
A podcast about navigating the highest altitudes from a guide’s perspective.
LISTEN TO THE LATEST EPISODES:
Sam and Adrian are joined on Episode 37 by Amie Engerbretson, a Tahoe local who shares her non-traditional path to becoming a professional skier. One could say being a skier is in Amie's blood, or you could argue that the career found her, but nonetheless, Amie has been a staple in magazine's and movies for more than a decade.
Amie was born and raised in Tahoe, and as the daughter of a professional skier, she was surrounded by the industry from the very start. As Amie grew up, she pursued dance and ballet, and went off to college to study film. But the mountains called her back and before she knew it she was on magazine covers and in ski films.
- Amie talks about a film she directed, and starred in, a couple years back. The Hypocrite highlights the intersection between her work as a professional skier and her advocacy work with Protect Our Winters.
- With more than a dozen trips to ski in South America in the late summer, Amie shares some of her experiences, and the realities of skiing in the Southern Hemisphere.
- Amie shares all that she pursue's to make the professional skiing life work, from training insights to her work in activism and her recent foray into film production.
You can learn more about Amie on her website www.amieski.com, and follow her on Instagram @amieski.
Follow our podcast on Instagram @duffelshufflepodcast where you can learn more about us and our guests. Visit our website at www.duffelshufflepodcast.com and join our mailing list. The Duffel Shuffle Podcast is supported by Alpenglow Expeditions, an internationally renowned mountain guide service based in Lake Tahoe, California. Visit www.alpenglowexpeditions.com or follow @alpenglowexpeditions on Instagram to learn more.
George Bell, a climber on the 1953 American Expedition to K2 said "It's a savage mountain that tries to kill you." Nearly than 75 years later, the reputation is intact. Adrian successfully climbed K2, without supplemental oxygen, in 2019, doubling down on his no o2 ascent of Everest in 2017.
With decades of experience climbing and guiding clients throughout the Himalaya, Adrian has spent little time in the Karakoram, and has only climbed K2 once. Following the 2025 K2 climbing season, Sam and Adrian connect to break down K2, and discuss Adrian's take on the mountain as well as his experience.
- Adrian shares his description of the route, starting with the trek in. Not only does he talk about some of the main features of the mountain, but he also discusses the famed objective hazards, from GI bugs to the Bottleneck Serac.
- Adrian shares a bit about why he's avoided K2 for most of his career, and how a tragic accident in 2008 took the life of a good friend, deterring him from the mountain for many years.
- Despite being supported by Topo Mena, who too has dreams of climbing K2 without oxygen, Adrian shares the one route on the mountain that he would climb, if it were possible.
Adrian's film, Breathtaking: K2 - The World's Most Dangerous Mountain, can be found on youtube.
Follow our podcast on Instagram @duffelshufflepodcast where you can learn more about us and our guests. Visit our website at www.duffelshufflepodcast.com and join our mailing list. The Duffel Shuffle Podcast is supported by Alpenglow Expeditions, an internationally renowned mountain guide service based in Lake Tahoe, California. Visit www.alpenglowexpeditions.com or follow @alpenglowexpeditions on Instagram to learn more.
In the latest episode of the Duffle Shuffle, Adrian and Sam dive into the details of Emily Harrington’s soon-to-be-released feature-length film “Girl Climber”.
Emily Harrington is a pro climber, a proud mother, and also happens to be Adrian’s wife. Emily is one of the best mountain athletes on the planet, having free climbed El Cap in a day, summited Mount Everest, skied an 8,000m peak, and climbed 5.14b. Emily’s new film “Girl Climber” tells the incredible story of her climbing El Capitan's “Golden Gate” route in a day, and it's screening in a one-day-only IMAX release on Sunday, August 24th.
- The conversation kicks off with discussing Emily’s climbing achievements and what it’s like setting new goals after a successful climb.
- Emily, Adrian, and Sam discuss Emily’s film “Girl Climber” and the challenges of free climbing “Golden Gate”.
- Emily chats about how she overcomes setbacks and learns from mistakes while working towards a goal
- Emily goes over the balance of climbing ambitions and motherhood.
You can learn more about Emily on Instagram @emilyharrington, and through her website https://emilyharrington.com/. You can buy tickets to the IMAX release of "Girl Climber" on Sunday, August 24th at imax.com/girlclimber.
