Our Sedona Hiking Guides

Jim Reich

Lead Guide / Company Founder / Owner

Jim Reich, is the company founder and the lead guide. Born on the east coast, Jim spent his childhood exploring suburbia (the suburbs of New York City), which at the time was all there was available to explore. Still, he was out every chance he got trying to get closer to nature, to be just among the trees and away from the pavement.

Back before mountain bikes were even on the market, Jim was biking through creeks and rivers on dirt trails with his good old three-speed bicycle. This was the beginning of what grand explorations would lie ahead.

Jim first came to Arizona on a family trip in 1982 and he loved every minute of it. It was then that he first got a taste of the Grand Canyon, the Painted Desert, and the four corners region. Upon graduation from high school in 1988, Jim knew he wanted to go west, and Arizona was his top choice. Northern Arizona University and Flagstaff became his home almost immediately. It was among the San Francisco Peaks that Jim first learned how to mountain bike the epic single-track trails that scattered the area. Hiking and camping too soon became frequent activities. It wasn’t before long that Jim’s major changed from pre-law to photography. The logic was that photography would allow him to spend more time outside which is where he wanted to be.

In 2004, Jim founded Sedona Hiking Adventures. After spending nearly 5 years in Flagstaff and moving back and forth between the east coast and Arizona, Jim finally made Sedona his permanent home in 2001. Nearly 3 years after moving to Sedona, Sedona Hiking Adventures was born. From 2001 to 2003, Jim spent every spare moment hiking, swimming, and camping all throughout the Sedona and Flagstaff areas.

Since moving to Sedona, Jim also starting to learn more about the area by reading books about Sedona, local history, plant life, animals, geology, and the native people of this region. Today, Jim still spends a great deal of his spare time learning new things about the Sedona area by reading various publications and talking to other guides knowledgeable in local facts.

It was with this passion for the magic of the red rocks and for simply hiking that makes Jim smile every time he is on the trail, whether it is on a guided hike or simply with friends. Today, Jim and his Siberian Husky, Summit spends 8 days a week on the trails and loves to share his enthusiasm about Sedona with clients from across the US and across the globe.

Summit, a Siberian Husky, born on July 30, 2005 is the co-guide to Jim. Like Jim, Summit likes taking clients to the many summits that Sedona has to offer. You might ask how he got his name, and simply Summit loves to go to all the different summits in and around Sedona. Prior to being 6 months old, Summit made it to the top of Wilson Mountain (elevation 7,000 feet), Thunder Mountain (elevation 6,900 feet), and Bear Mountain (elevation 6,500 feet). He comes on many hikes and helps carry gear, but is mostly there to help keep our clients smiling. In the summertime, Summit prefers to show his clients some of the secluded swimming holes that provide an oasis from the heat of the sun. If you’d like Summit to join your Sedona hiking adventure, just tell Jim, and he’d gladly bring Summit along.