Todd Burleson
Owner, Alpine Ascents
The Basics
Company Name: Alpine Ascents International
Location: Seattle, WA
Founded: 1986
Full-Time Employees: 12 office staff, 80+ seasonal climbing guides
Products: Guided climbing expeditions and training courses on every continent, from 3-Day climbs of Rainier to 3-month expeditions in the Himalaya.
Social: Instagram // Facebook // TikTok
Claim to Fame: One of the first guide services to operate on Mt Everest (Sagarmatha),guiding nearly 300 climbers to the summit in our 30 years there. Among other initiatives, we helped pioneer the WAG BAG system (poo bag) and set the standard for waste removal protocols on the 7 Summits.
The Culture
The best thing about working at alpine Ascents is:
The talented and endlessly entertaining team of staff committed to helping climbers reach their goals no matter the elevation. Corporate retreats in the alpine and creative cocktail hours at the office really seal the deal.
When we’re not working, we’re:
Moving in the mountains by foot, ski, or bike and giving back to our community.
What we’re reading:
Fred Beckey’s 100 Favorite North American Climbs
Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
Underland: A Deep Time Journey by Robert Macfarlane
Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine
and climbing trip reports to prep for upcoming expeditions.
What we’re listening to:
new H.E.R. album Back of My Mind
Kaho Nakamura
Sa-Roc
Omar Apollo
The Funkees
99% Invisible
Radiolab
If they made a movie about our workplace, it would be called:
Started From the Bottom, Now the Whole Team Here
Inclusion in the outdoors matters because:
The good tidings of the mountains have the power to transform us. To experience the technicolor hues of an alpine sunrise or to gaze into the blue depths of a crevasse is to walk away humbled and awestruck at the beauty of our public lands. For too long, these life-altering experiences have been out of reach for the majority - particularly those of color, who have been made to feel unwelcome outside of the picnic areas of our beloved climbing zones. Cherishing and persevering our alpine environment for the enjoyment of all starts with welcoming everyone to our rope team and limiting barriers to access.
Five years down the line, it’s our hope that:
Diversity in the mountains and on our guide staff will be the norm, not the exception.