Follow our podcast on Instagram @duffelshufflepodcast where you can learn more about us and our guests. Visit our website at www.duffelshufflepodcast.com and join our mailing list. The Duffel Shuffle Podcast is supported by Alpenglow Expeditions, an internationally renowned mountain guide service based in Lake Tahoe, California. Visit www.alpenglowexpeditions.com or follow @alpenglowexpeditions on Instagram to learn more
In such a storied climbing region like the Himalaya, recording the history of the people who have climbed there and the summits they reached is vital. In this Episode of the Duffel Shuffle Podcast, Adrian sits down with Billi Bierling, the current director of the Himalayan Database, the go-to historical database of climbing in the Himalaya, to discuss Everest, modern high altitude climbing, and the life of the Himalayan Database.
Billi is a renowned journalist, high-altitude climber, and has been the director of the Himalayan Database since 2016, taking over after its founder, Elizabeth Hawley. With ascents of major peaks including Mount Everest, Manaslu, Cho Oyu, and Lhotse — Bierling brings both credibility and firsthand experience to her work. Bierling has been instrumental in expanding the reach and accessibility of the database, ensuring it remains a vital resource for climbers, researchers, and historians alike.
- Billi and Adrian talk about the Himalayan Database and the History of Everest.
- Billi shares about her time spent in Kathmandu and her own passion for mountaineering
- Adrian and Billi chat about Everest, the ever-changing dynamics of modern high-altitude mountaineering, and climbing without oxygen.
You can learn more about the Himalayan Database at https://www.himalayandatabase.com/. And you can follow along with Billi at her website; https://billibierling.com/, or follow her on Instagram @billi_bierling.
Follow our podcast on Instagram @duffelshufflepodcast where you can learn more about us and our guests. Visit our website at www.duffelshufflepodcast.com and join our mailing list. The Duffel Shuffle Podcast is supported by Alpenglow Expeditions, an internationally renowned mountain guide service based in Lake Tahoe, California. Visit www.alpenglowexpeditions.com or follow @alpenglowexpeditions on Instagram to learn more.
In this episode of the Duffle Shuffle, we dive into the life of a mountain guide who guides everything from the Tahoe Via Ferrata in Olympic Valley, CA, to the summit of Mount Everest. Mike Pond is a career mountain guide who has spent his life climbing and guiding on mountains all over the world. At Alpenglow, he guides across the entirety of its programming, from rock climbing and the via ferrata, to high-altitude mountains in the Himalaya and beyond.
In this episode, we'll talk about balancing life as a father, husband, and mountain guide, the diversity of climbing guiding that can be done, and Mike's experience climbing on Everest.
You can follow Mike on Instagram at @mikepondclimbs. And you can check out his salve skin care product, Booboo butter, at the Alpenglow Office!
Follow our podcast on Instagram @duffelshufflepodcast where you can learn more about us and our guests. Visit our website at www.duffelshufflepodcast.com and join our mailing list. The Duffel Shuffle Podcast is supported by Alpenglow Expeditions, an internationally renowned mountain guide service based in Lake Tahoe, California. Visit www.alpenglowexpeditions.com or follow @alpenglowexpeditions on Instagram to learn more.
Following a successful Everest expedition in which Adrian successfully reached the summit for the 10th time, Sam and Adrian catch up to cover some of the notable storylines from the season.
While much of the 'action' occurs on the South side of the mountain, a route that Alpenglow does not climb, Adrian has such intimate knowledge of both sides that his perspective is unique. Additionally, between mountain guide gossip and the Sherpa grapevine, a lot if information gets passed without percolating to the mainstream media, some of which we get an inside scoop on in this episode.
Sam and Adrian talk about the following storylines from the 2025 Everest Season:
- Deaths and Rescues: While the 5 fatalities on the south side of the mountain (and zero on the North side) is a relatively low number as compared to recent seasons, rescues and near-misses reached record highs.
- Anja Blancha: One of only two successful no oxygen summits of Everest this season was achieved by the German climber, her 12th of 14 8,000ers without supplemental O2.
- FKT Attempts: Neither Karl Egloff nor Tyler Andrews were successful in reaching the summit of Everest, both of whom set out for Fastest Known Times.
