 |
Kirk Bien has been hiking, backpacking and fly fishing in Rocky Mountain National Park for 20 years, and guiding for 9 years. His favorite places to backpack to in RMNP are Forest Canyon and Hutcheson Lakes. Kirk guides backpacking, llama pack trips and fly fishing trips. His favorite hiking and fishing buddies are his kids, Luke and Addy, but he and Laurie like to take off to find remote areas in RMNP. Kirk also enjoys snow shoeing, ice fishing and skiing in the winter. |
 |
Laurie Bien has been backpacking and hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park since she was a child with her Dad, and now enjoys taking her kids on adventures in the Park. Her favorite backpacking trips are over the Continental Divide via Boulder Grand Pass or Flattop Mountain. Laurie guides overnight backpacking trips, llama pack trips, Longs Peak trips, day hikes and snow shoeing trips. When Laurie is not guiding or working in the shop, she enjoys hanging out with the kiddos, Luke and Addy, and climbing. |
 |
Luke and Addyson Bien, future guides of Kirks Mountain Adventures. Luke enjoys climbing with mom, swimming and fishing with Dad. Addyson loves bugs, birds, and can't wait to start climbing class with Luke in the fall. They both love to go hiking with mom and dad in the Park, hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa and Nana and Papo. They are both Estes Park born and are true Rocky Mountain kiddos! |
|
|
Gary Bien, Kirk's Dad, has been backpacking in RMNP for 20 years, and has been guiding for 9 years. His favorite place to backpack in RMNP is the Lost Lake area and his favorite guided trips are horseback trips and llama pack trips. He is often referred to as the "llama whisperer" by clients, and most days in the summer can be found trekking in llamas with clients to high mountain lakes. In his off time he enjoys playing with his grandkids at his home he and his wife, Vicki share in Estes Park. Grandma Vicki watches Luke and Addy just about every day in the summer while Mom, Dad and Grandpa are busy with the shop! Vicki's homemade meals are usually what you will enjoy on your overnight excursions! |
 |
Mike Caldwell has been guiding for Kirk's for 6 years and is not only a resident, year-round fly fishing guide on the Big Thompson River and in RMNP, but also guides most of our Longs Peak trips, as well as snow shoeing trips, overnight backpacking trips, llama trips and trips over the Divide. Mike's speciality is trips over the Divide via Boulder Grand Pass, fishing Thunder Lake and Lake Verna on the way, and hiking to and fishing pristine high mountain lakes. He is also an avid climber and can be found hanging off the rock when he is not fishing. His wonderful wife Terry is also on the Kirk's pro shop staff! |
|
|
|
 |
Walter Borneman has been guiding for Kirk's for over 2 years, and guides day hikes, snow shoe trips and Longs Peak trips. Walter has been hiking and climbing in Colorado since age 14. He wrote the first complete climbing guide to the Colorado Fourteeners in 1978;
A Climbing Guide to Colorado’s Fourteeners. He has worked with National Geographic mapping Alaska’s National Parks. He is the author of nine America History books. He lives in Estes Park with his wife, Marlene.
|
 |
Marlene Borneman has been guiding for Kirk's for over 2 years, and guides day hikes, snow shoe trips, and Longs Peak trips. Marlene has been hiking, climbing, skiing and snowshoeing in Rocky Mountain National Park since 1974. In 2009 she completed her climbs of the 126 named summits in Rocky Mountain National Park. She has climbed the 54 fourteeners in Colorado, 82 of the 100 highest peaks in Colorado, and 33 of the fifty state highpoints. Marlene is very knowledgeable in identifying the wildflowers in RMNP and the best areas to find rare flowers. She lives in Estes Park with her husband, Walter. |
|
|
Apryle Craig has been guiding with Kirk's since 2005 and leads day hikes, snow shoe trips, and Longs Peak summit trips. In 2008, she completed "Mummy Madness", a 17 mile hike that summits seven peaks in the Mummy Range, six of which are above 13,000 feet in elevation. In 2009, Apryle spent over 110 days in the backcountry, paddling a sea kayak from Gig Harbor, Washington to Glacier Bay, Alaska, and raising awareness for the issues threatening wild Pacific salmon. She loves helping folks reach goals that they might have never thought possible. She lives in Estes Park with her husband, Phil, where they enjoy hiking, climbing, and skiing.
|
 |
Phil Magistro has been guiding with Kirk's since 2005 and leads day hikes, snow shoe trips, and Longs Peak trips. Phil is a NOLS alum, completing a course in Patagonia where he spent over 72 nights out kayaking, hiking, and climbing. He has spent time living in China and is fluent in Mandarin Chinese as well as Spanish. In 2009, Phil logged more than 110 days in the backcountry, paddling kayaks to Glacier Bay, Alaska, with his wife, Apryle. He hikes, skis, snowshoes, climbs, and cooks amazing backcountry meals. Phil lives in Estes Park with his wife, Apryle. |
 |
Jan and Larry Kilgore have lived in Estes Park for 5 years and in Colorado for 34 years. Rocky Mountain National Park is one of our favorite places to hike, snowshoe. and bicycle. We are avid bicyclists participating in 1 to 2 long distance bicycle rides a year including ones in Colorado and last year one down the coast of California. We have guided snow shoe treks and hikes for Kirk’s Fly Shop for 3 years and have enjoyed meeting wonderful people on these hikes. Each hike we lead is a new adventure for us and hopefully a rewarding and fun experience for those we take with us.
|
 |
Elvis the Llama, like many of our llama guides, works very hard to make your trip an enjoyable one. They are a very gentle, yet strong animal and will carry your gear to your backcountry site. They have been a part of the Kirks team since 2002 and a are fun addition! |
