Your Guides

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" rowspan="2" width=139 style="border-right: 1px solid #AAAAAA;" BGCOLOR="#808080" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="b1216c00eowhpc.jpg"> <bR> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Sierra Spirit Discover the Soul of the "><B>Home</B></A></div> <div> <A HREF="sierra_spirit_philosophy.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Sierra Spirit Philosophy"><B>Backpacking</B></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id3.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Serene Lakes Cabin Rental"><B>Serene Lakes Cabin Rental</B></A></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=140 BGCOLOR="#DDDDDD" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B><IMG SRC="b147e690.jpg" border=0 width="894" height="105" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="897" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#777777" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#FFFFFF > <tR> <tD VALIGN=CENTER HEIGHT= 25 WIDTH="56"><div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Sierra Spirit Discover the Soul of the "><FONT COLOR="#000000"><B>Home</B></FONT></A></div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=CENTER><NOBR><div> <A HREF="sierra_spirit_philosophy.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Sierra Spirit Philosophy"><FONT COLOR="#000000"><B>Philosophy</B></FONT></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=CENTER WIDTH="56"><div> <A HREF="2014_bkpking.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="2014 Backpacking"><FONT COLOR="#000000"><B>Trips</B></FONT></A></div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=CENTER WIDTH="56"><div> <A HREF="id4.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Your Guides"><FONT COLOR="#000000"><B>Guides</B></FONT></A></div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=CENTER><NOBR><div> <A HREF="about_sierra_spirit.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="About Sierra Spirit"><FONT COLOR="#000000"><B>About Sierra Spirit</B></FONT></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=CENTER><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id22.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE=" Free Slide Shows"><FONT COLOR="#000000"><B>Free Slide Shows</B></FONT></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=CENTER><NOBR><div> <A HREF="client_info.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Client Info"><FONT COLOR="#000000"><B>Client Info.</B></FONT></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=CENTER WIDTH="54"><div> <A HREF="faqs.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="FAQs"><FONT COLOR="#000000"><B>FAQ's</B></FONT></A></div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=CENTER><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id123.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Testimonials from Clients:"><FONT COLOR="#000000"><B>Testamonials</B></FONT></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=CENTER WIDTH="44"><div> <A HREF="blog.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Blog"><FONT COLOR="#000000"><B>Blog</B></FONT></A></div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=CENTER WIDTH="70"><div> <A HREF="contact.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contact"><FONT COLOR="#000000"><B>Contact</B></FONT></A></div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <div> </div> </td> <td valign="top" rowspan="2" width=0 style="border-right: 2px solid #AAAAAA;" BGCOLOR="#99CC99" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="03e8dfc3.jpg"> <bR> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" height=340 width="100%" BGCOLOR="#DDDDDD" TEXT="#080000"> <bR> <div> <B>Your Guides</B></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <U> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="15" CELLSPACING="2" WIDTH="887" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA HEIGHT= 3572 ><NOBR><bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="15" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="855" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#AAAAAA" BORDERCOLORDARK="#AAAAAA" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#EEEEEE HEIGHT= 76 WIDTH="823"><div> <B>Sierra Spirit Guides</B></div> <div> Guides are chosen for their backcountry knowledge, experience, teaching skills, patience, enthusiasm, fun personalities, and people skills. The special hand-picked guides at Sierra Spirit will ensure your trip is safe, informative, & memorable. All have certification in Wilderness First Responder or Wilderness First Aid & CPR. </div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="1" CELLPADDING="15" CELLSPACING="15" WIDTH="849" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#AAAAAA" BORDERCOLORDARK="#AAAAAA" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=CENTER BGCOLOR=#EEEEEE HEIGHT= 526 WIDTH="785"><div> <B>     Karen Najarian</B></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="16" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="5%" HEIGHT="0%" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#EEEEEE" BORDERCOLORDARK="#EEEEEE" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=CENTER BGCOLOR=#FFFFFF HEIGHT= 150 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="b01d7e90.jpg" border=0 width="215" height="233" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div>      Owner, manager, and Head Guide for Sierra Spirit.  Karen Najarian is a native Californian who grew up in the East Bay, graduated from UC Berkeley with a degree in Bacteriology and went on to become a Clinical Laboratory Scientist working at various hospital laboratories, her last position being at Alameda Hospital in the San Francisco Bay Area.     </div> <div>      Beyond her work she's devoted herself to her passions: her family, the Sierra, photography, and writing.  </div> <div>      Believing, like Edward Abbey, that “you can't see anything from a car window,” she's been backpacking the Sierra for forty years and teaching the art to others for 25.  Along with her plain old nuts and bolts expertise in comfortable backcountry living that comes with time spent in the wilderness, her passion about the Sierra has called her to learn about what she's hiking through, whether it be the wild flowers, the geology, the human history of the place, or the little pikas that live at 10,000 feet and above.  She's published articles about her experiences in Sierra Heritage Magazine, the Yosemite Association Journal, and the Martinez Gazette.  And, Karen has a Sierra wildflower photographic display on permanent loan to the natural history museum at Diablo Valley College. Here's a <A HREF="http://sierramaclure.smugmug.com/Flowers/Sierra-Wildflowers/3586572_NCxRv9#!i=203771649&k=kSXxbnW" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://sierramaclure.smugmug.com/Flowers">collection on her photo site</A>.</div> <div>      While swaying in a hammock perched between two trees in Yosemite in the Fall of '99, Karen discovered the lump that would take her on another sort of journey - through surgeries and chemo and radiation - and ultimately back on the trail in a stronger more meaningful way.  (See <A HREF="id46.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Karens Story">my story</A>.)  </div> <div>       In 2007 she was chosen as one of 7 top guides from guides the world over for REI Adventures.<B> </B>She's a Certified Leave No Trace Trainer & Wilderness First Responder, who was voted by her WFR Class as "The Person I Would Most Trust To Save my Life".  </div> <div>      While teaching skills, she shares her knowledge of the Sierra and, by using the land and the backpacking experience as a metaphor for our daily lives, she facilitates a space to reflect and renew from our hectic work-a-day lives.   Like John Muir said, “Between every two pine trees lies a door to a new life.”</div> <div> <I>Photo courtesy of Rick Najarian on top of Tenaya Peak, Yosemite.</I></div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#EEEEEE HEIGHT= 316 ><NOBR><div> <B>             Mike Duret</B></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="16" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="199" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#FFFFFF" BORDERCOLORDARK="#AAAAAA" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#FFFFFF HEIGHT= 241 ><NOBR><div> <B><IMG SRC="a1ea0ea0.jpg" border=0 width="160" height="234" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div>     <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" >Mike's all about the swim at the end of the day and sleeping under the stars</FONT></div> <div>     in his "celestial observatory"  which happens to be whereve he plants his head.    </div> <div>     Been guiding for Sierra Spirit since 2005.  Berkeley graduate in Chemical  </div> <div>     Engineering, Mike travels the world for his other job and finds life balance guiding</div> <div>     for Sierra Spirit every summer.</div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#EEEEEE HEIGHT= 343 ><NOBR><div> <B>                Val Wilson</B></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="16" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="236" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#FFFFFF HEIGHT= 268 ><NOBR><div> <B><IMG SRC="a20c4050.jpg" border=0 width="196" height="261" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div>     Val can hook 'em, land 'em, and fry them up in the pan.  She does</div> <div>     gymnastic moves on log crossings and navigates the backcountry like</div> <div>     a bear on the scent of a fresh baked pie. Especially likes to backpack</div> <div>     with her dogs.  Degree from Cal State Fresno in Biology, she</div> <div>     works to keep California's food pesticide free when she's not exploring</div> <div>     the Sierra. Been guiding for Sierra Spirit since 2006.</div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#EEEEEE HEIGHT= 217 ><NOBR><div> <B>                            Joe Keyser</B></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="16" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="368" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#FFFFFF HEIGHT= 142 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="a2347880.jpg" border=0 width="327" height="136" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div>      Joe is all about the history of the Sierra Nevada</div> <div>      and capturing it with pixels. Business Analyst in the</div> <div>      off season<FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" >.</FONT></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#EEEEEE HEIGHT= 278 ><NOBR><div> <B>                    Gregor Cork</B></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="16" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="291" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#FFFFFF HEIGHT= 203 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="a26f5c50.jpg" border=0 width="245" height="197" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div>     Gregor loves weather. The more extreme, the better. Here he is </div> <div>      waiting on a storm that dumped hail for 3 hours. When not </div> <div>      backpacking, Gregor is at the rock gym, on the rock climbing, or </div> <div>      studying art.  His sketch pad is always with him.</div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#EEEEEE HEIGHT= 335 ><NOBR><div> <B>                 Tom Rennie</B></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="16" CELLSPACING="15" WIDTH="286" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#FFFFFF HEIGHT= 246 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="a2af0f00.jpg" border=0 width="240" height="240" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div>      Tom, aka Mr. Half Dome, on top of Eagle Peak in Yosemite.</div> <div>      Doting husband and family man to two teenagers.  Delivers</div> <div>      your Christmas presents from the brown truck in December. </div> <div>      Calmly leads dozens a year up Half Dome.</div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#EEEEEE HEIGHT= 290 ><NOBR><div> <B>Michael Hildner, Banning Lyon, & Caroline Grumm</B></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="16" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="286" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#FFFFFF HEIGHT= 215 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="a2efad10.jpg" border=0 width="250" height="209" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> Guiding is their passion. </div> <bR> <div> Michael is a student during the school year and guides all </div> <div> summer. Hiked the whole John Muir Trail in  2012.</div> <bR> <div> Banning moved from Texas to California in order to dedicate</div> <div> his life to guiding Yosemite.</div> <bR> <div> Carolyn is a Special Education Teacher who spends most of </div> <div> her summer guiding for Sierra Spirit and backpacking with </div> <div> friends.</div> <bR> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#EEEEEE HEIGHT= 303 ><NOBR><div> <B>                    Diego Panasiti </B></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="16" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="299" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#FFFFFF HEIGHT= 228 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="a3008de0.jpg" border=0 width="264" height="222" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div>      Doing yoga on the south rim of Yosemite Valley. El Capitan in </div> <div>      the background.  High school Spanish teacher who aspires </div> <div>      to hike the whole Pacific Crest Trail.</div> <bR> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#EEEEEE HEIGHT= 267 ><NOBR><div> <B>            Bob Brown</B></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="16" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="200" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" BGCOLOR=#AAAAAA > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#FFFFFF HEIGHT= 192 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="a72a7ba0.jpg" border=0 width="167" height="186" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div>     <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" > Bob (aka Bob Knows Trees) spends his retirement guiding and traveling. </FONT></div> <div>      Trees of the Sierra are his specialty.</div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <A HREF="http://sierramaclure.smugmug.com/gallery/3738567#!i=214798126&k=NVM5R" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://sierramaclure.smugmug.com/gallery"><B>More</B></A><A HREF="http://sierramaclure.smugmug.com/gallery/3738567#!i=214798126&k=NVM5R" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://sierramaclure.smugmug.com/gallery"><B> Guides' Pictures </B></A><B> </B> </div> <bR> <div> <B>For Trip Queeries or Reservations</B></div> <div> <B>email Karen, sierramaclure@sbcglobal.net</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>"Discover the Soul of the Sierra"   </B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></U></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>