Tour guide in Terlingua Mike D.

When I first visited Big Bend, I was overwhelmed by the amazing land forms that dominate the landscape. Two years later, I had established a river rafting company and launched my career as a tour guide. In my down time, I read everything that I could about the local geology because I was deeply curious and also to provide accurate interpretation to my tour guests. For 25 years I hosted thousands of people on river trips in Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, California, and several locations in Mexico. Guests I have guided include Apollo astronauts, Texas governors, a sitting president of Mexico and lead vocalist for the Rolling Stones. My methodology for interpreting geology is to view the big picture, where local land forms offer a window into the history of our continent. In the same fashion, I try to explain local history in terms of connections to global movements and events. I find that this can tap into a guests reservoir of knowledge from their own education and exposure to the subject matter. But I do not deliver a lecture, and there will be no test. This is a vacation and is supposed to be fun. We stop frequently for photographs and interpretive opportunities. I encourage guests to ask questions. My motto is that the only dumb questions is the one not asked. It is not uncommon to field a question for which I do not have a good answer, so I hit the books (or internet!) so I won't be stumped again! People bring their own experiences with them and I love hearing travel stories, especially from places I have never seen. We are not holding a class but a conversation. All my tours can be customized upon request I became an EMT in 1978 and since then maintain a wilderness advanced first aid certification. I was one of the first Swiftwater Rescue Technicians in Texas as well as one of the first instructors in that field. As a consultant for a county based tourism organization, I led a project to produce a series of road side interpretative exhibits, and did the primary research and text composition for 15 exhibits. Exhibits cover human history from 10,000 years BCE up through 20th century ranching. My job was to read thousands of published pages, and condense them into 600 words, plus photo captions. None