Indoor/Outdoor Guides & Instructors

Our highly experienced instructors are committed to providing programs that meet and exceed the goals of our participants. These expert climbers have undergone extensive trainings with various organizations.

All of Petra Cliffs' Outdoor Guides have current Wilderness First Responder and CPR certifications. They are tested & evaluated annually in the field for competency.

Steve Charest, Program Director/ Lead Instructor

Indoor/Outdoor Climbing, Ski Mountaineering, Avalanche Education, Ice Climbing, Mountaineering

Steve is Petra Cliffs' Program Director and Head Ski Guide. He has been professionally guiding rock, ice, mountaineering, and ski mountaineering programs since 2001. Steve has a degree in Outdoor Education from Johnson State College and has completed a NOLS Outdoor Educators Course for Mountaineering & Rock Climbing, the AMGA Top Rope Site Manager Course, the AMGA Rock Instructor Course and the AMGA Ski Guide Course. He is a certified AMGA Top Rope Site Manager, AIARE level III avalanche practitioner and a Level I AIARE Instructor.

Steve has climbed extensively throughout the US & Canada, including Devil's Tower, Joshua Tree, Squamish B.C., Acadia Nat'l Park, and locally in the Green Mts., White Mts., and Adirondacks. His favorite backcountry ski descents include the Super C Couloir (Portillo, Chile), Girls Mountain & the Worthington Glacier, (Valdez AK), Shoot the Moon Couloir (Teton Nat'l Park, WY), The Duchess (Tuckerman Ravine, NH), Katahdin, ME, Big Jay (Jay, VT), and a first descent of The Honeymoon Suite (Portillo, Chile).

Nick Yardley, Head Guide/Guide Trainer

Nick began his climbing career as a young boy on the gritstone edges surrounding his home in Yorkshire, England. After completing his degree in outdoor education, Nick came "across the pond" and moved to North Conway, NH to serve as the Head Guide and eventually co-owner of IMCS, Inc. (International Mountain Climbing School). He has guided major expeditions to Alaska, Peru and the Himalaya, and extensively on the cliffs, ice flows and mountains of New England. He also served as a director and team leader for the Mountain Rescue Service in the Mount Washington region, is a past director of the American Mountain Guides Association and is a certified AMGA Rock Guide. His photographs and writing have been published in journals, magazines and newspapers. Nick was the National Sales Manager for Climb High, and is currently the CEO of Julbo, Inc., a mountaineering and general sunglass distributor in Williston.

Mike Bauman

Outdoor Rock & Ice Guide

Mike is a rock, ice, and mountaineering guide for Petra Cliffs. He is employed full-time as a mechanical engineer in Burlington. Mike has been climbing rock & ice extensively throughout the northeast along with regular trips the western USA and Canada for 8 years. He has experience with sport, traditional, aid, and alpine climbing including big walls and glaciated terrain. Mike has completed his AMGA Top Rope Site Manager Course in the fall of 2006 and the Rock Instructor Course in summer of 2007. Other hobbies include flying, motorcycle riding, cycling, running, and snowboarding.

Andrea Charest

Manager, Indoor Instructor, Outdoor Rock & Ice Climbing Guide

Andrea is Petra Cliffs' Climbing Center Manager. She has been with Petra Cliffs since 2002, and has been guiding since 2003. Andrea teaches a UVM climbing class and women's clinics, coached the USA Climbing affiliated Junior Climbing Team for 3 years, led SumMAT Day Camp for 3 years, and continues to lead overnight wilderness expeditions. She coordinates advertising, online registration, memberships, and more. Andrea has a B.A. in Psychology from University of Vermont and will continue to pursue Adventure-based and Wilderness Therapy.

Andrea's climbing life was sparked in the 90's at Beam's Rocks in Western PA, a small limestone crag. Andrea now enjoys climbing in the Greens, Whites, Adirondacks, Acadia Nat'l Park, Joshua Tree Nat'l Park... She has skied and snowboarded extensively throughout the Western Hemisphere, from laid back Portillo (Chile) to glacier skiing in Thompson Pass (AK), Katahdin (ME) to Mt. Washington (NH), and the fabulous local backcountry. In August 2006, Andrea had a first snowboard descent of "The Honeymoon Suite" (Portillo, Chile).