- Xenon Climbers: Arguably the story of the season, Furtenbach Adventures' Flash Ascent of Everest using Xenon Gas was successful, but is Xenon really the future of climbing the tallest peaks around the world?
Follow our podcast on Instagram @duffelshufflepodcast where you can learn more about us and our guests. Visit our website at www.duffelshufflepodcast.com and join our mailing list. The Duffel Shuffle Podcast is supported by Alpenglow Expeditions, an internationally renowned mountain guide service based in Lake Tahoe, California. Visit www.alpenglowexpeditions.com or follow @alpenglowexpeditions on Instagram to learn more.
Adrian Ballinger and the Alpenglow Expedition team had success on Everest! First, Sam and Adrian had a chance to catch up briefly following Adrian's 10th summit of the tallest mountain in the world. In this episode of The Duffel Shuffle, the two touch base with Esteban "Topo" Mena, Alpenglow's co-expedition leader, from base camp on the North Side of Mount Everest before Alpenglow's summit push.
Topo Mena is an IFMGA guide, Black Diamond Athlete and an inspiration to many. Topo’s accomplishments include many summits of 8,000m peaks, including multiple on Everest as well as K2, Gasherbrum I, Gasherbrum II, Cho Oyu, Makalu, and Manaslu, as well as more than 250 summits of Cotopaxi in his home country of Ecuador. Topo has participated in grade VI first ascents in the Himalayas and in the Tien Shan, unsupported ascents without supplementary oxygen of 8000m peaks (including Mount Everest in 2013 at age 23 during his first expedition to the mountain), and numerous ascents pursuing difficulty or speed in his beloved Andes, or in the Himalayas, Karakorum, Alps, Tien Shan, Pamirs and Antarctica.
Following up on Episode 2 of the Duffel Shuffle, Sam and Adrian check back with Topo to hear about his recovery, and how he perceives his return to "100%".
- Topo talks about his role as Co-Expedition Leader alongside Adrian with Alpenglow Expeditions' Everest Team.
- Topo shares a bit about the importance of a strong team on Everest, and how being co-expedition leader alongside such a strong team of guides makes the role easy.
- Topo talks about his personal climbing goals, and his continued focus on opening a new route on Mt Everest.
You can learn more about Topo on Instagram, @estebantopomena, and through his sponsor https://blackdiamondequipment.com/blogs/athletes/esteban-topo-mena.
Follow our podcast on Instagram @duffelshufflepodcast where you can learn more about us and our guests. Visit our website at www.duffelshufflepodcast.com and join our mailing list. The Duffel Shuffle Podcast is supported by Alpenglow Expeditions, an internationally renowned mountain guide service based in Lake Tahoe, California. Visit www.alpenglowexpeditions.com or follow @alpenglowexpeditions on Instagram to learn more.
Adrian Ballinger is joining us live from base camp on the North Side of Mount Everest. We've collected more than 30 questions from you, the audience, over the past months, and now it is time to rapid fire answer as many as we can.
With questions all across the board, we cover the following topics:
- Everest costs, financial requirements and alternatives
- Training and physical preparation for Everest and other climbing goals
- How to progress as a climber, and comparing different training grounds
- Mentorship and how to develop your personal climbing mindset
- Routes, risk and other strategies
- Acclimatization and other health factors
- Equipment, food and staying comfortable
- Sustainability and ethics
A huge thank you to those who submitted questions. We're stoked to interact with our audience, and ensure the content we're putting out is of interest to you! If you have further questions, DM us on Instagram, comment on our posts, or leave us a message on our YouTube episodes; we love hearing from you!
Follow our podcast on Instagram @duffelshufflepodcast where you can learn more about us and our guests. Visit our website at www.duffelshufflepodcast.com and join our mailing list. The Duffel Shuffle Podcast is supported by Alpenglow Expeditions, an internationally renowned mountain guide service based in Lake Tahoe, California. Visit www.alpenglowexpeditions.com or follow @alpenglowexpeditions on Instagram to learn more.
Melissa Arnot Reid is not only a mountain guide, speaker and author, but she's also an athlete. Melissa is the first American woman to successfully summit and descend Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen, a peak she has climbed a total of 6 times throughout her career.
