Our Dogsled Staff and Expert Guides
We are very proud of the "Wintergreen Team," which includes founder/director Paul Schurke, our dogsled guides, our chef, food service and housekeeping staff (and of course our "4-legged" kennel staff!). They are dedicated professionals, most of whom have been with us for many years.
Our guides are not only superbly skilled instructors but are also gifted naturalists and educators who enjoy sharing Northwoods lore with our guests -- about timber wolves, moose & bear, winter stars, northern lights, the Ojibway Indians of this region and the French Voyageurs who once traveled these woods. Time and again, our guides have been ranked "best in the business." In fact, our guides Dave & Amy Freeman are rated National Geographic "Adventurers of the Year" and were featured on the NBC Today Show for their "Year in the Wilderness" trek & have authored a new book on their wilderness advocacy adventure.
Our guides are multi-talented: LynnAnne is building her own timber frame home. Ellen & friend Van run a Community Supported Agriculture farm (CSA) to provide vegetables for our Northwoods community (& host a summer "picnic operetta" in their fields!). Becca also runs a CSA with help from guides Meagan & Elliot. Christina is an ordained minister who serves inner-city congregations. Brian guides summer bicycle trips in Alaska and biked back to Wintergreen from Juneau last fall. Courtney's family lives off-grid deep in the woods. Bria guides mountain climbing trips for the National Outdoor Leadership School. Peter is an Arctic guide in Svalbard, Norway.
Paul's schedule allows him to spend time with most Wintergreen groups and he is often able to share stories about his arctic expeditions. He is the lead instructor on most of the advanced dogsled camping trips and all of the arctic programs. Paul received the Explorers Award from the International Center for Exploration, the "Adventurer of the Year" award from Outside Magazine and the Environmental Hero Award from the National Wilderness Society. Paul is also a nationally-recognized speaker whose motivational and adventure talks have been featured by the National Association of Campus Activities.
In their post-trip evaluations, our Wintergreen guests repeatedly rave about our staff -- and rightly so! Here are a few of the accolades: "our guardian angels," "exhibited the utmost professionalism, skill & good cheer," "extraordinarily caring," "extremely attentive and caring," "totally interested in our having fun & being safe (and never making me feel like a nervous urban mom)," "catered to our every need," "very passionate about what they do," "very respectful of each other, the guests and the dogs," "athlete, educators & entertainers and great cooks too!," "great role models for my kids."