Guides & Staff

Ken was born in Seattle and from age 2 has been skiing the Cascades. In high school, Ken was hired to teach skiing at Alpental ski area and has worked in the ski industry ever since. In 1985 on New Years Day, after a single heli bump from Whistler followed by a 4,000-foot powder run, Ken was hooked. Heli-ski guiding became the focus. After graduating from the ski area management and instruction program at Wenatchee Valley College, Ken went to France to teach with his full certification as a ski instructor. Returning to Washington, he guided on Mt. Rainier and in Alaska. While touring from Paradise one day in 1992, he heard that North Cascade Heli was looking for investors. This seemed a perfect match since Ken already owned property in Mazama. His nine years of experience on the Crystal Mountain Ski Patrol was ideal for the avalanche control work, snow stability evaluations and first aid skills requisite for a heli-ski guide.

Paul Butler has been guiding in the North Cascades since 1990. In addition to being co-owner at NCH, Paul is also a co-owner at North Cascades Mountain Guides in Mazama. Originally from Minnesota, Paul moved out to the Pacific Northwest in the late 1980's to purse a life and career focused on outdoor activities, especially climbing and skiing. While raising two kids just across the river from the heli-barn with his amazing wife, Bo Thrasher, Paul spent nearly ten years running the local weekly newspaper in addition to his guiding work. Lately Paul has been spending time stand up paddle boarding on various rivers and trying not to hurt himself too badly in this latest outdoor endeavor. 

Larry Goldie has been making a living as a mountain guide for more than two decades. He has climbed, skied and guided extensively in the North Cascades, with additional experience in the European Alps, Sierras, Rockies, Alaska and throughout Canada. Larry is one of the owners of North Cascades Mountain Guides in Mazama. As an instructor and examiner for the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA), as well as a pro trainer for AIARE (American Institute of Avalanche Research and Education) he also works to help train the next generation of mountain guides. He is an internationally (IFMGA) licensed Mountain guide and AMGA certified guide. He is also a current Wilderness First Responder. Larry has guided for North Cascade Heli since 2003 and now divides his time between guiding and running the snow safety program.

Joshua Cole has been guiding professionally since 2003, is a risk management consultant for numerous local and national organizations, and is a working emergency medical technician (EMT). Josh has worked as a professional ski patroller in Montana and New Zealand, and has a former life as a research geologist. Josh holds an AIARE Level 3 avalanche certification, is an IFMGA Licensed Mountain Guide, having gained his AMGA Ski, Alpine, and Rock Guide certifications. While not quite as exciting as the heli, Josh loves shredding the Loup Loup poma lift with his wife and two young kiddos.

Jeff has been a full-time mountain guide since 1995. As a fully certified AMGA and IFMGA licensed guide Jeff has been able to guide in a variety of places throughout the world. He has guided heli-skiing in Canada, steep skiing in La Grave, France and ski touring all over North America and Europe. Jeff has spent more than 35 years skiing in the Pacific Northwest and is convinced it offers some of the best skiing on the planet. In the summer months he teaches courses for the American Mountain Guides Association, leads expeditions to Alaska and guides climbers up routes in the European Alps and North Cascades for North Cascades Mountain Guides. On his days off you can often find Jeff in the mountains with his wife Kristen and his nine-year-old daughter Allison.

John Schaefer is a native of Washington State and has adventured in the Cascades since the late 90s and guided for the last 17 years. He has guided a multitude of disciplines from sea kayaking, fly fishing, rock climbing, skiing and heli-skiing. John worked five years professionally ski patrolling while being an avalanche dog handler at Stevens Pass. He has guided heli-skiing with North Cascade Heli for seven years. John is also a guide at North Cascades Mountain Guides. When not guiding John works as Field Scientist and Risk Manager for an environmental consulting firm based in Seattle. He has a Bachelors in Outdoor Recreation, a minor in Environmental Education, AIARE Level 2 avalanche certification and is a current Wilderness First Responder. John lives in Winthrop with his wife Adrienne and their two boys Tye and Reid.

