Yosemite National Park & Eastern Sierra Backpacking!

That’s right, you’re reading this correctly, Golden State Guiding is now facilitating backpacking trips in Yosemite National Park and the Eastern Sierra! Come join us for an unforgettable adventure this summer in the High Sierra or Yosemite National Park!

Many of us who share a passion for rock climbing and backcountry skiing and splitboarding have a similar story, that we began our journey as outdoor advocates and explorers with a backpacking trip, whether that be in our local mountains or on a grander scale like that of the Sierra. At Golden State Guiding we find exposure to be a key ingredient for turning others into outdoor advocates, so what better way to do this than to offer a backpacking program and introduce others to the beautiful sites Yosemite National Park and the Eastern Sierra have to offer!

We’re starting slow this summer and only offering custom/ private outings due to the record snowpack in the Sierra. Click one of the buttons below to see some of our highlighted trips we’ll have on offer this summer or send us an inquiry to customize your own private backpacking trip today!

Ladies Weekend Out Mammoth // Mental Approach to Climbing

Our highly anticipated Ladies Weekend Out Mammoth // Mental Approach to Climbing Clinic is back and this time we’re hosting 2 separate weekends! 12 Lucky Ladies each weekend will have the opportunity to join Golden State Guiding’s awesome female Guide team for another 3 day weekend in Mammoth Lakes this summer filled with mental coaching, centered around how to create a positive mental space while climbing. Click the button below to learn more and to register for Ladies Weekend Out Mammoth today!

Self Rescue & Risk Management Clinic

Ever find yourself in a precarious situation 100+ feet off the deck and wondering what to do? Looking to acquire the skill set and knowledge to handle unforeseen circumstances that can arise on the rock when in a multi pitch and/ or alpine environment? Then our Self Rescue and Risk Management Clinics this summer are exactly what you are looking for!

Our Self Rescue and Risk Management Clinics are intended for intermediate to experienced outdoor climbers to build a working understanding of risk management in a high angle environment. Our SRRM clinics will teach you how to approach a rescue and execute the proper rescue systems by layering in a step by step processes through discussion with your team and hands on instruction and practice under the watchful eye of our professionally trained guides. Click the button below to learn more and to register for our Self Rescue & Risk Management today!

Ladies Weekend Out 2.0 Bishop

Our Ladies Weekend Out 2.0 event is back! Our highly anticipated Ladies Weekend Out 2.0 is back this Spring 2023 in Bishop, California! 14 Lucky Ladies will have the opportunity to join Golden State Guiding’s awesome female Guide team for a 3 day weekend on the Eastside filled with exciting multi pitch and single pitch climbing, camping in Bishop, California, and a social event Saturday evening at the Têra Kaia retail store in downtown Bishop! Click the button below to register for our Ladies Weekend Out 2.0 Bishop climbing event today!

BBQ's x BELAY's x BEER's Joshua Tree is Back!

GSG has booked out a weekend this December in Joshua Tree National Park for our 6th annual BBQ's x BELAY's x BEER's event and we want you to come out and climb and camp with us! The weekend consist’s of 2 nights camping in Joshua Tree National Park, 2 days of guided climbing in the park, and one meal and refreshments (Saturday night) provided by Golden State Guiding, and our sponsors Traeger Grills, Pure Project and Rove Adventure Brewery. We'll have a contest Saturday evening around dinner time where we'll be giving away prizes from our generous partners Fixe Hardware, Shelta Hats, American Alpine Club, Vertical Hold and Mesa Rim Climbing Gyms. Don't miss this great opportunity to climb with GSG's, AMGA certified guides and experience Joshua Tree in a very special way. Click the button below to learn more and to register for BBQ”s x BELAY’s x BEER’s today!

Weston Backcountry // Sierra Splitboarding Program

Golden State Guiding and our good friends over at Weston Backcountry are excited to announce that registration is officially open for our 2022/23 Sierra Splitboard Program in the Mammoth Lakes area!

