Dave has worked as a mountain guide in rock climbing, ice climbing, mountaineering and ski mountaineering throughout North America, Europe, Mexico and South America since 2001, achieving his international IFMGA guiding certification in 2008. The owner of International Alpine Guides, he also works full time as a climbing and ski mountaineering guide in the field. Dave is known for his easy going demeanor and flexibility while in the mountains. He believes flexibility is key to any mountain adventure and is always willing to change objectives to suit your goals and abilities.

Dave grew up in three very different places... the beaches of Southern California, the city streets of London, England, and finally the mountains of the Sierra Nevada around Lake Tahoe. The mountains have been in his blood since his first family backpacking trip near Tuolumne Meadows at the age of seven and also while learning to ski in the Austrian and Swiss Alps at the age of eight. Dave currently lives in the Eastern Sierra Nevada minutes from Yosemite National Park where it all began with that family backpacking trip in 1972. When not at work guiding and running IAG, you can find him climbing in his large backyard on some of the best rock climbs in the world or backcountry skiing out of his driveway.

Dave specializes in the Alps of Europe. He has spent a third of each of the last eleven years working in the Alps of France, Switzerland and Italy and exploring those amazing mountains. He is a holder of a French Carte Professionelle, a Swiss work permit and is a member of the COLLEGIO REGIONALE VENETO DELLE GUIDE ALPIN the Italian mountain guides association of the province of Veneto.

So often in amazing places, Dave has taken up photography and strives to document his many mountain adventures around the world. Check out his photography website Dave Miller Alpine Guide | Photography

Climbing & Skiing Experience:
 
Dave's climbing adventures began back in 1980 while growing up in Squaw Valley & Tahoe City and attending high school in North Lake Tahoe. He was pursuing alpine ski racing and achieved a ranking of 10th in the nation for his age in the downhill event. Dave learned to climb at Donner Summit in California & learned to backcountry ski in the greater Tahoe area. 

Over thirty years later Dave considers his proudest climbing achievements to be his numerous one-day ascents of Yosemite's El Capitan as well as his ascents of remote alpine rock routes in the High Sierra and the Alps of Europe. But it's his love of the mountain lifestyle that matters most. Dave is equally at home on a long technical face as on a mellow backcountry trail.

Climbing
Dave's alpine climbing experience include extensive ascents throughout the French, Swiss & Italian Alps. In addition to many ascents of the famous peaks such as The Matterhorn, Mont Blanc and the Eiger, he has ascended many other fine Alps climbs throughout Switzerland, France and Italy from Chamonix to the Dolomites. In the US, Dave has climbed numerous long ice faces and rock climbing routes in Washington's North Cascade range and climbed (& skied) numerous Cascade volcanoes from Mount Lassen to Mount Baker, including close to 80 ascents of California's Mount Shasta. Dave has climbed ice throughout the Western US in areas such as Ouray, CO, Bozeman, MT and Cody, WY and has logged hundreds of days on the ice in his backyard of June Lake and Lee Vining, CA. 

Dave has high altitude mountaineering experience with many ascents of the famous Andean peaks in Peru, Argentina, Ecuador and Mexico. He has ascended Argentina's Aconcagua twice, Ecuador's Chimborazo and Cotopaxi over five times each and Mexico's Pico de Orizaba over twenty times. 

Dave's rock climbing adventures have taken him around the world from New Zealand to Europe and throughout the Western United States. He is most at home on California rock which is the best in the world. Living in the thick of it next to Yosemite, Dave has made Yosemite the focus of his rock climbing. He has climbed most major features in Yosemite Valley including six ascents of El Capitan (three in-a-day ascents), numerous ascents of Half Dome's Northwest Face and countless other long Valley climbs. Dave has extensive experience on long remote alpine rock climbs throughout the High Sierra and has climbed over 600 individual Joshua Tree climbs. He has also spent many months over the last 20 years exploring the rock climbs of Utah, Colorado, Oregon, Wyoming, Arizona and Washington States.

Skiing
Dave's extensive ski mountaineering adventures include numerous glaciated ski tours throughout the French, Swiss, Austrian & Italian Alps over the last 13 years...and he is always exploring new areas in this fantastic ski region. He has skied the famous Haute Route over 15 times and the Ortler ski circuit over seven times. Dave has spent many months over the last 12 years exploring the ski mountaineering objectives in Chamonix, France and other major ski mountaineering venues in Europe. He also has Alps touring & ski mountaineering experience in Alagna/Gresonnay and the Dolomites in Italy and the Berner Oberland, Zermatt, Engelberg, Engadin, Disentis and Andermatt areas in Switzerland as well as the Silvretta & Arlberg regions of Austria.

In addition to the Alps he has experience in the Coast Range of British Columbia, Alaska's Chugach Range plus many multi-day ski tours throughout the western United States. And of course, many hundreds of days backcountry skiing and touring in his home range of the Sierra Nevada.

Certifications/Education/Memberships:

• IFMGA/UIAGM internationally certified mountain guide

• American Mountain Guides Association:

  Alpine climbing, rock climbing & ski mountaineering certified

• Member of the Itailian mountain guides association of Veneto Province
  (COLLEGIO REGIONALE VENETO DELLE GUIDE ALPINE)

• French Carte Professionelle holder

• Swiss work permit holder

• Pro 2 avalanche training certificate (AAI)

• AIARE avalanche instructor

• Wilderness First Responder

• Bachelor's Degree in Political Science.