Name: Phrases To Live By: A conversation w/ Mike Pond on staying alive while climbing
Start: 2025-11-19T17:00:00-08:00
End: 2025-11-19T19:00:00-08:00
Location: Schussboom Brewing Co.

Phrases To Live By: A conversation with Mike Pond on staying alive in the mountains
Join us for an intimate conversation with Alpenglow Expeditions' lead climbing guide, Mike Pond on how he stays alive in the mountains. We will share some stories of close calls and how they relate to phrases that Mike has adopted and lives by in the mountains. Purchase some good food and drink from Schussboom, then sit back and be part of the conversation, followed by some Q&A. Then hang out afterward to socialize, meet new friends, find partners and share some stories of your own!

Matt Dryden

American Alpine Club - Northern Sierra, USA

American Alpine Club

Travel & Outdoor

Rock Climbing

Ice Climbing

Gym Climbing

Bouldering

Mike loves sharing his passion for the mountains with others. His positive attitude, low-stress approach, and friendly demeanor, combined with a life lived in the mountains, makes Mike a strong climber and guide who is passionate about and comfortable in all types of climbing.




Mike grew up in NY State, where he learned to climb and ski in the Adirondack mountains. After college, he was based out of Washington State for 12 years before moving to Reno in 2019. After enough visits to climb in California, eventually it just made sense to move – that Sierra granite was just too good to resist!

He has an undergraduate degree in Expeditionary Studies and a master’s in Recreation Studies, where he did his thesis “Investigating Climbing as a Spiritual Experience.” His connection to the mountains runs deep, and the multiple facets of the mountain experience keep him coming back year after year.

He has done first ascents in the Sierra, Cascades, BC Coast Range, and Alaska. Mike has climbed and established new lines up to 5.12, M7, and WI6. Mike is comfortable in all climbing environments, from single pitch cragging to long, technical alpine routes. Rock, snow, glaciers, ice – it’s all good! Though he will readily admit that sunny Sierra granite is hard to beat, and even harder to quit. He guides in Tahoe, the Sierra, Alaska including 7 Denali ascents, South America and the Himalaya including Mount Everest in 2025. He has over 25 international climbing expeditions. 

When not in the mountains, Mike enjoys gardening and fixing up his house in Reno, traveling with his wife Theresa and daughter Mia, taking his dog Anni on every adventure she can handle (he’s still trying to keep up with her), and then jumping in as many brisk alpine lakes and rivers as his metabolism will allow.

Mike is an AMGA certified Rock and Alpine Guide, and is the Lead Climbing Guide at Alpenglow Expeditions.

American Alpine Club - Northern Sierra, USA

Phrases To Live By: A conversation w/ Mike Pond on staying alive while climbing

American Alpine Club - Northern Sierra, USA

Details

Members are also interested in