With the support of Weston Backcountry, Golden State Guiding will be rolling out our highly anticipated Sierra Splitboard Program in the Mammoth Lakes area for the 2022/2023 snow season! The programming will be multifaceted and will cover a wide variety of topics including familiarizing yourself with your splitboard setup and how to properly transition from tour to ride mode, learning how to set an efficient skin track, kick turn techniques, hands on use of avalanche equipment and how to properly use it, trip planning software reviews, basic backcountry etiquette, and much more. The overall goal of our Sierra Splitboard Program will be to introduce snowboarders to a new medium in their sport, to familiarize them with the current equipment in the market, give them entry level tools to access the backcountry, and most importantly, lay a foundation for good practices in the future to make the best decisions possible when traveling in avalanche terrain. Click the button below to learn more and to register for our Weston Sierra Splitboard Program this winter in Mammoth Lakes!

Intro to Backcountry Skiing & Splitboarding Courses Announced!

Golden State Guiding is excited to announce our Intro to Backcountry Skiing and Splitboarding programs for the 2022/23 snow season are here!

GSG will be facilitating two Intro to Backcountry Skiing and Splitboarding courses in January and February in Mammoth Lakes, California for our community of backcountry enthusiasts! Our Intro to Backcountry Skiing and Splitboarding courses are 6 hours in length and take place in the front country of Mammoth Lakes. Our IBC program is the perfect course for the new backcountry traveler looking to learn the basics and entry level skills to begin getting out into the backcountry with their friends. Our IBC courses consists of multiple intro topics including how to properly use your backcountry ski and splitboard equipment. We’ll review beacon and partner safety checks, fundamental touring techniques and best practices for putting in a skin track, mapping software and resources to help plan your own personal tours in the backcountry, and much more, all with our professionally trained ski and splitboard guides. Click the button below to learn more and to register for one of our IBC courses this season!

5 Years of Family

5 YEAR’S OF FAMILY… May 1st marked Golden State Guiding’s 5 year anniversary. 5 years of community building, facilitating incredible outings for our guests, elevating standards in our industry, but most importantly, 5 years of building an incredible Guide and Ambassador Family. We call it a Family for a reason, our team is just that. We can’t thank our Family enough for all the work they’ve put in over the past 5 years. We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again, our Guides and Ambassadors are the backbone of our service, we wouldn’t be here today without their continued support and dedication towards our service. A big shout out is owed to all the incredible individuals who have helped us get to this point. From starting out with private guiding in San Diego to now servicing all throughout California, from SoCal up to Mount Shasta, it’s hard to believe we’ve come this far in just a short amount of time. The ride has been nothing short of incredible and we look forward to continuing to support our community of climbers and and backcountry skiers and splitboards for many more years to come. Cheers to the past 5 years and thank you all for believing in GSG and supporting the cause. 📷 @kylieclarke_photography

Sunshine and Stoked at the Inaugural Ladies Weekend Out Splitboard Event in Mammoth Lakes, CA

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Words AND PHOTOS by Rachel Lightner (@rachellightner)

To view the entire Ladies Weekend Out Splitboard Event in Mammoth Lakes, click here

Golden State Guides ran their first Ladies Weekend Out splitboard event in Mammoth Lakes, CA on March 12th and 13th. Six participants, along with myself and GSG guides Tailer Grey and Jessica Olsen, took to the backcountry to dial in splitboard skills and hangout with a group of awesome ladies. I had the pleasure of tagging along for the event and capturing some of the moments over the two-day course, from the high vibes to the parking lot apres beers.

 Day one began at the Visitor Center in Mammoth Lakes, where the ladies were introduced to their gear provided by GSG. This included all of their avalanche safety gear: beacon, shovel, probe, as well as touring gear, including bindings, skins and Weston Backcountry splitboards. Several of the ladies were really excited about the partnership with Weston Splitboards and were looking forward to giving them a try, including participant Carman Cheung. “I was already looking into demoing a Weston board and then my friend sent me the class and was like well you could demo a board, take a class, have a guide and learn to splitboard. And there’s beer!”, said Cheung. “So it was the whole package. I signed up as soon as I saw it.”

 After some binding adjustments and demonstrating how to pack all of the new gear into packs, we did a round of introductions. We learned everyone’s favorite snack and the fact that every participant had come up from somewhere in southern California for the event, so the comradery was instant. The ladies were stoked to get onto snow, so we headed to the Mammoth Rock trailhead and began our day.

