Central Coast California bike trips and outdoor trips in San Luis Obispo California. Central Coast Outdoors offer bike trips and outdoor trips on the Central Coast of California in San Luis Obispo.

A self professed outdoors junkie, John has hiked, ridden and paddled on five continents. He has hiked the entire John Muir Trail, bike toured in Patagonia and sea kayaked in New Zealand and Baja. John moved to the Central Coast in 1997 and immediately fell in love with the area. "The first time I did a ride in Montaña de Oro State Park, I literally fell off my bike - it was so beautiful. Ever since that moment, we have been looking for a way to translate our extensive experience in the active travel world into creating opportunities for people to experience the Central Coast."

As a guide and field manager with Backroads® for 13 years, John gained invaluable experience in designing and running first class active travel trips for people of all ability levels.

What he loves most about guiding is being able to facilitate an incredible outdoors experience, "to take people to a place they might not find on their own and stand back as they have a 'Wow' moment."

John graduated from Dartmouth in 1987 with a B.A. in History and is an avid amateur natural historian and photographer. He can often be found tramping around the hills near his home with a flower book in one hand and a camera in the other.

Growing up in California, Virginia developed a passion for the outdoors at an early age. By age ten she was a veteran of many Sierra backpacking trips led by her father. "I remember feeling complete happiness at being outside backpacking with my dad. It was very special to be together in such a beautiful place." Virginia's family members are long time residents of the Central Coast.

Virginia is also an accomplished world traveler, having spent part of her childhood in Germany and traveling to virtually every country in Europe. Since then she has also traveled to South America, New Zealand, the Himalayas and Indonesia. She speaks German and can converse in French and Italian.

As a guide, field manager and hiring coordinator for Backroads® for 15 years, Virginia developed a knack for creating smooth running events and trips, no matter the size nor complexity. "I get a kick out of taking the hassle out of trips so people can focus on why they are really there, to be outdoors having fun and to enjoy a beautiful natural place."

Virginia graduated from UC Santa Barbara in 1985 with a B.A. in German Language and Literature. She was a champion swimmer in high school and held her high school record in the breaststroke for 21 years. She also runs a small wedding invitation business.

In 2003 John and Virginia traveled to China and adopted their daughter, Kinley.

Growing up in the foothills of Calaveras County provided the foundation for Cindi's love for the outdoors, nature, animals and natural history. This passion inspired Cindi to choose Recreation, Parks and Tourism with a concentration on Natural Resources Outdoor Management as her major at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. She graduated from Cal Poly in June of 2005.

Cindi has traveled and volunteered in Costa Rica, as well as working as a naturalist at the Consumnes River Preserve and at the Rancho El Chorro Outdoor School in San Luis Obispo. She has been with the Central Coast Outdoors "family" (as she likes the describe it) since 2004, interning and guiding kayak tours on Morro Bay. Kinley (the owners' daughter) is also very fond of Cindi.

Steve grew up in SLO County, where he developed a lifelong passion for the water. He went north to Humboldt State (where he met his wife) and Oregon State to study Fish Biology. After working for 12 years as a fisheries biologist in the Northwest, the rain finally got to Steve and his wife and they moved back to SLO County. For the past 6 years Steve has taught biology at Cuesta College and Hancock College. When he's not exploring the coast with his young daughter Zoe, Steve enjoys fishing, surfing, mountain biking, hiking, SCUBA diving and (of course) kayaking. He has been kayaking for over 25 years and loves sharing the beauty and wonders of the Morro Bay estuary with unsuspecting visitors!

If you could describe Mandy in a few words it is this... she possesses an adventuress spirit, a keen eye for the patterns in nature and a deep love for creatures and the ecosystems they live in. She has a strong background in biology, decades of coaching and environmental instruction, experience as a world-class competitive paddler, a lifetime relationship with the ocean, and has been an environmental activist, a poet, and a creative director of an advertising and marketing firm. All this background and passion gives her a unique ability to communicate her love for the earth and share it with others. After years of travel to and paddling in places as remote as Antarctica, the Galapagos, South Africa and Tasmania, Mandy firmly believes that the Morro Bay Estuary is an unsurpassed coastal jewel and one of the best locals

After graduating from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo in 1979 with a Bachelors degree in Natural Resources Management, Ken founded an environmental education school for children 4 to 14 years old. He raised his two children and operated the school on a "wilderness" ranch in the mountains east of Cambria. In 1994, Ken bought his first open ocean kayaks and started giving open ocean tours leaving from the Cayucos Pier or San Simeon Cove. In 2008 he joined with the Central Coast Outdoors family to guide kayaks in Morro Bay. Ken loves to share his knowledge of the animals, birds and ecology of Morro Bay. When he is not guiding kayak tours, he still surfs, snow skis and likes to backpack in the Sierras with his daughters. Ken also volunteers his time with Pacific Wildlife Care capturing and transporting sick or injured wild animals.

