Snow Lion Expeditions
Request a free catalog.Expedition Managers
Who are Snow Lion’s Expedition Managers?
Snow Lion’s Expedition Managers are seasoned Asia-hands who receive high-marks from Snow Lion’s guests. Coming from a wide-range of experiences and diverse backgrounds, Snow Lion’s seasoned Expedition Managers serve trips with 5-or-more members working in concert with local guides.
What we’re looking for when we hire our Expedition Managers?
First aid training is paramount among the qualifications of every Snow Lion expedition leader. Then we test our leaders to make sure they are in love – in love with the cultures and the people of the region in which they travel for us. We look for passion above all else. And we look for guides with a natural congeniality – people whose amiability, friendliness, sense of humor and natural leadership easily form bonds.
Finally, we select our guides based on local knowledge, reliability and character. While many leaders add individual areas of expertise to our expeditions, they are not pretentious or overbearing. They lead you on a trip that will penetrate the true nature of Asian culture in a non-intrusive manner.
Ron Barness
is the founder and CEO of Snow Lion Expeditions who leads trips as often as possible. A natural and affable trip leader, he receives high marks from guests who have had the opportunity to travel with him. Educated as an historian and journalist, he has traveled extensively in Asia, Europe and Latin America and he loves to compare and contrast our culture with the one being encountered. Ron's professional experience in the field is diverse: He has taken groups to Dharamsala, India for private receptions with His Holiness the Dalai Lama and has led treks to Everest Base Camp in Nepal's Khumbu. He knows Seoul like a native and he most recently led a private jet trip to Kazakhstan, Mongolia and China for a high-powered equity investor. Hospitality comes naturally for Ron who is a legendary host on the Salt Lake City party scene. He began his adventure travel career taking friends down the Colorado River in the late 1970s; since then, he has expanded his venue to the far-flung corners of Asia. Ron lives in the Avenues neighborhood above Salt Lake City with Tucker, his 80 pound golden retriever. On most days, they hike higher into the foothills above the city where they find a sweeping panorama from the Wasatch Mountains to the Great Salt Lake. Ron made happen one of the most incredible journeys of my life. His trip to Ron ears must be buzzing. I tell everyone I know that he is a bona fide class-act! Ron is the best, and with his penchant for perfection, he will always be the best planner and guide. Antje Curry
Salt Lake City
I have travelled on trips world-wide organized by Ron Barness, and he is bar none the best.. not only does he have an incredible local knowledge, but he is a great traveling companion. He is the perfect person you'd want to invite on your trip.
CEO 13D Research
Sun Valley, Idaho
Trips: Classical China with Vermont Public Radio (05/06/2008 - 05/20/2008), Contrasting Koreas (09/19/2008 - 09/29/2008)
Anna Griswold
was a New York City-based executive for a German travel company before she “retired” to pursue Asian adventure full-time. Anna has traveled extensively in the Himalaya, Indochina, Mongolia, China and India both for Snow Lion and on her own. Fluent in six languages and semi-conversational in a half dozen more, Anna was educated in the USSR, the United States, Germany, the Czech Republic and in her native Hungary. She is an amateur botanist who relocated from New York City to Salt Lake City in 2004 along with many of her favorite and most loved flora in tow. From her new base in Utah, she pursues her passions for plants and Southern Utah with ever greater vigor. She works as the Vice President of Operations for Snow Lion Expeditions. Ed & Marylou Kulsick
Salt Lake City
Boise, Idaho
Anna’s leadership and logistics of the trip were commendable. She was an excellent facilitator and companion for the group.