 We started off with our first transition, learning how to turn our complete board into touring mode, which can be one of the hardest parts of learning how to splitboard. Tailer walked everyone through her methodical steps on how to take the board apart and keep your gear organized, ensuring that all the ladies felt confident with each step along the way.

After everyone transitioned to split mode, we went over the basic functions of our beacons and how to do a beacon check. Once we were all checked and beeping, we were ready to begin walking. Tailer gave some pointers on how to best walk with skins on and we hit the trail. Some slips and falls happened, always followed by laughter and words of encouragement. It was all of the ladies' first time split boarding, so it was a comfortable and supportive space to learn in. “Being in an all women's group is awesome.” said participant Lindsey Walkemeyer. “It takes away so much of the intimidation or trying to prove anything, it was super supportive and the women in this group were down to encourage each other and ask good questions and pick up the slack where we needed it and just work together. I don't know if that would've been exactly the same if it wasn’t an all women's group.”

 We walked to an open knoll and Tailer talked through kick turns and downhill travel with skins on, which we put into practice by skiing down the hill, then climbing back up and working on kick turns. After taking a few cycles through these motions, we began our ascent to Mammoth Rock.

The sun was glistening through the pines, conversations were flowing, and the ladies were beginning to piece together the details of touring. When we arrived at the top of our run, Tailer walked through transitions again then the ladies put it into practice, this time nailing it down even faster than the first time around. Everyone was getting more familiar and comfortable with their gear. We posed for pictures in front of Mammoth Rock, gave high fives, and got stoked for our first downhill riding.

 We took it in sections, weaving through some low angle trees and gullies, until we arrived back at our trailhead. We then practiced more transitions by cruising up to a small knoll and riding down twice. This was a valuable decision on Tailer’s part, because dialing in your transition can be one of the hardest parts to learn, so doing this multiple times on the first day is really helpful for your progression. We finished off the day in the parking lot with some ice cold beers provided by Pure Brewing and shared some highlights and thoughts on what we were looking forward to the next day.

 The following morning, we met at the trailhead for the Sherwins and we had an unexpected visitor, Miss Gale force winds. We were nearly blowing over huddled behind our vehicles, as Tailer shouted over the sound of the wind to give the ladies a few options for the day. As a group, we decided to shelter inside and wait out the wind a little bit. There was still a lot of meaningful information that could be taught indoors, so we headed to Black Velvet Coffee and got cozied up with a hot beverage in their upstairs nook.

 Tailer went over her online resources she uses when planning a trip to the backcountry, including maps, avalanche information, and weather reports. The ladies got familiar with Gaia and Caltopo on their phones, learning how to plan out their routes and how to look over the avalanche center’s online resources. Tailer then exploded her backpack and showed everyone what she typically brings on a tour, along with helpful tips for packing everyone efficiently. The skies had cleared a bit and the wind died down, so we decided to go out for a short tour to put all of our new skills into practice.

 Although the wind was still blustering, the ladies were excited to get out for a walk. We found some protection in the trees and walked up the base of the Sherwins, practicing skinning, kicksteps, and even boot packing on the way up. Upon reaching the top of our tour, we transitioned and celebrated with smiles, cheers, and clanking our poles together.

We rode through some trees and gullies, hooting and hollering the whole way down, until we arrived back at our cars. We wrapped up the weekend by sharing some takeaways from the course, and Lindsey commented that, “it's really important to find women who enjoy doing similar things and to partner with them. It's also important to learn how to do things the right way from the beginning and finding the right people to teach you to do that is huge. Having a fantastic attitude and having a good time no matter what circumstances come up, because it's all about being outside in the first place and having a good adventure.”

 All the ladies left stoked to continue their pursuits as split boarders, complete with confidence in their abilities and a new group of awesome lady friends. We look forward to seeing how all these ladies take their skills and adventure in the future, and we hope to see you at the next Ladies Weekend Out splitboard event!

Red Rock Roundup

Golden State Guiding is excited to announce registration is officially open for our 3rd Red Rock Roundup event in beautiful Red Rock Canyon, just outside of Las Vegas, Nevada!