Paul Brown

Outdoor Rock & Ice Climbing Guide

Paul has been climbing for 25 years, and guiding for the past 15 years in New England and the Adirondacks. During his extended apprenticeship in negotiating the vertical environment, Paul has had the good fortune to climb rock and ice in many corners of the U.S., including such places as the Tetons, Yosemite, the granite cracks and sandstone spires of Utah and Arizona, and the icy flows of Ouray and Boulder, Colorado, amongst others. Most of his climbing time has been spent thoroughly exploring the multitude of cliffs all over the Northeast. Paul has completed the AMGA Rock Guides Course, as well as numerous other technical skills courses.

Paul spends much of his time outside of guiding as a mild mannered high school science teacher. His other interests include hiking, skiing, gardening, fishing, writing, and the endless tasks of working on a century-old farmhouse in northern Vermont.

Zach Landis

Indoor/Outdoor Rock Climbing Guide

Zach has been working at Petra Cliffs as a rock climbing guide since 2002, and has been climbing for 10 years. Zach also teaches industrial anchor clinics and works part time as an Arborist. His favorite climbing areas are Rumney, NH where he has sent routes such as Techno Surfing (5.12b), Fresh Squeezed (5.12d) and Whip Tide (5.12c). He has climbed over seas in France and Caymen Brac. In the states, Zach has taken many trips to many areas including Bishop, CA, Shelf Road CO, Obed Tenn. Indian Creek, Utah, and The Red River Gorge, Kentucky. Zach has also developed new routes here in Vermont at Mt. Marshfield. His route, Banch Direct, is a 5.9 slab that climbs 90 ft. of black stained granite and ends on a little ledge with great views of Lake Marshfield below. Zach lives with his girlfriend and climbing partner Jen Lloyd and her son Adam.

Nadine Paffet-Lugassy

Nadine teaches indoor and outdoor climbing clinics and has been a core leader of Petra Cliffs' SumMAT Camp since the beginning.

Dave Vuono

Indoor/Outdoor Climbing, Ice Climbing, Mountaineering

Dave is an indoor and outdoor rock and mountaineering guide and has been working with Petra Cliffs since 2002. Dave has been rock climbing extensively throughout the northeast and has put up many first ascents locally. He has traveled and guided extensively through out the western USA, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand to gain his expertise in teaching and guiding. Dave is also a passionate adventure and climbing photographer with many international publications. Inquire at www.davevuono.com

Ara Finlayson

Indoor Instructor

Ara has been climbing for over 12 years, and her love of the sport has taken her all over the US, Canada, and most recently to Spain and Thailand to sample some exotic rock. She has been teaching for 9 years, give or take, and focuses primarily on teaching women's clinics. In her day job, Ara works for a marketing firm as the cool police, helping big corporations avoid missteps and guiding them in their campaigns towards young adults. While Ara trail runs, having completed the Jay Peak half-marathon twice, it would be hard to say she enjoys it, although under all the suffering, she admits it is not really that bad. (She also has similar feelings towards ice climbing.) Snowboarding, motorcycling and yoga also vie for time and attention. Ara lives at a ski resort with her husband Liam and two felines.

Ivan Tighe

Outdoor Climbing, Ice Climbing

Ivan has been climbing for seven years now and have had the opportunity to climb in many great climbing areas across the US and Canada. From traditional rock climbing to Modern Mixed throw in some Sport and Bouldering he is an all rounder who tries to climb hard in every discipline. Ivan has worked as an ice guide for Petra cliffs Climbing Center for the last three winters teaching introductory ice climbing, intermediate ice climbing, mountaineering, and private ice climbing.

Matt Bristol

Indoor/Outdoor Instructor

Matt is a rock climbing guide and ropes course/team building facilitator for Petra Cliffs. He has been climbing and facilitating for 4 years after studying Adventure Education at Plymouth State University in New Hampshire. Matt has been climbing extensively throughout the North East including Connecticut, New York, New Hampshire, Maine, and Vermont. He has also traveled and climbed in West Virginia at Seneca Rocks, Kentucky at the Red River Gorge and Red Rocks in Las Vegas, Nevada. Matt has facilitated on full progression ropes courses in both Vermont and New Hampshire. Other hobbies include Backcountry skiing, Yahtzee and constructing ropes courses with Challenge Works.

Andrew Blessing