Ross was born and raised on California's beautiful Central Coast. It was here that he discovered his passion for adventure, exploration and teaching others. A snapshot of the seasons for Ross would include skiing bottomless backcountry powder, climbing vertical ice and rock, paddling a raging whitewater river, exploring a hidden desert canyon, summiting a remote mountain peak, and paddling the waters of a quiet coastal bay. Ross has guided people on rock, ice and alpine climbs; rafting wild and scenic rivers, and kayaking on Morro Bay. He has developed skills as a group team building leader, a personal empowerment facilitator and as a ski instructor. A life long love of wildlife and ecology makes guiding trips with an emphasis on natural history especially rewarding for Ross. When not guiding outdoors trips, Ross enjoys still and video photography and editing as well as helping with his church youth group.

Dave has been a world traveler from birth by virtue of his father being in the navy. His family loved to boat, fish and camp when he was young and Dave credits these numerous trips for his love of the outdoors. Dave is most at home in the water and is an avid surfer. His adult travels have taken him to many Pacific Rim destinations including Guam, Costa Rica and Kauai. Dave currently resides a stones' throw from the ocean in the town of Morro Bay with his wife Margo and their young daughter Jessica. When not surfing or guiding kayak trips for Central Coast Outdoors, Dave can often be found working with young students at one of our local environmental schools or camps.

Since retiring as a Fire Captain in the California Department of Forestry in 2006, Paul has thrown himself into outdoors pursuits with a passion. He has become an accomplished docent for Morro Bay State Park, as well as for the Point San Luis Lighthouse, guiding numerous tours in both areas for all kinds of people. With 15 years of kayaking experience plus his naturalist training and an all round friendly demeanor, Paul is a great asset to the Central Coast Outdoors guide team.

Ed spent his early youth watching the Atlantic swells crash on England's west coast, his high school days learning to kayak whitewater and climb rocks further inland. A college internship in California introduced him to the joy of teaching and his lovely wife. Now living in Morro Bay, Ed teaches about the natural world at a local outdoor school. He can be found on his time off gliding over the Pacific in his homebuilt kayak or exploring the depths with SCUBA gear. For Ed, helping people explore and sharing knowledge about the fascinating non-human residents of the bay while kayaking is like gravy on top of gravy.

Steve attended Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and received a Master's degree in Field Biology. He taught high school biology and earth sciences for several years and presently teaches natural history courses for Community Programs at Cuesta College and works for a local residential outdoor school attended by 6th grade students. Steve served on the committee that recently published "Wildflowers of San Luis Obispo" and is the author of "The Peregrine Falcons of Morro Rock - A 40-year History", available at Amazon.com. He is past-President of Morro Coast Audubon Society and is the volunteer coordinator of the Hi Mountain Lookout Project, where volunteers and college interns radio track the movements of California Condors and conduct other biological field research projects. Steve enjoys kayaking, running, biking, hiking, playing basketball, and wildlife and landscape photography.

Katharina grew up in a small town in Austria where she and her siblings spent many memorable summer weekends hiking with her dad. In the winter he taught the family how to downhill and backcountry ski. Since childhood, Katharina has always had a love for the outdoors, adventure, and just being active. Wanting to combine her love of the outdoors with education led her to pursue a BS in Recreation Administration with an emphasis in outdoor education from Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. Katharina loves to kayak, hike, do yoga and Pilates, and to just explore this incredible place that she lives in. She also enjoys traveling and learning about different cultures. Katharina is curious by nature and loves learning about wildlife as well as sharing her discoveries with others.

Mark has been guiding whitewater and sea kayak trips since 1981. He has kayaked all over the world including many first descents of some of the earth's greatest rivers. He has paddled for the US Whitewater Team and appeared in several films most notably "The River Wild." In 2006 Mark sailed a 40' boat with his wife, Jennifer, and three year old daughter, Sierra, from the US Virgin Islands through the Panama Canal and up the coast of Central America to Morro Bay to settle and raise his family here on the Central Coast. Mark also enjoys surfing, kite boarding, biking and sailing in his spare time.