Travis attended Northern Arizona University, where he earned a degree in environmental studies with a focus on earth sciences and sustainability.  Living and recreating in Northern Arizona provided Travis with a unique insight into the natural world. He has led backpacking trips into the Grand Canyon, rafted the Colorado River, and embraced the vision of the many Native American tribes of the Colorado Plateau as a primary driver of culture and sense of place in the region. 

Travis’ past experience includes leading trail crews, invasive species management, watershed surveys, and various reforestation projects.  He was grateful and humbled to have worked and traveled in Central America, with a particular interest in shade coffee as a means of reducing tropical deforestation and reducing economic uncertainty for local landholders and their families.  This involved leading soil recuperation and erosion control projects, building greenhouses, and conducting environmental workshops for adolescents and young adults aged 12–20.  He loves conversing in Spanish whenever the opportunity presents itself. No puedes perderte en el bosque si no existe. 

Travis is mindful of the healing properties of nature, having always relied on them as a source of anxiety reduction and self-reflection. Naturally, Travis recognized Open Sky as a logical next step after moving to Durango in 2020, wanting to be part of a like-minded and passionate group people focused on wilderness as a holistic healer. As an Intake Specialist, Travis emphasizes the building of a theoretical bridge for the students as they transition from an often turbulent domestic life into the Open Sky program. He believes in finding hope, empathy, and compassion for students while getting them amped up for a life of wild adventure and the making of new friends.   

In his spare time, Travis enjoys backpacking, skiing, cooking good food with friends, and retreating to spend long days outside fly fishing and river walking with his black lab, Otis.