Guides & Staff
Our friendly team at Alpine Recreation
Whether it's a friendly voice at the end of the phone or guiding you in the mountains, our enthusiastic team is here to look after you and provide advice. We pride ourselves in being a small, family-run business with high standards - many of our clients return year after year. Many of our guides speak a second language. Wir sprechen deutsch!
The New Zealand Mountain Guides Association, NZMGA, has international accreditation with the International Federation of Mountain Guides Associations, IFMGA / UIAGM.
Anne Braun-Elwert
Director & General Manager
Together with husband Gottlieb Braun-Elwert, Anne helped set up Alpine Recreation in 1981 and was codirector with Gottlieb until his untimely passing in 2008. She now continues to run the company, supported by a loyal team of guides and family. Anne considers herself a tramper rather than a climber, but climbed Aoraki Mount Cook in winter and joined Gottlieb on many ski tours and on two Patagonian Ice ski traverses. After their climb of Mt Blanc via the Brenva Spur in 1978 they decided to marry! She has a BA in English and was formerly a secondary school teacher.
Elke Braun-Elwert
Assistant Director
IFMGA Mountain & Ski Guide
Elke's passion is ski mountaineering, alpine climbing and mountain biking. She has climbed and skied throughout the New Zealand Alps for most of her life, spent numerous seasons ski instructing in Switzerland, has ski guided in Japan and climbed in Peru. When not guiding, Elke helps run Alpine Recreation - this can involve anything from web design, IT support, marketing and advertising, to logistics, hut restocks and staff training. Elke is also an internationally qualified ski instructor and has a Masters degree in Computational Biomechanics.
Jane Morris
Technical Advisor
IFMGA Mountain & Ski Guide
Jane began trawling around the mountains during Otago University days in 1994, where mountain huts were a good substitute for lecture theatres. After a number of years working in outdoor related industries, in 2010 she began working full time as a mountain and ski guide, based out of Mount Cook Village.
Jane enjoys the simplicity that comes from being in the mountains and the lessons that can be learned from the environment - Mother Nature is a brilliant teacher!
Axel Reiser
Administration & General Manager
NZMGA Assistant Ski Guide
Axel has a Masters degree in Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management along with many years experience as a tour operator, bike tour guide (road and MTB), triathlon coach and ski instructor. For 3 years he was a university lecturer at Lincoln University in outdoor recreation, sport management and leadership. Originally from Bavaria, Axel's passion for skiing and the mountains is evident in all his work for Alpine Recreation. A successful triathlete and ironman competitor, he thrives on challenges! He climbed Denali with Gottlieb and was part of the team, who filmed the Symphony on Skis traverse of the Southern Alps. He is currently working towards his NZMGA ski guide qualification.
Paul Aubrey
IFMGA Mountain & Ski Guide
Paul takes an active role in mentoring our younger guides. Paul has a huge depth of experience as an international mountain and ski guide, with ascents of Denali, Aconcagua, Mt Vinson and in Europe and Canada. In New Zealand he has done several first ascents in the Southern Alps and worked for many years as Director of Snow Safety at Cardrona Ski Area.
Dave Alderson
IFMGA Mountain & Ski Guide
Dave is our new Chief Guide, he was previously a lead ice climbing guide with responsibility for the training and development of guides on the Franz Josef Glacier before gaining IFMGA mountain and ski guide status and is also currently the training officier for the NZMGA. He has climbed extensively in the European Alps, the United Kingdom and throughout New Zealand.
Brendan Maggs
NZMGA Assistant Climbing Guide
Brendan's passion for the outdoors started at a young age growing up in Australia. Spending many summers learning to mountaineer and climb in New Zealand' Southern Alps set him up well for trips to Alaska, Europe and the Canadian Rockies. Brendan splits his time between New Zealand and Canmore in Canada. He believes NZ to be one of the best places to learn to mountaineer and enjoys guiding both instruction courses and ascents on the higher peaks.
