Staff Spotlight: Krista Williams

Krista is one of our long-time hiking guides. Here’s the scoop on how she became such a Nature Woman, Lover of The Outdoors, and why she comes back to Mountain Trek, year after year.

Becoming a parent has made me reflect on my own childhood. I grew up with parents who were very passionate about the great outdoors. My mom, being an Interpretive Naturalist, taught me to love nature, and my Dad held very strong beliefs about working in a harmonious balance with our environment. My parents were avid hikers, and, at a few months old, had me out on the trails. They even baptized me in an old growth Cedar stump.

I always say the outdoors is my religion, and a summit is my temple. There is a calmness and feeling of completeness when I’m out in the mountains, away from the hustle and bustle of urban life.

This is one of the reasons I love my job. The transformation I see in people when they are out in the wilderness, surrounded by beauty, is astounding. Helping others find themselves again makes me feel I’m absolutely doing the right thing, professionally. I feel blessed to be able to work outdoors, and blessed to have such wonderful parents who raised me to love and respect our beautiful natural world.

Two Frank Lloyd Wright quotes I live by are, “Study Nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you,” and, “The longer I live, the more beautiful life becomes.”