Since Mike’s first hike up a little mountain in New England when he was in college—and stood on that rocky, windblown summit thinking this was the coolest thing he’d ever done—he’s spent as much time as he could outdoors. That led him into backpacking, climbing, every form of skiing, cycling, paddling whitewater, and competing for the title of world’s worst fly fisherman. For three decades, he’s made a career outdoors, writing about backpacking and hiking for magazines and, starting more than 10 years ago, for his own blog-website, The Big Outside.

Mike and his wife made Idaho their home almost 30 years ago and raised their two kids here to love and appreciate Idaho’s mountains and rivers as they do. Experience has shown him firsthand how vulnerable our wild spaces are to mismanagement and misuse. He is proud to do his part helping CVI’s dedicated board and staff do the critical and never-ending work to “create the political environment to protect the natural environment.”