Maxine Stitzer & Duncan Hodge
Baltimore, Maryland
Trips: Bhutan's Ura Yakchoe Festival (04/13/2008 - 04/25/2008), Three Kingdoms of the Himalaya: Nepal, Bhutan & Tibet (05/07/2008 - 05/25/2008), Solar Eclipse in the Land of Nomads (07/18/2008 - 08/03/2008), Everest Close Up (10/08/2008 - 10/26/2008), Vietnam North to South (11/03/2008 - 11/19/2008)
Gary Bolton
has always been in love with the natural world. His career has had two parallel paths of international travel and academia; and these two were wedded years ago. He has led treks for more than 20 years in the Himalayan regions of Nepal, India and Bhutan, and in the Karakoram of Pakistan and China. He has also guided oar-powered Grand Canyon rafting trips for more than 30 years, in addition to rafting foreign rivers from Ethiopia to Papua New Guinea to Canada. Experience aside, it is Gary's warm, patient and affable character that has been his most enduring and recognized quality by the thousands of guests he has led into diverse backcountry settings world wide. Gary recently completed a Ph.D. at the University of Arizona in Renewable Natural Resources, for which he wrote a dissertation on the human impact upon high-elevation forests in Nepal. He is currently a lecturer in botany at the University of Wyoming in Laramie where he lives with his wife and son.
Salinas, California
Gary always made an effort to use his good knowledge of Nepali and Sherpa languages. He has a wonderful familiarity of Nepalese history, culture, religion and geography, and he shared it with enthusiasm.
Mexico City
Trips: Seven Days in Tibet (06/14/2008 - 06/24/2008), Seven Days in Tibet (07/13/2008 - 07/23/2008), Dolpo Salt Traders Trek (09/21/2008 - 10/12/2008)
Gillian Braulik
left her native England for the Far East at 22 and has never looked back. Trained as a marine biologist specializing in dolphin and whale conservation, she ran a research project in Hong Kong before moving to Pakistan, where she led a two-month expedition to study the rare Indus River dolphin, sailing 800 miles of the Indus River from the Himalaya to the Arabian sea. She has also led scientific expeditions in the Sundabar Delta of Bangladesh, on the Vietnamese coast, and by camel along the remote southern Pakistan coast. Gill had mountaineered and led treks in the Karakoram and Himalaya of Pakistan, India, Tibet and Nepal. She is based in Pakistan with her husband Albert Reichert.
Sallie Scanzoni
Cedar Glen, California
Very professional in every way, Gill pulled off her first-ever trek to Everest with grace and élan. We greatly benefited from her years spent in Asia’s backcountry.
James & June Roberts
Austin, Texas
Ted Callahan
has combined a passion for mountains with academic degrees in Asian studies to develop outstanding credentials as a trip leader. He is presently a PhD candidate and Presidential Fellow in Anthropology at Boston University. Ted currently lives in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan where he is finishing his doctoral dissertation. In December 2006, Ted led the rescue and recovery effots in Sichuan for mountaineers Chistine Boskoff and Charlie Fowler. He has guided major summit expeditions in the Alps, Andes, Tian Shan and Cascades as well as treks in
Encinitas, California
Ted was a superb trip leader. Even though I had previously visited many of these areas, this trip exceeded my expectations.
Norman Fritz
Mill Valley, California
Jeff Grinnell
possesses a life-long passion for travel, adventure and mountaineering that has taken him deep into the Himalaya, Southeast Asia, Japan and South America. Jeff is a consummate art collector, musician, painter and sculptor who recently retired from French Woods – a summer camp for the arts in upstate New York. Born in South Dakota and a native of Illinois, Jeff lived in Sydney and tended bar at an Irish pub in Tokyo before ending up in New York City. Jeff resides in the Upper West Side where he plays lead guitar in the band XXX and recently finished his master’s degree in International Relations from New York University.
New Tripoli, Pennsylvania
Jeff was outstanding! I had never been on a guided trip before, but was in awe of his ability to juggle such a diverse group. That everyone summitted Kala Pattar says it all.
Jim Haun
Hood River, Oregon
He put a lot of work into taking care of all of us. He was very flexible with planning around all of our interstes. He took everyone’s concerns into consideration whether it was shopping, eating, photos or hiking.
