Aspen Expeditions Worldwide — Hotel in Aspen

I’ve heard plenty of debates about whether or not to hire a guide for various mountain adventures. But the mountains don’t have hard and fast rules. Everything you bring for a hike — from the size of your water bottle to the number of snacks and layers, to a partner or an experienced guide — is based on personal preference. Everyone has different thresholds for risk and comfort.

For me, the decision to work with Simi from Aspen Expeditions to climb the Maroon Bells Traverse was an easy one. I felt confident in my physical ability but less confident in the route finding, and I was worried I wouldn’t actually enjoy the experience because of their reputation for loose, unstable terrain and complex route finding. Before the hike, Simi reassured me that he could lead in a way that would be both safe and enjoyable. Obviously, he can’t change the mountain itself, but his ability to choose thoughtful lines kept us off the worst of the loose rock and made my day on the bells not only memorable, but downright enjoyable.

What stood out most about climbing with Simi was how collaborative the day felt. I never felt like I was just being pulled along. He included me in the process, pointing out route choices, offering feedback, and sharing techniques that gave me more confidence. I came away not only with two unforgettable summits, but also with skills I’ll carry into every technical hike I do in the future.

And beyond the technical side, spending the day with Simi was an absolute pleasure. I can’t imagine it’s easy to spend a whole 12 hours with someone, keeping up conversation, joking around, and making the day feel light, while also staying focused on safety and professionalism in such a challenging environment. But he managed that balance effortlessly, which made the experience feel like adventuring with a mentor and a partner, rather than just a guide.

Simi, I can’t thank you enough for making this trip such a special, fun and...

Seriously could not recommend a better guiding pp service! We went up the Maroon Bells traverse on 8/24 with our guide Simi Hamilton. We were in contact with our guide the day before our climb. We talked about what the weather was looking like (rain predicted) and our guide reassured us that he was keeping an eye on the weather and all the changes that come with alpine climates. We ultimately decided to climb when it looked like we might just be climbing in the rain. We started that morning with clear skies- a miracle! We pushed through the first 3ish miles, and despite our 2:30am start, our guide was so pleasant! We put helmets and harnesses on when we got into class 3 sections. Simi gave us the game plan for summiting and made sure we felt comfortable with the class 3 scrambling and gave us the option to rope up if we wanted to. We decided we felt comfortable with no ropes and made it to our first summit on Maroon Peak at 7:30am. The traverse over to North Maroon Peak was very fun. We hired a guide because we knew the route finding was difficult, exposure was high, and the rock is not considered to be great. Simi made the traverse over seem like a walk in the park. It was very clear he knows the route like the back of his hand, and we roped up on pitches that were more exposed/difficult. We made it to the summit of North Maroon Peak by 9:45. Not only did our guide do an amazing job getting us from peak to peak safely, but he also got some amazing pictures for us! We were back down to the trailhead by 1:30pm. I would absolutely recommend this service to a friend! Although we’d like to steal Simi for all of our future adventures, we won’t gatekeep-...

I've used Aspen expeditions twice - once for a party of 2 female clients on Capitol Peak, and more recently for what would've otherwise been a solo summit of Pyramid. Both times, our guide Scott Eden was professional and adaptive. He set a pace that fit our needs, and navigated a route that offered the safest line. On Capitol, we roped up as a team of 3 from K2 across the knife edge to the summit and back. On Pyramid, the 2 of us short-roped across the leap of faith and for the class 4 pitches to the summit and back to the ridge. While the rope wasn't truly necessary, it provided peace of mind across low-probability/high-circumstance spots with unstable rock and/or significant exposure. To be honest, just having an experienced navigator removes so much of the mental energy and allows me to focus on the physical exertion. For those of us who tend to solo summits, having an guide also offers the redundancies we lack when going alone (extra nav, first aid, snacks, water, rescue devices, etc.). A guide is handy on spicier routes that none of my hiker/climber friends wish to repeat, and when I don't want to resign myself to hiking with some rando yahoo I find on the 14ers.com focum or worse (social media). Guides meet you where you are re: your pace and skill level, and it is a great opportunity to learn new things, whether climbing techniques (stemming, smearing, weight distribution, hand/foot placement), gear intel, or learning aspects of Leave No Trace and trail stewardship. I'm grateful that I have the option to leverage Aspen Expeditions as I age - I can still get out there, while offering peace of mind to my husband...