Brenda has woven outdoor leadership into her career since 1980, when she began leading backpack trips with the Girl Scouts on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington State. With a B.S. in biology education, Brenda has worked as a naturalist, outdoor educator, and trip leader for several non-profit organizations and regional park districts. Today, she is the Director of Education for the Colorado Mountain Club, in Golden, Colorado. Her current passions are fiber arts, native plants, hatha yoga, and hiking with Bellatrix, an enthusiastic yellow Labrador retriever.

Jan is a former nurse and mother of five who lives in Kalamazoo, Michigan with her husband. Her passion is lightweight backpacking and hiking the Appalachian Trail or any other trail. She thoroughly enjoys the opportunity to guide a variety of trips for Adventures in Good Company and to share those wonderful experiences with other women. Her other interests include rock climbing, kayaking, snow shoeing, snowboarding, quilting and sewing. Another joy is cooking, especially for larger groups which makes everyone happy on her trips.

Leigh Saint lives in Dahlonega, GA with her husband Josh and “generic brown dog” Maggie.  She was formerly a bioanalytical chemist, but hiking the Appalachian Trail cured that!  In 2004, she & her husband opened the Hiker Hostel.  The Hostel is also their home & they open it to anyone & everyone looking to get away to the mountains (even if you’re not a hiker!).  Besides hiking and backpacking, Leigh loves to get on her bike and just ride.  She also enjoys crafting, sewing, cooking, gardening and learning ways to be more self sufficient.

Kate lives in northwest lower Michigan with her son and sturdy Jack Russell terrier, Aiko.  She escapes her day job as a self-employed CPA at every opportunity to explore the abundance of wilderness right in her "backyard."  She has done many extended kayak camping trips in the Boundary Waters, and Lakes Superior and Michigan.  Hiking and biking are other favorites activities and, as a true northerner, loves all winter sports.  When she is not working, traveling or outdoors, she is likely to be in her kitchen trying new recipes out on friends and family.

Anne lives in the Adirondack Park in NY. She is the owner of Placid Waters Kayaking, a company she started to teach people flat water kayaking skills and also lead day trips. She has guided extensively in the Caribbean but loves the cold north country as well. When not guiding or working in sales she enjoys traveling, paddling, hiking, skiing, biking and spending time with family and friends. 

Pam lives in Atlanta, GA where she works for a software company and spends much of her free time in or around water.  Pam is passionate about kayaking and camping out of her boat in wilderness locations and she loves to discover new rivers and campsites.  Pam's other favorite outdoor activities are hiking, birding, canoeing, water-skiing, and biking.