Susan Aitcheson
East Greenwich, Rhode Island
Trips: Everest Close Up (04/23/2008 - 05/11/2008), Festival in the Land of Nomads (06/27/2008 - 07/13/2008), Encounters with the Reindeer Herders (07/14/2008 - 07/31/2008)
Mick O'Shea left his home in Kalgoorlie, a land-locked Western Australia gold mining town, and first encountered the Mekong River at age 20. He soon became seduced by the beauty, diversity, and spiritual and cultural importance of the world's 10th longest river to the people who depend on it. A dream was born when Mick discovered that the Mekong River - known to the people who live along its banks as "Kong: The Mother of Waters" - had never been fully navigated. In 2004, Mick was the first person to descend the Mekong from Tibet to the South China Sea. The four month kayak journey resulted in an award-winning documentary film Exploring the Mother of Waters. Mick's film won awards at both the 2007 Banff Mountain Film Festival and the 2007 Telluride Mountain Film Festival. Mick also authored a book titled In the Naga's Wake about the river journey (Allen & Unwin). Besides leading trips for Snow Lion, Mick is the chairman and director of the Mekong Descent Foundation, which is committed to the environmental and cultural preservation of the Mekong River. Mick lives on the beach in Ko Samui, Thailand with his wife, Yuta, and their dog.
Jon Otto
has traveled the length and breadth of China and Tibet having spent half of his life living in the Middle Kingdom. Jon’s fervor for rock climbing began at the age of 16, when he was taught to climb by the Skinner brothers. Another major layer was added to Jon's life when he moved with his mother to China when he was 18. Since then, he has been to the summit of the 24,750 foot Mustag Ata in Chinese Turkestan a half dozen times and led the first western ascent of the 23,400 foot Nojin Tangla. Jon also wrote the first guide to rock climbing in Beijing and he is fluent in Mandarin Chinese. He lives in between Chengdu, China and Palo Alto, California with his Xue Hua, his Chinese wife, and their baby daughter, Anora Hanqiu. Peggy Scanlan
Bisbee, ArizonaJon is personable, intelligent, funny and competent. What more can I say? He is your Number One guide in China and exceeds his reputation.
Fairbanks, Alaska
Jon is flexible, very friendly and easy to get along with. He was able to change the schedule to accommodate our needs.
Chino Hills, California
Somsanith Rattana is a native of Laos' royal province of Luang Prabang. Known affectionately as Nith, she enjoys introducing visitors to her exquisite native city. With nearly 20 years experience in the travel industry, eight of it guiding tours, she is one of the most expert and professional guides in Luang Prabang. Her gentle, friendly manner and ability to seamlessly problem-solve make her popular with all of our guests. She loves to share her native insights into the rich Laotian culture and occasionally invites guests to her home, where she lovingly takes care of her 86-year-old mother.
Trips: From Tibet to the Sea (04/12/2007 - 04/28/2007)
Albert Reichert
is currently working on the United Nations earthquake relief effort from his base in Islamabad, Pakistan. We met up with Albert when he was living in Logan, Utah doing graduate work at Utah State University, but he has lived, worked and traveled in some 80 countries since 1990. A professional river hydrologist, he has led scientific expeditions in India, Bangladesh and he co-led the first survey of the Indus River Dolphin in Pakistan with his wife Gillian Brault. Albert embarked on two personal epic overland adventures: Across Africa from the Gibraltar to the Cape of Good Hope; and from Calcutta to Mombasa, Kenya. He has trekked through the Himalaya and Karakorum. Currently, and conducted survey expeditions on the Colorado and Green Rivers and served as an Emergency Rescue Team Coordinator in Cache County, Utah. He has a BS in International Agriculture and an MS in Water Resources Engineering from Utah State University.
Jackie Breyfogel
Nassau, Bahamas
Albert did an excellent job! He is clearly knowledgeable and experienced, and was comfortable moving among cultures and trip members.
Sandy Grossman
Miami, Florida
Trips: Mystical Myanmar (02/06/2008 - 02/21/2008), K2: High Traverse via Gondogoro La (07/14/2008 - 08/06/2008)
Jake Reid
feels most at home among the peoples of China having lived in Taiwan for two years before attending the prestigious Peking University for a summer. He has received high marks from past Snow Lion guests with whom he has traveled in China. Jake is committed to providing his guests with personal insights of the Middle Kingdom whether it is in urban Shanghai or rural Sichuan. Jake loves to dig deeper into the facade of this forever transforming mega nation. Jake is currently enrolled at the University of Utah where he is earning dual degrees in Chinese and International Studies. Upon graduation this spring, he plans to take the Foreign Service Exam. He recently completed an internship with the US Senate Judiciary Committee during the confirmation hearings of Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice Samuel Alito. Jake also works for the Marriott Hotel in Park City where he serves skiers who visit Utah from around the world.
