About Joe

Joe Grew up outside of Chicago in Wheaton, IL. and went to college at Southern Illinois University to study Outdoor Recreation.

 After college, he worked with court ordered youth from Minnesota in a program that culminated with 28 day long expeditions. He moved out to Colorado in 1984 and started working for Meet The Wilderness, an outward bound type program working with inner city economically disadvantaged youth and gang kids. With a focus on teaching life skills by using the wilderness on week long backpacking trips. He spent the last 8 years as the executive director of the program. He was also a climbing, mountaineering and first aid instructor for Colorado Mountain College for many years. 

Joe started working with Paragon guides in 2006 instructing climbing and taking folks out on hikes and overnights and, yes, he learned about that Llama thing, which he wasn’t quite sure about. Now he can’t imagine not spending a summer without the llamas. “they’re the best co-workers a guy could ever ask for.”

Joe is currently certified as a Wilderness First Responder, and in Leave No Trace. He is also a dedicated Qi Gong practitioner and meditator. 

When Joe is not guiding llamas around, he enjoys getting out for long mountain bike rides, hikes, eating good food, spending time with his partner Cindy, and a nap here and there. A little travel to see his kids in Montana and New York is always pretty great as well.