Melissa's new book, Enough: Climbing Toward a True Self on Mount Everest, released on April 1, and we had a chance to connect with her following the launch to learn more.
- The three kick off their conversation with a bit of talk about running and Melissa's current running endeavors.
- Melissa shares a bit about her book, the process of writing, the importance in her own healing journey, and the origins of the title Enough.
- Melissa dives into her mountain experiences as a child, how she found her way into guiding through RMI, and some of the challenges of being a women in a predominantly male industry.
- Melissa catches us up on life today, and raising two kids by two working mountain guide parents.
You can learn more about Melissa on Instagram, @melissaarnot, and through her website www.melissaarnot.com/. Melissa's new book, Enough: Climbing Toward a True Self on Mount Everest, can be found wherever you buy your books, including on Amazon.
Follow our podcast on Instagram @duffelshufflepodcast where you can learn more about us and our guests. Visit our website at www.duffelshufflepodcast.com and join our mailing list. The Duffel Shuffle Podcast is supported by Alpenglow Expeditions, an internationally renowned mountain guide service based in Lake Tahoe, California. Visit www.alpenglowexpeditions.com or follow @alpenglowexpeditions on Instagram to learn more.
MEET YOUR HOSTS:

ADRIAN BALLINGER
Adrian Ballinger is a big mountain climber and skier, certified mountain guide, and professional speaker. Ballinger is the founder of Alpenglow Expeditions and has been professionally guiding groups on the world’s tallest mountains for 25 years.
Summits of Everest and K2 without supplemental oxygen
First ski descent of Makalu (5th tallest peak in world) from summit
First ski descent of Manaslu (8th tallest peak in world) from summit
Four complete 8000-meter peak ski descents
Nineteen summits of 8000-meter peaks (including 9 summits of Mt. Everest)
Founded and leads Alpenglow Expeditions, which now takes 6000+ people a year skiing, climbing and mountaineering, in Tahoe and around the world
IFMGA Mountain Guide since 2008
Proud dad of Aaro Storm & husband to Emily Harrington

SAM KIECKHEFER
Born and raised in Northern California, Sam began exploring the Sierra and developed a love for the mountains at a young age. A lifelong skier, he started backcountry skiing in 2010 and found his way up Mt. Shasta on only his second ski tour ever. After years of gaining experience ski touring in the mountain west, he started guiding in 2019. Sam has guided ski trips in both hemispheres, but you’re sure to find him in the winter around Tahoe as he continues to work towards his AMGA Ski Guide certification. Sam also teaches both recreational and professional avalanche courses with the American Avalanche Institute in the Tetons.
Sam is an AMGA Assistant Ski Guide and Apprentice Alpine Guide, and an AIARE Course Instructor. He lives on the West Shore of Lake Tahoe with his wife Susie.

On this episode of the Duffel Shuffle, Adrian and Sam talk with Connor Herson, a fellow Black Diamond Athlete and professional rock climber.
Connor Herson is a standout American rock climber known for his bold ascents and technical mastery, particularly in crack and trad climbing. Born in 2003 and raised in a climbing family in California, he became the youngest person to free climb The Nose on El Capitan at age 15. Since then, he’s climbed over 50 routes graded 5.14, including Meltdown, Magic Line, Cobra Crack, and Stranger Than Fiction. With achievements across big wall, sport, and trad disciplines, he’s widely considered one of the most well-rounded and efficient climbers of his generation.
Connor dives into his background in climbing, having been raised in a climbing Family
Connor discusses balancing school and being a professional climber
Connor talks about the role of mentors and climbing partners in his life
Adrian, Connor, and Sam chat about Connors climbing achievements and his future plans
You can learn more about Connor on Instagram, @connor.herson and through his profile on the Black Diamond website https://blackdiamondequipment.com/blogs/athletes/connor-herson
Follow our podcast on Instagram @duffelshufflepodcast where you can learn more about us and our guests. Visit our website at www.duffelshufflepodcast.com and join our mailing list. The Duffel Shuffle Podcast is supported by Alpenglow Expeditions, an internationally renowned mountain guide service based in Lake Tahoe, California. Visit www.alpenglowexpeditions.com or follow @alpenglowexpeditions on Instagram to learn more.