If one were to travel to China only once in a lifetime, Snow Lion's Visions of the Middle Kingdom trip would be the one to take. To optimize our experience, Jake patiently and diplomatically—yet firmly—negotiated some positive changes in the itinerary as we traveled; a difficult job well done.
Granville, Vermont
Our Visions of the Middle Kingdoms trip to China and Tibet was a delightful adventure. Jake Reid, our personal Snow Lion guide, who spoke Mandarin, made all our travels so much easier. He was always there to talk with local guides and tweak any necessary details. We enjoyed the great advantage of traveling in a small, intimate group, which gave us great flexibility to alter activities for additional opportunities. Our sincere thanks to the staff of Snow Lion who helped make our trip so memorable.
Chris & Cindy Richmond
Fort Collins, Colorado
Daniel Schmidt
grew up in the Rocky Mountains of Utah, but his life-journey off the beaten path have led him to hang his hat, as he puts it, “from Oahu to Bangkok, Denali to Durango.” His years as a professional whitewater rafting guide in wilderness areas of Alaska and Montana have taught him two key skills for leading a successful trip: “The first is a sense of humor, and the second is flexibility.” Dan has augmented his degree in geography from the University of Utah with in-country experience. In 2005, he did a five month tromp through the back roads of China, Vietnam, Lao, Cambodia and Thailand. He is a tutor for Higher Ground Learning when he's not leading trips for Snow Lion. He lives in Salt Lake City's 9th & 9th neighborhood and spends spare time hiking in the Wasatch Mountains and playing guitar. Dan is an old soul in a young man’s body. He was an excellent traveling companion who brought valuable insights and oft needed humor to our trip. Dan really showed his mettle when we had to make a sticky border crossing between Tibet and Nepal. I would recommend Dan to anyone and go anywhere with him again.
Phong Sothy
is dedicated to helping people uncover the mysteries of his homeland, Cambodia. Known affectionately as “Hot Tea,” Sothy speaks Khmer (Cambodian) and English fluently, and is also conversational in both Thai and Italian. His enthusiasm for his native country and the monuments of Angkor, endear him to all who have had the pleasure of being with him, and his personal story move you to tears.
Jonathan Sullivan
has traveled all over the world, but has spent recent years living on-and-off between China and his native Colorado. On the China side, Jon lived in Chengdu where he led climbing expeditions in the mountains of Sichuan and Xinjiang provinces before starting his guiding career with Snow Lion Expeditions. He is self-taught about the intricacies of both Chinese and Tibetan cultures, and how the two interconnect. Most recently, Jon has been living in downtown Denver where he manages the climbing department at REI's Denver Flagship store. When he is not on expedition, Jon can be found in a café window avidly writing on his ever faithful dog-eared laptop. A dead-ringer for a young Brad Pitt, Jon has an infectious Irish humor and is the life of the party. He has a degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder in International Business and speaks fluent Chinese and Spanish.
Encinitas, California
Trips: Ancient & Holy Northern India (10/28/2007 - 11/11/2007)
Mike Yager
formed Nepal’s first whitewater rafting company in 1977 and has led numerous trekking and mountaineering expeditions throughout the Himalaya. He trained Peace Corps volunteers in Kathmandu and has treated tropical diseases in New Guinea. A Physician’s Assistant, he currently runs the clinic in Shemya, in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands and lives the remainder of the time in a cabin high in Utah’s Big Cottonwood Canyon.
Des Moines, Iowa
Liu Yong
is from He has a degree in Philosophy and Finance from
Trips: Visions of the Middle Kingdom (04/02/2008 - 04/20/2008), Classical China with Vermont Public Radio (05/06/2008 - 05/20/2008), Around Kawakarpo: Eastern Tibet's Heavenly Trek (09/25/2008 - 10/16/2008)