Cathy Shill is an acclaimed leader of the natural world. In 1989, she created The Hole Hiking Experience in Jackson, Wyoming. Her company reaches thousands of people each year to inspire with nature through lively interpretation. The trips are fun and engaging and clients are given the opportunity to connect to natural processes, wildlife, and learn innate natural connections. She is a dynamic leader and has inspired children, executives, and shared “ah-ha” moments with anyone who has a desire to learn. She has toured with Walt Disney, Phizer Corporation, Jansport, Carlson Companies, Young Presidents Organization, Mars, IBM, MCI, Atlantic-Bruecke, University of Wyoming, Shell, and many more.
She has travelled to Kilimanjaro, the Galapagos Islands, Italy, New Zealand, Nepal, India and Bhutan to pursue natural exploration and cultural experiences. She enjoys the synergy of life found by balance. Her interests include meditation, yoga, qi gong, and a universal connection to all life.
Jill LeBlanc spent her youth in Massachusetts with a life-long interest in Earth Science and Education. She received a science degree in 1996 from Fitchburg College which led her to Vermont to continue her studies with the natural world. With a degree in Earth Science, she followed her passions and started to guide hikes with the New Life Hiking Spa. During that time, she learned to snowboard and the big Jackson winters drew her to this area in 2001. Jill started working for The Hole Hiking Experience in 2003 so she could teach and share her passion for the environment with others. In her free time, she continues to snowboard, mountain climb, teach yoga, and spend as much time as possible with her two dogs.
Beverly Charette came to the region when she was 2 and has been deeply connected to this area ever since. Growing up in Wisconsin, she moved to the mountains of Colorado in the 1980's and then to northern New Mexico, finally returning with her family to Teton Valley, ID, in 1999. An undergraduate degree in English and history and graduate studies in social work along with an 8-year career in children's book publishing helped her to hone communication and leadership skills that serve her well as a guide. Her passion and avocation, however, has always been natural history and the environment. Years tending domestic plants in nurseries and landscaping led her to seek out their cousins in the wild, eventually leading hikes year round for Sierra Club and now for The Hole Hiking Experience. She calls herself a "Visitor Center junkie" and a perpetual student of nature, learning something new every day. "To get where I am today, I followed my heart to the mountains and then let my feet carry me the rest of the way." In addition to being a naturalist, Beverly is also a Reiki Master therapist, a professional singer, and co-owner of a video store with her husband in Driggs, ID.
Daria was drawn initially to The Hole Hiking Experience due to her love for the mountains, combined with her desire and ability to help others. She has been with the company since 2003 and her study and practice of using plants and herbs as medicinal remedies has been fun to share with her clients. She has been a teacher of many different subjects which has been very useful in her work as a hiking guide. Such subjects include Reiki, crystal work, organic whole foods, dance and drumming instructor and ski instructor. She has lived in the area for over 20 years, most recently spending summers in Victor, ID and winters in Guinea, West Africa.