That’s right – this next batch of Leader Bios covers folks hiking 10 time zones apart, from Spain to Maine to Alaska! Take a look at what awesome folks are leading our Pyrenees Mountains & Coast, Maine’s Downeast Explorer, and Alaska Mountains & Coast trips this summer!
Leader Name: Sophie Blumberg (she/her)
2024 Trip: Iceland Mountains and Coast
Prior Apogee Experience: New England Mountains & Coast ‘23, Maine Coast Photo ‘23
Hometown: Newton, Massachusetts
School: Skidmore College, Class of 2025
Certifications: Wilderness First Responder, Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), Wilderness Swim Safety & CPR
Favorite Outdoor Activities: Hiking, kayaking, biking, and running!
Highlights of the past year: Sophie spent this past semester in the Southern Hemisphere, studying abroad in Australia on a sustainability field studies program! There, she interned at a koala hospital and explored, hiked, and camped in Tasmania (and also road-tripped through the New Zealand mountains)!
Where you can find Sophie when she is not road-tripping: Watching the sunrise! Sophie tries to watch the sunrise every morning. She’s also picked up yoga and crocheting this year.
Other reasons Sophie is the niftiest: Sophie is currently learning both Spanish and American Sign Language and has worked as a tutor, preschool teacher, and mentor through a “Best Buddies” program. In addition to working as a Trip Leader with Skidmore’s Outing Club, Sophie also serves as the Gear Shed Manager and a member of the Executive Board. We can’t forget to mention that Sophie is a four-time Apogee participant herself: Maine’s Downeast Explorer, California Mountains and Coast, Costa Rica Mountains and Coast, and Pyrenees Mountains and Coast! Sophie is so excited to share her Apogee experience with her students – especially doing “Apogees and Perigees” each night!
Leader Name: Henry Hamilton (he/him)
2024 Trip: Iceland Mountains and Coast
Prior Apogee Experience: New England Support Staff ‘22, New England Field Support ‘23
Hometown: New York City, New York
School: Skidmore College, Class of 2023
Certifications: Wilderness First Aid, Wilderness Swim Safety & CPR
Favorite Outdoor Activities: Hiking, biking, running, and triathlons
Highlights of the past year: Henry learned how to ski this year in Mammoth Lakes, California. He also hiked in volcanic fissures near the Sierra Nevada Mountains!
Where you can find Henry when he isn’t doing mountain activities: Henry is always looking for his next Lego project (which is also a great time to listen to a good podcast). He’s part of a trivia team, and when he’s not testing his general knowledge, Henry loves walking and playing with his dog, Ringo.
Other reasons Henry is the absolute coolest: During his time at Skidmore, Henry lead pre-orientation hiking and canoeing trips for incoming students, and he also had his own radio show called Rock and Roll Is Rolling throughout his time there. In addition, as a former Apogee student, Henry participated on our Pacific Coast, Europe Coast to Coast, and Coast to Quebec biking trips. Next year, Henry is going to be teaching at an elementary school in New York City!
Leader Name: Elle Lambert (she/her)
2024 Trip: Iceland Mountains and Coast
Prior Apogee Experience: Costa Rica Mountains & Coast ‘22, Pyrenees Mountains and Coast ‘23
Hometown: Virginia Beach, Virginia
School: University of Virginia, Class of 2023
Certifications: Wilderness First Aid & CPR
Favorite Outdoor Activities: Open-water swimming, running, and hiking (and spending as much time as possible in her hammock!)
Highlights of the past year: Elle put some miles on her hiking boots this year! She walked 200 miles of the Camino de Santiago from Porto to Santiago de Compostela. Elle also explored some of Spain’s beautiful national parks, but the Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici holds the #1 spot in her heart.
Where you can find Elle when she isn’t wandering around Spain: It’s safe to say Elle loves the sun; she’s made it a goal to see sunrise and sunset every day! In order to do that, she loves caffeine and prides herself on testing the limits on human consumption. When not fueling her body with caffeine or sunlight, Elle chooses sandwiches, and is currently searching for the world’s best sandwich.
More reasons to love Elle: Elle spent her last year living in Madrid, teaching English (and Alaskan baseball, a classic Apogee game) to Spanish teenagers. She is planning on moving to London next year to study Environmental Economics. Elle spends a lot of time listening to music, specifically Bob Dylan, and was in the top 0.1% of Bob Dylan listeners on Spotify for the second year in a row. If hiking 200 miles doesn’t prove that Elle is an athlete, her proudest athletic accomplishment is cartwheeling for a mile after losing a bet.
Leader Name: Nate Readnower (he/him)
2024 Trip: Maine’s Downeast Explorer
Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio
School: The Ohio State University, Class of 2025
Certifications: Wilderness First Responder, Wilderness Swim Safety & CPR
Favorite Outdoor Activities: Trail running, climbing, and mountaineering!
