Originally from Cincinnati, Andy graduated with a B.S. in Government from the USCGA in 2000. He served two tours in the Coast Guard, as a deck watch officer on the cutter Alex Haley and as XO of the North Pacific Regional Fisheries Training Center, both based in Kodiak, Alaska. In 2005, Andy resigned his Coast Guard commission as a Leiutenant to create a career in wilderness recreation and environmental stewardship in Kodiak. After his Coast Guard service, Andy started Orcas Unlimited, an award-winning eco-tourism guiding service featuring mothership kayak tours from his 40' converted fishing vessel, the M/V Celeste. In 2006 he founded Island Trails Network, a non-profit trails organization in Kodiak, and became its Executive Director. He now operates both organizations from his home in Kodiak, and spends his free time adventuring with girlfriend Betsy and their adopted dog, Gage.Specialties: As a wilderness guide: risk management, team leadership, technical instruction, species identification, natural historyAs a trails conslutant: sustainable trail design, trail crew leadership, impacted wetlands mitigation, marine debris mitigation, fundraisingAs a mariner: risk management, bridge team management, navigation, engineering, shiphandling, damage control, envirionmental disaster response, cold-weather survival