Kurt Thomas Hicks


Kurt guiding on Denali's West Buttress.

Basics:

Started guiding in 2004. Started guiding for AAI in 2006. BA in Resource Recreation and Tourism, with a minor in Outdoor Leadership Completed the advanced coursework for a Masters in Environmental Education. I speak some Spanish.

Personal Geography:

I grew up in southwestern Oregon in the small town of Glide. These days I'm living in the Bavarian metropolis of Leavenworth, Washington

Proudest Climbing Achievement:

I'm more proud of the routes that I have backed off of than of the ones I've succeeded in climbing. Mark Twight said something like, surviving is succeeding; summiting is a bonus. I believe that. I'm proud of letting good judgment and intuition dictate my choices. You can always try again later.

Proudest Personal Achievement:

I'm proud of the bottomless pit that is my stomach. I don't know how it withstands all the abuse I subject it to.

Guiding Geography:

I guide in the Cascades, Alaska, the Sierra, Red Rocks, and Canada. My favorite trips to guide are AAI's Alpine Leadership and Technical Mountaineering Series. Spending such a significant amount of time with clients allows you to really see them progress and you get the opportunity to climb fantastic routes, whether in the Bugaboos, Leavenworth, or the North Cascades.

Climbing Philosophy:

Climbing is a practice. It's more about overcoming personal challenges, both physical and mental, than about climbing the absolute hardest route I can. And basically, it should be fun. As Alex Lowe said, the best climber is the one having the most fun.

Favorite Climbing Destination:

I love alpine climbing in the North Cascades for the balance of snow, ice, and rock. Combined with the challenges of weather, tough approaches, and glaciers you're forced to have a really well rounded skill set. I feel that if you can be successful in the North Cascades, you can climb anywhere

Favorite Style of Climbing:

I love climbing multi-pitch traditional rock routes. Climbing light and fast--leaving the ground with a rope, rack, and the shirt on my back--and moving efficiently until we're at the top. McTech Arete in the Bugaboos -- A great route with five splitter crack pitches with a short approach. It's a great way to round out the day after doing a long route or a fun jaunt on a bad weather day. Exasperator, Squamish, British Columbia - perfect finger locks with perfect protection on perfect stone. It's immaculate.

Hobbies/Interests:

I've been working on my first book. It's a guide to a cragging area in North Central Idaho. I climbed there a lot when I was in grad school, but the only guide to the area is 24 years old. In addition to being beneficial to the local climbing community, it's been a really cool little history project. I've been able to track down records of some of the first ascents in the area and read over a lot of notes - it's amazing to see the evolution of routes and climbing culture over time.

Inspirations:

My fiancé, for showing me that life doesn't have to be dictated by other people's expectations and that I can make my life whatever I want it to be.

Rewarding Moment as an AAI Guide:

It's always really rewarding to teach a course that has a visible impact on a client. A few years ago I had a client who had just started climbing outdoors. We spent ten days working on lead climbing and skills for alpine routes. At the end of the course he was leading solidly and was hooked on trad climbing. In the couple years since he's gone on to climb many difficult routes throughout the western US...some of which were with my friends and colleagues, often with him leading!