Highlights of the past year: Nate worked in Estes Park, Colorado, learned how to flyfish, and hiked 17 of the 58 of Colorado’s 14,000 footers!
Where you can find Nate when he’s not hiking: Nate is usually playing soccer or pickleball, watching movies, traveling, trying new food, or running.
Additional super awesome facts about Nate: Last summer, Nate worked for the YMCA of the Rockies in Colorado, where he led 10-17 year-olds on hikes and taught environmental education throughout Rocky Mountain National Park. Before that, he worked as a River Guide in Ohio, leading groups and teaching sustainable practices on the Great Miami River. Outside of his outdoor experience, Nate has been buying and selling clothing and shoes since he was 13 and really enjoys finding clothing brands that align with his ideas surrounding sustainability and quality. Nate has a minor in Geography and loves learning about new places and cultures; his room is littered with vintage National Geographic maps and posters. He also helped coach an under-18 boys soccer team that played in the National League, one of the highest levels of US Youth Soccer!
Leader Name: Emma DiGiacomo (she/her)
2024 Trip: Maine’s Downeast Explorer
Hometown: Barrington, Rhode Island
School: Hamilton College, Class of 2025
Certifications: Wilderness First Aid, Wilderness Swim Safety & CPR
Favorite Outdoor Activities: Swimming, rock climbing, hiking, and playing spikeball with friends
Highlights of the past year: Emma had a jam-packed year; during her semester abroad, she swam off the coast of Italy, she also went rock climbing for the first time in the Adirondacks and watched the eclipse in full totality!
Where you can find Emma when she’s not swimming: Emma is super into fashion, thrifting, and painting hand-me-down clothing. Emma is also on the swim and water polo teams at Hamilton and is hoping to join rugby next year. She loves reading and creative writing, and has gotten the chance to publish articles in Hamilton’s fashion and lifestyle magazines!
Other amazing facts about Emma: At Hamilton, Emma has worked as an outdoor orientation leader, leading a group of incoming first-years on a four-day rock climbing trip in the Adirondacks. Before that, she spent her freshmen fall semester in London, where she had the opportunity to join a British swim team coached by a former Olympian! Emma also coached the eight-and-under swimmers at her local pool. Given her love of writing, Emma served as the Editor-in-Chief of her high school newspaper and has worked as a teaching assistant for an advanced journalism course. Last but not least, Emma is “obsessed” with nature documentaries (and highly recommends the new season of Our Planet on Netflix).
Leader Name: Brianna Dechet (she/hers)
2024 Trip: Alaska Mountains & Coast
Prior Apogee Experience: New England Mountains & Coast ‘23, Maine Coast Junior ‘23
Hometown: Salt Lake City, Utah
School: Williams College, Class of 2026
Certifications: Wilderness First Responder, Wilderness Swim Safety & CPR
Favorite Outdoor Activities: Backpacking, swimming, skiing, running, & climbing!
Highlights of the past year: Brianna had a busy year; she spent one whirlwind day biking, hiking, kayaking, and swimming in the Tetons, she went to her first jazz concert, and she spent one week in the deep Amazon!
Where you can find Brianna when she’s not exploring: Brianna is usually listening to music or going to a concert, drinking milk, or reading a memoir!
More cool things about Brianna: She took 5 years of American Sign Language, used to be a climbing instructor for elementary school students, and once went on a month-long sea kayaking adventure in Patagonia where it rained 29 of the 30 days! At Williams, Brianna works as both a cook and a ski instructor, and before her time with Apogee, she spent a summer leading backpacking trips in the Pacific Northwest. Brianna has wanted to explore Alaska ever since she was little, she’s so excited to return to Apogee this summer and to bond with her groups!
Leader Name: David Goldsmith (he/him)
2024 Trip: Alaska Mountains & Coast
Hometown: Montclair, New Jersey
School: Middlebury College, Class of 2023.5
Certifications: Wilderness First Aid & CPR
Favorite Outdoor Activities: Climbing, skiing, hiking, and tree scrambling
Highlights of the past year: David studied abroad in New Zealand, graduated college, and worked at an apple orchard!
Where you can find David when he’s not climbing trees: David can be found playing Settlers of Catan, baking challah (and subsequently, a mean french toast), reading the New York Times cooking app comments, listing to stories on The Moth podcast, and foraging for his own tales to tell!
Fast facts about David: He studied Environmental Studies and Biology at Middlebury College, and he works as an ecology teaching assistant where he works with high schoolers with developmental challenges. Also at Middlebury, David is a multi-year Orientation Leader to help new students get acclimated on campus. David has been a climbing instructor all through college and high school, he’s a knitting enthusiast (his grandparents are very impressed), and he once fostered a dog named Frog! David is excited to meet the Apogee team this summer, explore Alaska with his students and co-leader Brianna, and is looking forward to laughing until his stomach hurts.