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Elite Land Tours, Inc.
540 S. Vella Road
Palm Springs, California 92264
PUC ID: TCP-17945 S
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Meet Our Guides
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Jonathan Gaag
Environmentalist—Nature Photographer—Explorer. Jonathan is a rare, true Desert local and La Quinta High School graduate who feels most at home in the surrounding wild desert and forest landscapes hiking or backpacking. With many distinct environments nearby, he has taken any opportunity available to hike and explore them since middle school. At that age his mother took the family out to enjoy the seasonal desert blooms in Joshua Tree and visit the Living Desert. As a Santa Cruz Alumni with a degree in Environmental Studies, he loves to immerse himself in wilderness and is ever-learning more. Having also attended Brooks Institute of photography, Jonathan incorporates his photographic training, environmental education, eye for nature and passion gained throughout his life to experience and share the natural world from an ecologist's perspective.
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Bill Ellsworth
Bill, a native Los Angeleno, has been coming to the desert since he was six - "boy, has he seen some changes." He is a retired investment professional who enjoys taking groups out of the city into the world of the desert. Bill is a member of the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens and in his spare time enjoys a round of golf.
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Bruce Dodd
Bruce Dodd is an award winning wildlife artist (Sculptor) who has traveled the world studying nature. From Australia's Great Barrier Reef to Botswanas Okavango River Delta, Bruce has encountered a spectacular array of wildlife and looks forward to new encounters with the clients of Elite Land Tours.
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Bruce Rathbun
Bruce has been an avid rock climber in Joshua Tree National Park and the Valley since 1986. He retired from a federal job (air traffic controller) and moved to Palm Springs permanently in 2002. He volunteered at San Jacinto State Park before coming to Elite. He currently enjoys working on remodeling his mid-century modern house and taking breaks to explore the local canyons and mountains.
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Craig Woodson
Craig is from a small town in Wyoming. His adventurous spirit and love for the outdoors started at an early age. He would spend many weeks exploring the remote wilderness of the Windriver Mountains. Craig later moved to Utah, where he found his love for the desert. Rock climbing, biking, motorcycling, camping, and hiking became his passions. Craig is a recent graduate of the University of Wyoming, with a degree in Elementary Education and a Minor in Archaeology. With the Colorado and Mojave desert as a backyard, he loves to educate people about the desert's hidden wonders.
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Greg Gilman
Greg is a native of the area, having been raised just on the other side of Mt. San Jacinto when Palm Springs was young. He moved out into the world away from the valley where he became a school teacher. Then because of his love of travel, got into the travel industry where he worked as a tour guide/director for many of the top tour companies in Europe, South America and Japan. He has now come home to renew his love of the history and the natural wonders of the desert.
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Jill Hayes
Jill Hayes, a southern California native, has lived in the desert over 25 years. She loves exploring the desert, on foot, bicycle, or four wheel drive vehicle. Jill spends her time in "civilization" modeling for various clothing lines and spent time raising money for handicapped children. Her interests include; Off-road expeditions, camping, canoeing, hiking, biking, snowboarding, and much more. Besides being an accomplished outdoor photographer, Jill is a member of the Joshua Tree National Park Association, The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens, and is a self taught naturalist. Her favorite creatures are insects and spiders (and an occasional bat).
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Jim Bowden
Jim has been roaming and exploring the Southern California landscape ever since he can remember. Born in upstate New York, he moved here as a young boy, nurturing a keen interest in nature, geology, and history. With 20 years experience as a paleontologist, Jim discovered many thousands of fossils across the region. He loves sharing his passion for the outdoors, especially with children. He is a Certified Interpretive Guide, and for a time oversaw Riverside County's Gilman Historic Ranch park. Jim is an accomplished flintknapper. In his spare time, he enjoys fishing, blacksmithing, and camping with his family at Mountain Man reenactments.
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John Hale
John, originally from Michigan, came to the desert in 2003 and plans never
to leave it. With a doctorate in History and a Master's in Archeology, John
is passionate about the past and the desert's rich heritage. A Master
Sergeant in the Air Force Reserves, on duty weekends John can be found
poring over documents and digging through archives as his unit's Historian,
a job he has held for the past 11 years. An avid outdoorsman, John loves
his full-time job as an archeologist, but finds giving tours rewarding
because he loves to share the history and the beauty of the desert.
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Jon Rock
Jon has been a tour guide with Elite Land Tours since the company started. He loves the desert and enjoys giving tours, and educating our guests on our deserts. "I really enjoy giving tours to kids. They are like sponges and soak up all the knowledge you give them." When Jon is not giving tours, he is out hiking in the local mountains.
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Kevin Small
Kevin, a California native, is an avid outdoorsman who has hiked and climbed throughout the mountains and deserts of California. Now living on the Central Coast of California, he owns an award winning Landscape Architecture company. Kevin's knowledge of plant life, geology, the natural environment and interest in local history lead him to constantly explore and learn about the varied environments of the area. From Santa Barbara to the sand dunes at Point Sal and the rugged coastline of Big Sur, Kevin always looks forward to showing the guests of Elite this spectacular area.
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Mark Farley
Mark is a current member of the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens, the Joshua Tree National Park Association (where he attends classes at the Desert Institute), and the Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy. Mark is a Master Trainer for the Tread Lightly! organization. He plans to share the Tread Lightly! principles with others concerned about impacts on the environment. His hobbies include biking, hiking, rafting, traveling, and exploring.
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Cache Tucker
As an avid surfer, Cache has a profound respect and love for the nature around him. Cache recently graduated from Cal State University Fullerton with a BA in Business, Entrepreneurship and a minor in Anthropology. Working toward becoming a dentist, Cache found a love for Biology and Chemistry and decided to further his interest in nature by obtaining a Natural Resources degree at College of the Desert. Cache is a native Californian who enjoys backpacking, camping, hiking, mountain biking, surfing, and learning about ancient people, including the Native Americans of California.
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