Gideon Geerling
NZMGA Alpine Trekking Guide & NZOIA Alpine Instructor
Gideon's experience includes multiple seasons living in Antarctica as a guide, field trainer and science support, over 15 years working in NZ as an alpine, rock and bush craft instructor for tertiary institutions and the NZ Army and Air-Force. Gideon regularly teaches Alpine and Avalanche courses for the NZ Alpine Clubs and is a listed technical advisor for the NZ Alpine Club. His other experience include outdoor education management, rope rescue training, industrial and wilderness medical and risk management education and training here and overseas. Caffeine is a close friend and he lives in the South Island with his wife and 2 boys.
Anna Loomes
NZMGA Alpine Trekking and Ski Guide
Growing up on a South Canterbury farm, Anna was introduced to the outdoors at an early age and began skiing and snowboarding as a teenager. This soon developed into a passion for skiing and snowboarding and through this, a love for the alpine environment and the beauty and challenges to be found there. Following a year at Aoraki Polytech in her early twenties, Anna went to spend winters at the remote club ski fields and summers on the west coast glaciers. For the last few years she has been working as a ski patroller on Mt Ruapehu and the Remarkables in Queenstown and as a glacier and trekking guide in the Aoraki Mt Cook area. More recently she has qualified as an assistant ski guide and is excited to be applying her guiding skills and mountain knowledge in this new area.
Bia Boucinhas
NZMGA Alpine Trekking Guide
Bia was born and raised in Brazil, but her desire to travel and explore the great outdoors soon took her overseas where she she has climbed and lived in South and North America, as well as Europe and Australasia. Before becoming a guide, Bia worked as a horse trainer and equestrian instructor as well as a language teacher. Her new classroom is now located in the mountains of New Zealand, where she shares her passion for the snow capped mountains she so much loves. Bia has fulfilled multiple roles working in the alpine environment - from supporting science in Antarctica as a Field Safety Officer to spending time glacier guiding in Iceland or instructing polytechnic students here in the South Island - her permanent home since 2010. In her spare time Bia enjoys all types of climbing, hiking, rafting, horse riding, caving, photography and reading.
Henriette Beikirch
NZMGA Alpine Trekking Guide
After roaming the Black Forest in her native Germany, Henriette has spent the last decade working as parks ranger, ski patroller, glacier guide and river guide. She has been living in New Zealand for over twenty years. Her favourite pastimes are mountaineering, rock climbing, ski touring, sea kayaking, aviation, photography, and reading. Henriette enjoys extended journeys into the remote backcountry, with her two longest expeditions to date a nine-month high-alpine Southern Traverse (2012-2014), and a six-month sea kayaking journey through Fiordland in 2017. Previous incarnations have included biologist and commercial fixed-wing pilot.
Petrouchka Steiner-Grierson
NZMGA Assistant Ski Guide & NZOIA Rock Instructor
Petrouchka's passion for climbing and backcountry skiing took hold while at university, and since then has dominated her direction in life. She has worked several years as an outdoor educator and guide in NZ, Australia, Canada and Japan. When not guiding, you can find Pet on a mission in the mountains, or trying hard at the crag. She also holds a Bachelor of Music, and is currently working towards the IFMGA qualification.
Tom Stubbs
NZMGA Assistant Alpine Trekking Guide
Originally from the northwest of England, Tom trained and qualified as an electrician. After been on a climbing trip to New Zealand he fell in love with the place he now calls home. Tom wound up living on the west coast working for Franz Josef Glacier Guides for many years. More recently working as a ski patroller for Mt Hutt ski area. The summer months working as an Alpine trekking guide/instructor and ski guiding in Hokkaido, Japan. Tom is also an active member of the Alpine cliff rescue team in South Westland and Canterbury. When not in the mountains, on the rock or in the ocean, Tom can be found drinking coffee, listening to vinyl and riding his fixie.
Peter Munro
Trekking & Snowshoeing Guide
Pete has guided for Alpine Recreation over a number of years having had a long association with the company. He has taken nordic skiing and snowshoeing trips, as well as summer treks and has very good local knowledge and experience. Pete is a well-qualified outdoor instructor with NZOIA qualifications in Alpine, Bush, Kayak and Canoe and loads of experience in skiing, rock climbing and expeditions. He likes nothing better than to getting out in the hills, especially following his passion for hunting and fishing.