Come join us for an unforgettable 3 days of climbing in beautiful Red Rock Canyon, conveniently located just 30 minutes outside of Las Vegas, Nevada. Red Rock plays host to some of the worlds best sandstone sport climbing crags, big wall routes and bouldering in the Western United States. Whether you’re new to climbing, an avid sport or trad climber, or simply looking to get out for a long weekend and meet fun, likeminded people, then this event is for you!

Throughout the weekend you’ll have the pleasure of climbing world class sandstone in a beautiful landscape, the option to choose from 4 different climbing packages, and you’ll get to enjoy 3 nights under the stars in Red Rock Campground just 10 minutes from many of the popular climbing venues.

Click the button below to learn more about Red Rock Roundup and to register for this awesome weekend!

Climb With Us Video

We couldn’t be more pleased to share this special video edit, Climb With Us, produced by the talented Brooked Raines! We’ll let the video speak for itself, enjoy!

1% for the Planet member // 3 Year Anniversary!

We can’t believe that this October marks our 3 year anniversary as a 1% for the Planet member!

3 years ago we took a pledge to support the places we recreate in by becoming a 1% for the Planet member and donating 1% of our annual gross profit to the organizations of our choice underneath the 1% umbrella. It was a decision we made at the inception of Golden State Guiding and one we felt we needed to do to not only support these organizations and our environment, but to raise the standards in our industry. Through this commitment organizations such as the Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center, Yosemite Conservancy, Protect Our Winters, and Friends of Joshua Tree have been the beneficiaries of our 1% contribution. These organizations play vital roles in supporting the areas we recreate in and help to keep us safe while enjoying what we all love to do! Big thanks to our community for your continued support towards our guide service. It’s because of you we’re able to support these awesome organizations!

BBQ's x BELAY's x BEER's Joshua Tree

BBQ's x BELAY's x BEER's, what else could a climber ask for? The climbing season in Joshua Tree season is just about to kick off and what better way to experience this beautiful landscape with over 5000+ rock climbs then to spend a full weekend with Golden State Guiding! GSG has booked out a weekend this December in Joshua Tree National Park for our 5th annual BBQ's x BELAY's x BEER's event and we want you to come out and climb and camp with us! The weekend consist’s of 2 nights camping just outside of Joshua Tree National Park, 2 days of guided climbing in the park, and 1 meal and refreshments (Saturday night) provided by Golden State Guiding, and our sponsors Traeger Grills and Saint Archer Brewery. Click the button below to learn more and to register for our 5th annual BBQ’s x BELAY’s x BEER’s event in Joshua Tree National Park!

Climb to Farm Recap

We tend to say this a lot, but we’re still on a huge high from this past weekend and our inaugural Climb to Farm event! Such an incredible weekend filled with fun climbing, great people, delicious farm to table cuisine, and much more! Huge thanks to everyone who came out and attended our first Climb to Farm event, it blew away all expectations! And the bonus is 10% of all proceeds were donated to our good friends over at Friends of Joshua Tree!

As always a special thanks is owed to GSG Lead Guide @gregasaurus_flex and Apprentice @correiak, you guys slayed it as usual. Big shout out to @troy_yasuda over at @patagoniacardiff for organizing the farm portion of the event. Very special thanks to @enjoy_the_farm owner Ed Lewis for his very generous hospitality and tour of his sustainable fruit farm and also a massive thanks to the very talented chef @feedthesoil for some of the best vegetarian meals many of us had ever eaten! Also, big thanks to @brookeraines_ for capturing all the moments this past weekend, well done Brooke! And last but not least, thanks to all of our partners @purebrewing @juneshineco @1percentftp @joshuatreefriends @outdoorwomxn @fixehardware @fixe.climb @wildcountry_official for contributing to this special weekend, your support means a lot! Click the button below to view the full photo gallery from the event!

GSG x Fixe Hardware Partnership!

Golden State Guiding is beyond stoked to announce our new partnership with industry gear leader @fixehardware!

Having dependable gear in the field for our team is a must and Fixe Hardware not only provides an assortment of the best Roca ropes, and Friends and Alien protection, they also supply the community with the most dependable bolt hardware in the market and much more!

