For a quarter-century, Don has been climbing some of America's favorite problems. He has scaled El Capitan and the Diamond at Long's Peak, and he has established more than 100 first ascents in his beloved Adirondacks. He credits much of his early success as an educator and guide to writing about his home region:"In both jobs, my writing has enhanced the opportunities for advancement. My guidebooks to the region gave me a reputation as a local expert, and from this base I moved on to do volunteer work with peregrine falcon restoration and high-angle search-and-rescue with state forest rangers. In essence, climbing has opened up doors in both expected and unexpected ways, and it defines me in my role in the community."

In His Own Words

The Job
"My main job (dean and outdoor director at a small prep school) involves working closely with teens in a boarding school setting. I teach English to grade 10, oversee all school discipline and counseling, and teach outdoor skills. The many facets of the job blend together to make a coherent (if not hectic) whole. Rock climbing, kayaking, ice climbing, camping—these are all part of the mentoring that comes with such a job. I see kids in class, on the cliff, and in advising/counseling setting, and the depth of our relationships is enhanced because we spend so much varied time together.

"My summer job with the guide service began when I hung my own shingle for climbing instruction here in Lake Placid. Looking back, I was only marginally qualified, but still, the business took off. A few years later, Ed Palen began Rock and River Guide Service, an incredible operation, far more professional than my own. I asked him for a job, was soon named director of guiding, and now work as much or as little as I wish."

How He Got There
"My outdoor career began to take shape when the University of New Hampshire hockey coach failed to share my mother's assessment of my skills as a player—I was walking dejectedly through the university student center when I saw a notice offering rock climbing instruction from the outing club. This was in 1973, and the passion for climbing continues. Unlike hockey or other team sports, climbing can be a life-long adventure.

"I had done quite a bit of climbing before I took the teaching job, and I was put in charge of the school's outdoor program my very first year. I tutored English during that next summer but found that tedious. Simply calling myself a guide and printing up a cheap brochure gave me all the business I wanted. With the increase of professionalism in the guiding business, such an approach is probably naive now. (The American Mountain Guides Association has defined guiding standards. Aspiring guides should either apprentice with a guide service or train with an organization such as AMGA before staring out.)"

How to Get His Job
"Schools and summer camps are always looking for young, energetic outdoor group leaders. Build a resume of outdoor experience and work your tail off during your first jobs. Being positive, safe, selfless, and reliable, and you'll easily make the kind of impression that will open up more doors in the field. Keep in mind that you are in service to someone else—it isn't your climbing day or your chance to be a hero in the eyes of a beginner.

"Instead, you have to imagine always what it must feel like to your client or student and to direct your planning at his or her needs, not yours. You'll see many people in the profession who are excellent in this department, and you'll also see guides who aren't emotionally suited to the profession. Continue to challenge your notions; continue to grow as a climber and teacher. If you aren't getting better, you're getting worse. Only by accepting this can you make a life out of guiding."

Pros
"The variety of having three lives (guide, teacher, writer) allows for regular refreshing changes season to season, although . . . [see next answer]"

Cons
"The boarding school life is overwhelming at times, taking evenings and weekends. This is much tougher when you have a family. As for full-time guiding? I don't think I'd like it. I enjoy the break when school starts. And here in the Northeast, the work is just too seasonal to make a living at it."

His Dream Job
"Traveling and writing as I researched and wrote my last book, American Rock, was pretty good. It didn't feel like work, but when it was done I felt good about the product. High-angle search-and-rescue is also satisfying, but I probably find it that way because I do so little. I suppose if it were routine, it would be hard."

Do you think there's any danger in your passion becoming your career?
"I have heard this, but I don't buy it. Yes, guiding too much takes away from my own climbing time. It doesn't spoil it; it just competes with it. But at least it gets me out among climbers and up."

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