Jacob Schmitz
My love for the outdoors started when I was a young kid. Growing up in Southern California I spent weekends camping with family and rock climbing in the Boy Scouts. In the late ’90s, I moved to Yosemite, CA, where my passion for big walls and long alpine routes flourished. After living the “dirtbag climber” lifestyle, I started an apprenticeship guiding in Alaska and Argentina.
After years of gaining experience and working on my craft, I became a certified guide with the American Mountain Guide Association. Since then, I’ve been fortunate to climb and guide on all seven continents.
I have more than 20 years of guiding experience and have been with Mountain Trip for 17 years. I have led eight expeditions to 8,000-meter peaks, five to Everest, and 75-plus expeditions to 6,000-meter peaks, including 26 Denali trips with 20 summits. I’m a Certified Alpine Guide and have Avalanche Pro 2, Wilderness First Responder, and Leave No Trace certifications.
When I’m not in the mountains, I live in the Netherlands with my wife, Anne, and our two daughters.