Big shout out to Fixe Hardware for teaming up with us and their support, means a lot🤙🏻 Go to: Fixehardware.com to learn more about what this awesome brand provides for our community and support the cause!

Climb to Farm Rock Climbing Event

Climb to Farm is back on the calendar! Golden State Guiding has once again partnered up with our good friends at Patagonia, Enjoy the Farm, and 1% for the Planet for a fun weekend of rock climbing, camping, farm-to-table cuisine, up-cycling, sustainable farming, and of course, community! Click the button below to learn more about this special rock climbing event happening in San Diego this September!

Ladies Weekend Out // Mental Approach to Climbing // Mammoth Lakes, CA

Our Ladies Weekend Out // Mental Approach to Climbing event is here! With all the positive feedback we've received regarding our Ladies Weekend Out events we figured we may as well run an impromptu LWO event again in the Eastern Sierra this summer only this time there's a twist! July 30th - August 1st, 12 lucky ladies will once again have the opportunity to come out with our professionally trained, AMGA Guides for a weekend of climbing only this time we're mixing things up a bit! The theme of our LWO Summer event will be "Mental Approach to Climbing" and we'll be focusing on topics such as attentive lead belaying and how to be a good support for your partner pushing their limits, addressing the fear of falling, pushing past physical and mental barriers, and more! Cost for our LWO Mental Training weekend is $350 and includes 2 nights camping and 2 days of mental training in the Eastern Sierra. This was a last minute addition to our schedule so if you're interested in attending please DM GSG Programs Coordinator, Jessica Olson via Instagram at @jessielyse or feel free to send us an email through our website, someone will get right back to you with all the details! Looking forward to pushing past some barriers in a couple of weeks on the Eastside! 📷 @emma.perkuhn

GSG Lead Guide Josh Reinig Completes his Alpine Guide Course

A big shout out and congratulations is in order for GSG Lead Guide Josh Reinig (@senseisplitter) for completing his Alpine Guide Course with the AMGA in the Eastern Sierra this past week! Climber of all disciplines for over 25 years, devoted father, husband, and co-owner of the @mt_whitney_climbing_ranch, Josh has lived a full life and experienced a lot more than most do in a lifetime. He’s been a staple in our community, a committed Guide for GSG since nearly the beginning, and a close friend. Congratulations on finishing up your AGC Josh! It’s been a long time coming, we couldn’t be more stoked for you! Also, big thanks to all the AMGA Instructors involved (@extremealpine @howie_sierramtnguides and Neil)

Sierra Single Pitchn' Event

Golden State Guiding is excited to announce the 4th annual Sierra Single Pitchn’ event is back this July 16th - 18th in the beautiful June Lake region in the Eastern Sierra!

Come join us for an unforgettable weekend of climbing and camaraderie in the breathtaking June Lake area conveniently located in the heart of the Sierra and just a short drive from Mammoth Lakes and Yosemite National Park! Twelve lucky climbers will have the pleasure of climbing at two separate alpine crags throughout the weekend with our professionally trained, AMGA Guides. Our guests will have the opportunity to participate in multiple instructional clinics such as building top rope anchors, rappelling, and cleaning a sport anchor, and will get to meet new and long lasting climbing partners along the way! Downtown June Lake is easily accessible from our campsites for the weekend so after a long day of climbing, feel free to head into town and support local by grabbing a bite to eat or indulging in a tasty beverage from one of our favorite establishments, June Lake Brewing! Click the button below to learn more and to register for our Sierra Single Pitchn’ event!

Intro to Backcountry Splitboarding Course Recap

Another great weekend in the high country for our Intro to Splitboarding Course in the Eastern Sierra! Nothing more satisfying than watching our guests grow throughout the season after attending multiple programs. Nearly all of our guests for this outing attend our Split 101, Intro to Splitboarding, an AIARE Level 1 and then topped it off with an overnight backcountry trip where they got to experience some big terrain! Big thanks to all those who attended our IBC course and special thanks to GSG Ski Guide @janczyzewski for facilitating another awesome weekend and to GSG Ambassador @jamesonschultz.studio for capturing all the special moments. We’re already working on our 2022 winter programming so stay tuned for some exciting courses coming your way soon! Click the button below to view the full IBC photo gallery!