Our History

The Association of Canadian Mountain Guides was established in 1963, with support from Walter Perren, an Alpine Specialist with Parks Canada. The founding members included Hans Gmoser, Eric Lomas, Peter Fuhrmann, Brian Greenwood, Willi Pfisterer, Dick Lofthouse, Leo Grillmair, and Heinz Kahl. Guides possessing a Parks Canada license before 1963 were automatically eligible to join the new association.

Hans Gmoser chaired the first standards committee and created the initial course curriculum. In 1966, Brian Greenwood conducted the first ACMG guides' course, attended by four candidates. The Alpine Club of Canada sent an observer to this training course and, as the parent organization of the ACMG, played a role in guide testing and training for a period. By 1966, a program for guide training and certification was established. In 1972, the ACMG became the first non-European member of the International Federation of Mountain Guides Associations (IFMGA), an international body that sets professional standards for mountain guides worldwide.

Today, the ACMG’s membership includes climbing instructors, hiking guides, rock guides, alpine guides, ski guides and mountain guides. ACMG members can be found working in various risk management capacities in many regions worldwide. Internationally, our members may be best known for having created helicopter skiing and setting the standard for safety and client care in ski guiding.

Guides have played a significant role in Canada's rich and colourful mountaineering history. In the late 1800s, the Canadian Pacific Railway recognized the importance of guides in ensuring the safety and well-being of its guests. The CPR began importing European guides to escort them into the Canadian mountains. These professional guides played a pivotal role in the first ascents of many major peaks, including Mt. Sir Donald, Mt. Sir Sanford, Mt. Robson, Mt. Louis, and Bugaboo Spire, to name a few.