Steph's first foray into ski guiding occurred in 2004 in Alaska's Wrangell-St. Elias Mountains, a fairly surprising leap from her early roots skiing ice-clad hills in Michigan. Her work over a decade as professional ski patrol at Stevens Pass offered plenty of terrain and community to develop skills that would enable her to enjoy skiing in the wilds of places such as China, India, and Chile. Steph holds an AIARE Level 3 Avalanche certificate, co-developed and teaches North Cascades Mountain Guides women's backcountry ski clinics, teaches Nordic skiing in the Methow Valley, and is working her way through the AMGA Mountain Guide program. Steph also works as a field biologist, and co-founded and directs the Cascades Wolverine Project. She has a perennial fondness for remote expeditions, granite rock climbing, and her husband, Drew Lovell, affectionately known as DLove, with whom she resides in Twisp, Washington.

Sid is a Pacific Northwest native who has skied and climbed in the North Cascades for over 20 years. He's a full time mountain guide who has worked and skied all over the U.S. as well as New Zealand, Alaska and the Himalaya. He is currently working his way through the AMGA certification process in the alpine, rock and ski disciplines. Sid lives in Winthrop, Wa. with his wife and two daughters. When not out playing in the mountains Sid can be found encouraging his daughters eat veggies while trying to be a grown up. 

A resident of the east side of the Cascades since 2003, Drew Lovell began ski guiding in the late 90s in Alaska. His background includes a decade as a professional ski patroller, experience as a highway avalanche forecaster, and work as a rock and alpine climbing guide. Drew has been an avid backcountry skier for 25 years, and has pioneered ski descents and traverses in India, China, and the varied ranges of Alaska, the Yukon, and northern British Columbia. He has been working with North Cascade Heli for five seasons and lives in Twisp with his wife Steph. Drew also currently works as an avalanche forecaster at a remote mine site, teaches Nordic skiing locally, and is involved in a winter wildlife monitoring program. He has completed an AMGA ski guides course as well as an AIARE Level 3 Avalanche certification.

Adrienne is a Washington State native and has worked in the outdoor industry for close to 20 years. She began her career working for the National Park Service and US Forest Service as a Trails Technician and later as a Climbing Ranger on Mt. Rainier. Her love of snow eventually led her to become a professional ski patroller and avalanche dog handler at Stevens Pass. When she moved to the Methow she saw a need for women's specific programming and partnered with co-guide Steph Williams and North Cascades Mountain Guides to develop the Women's Backcountry Clinic series. When she's not guiding, Adrienne works as the Partnership Manager for Methow Trails. She has a Bachelors in Outdoor Recreation, AIARE Level 2 avalanche certification and is a current Wilderness First Responder. Adrienne lives in Winthrop with her husband John and their two boys Tye and Reid.

Ryan Audett was born and raised in Washington State. He began his skiing career at the age of 4 at Mt. Spokane Ski Area. His travels have taken him all over the continental U.S., Alaska, Canada, and New Zealand. He was a professional ski patroller for 10 years and is a owner/handler of a currently certified avalanche rescue dog. Ryan has been guiding for North Cascade Heli for 5 years, is an AMGA Single-Pitch Instructor, and is currently pursing the AMGA Ski Guide track. His certifications include AIARE Level 2 Avalanche and Wilderness First Responder. Ryan lives in Winthrop, Wash., with his 2.6-year-old daughter.

Tyler Reid has guided all over the world. He’s been a year-round professional ski and mountain guide since 2008. He was raised on the Olympic Peninsula and grew up skiing in Washington. Beyond his incredible back yard here in the North Cascades, he guides ski touring and ski mountaineering trips in the Wrangells (Alaska), Canada, Japan, Chile, Russia and Antarctica with his company Pacific Alpine Guides. He is an AMGA Certified Ski Guide, has AIARE Level 3 avalanche training, and is an AIARE 2 course leader. He lives in Winthrop with his wife Melissa, also a mountain guide, and their adventurous daughter Kaia.