Founded by Dave Sharpe, IFMGA, Sharpe Guides is a collective of talented British Mountain Guides based in Chamonix. We come from different backgrounds, but we’re all here for the same reason: we’re passionate about guiding our clients to discover the very best technical alpinism and adventure, in the most iconic and inspiring mountain environments in the world. 

As fully qualified IFMGA mountain guides, our credentials are shorthand for decades of accrued experience. With us at your side, you can focus on pushing your grade or simply immerse yourself in the mountains, with confidence that you’re in safe hands when it matters most. 

Custom-built adventures off the beaten track
We specialise in one-of-a-kind mountain experiences of all sizes, from unforgettable days out in Scotland or the Alps, to expeditions in the world’s Greater Ranges. We deliver most of our guiding services at low guide to client ratios (1:1 or 1:2) so whether you’re looking for a technical challenge or an off-grid adventure, you can trust us to custom-build an itinerary that will match your situation and your objectives. 

Push your grade. Raise your Game, Chase your Dream.

Meet our guides

I qualified as an IFMGA British Mountain Guide in 2018, after 20 years living and working in the Alps. I founded Sharpe Guides to share the kind of climbing that I love the most: technically challenging routes of all levels, away from the crowds, in the most incredible mountain environments in the world.  

I love my job and the opportunity to share amazing experiences in the mountains. I feel enormously privileged to be able to accompany people whilst they chase their dreams. Since 2020, alongside my guiding work I have also been a volunteer mentor with the British Young Alpinist Group, supporting the emerging leading alpinists of tomorrow. 

Born and raised in the English Lake District, I was lucky to be introduced to the mountains at a young age. Early days walking with my family led to scrambles and I soon progressed to rock climbing first indoors, then outside on the local fells. This in turn led to the excitement of Scottish winter climbing and on to the Alps for my first season at age 16.

Fast forward to today, and I feel very fortunate to have experienced so much of what the mountains have to offer. I have been on climbing expeditions to far-flung corners of the world including Alaska, India and South America. I have established new routes around the globe with first ascents in the UK, Norway and the Indian Himalaya, yet even now, my climbing experiences in the UK and in particular the Scottish winter climbing, still stand out as some of the best mountain days I’ve known.

Alongside guiding, I also work regularly in rope access and the ‘working at height’ industry as an IRATA L3 supervisor. This work has taken me across Europe, the UAE, Azerbaijan and New Zealand in the past with an extensive list of both onshore and offshore projects. I have been fortunate enough to work on events such as the European Games and the UAE National Day providing rigging solutions and rescue cover to performers working at height, along with safety systems for film and support crew.

I’m half American, half British and I’ve made Chamonix my home for the past 12 years. Growing up first in Virginia, USA and then East Sussex, England was an inauspicious start to a mountain career but my thirst for adventure and love for mountain sports soon led me to the Alps.  

I’m very passionate about alpine and rock climbing, and I try to get out as much as possible. I’ve climbed many of the classic hard routes in the Alps and big walls in the USA too. 

I’m also a dedicated skier and throughout the year I have my own projects and goals as an athlete. In particular, I have pursued steep skiing over the last decade and a half which has led me to ski first descents in the Alps, Norway, New Zealand, Canada and Alaska, skiing some of the biggest and most technical lines on the planet. I work with a lot of strong skiers to build their skills and confidence in the mountains and on steep terrain.

Nowadays I work full time as an IFMGA guide and I’m very passionate about what I do. I love developing the ability of my clients in the mountains and coaching to help them reach their goals. 

I look forward to getting out with you!

I am one of the few Mountain Guides to come out of Ireland. My main motivations in the mountains are to continue to get out there to experience the fantastic adventures the mountains can provide, whilst also continuing to develop my personal skills. I love my work as a Guide and being able to help people fulfil their dreams and aspirations.    

I have a deep passion for developing climbing and spent 4 years as a Youth Development Officer for Mountaineering Ireland. In this role I was able to increase participation at a grass-roots level and teach young climbers the importance of experiencing the mountains safely and responsibly. I also started and continue to run the annual Irish fair Head Climbing Meet and still enjoy developing new cliffs around the country with friends when time allows.

Nowadays I live in the Chamonix Valley with my wife and young son. I have been fortunate to climb and ski all over the world but a few life highlights have been climbing El Cap in a day, The Eiger North Face and becoming a Dad!

Growing up on the west coast of the English lake district, I became a fanatical climber at a very young age. In my late teens I took the skills I had from rock and ice climbing in the UK to the Alps and greater ranges.    

Since then I have made my life around climbing and skiing all over the world. I have made significant repeats and first ascents of routes in the Alps, the UK, Norway, Alaska, Canadian Rockies, India, Pakistan, and Chilean and Argentinian Patagonia. 

I’ve lived in the Chamonix valley for over ten years, and the Mont Blanc massif continues to inspire me like it did the very first summer I spent here. Qualifying as an IFMGA guide in my mid 20’s - the youngest Brit with the qualification for some time - I soon realised that sharing my passion for the mountains with others was extremely rewarding and now I can’t imagine not having this outlet for teaching, sharing and exploring the mountain environment with guests.

I started climbing in the UK around age 14 focusing first on indoor and competition climbing before quickly moving outside and onto traditional climbing. From that point on I was hooked and progressed quickly through the grades before finding Scottish winter climbing and then to the Alps at age 18.     

Since then I have concentrated on my own progress in all climbing disciplines reaching high sport, trad and winter climbing grades throughout the UK and Europe. I have climbed many of the biggest and most sought after routes in the Alps including mixed routes such as the Eiger 1938 route, the Matterhorn Schmidt route and hard alpine rock routes on the Eiger North face and in the Italian Dolomites. I love big adventures on huge alpine faces that push me technically, physically and mentally. 

I worked as a teacher throughout my 20’s and early 30’s before deciding to make the move into mountain guiding. I qualified as a full IFMGA Guide in 2019 and now live just outside the Chamonix Valley with my wife and dog, Lumi. I love helping clients grow and progress to achieve what they thought was previously unachievable. I find it incredibly rewarding to be part of the process and each season look forward to getting out into the hills with guests.