Emily’s Bio

Emily DesMueles grew up in North Pomfret, Vermont, where she played all manner of sports and learned an appreciation for nature from her parents who spent many hours taking her and her younger sister hiking, biking and and fly fishing.  She graduated from Yale University in 2013 with a degree in Political Science, where she also played 4 years of varsity ice hockey.  After 3 years of working at a desk in Burlington, VT, Emily decided it was time for a change of pace and headed West to work as a wildland firefighter.  In the summers Emily currently works for the Forest Service as a wildland firefighter on a helirappel crew out of McCall, Idaho, where she is happy to be paid to hike all summer.  In the winter she is enrolled in pre-med courses at UVM and volunteers for a local EMS agency.  She is an avid backpacker, mountaineer, road biker, rock climber and will probably dabble in any other outdoor activities that cross her path.  This is winter Emily has the opportunity to go on a three week mountaineering course in Ecuador.  The course teaches all the basics of mountaineering; crevasse rescue, glacier travel, proper ice axe and crampon technique, information on high altitude medical issues, how to pack and plan for high-mountain expeditions, etc.  The trip also combines a cultural aspect, and attempts at 17,000, 18,000 and 20,000 foot mountains. This mountaineering trip would serve three purposes: the first being the sheer challenge and adventure and the chance to imitate mountaineering heroes like Jimmy Chinn, Conrad Anker and John Krakauer; the second being the ability to gain experience at altitude; and the third would be to fulfill her core values such as “accomplishing everything you want in life – don’t let anyone tell you your goals are too big”.