David Gottlieb

David joined Alpine Ascents in 2016 and comes to guiding with a lifetime of mountaineering experience. He worked for eighteen seasons as a climbing ranger on Mount Rainier and has climbed the mountain countless times. He has hundreds of hours of rescue training as well as many years of hands on rescue experience. His climbing eventually brought him to the Himalayas to pursue his dreams of climbing remote mountains, culminating in four ascents of previously unclimbed 22,000 ft peaks. He is an able communicator with a wealth of knowledge and skills to share. David was raised in the Cascades of North Central Washington where he still resides today, enjoying a rural lifestyle with his lovely wife. When not guiding, David enjoys books, traveling, motorcycles and getting out to climb every chance he gets.

Take 5 with the Guide

If you could only take one album on an expedition?
A Love Supreme – John Coltrane

Most beloved book?
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre – B. Traven

Favorite movie?
Underground – Emir Kusturica

Dream climbing partner for your dream climb?
Mark Westman (secret objective in the Himalaya) 

In another life, I’d…
live in Big Sur California in the 1950s