Montana Guide Michael Bose

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Michael Bose Peru Guide

Guide: Michael Bose

Short Bio: Michael developed a love for the outdoors at a young age, helping his father build their cabin in Northern Wisconsin and spending as much time there as possible with his family. Always active growing up, Michael had his first taste of international travel when he went to study Spanish in Guatemala during a semester study-abroad program at university. Upon graduation, he left with his backpack to travel through Ecuador, en route to Chile. He traveled throughout the country and eventually settled into a large house full of international travelers, teachers, and others. After a year in Ecuador, he went to Peru to lead backpacking trips on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu and Bolivia, and then back again through Ecuador. The guiding life then took him through the USA and Mexico. Lucky to hit the dot-com boom in Northern California and come out ahead, Michael left for Central America and sometime later, ended up back in Ecuador and Peru. After a summer in South Korea teaching English, he enrolled in a Masters program at the University of California- San Diego, where he graduated with honors in Latin American Studies, writing his thesis on the indigenous movement in Ecuador and their ability to gain inclusion into society through myriad social movements and organized protests. Having enjoyed teaching Spanish during grad school at UCSD, he taught Spanish at a private elementary school in San Diego. Working to get students interested in travel, the guiding life brought Michael all over Baja Mexico and Peru, taking high school students on trips abroad. Michael started to work with ALA in 2006 and continued in 2007, where he led numerous tours through the Tetons, Montana, Yellowstone, Mexico, Panama and Peru. Michael currently lives in San Diego, California and has become Austin-Lehman’s Regional Director of Latin America, where he continues to guide trips and create new and unique programs for our guests.

Read Michael Bose's Machu Piccu Travel Journal >>

Trips Guided by Michael:

Michael's Guide Survey:

Michael Bose South America Guide What’s your favorite vacation destination?
Latin America, Western United States, Elcho, WI.

What’s your favorite hike?
USA: Beehive Basin, Big Sky, MT.
Latin America: Anywhere in the Andes, but especially the Salkantay route in Peru.

What’s your favorite bike ride?
Antelope Flats, with views of the majestic Tetons; the areas outside of Sun Valley, Idaho; China Camp, San Rafael, CA; Laguna Mountain, San Diego County, CA; Northern Wisconsin.

What’s your favorite trip to guide?
Montana Family, Bocas to Boquete - Panama, Our Exclusive Lodge to Lodge in Peru, and Chiapas, Mexico.

Why?
Beautiful scenery, great cultural interaction, an excellent variety of activities and food and wonderful people throughout the trips…

What do you do that makes a guest’s vacation special?
Too much to list here, but rest assured I am an excellent cook, damn funny, good fun, and great with families and adults alike… My fluency in Spanish and extensive experience in Latin America and adventure travel helps remove any stress and worries for my guests while abroad or at home.

Favorite Movie: Star Wars Trilogy (IV-VI), Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, Super Troopers, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Fargo.

Austin-Lehman's Michael Bose Favorite Book: Too many to choose from, but a short list would consist of: Brothers Karamazov, Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoevsky) Confessions of an Economic Hitman (John Perkins), Shantaram (John Roberts), A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry), The Jungle (Upton Sinclair), 1984 (George Orwell), Brave New World (Aldous Huxley), Cat’s Cradle, Galapagos (Kurt Vonnegut), Siddhartha (Hermann Hesse), A Scanner Darkly (Phillip K. Dick).

Favorite Song: (at the moment) Ya se ha Muerto Mi Abuelo by Juaneco y Su Combo

Describe the most amazing experience you’ve had while guiding a trip:
My most recent ‘amazing experience’ (too many to choose one) happened on our latest Peru trip as we hiked towards the Apu Salkantay in the Andes. Crossing the pass at 15,000 ft and walking amongst the many glaciers in the Vilcabamba range on our way to Machu Picchu was something I will never forget.

When did you first catch the travel bug?
When I studied Spanish in Guatemala during a semester abroad program at University… haven’t stopped traveling since.

What are your hobbies?
Mountain biking, surfing, hiking, traveling, cooking, reading, writing, music (both playing and attending), and many more.

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