Dan has been hiking in the Alps since 1989. An experienced New England hiker and backpacker, Dan knew that once he had the chance to experience the Alpine scenery and mountain peaks he would be hooked… And he was right! Besides the mountains, he fell in love with this beautiful country and its charming and picturesque mountain villages. When he was not hiking and enjoying the spectacular views, Dan could be found on the Swiss buses and trains going from village to village learning as much as he could about Swiss culture and it history.

His first Swiss hiking excursions were on many of the well-known trails often featured in guide books. He found the views jaw-dropping and, as importantly, the trails that took him from hut to hut were just plain fun.

Dan soon yearned to explore the mountains further but understood that such pursuits would require special skill and equipment. With his goal in mind, he diligently studied and trained to climb some of the “medium” Alpine Summits such as the Pigne de Arolla and la Luette above Arolla. These multi-day climbs are primarily snow climbs over glaciers and summit snow fields and require overnights in the Swiss Alpine Club huts.

In 1997, Dan’s adventures in the Alps took yet another leap, and over the next five years, you could find Dan climbing 4,000 meter summits. Then, under the tutelage of an expert high altitude climbing guide, Dan learned how to safely ascend high alpine peaks with snow, ice and rock. Dan often talks about his climb to Monte Rosa, the highest point in Switzerland. For over seven hours, Dan and his guide climbed on rock, snow and ice to get to the Dufourspitze, the 15,200 foot (4,633 meter) main peak of this massive mountain!

Since that spectacular climb, Dan has been spending time hiking and medium altitude (~3,200 meter) mountaineering while experiencing a variety of accommodations in the Swiss towns of Evoléne, Bramois, Sion, Geneva, Vex, Zermatt, Interlaken, Gimmelwald, Lucerne and Zurich.

Elaine and Aldo have been hiking in New England for many years as an alternative to cycling, especially in the spring and fall. They especially love the White Mountains of New Hampshire and their own Berkshires of western Massachusetts. Aldo also loves to ski the back country in the winter, getting “off-piste” and into the woods during a beautiful time of year.

More importantly, Elaine and Aldo bring 12 years of experience running Ride Noho. Their commitment to providing their guests with a high level of customer service was validated in the recent survey they conducted. Here is a sample of the comments received in that survey:

“I think anyone who knows Ride Noho will be confident that the Swiss vacation will be extremely well done and very comfortable”

“Love riding with Aldo and Elaine. The experience they provide is very personal and really like no other”

“You run a TERRIFIC program”