderness. After living in Hawaii for a year, her love for the ocean grew exponentially. She then ventured to Bali, Indonesia to become a divemaster and research diver. In her spare time she enjoys backpacking, diving, meditation, and finding bodies of water to swim in. The Grand Canyons history has touched her heart and the ancient energy of the canyon brings her back again and again.

Matt Schiller

Hailing from Detroit Michigan, Matt first discovered his love for backpacking in the Grand Canyon during a memorable trip with his family. This experience sparked a deep connection to the backcountry, leading them to explore numerous national parks across the country. Throughout college, Matt spent many weekends guiding groups of students on multi-day backpacking and rock-climbing trips throughout the Midwest. Now based in the heart of Downtown Phoenix, he treasures his time away from the hustle and bustle of city life, and the opportunity to escape the scorching heat! Matt is thrilled to share his deep-rooted passion for the Grand Canyon, with the hope that this awe-inspiring place will make a lasting impression on you, just as it did on him.

Steven Terry

Raised in the northern forests of Michigan, Steven spent countless hours on everything from deer trails to abandoned rail lines starting at a very young age and wanted to introduce his "city friends" to all the wild and quiet places he enjoyed. A few friends winter backpacking on Lake Michigan, bigger groups nordic skiing to backcountry yurts in the remote Porcupine Wilderness in Michigan's scenic Upper Peninsula, soon after that in a time before Social Media he organized trips of complete strangers to the Ozark Mountains in AR and Gila Cliff Dwellings Nat'l Monument in NM... and New Mexico is where he got hooked on the Desert. Now spending time between Tucson and Flagstaff, Steven maintains the training needed to complete at a high level in trail running and ultra Races... and keep his 11lb Taco Terrier worn out so they can get some quality naps in. But its not all fast paced solo adventures anymore... Completing the 800 mile Arizona Trail self-supported in 2021 opened Steven's eyes... going slower is WAY better (he still did the Trail in 15 days over 11 Sections)... the Desert is SO much better at night (no longer afraid of it)... doing things alone is MUCH better with fellow Adventurers. He upsized his fastpack, slowed down his pace to see all the beauty the Desert has to offer, and found a way to get back to sharing the wild and quiet places he enjoys inside Grand Canyon National Park. Guiding has been the welcome addition to 40+ life as an Endurance Athlete and he thoroughly enjoys introducing new friends to Wilderness and Adventure that awaits them on a Backpacking Trip, whether its their first or next in a long line of destinations!

Danielle Piscatelli

Danielle is a native of Boston and spent many years hiking and skiing in and around the mountains of Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine before relocating to Phoenix, AZ. While in Phoenix she enhanced her hiking and backpacking skills exploring many parts of Arizona and Utah, including several trips into Grand Canyon National Park. After moving to AZ in 2012, Danielle made it her mission to explore as much of Grand Canyon as possible. She's hiked every trail on the South Rim at least 3 times with her favorite being a trip to the Little Colorado confluence along the Beamer trail.

Currently she lives in Denver. Outside of guiding she teaches outdoor education, trail building skills, Wilderness First Aid, and CPR/First Aid. She is certified as a Wilderness First Responder, a Leave No Trace Trainer, and has her AIARE 1 Avalanche and Mental Health First Aid Training. In her spare time she is actively involved in community organizations. She leads a trail crew for Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado, is a Peak Steward for the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative, and is actively involved in the Colorado Mountain Club.

Marek Pierepiekarz

Marek was born and raised in Seattle, Washington, where many summers spent scrambling in the Cascade Mountains instilled in him a deep love for the western United States' wildernesses. Since those early years, Marek continually sought out opportunities to explore: mountaineering, climbing , and rowing in his home state and beyond. One of those opportunities brought Marek to the Grand Canyon for the first time in 2021, when he signed up for a North Rim backpacking trip through REI. He was so impressed with the skilled guides and with the solitude and wonder of the canyon that Marek returned the next year for a backpacking trip on the South Rim. Now a guide, Marek is excited to share the canyon's rugged beauty and hidden secrets, its relaxing springs and challenging climbs with each new group of backpackers!