Miki Knizka – Mountain Guide UIAGM
I was born in Poprad – a town under the High Tatras, so I was always close to mountains.
I was wandering Tatra hiking trails since my childhood, where I admired not only beautiful nature but especially mountain sherpas. I admired them so much that I wanted to become one of them.
My dream came true when I was 17, and my first trip as a sherpa was to Teryho Hut. Being a sherpa meant everything to me and it gave me a chance to spend a lot of time in the Tatra mountains. It was very demanding yet I enjoyed marvelous and unique scenery of the Tatra peaks.
Time was passing by and I realized that it was not enough for me to enjoy the beauty of the Tatras from hiking trails, so I dreamt of climbing peaks. And that is how I gradually became fond of climbing and ski-mountaineering, which later became my addiction and my way of life.
In 1997, I travelled for the first time to USA where I stayed for couple of months and made a trip to Alaska. Right after my return home I found out that traveling is what I was looking for in my life.
Two years later I found myself in an incredible beauty of Canadian mountains. While staying in Canada I found out about a possibility to emigrate to this beautiful country and that was a big challenge for me and also a chance to experience a great adventure.
After my return to Slovakia, I did all I could to get visa to emigrate to Canada. In May 2000, together with my friend Duro we both had them in our pockets. Unfortunately Duro could not make this trip to Canada as he tragically died in the avalanche on his hike as a sherpa to Teryho Hut.
It was a big shock for me and it took me almost a year to decide and travel to Canada by myself to make our dream come true. It was hard at the beginning but Canada gave me a chance to do what I was dreaming about. I became very active in climbing, skiing and step by step I start to travelled for adventure all over the world.
Years of thinking of what to do in my life lead me to realization that I would like to become a mountain guide – I would like to use all my skills and my long-term experience and pass them to others.
My goal is to fulfill dreams of those who wish to climb various peaks and have great adventures with the assistance of a mountain guide.
My’s best achievements:
» 5 times the winner of Sherpa Really
» Ski-mountaineering competitions: Whistler – 2nd place, Stevens Pass – 3rd place, Alpental – 3rd place, Clystal Mountain – 3rd place
» Mount McKinley (Denali) – Messner Couloir and West Buttress
» Ski-touring traverses in Canada: Pemberton Icecap traverse, Misty Icefield traverse, McBride traverse, Bugaboos traverse, Bostock-Revelstoke traverse
» Expeditions to South America: ascent ot Artesonraju, Chopicalqui, Huayna Potosi, Parinacota, Quitaraju, Ranrapalca, Sajama, Tocllaraju, Ishinca, Vallunaraju, Pequeno Alpamayo