These Climbers Are Living the Dream, Thanks to Unexpected Side Jobs

Since I started climbing, I’ve been obsessed with the question of how to build a life of constant adventure—and specifically, how to afford it. Do only TV stars get to go on international expeditions? If I want to climb more than just weekends, is quitting my job the only option?

Today, I’d answer “no” to both. Over the past six years, I’ve met many athletes in different financial positions, from old-fashioned dirtbags to fully sponsored crushers. But the ones I find most inspiring are those who set their climbing goals first, then built steady careers around them. It turns out that with the right job, regularly taking time off to climb is a lot more possible than it seems.

Recently, I called up four climbers who have regularly gone on international expeditions long before convincing a brand to foot the bill. More importantly, these climbers seem to have figured out how to balance work and climbing in a financially sustainable way. The common thread? A side hustle that you might not expect. See what these four pros are doing on the side—and what their advice is to other climbers trying to make a living.

Jackson Marvell: Welding

A 29-year-old alpinist who won the Piolet d’Or last year for Round Trip Ticket (M7 AI5 A0; 9,000 ft) in Nepal, Jackson Marvell fills his time between expeditions to Pakistan and Alaska with 16-hour days of welding around Salt Lake City, Utah.

“My grandpa taught me how to weld,” says Marvell, who has been welding since he was about 12 years old. By high school, he was welding for his grandpa, as well as taking on random construction jobs.

At one point, Marvell tried attending college for a semester. “It didn’t jive with me,” he says simply. After dropping out, he went to welding school and got his certifications, then started up a welding business with a partner. “With that, I was able to fund many of my early expeditions, just working a ton,” he says.

As a young climber, Marvell spent about six months climbing and six months welding. When he got sponsored, he took “a year or two” off from welding to climb full-time. “But I found that I was not quite as sharp when I was not working,” he remembers. Long days of welding helped him stay focused in the mountains, so he picked it back up. “I find it really valuable to work because it’s a pretty parallel skill set to expedition climbing,” he says. “It helps to know that you’ve been working 18 hours a day and you can keep your mind focused for a long day, problem solving on your feet as you go.”

Now, he spends two to three months per year fulfilling welding projects, supplementing his income with sponsorship money. The rest of the time, he climbs. “I’d come home from a summer expedition and then usually work in August and September. Then I’d climb in the desert a little bit, then pick back up in the winter and just be climbing locally.” In the spring, Marvell often visits Alaska. This year, he’s preparing for climbing trips to Mexico and Saudi Arabia.

Marvell says more climbers ought to consider welding. Right now, he’s built up his client list so he can return to Provo, the Utah city where his shop is located, whenever he wants. “People are calling in all the time for work, and I turn down most of it, or I give people the window in which I can get it done,” he says. Marvell plans to finish up his current welding jobs in the next few weeks, then head to the desert to climb.

Brittany Goris: Graphic Design

When legendary 5.14 climber Brittany Goris isn’t sending El Capitan or raging up single-pitch testpieces, she works as a remote graphic designer from the back of her van. “Honestly, my situation is a lot of luck,” she says. Originally a full-time employee at an all-girls summer camp, Goris convinced her boss to let her work remotely and part time. “It works because there’s a solid foundation of trust between me and my employer,” she says. “The only thing I need is a way to charge my computer and occasionally a way to send emails.”

Goris works year-round, about 15 hours a week or so, and supplements her income with sponsorships. “Climbing is almost always my priority,” she says, adding that she usually operates on a “one day on, one day off” schedule. Her design workload typically ramps up in spring and calms down during summer, when camps are running. “That’s usually the time of year when I’m trying to climb my hardest,” she says. This year, Goris spent time in Egypt, Mexico, and most recently, on a month-long trip to Rocklands in South Africa, where she climbed two V11 crack boulders.

Goris’s advice? First, either find a job you love or find a job that supports the life you want. “I leaned into the latter, and over time, I’ve very fortunately been able to do both,” she says. “It’s a little bit easier to start with whatever is a higher priority and build your life from there.”

Second, live cheaply. “My income is low, and my expenses are low,” says Goris, who is known for dumpster diving. “If I wanted that to look different, I wouldn’t have the setup I have now.” She adds that travel nursing and rope access work are other great seasonal jobs she’s seen suit climbers well.

Hayden Jamieson: Window Cleaning

Before Hayden Jamieson made the first free ascent of Picaflor (5.13+; 3,000 ft) on Cerro Capicua in Cochamó, Chile, he was just a 24-year-old climber in northern Utah, living in his car and bouncing around “random desk jobs.” After a stint as a climbing instructor for the University of Utah, Jamieson posted a plea on Instagram for anyone hiring seasonally. Unexpectedly, his friend from the Salt Lake Climbers’ Alliance offered him a job as a window cleaner. “His clientele are mostly billionaires who have second homes in Park City,” says Jamieson. “It was a completely random thing.”

Now, Jamieson owns a window cleaning LLC that subcontracts through his friend’s outfit. The busy season, he says, is right before the Fourth of July and before Christmas. “We clean the windows on some of these really high-end homes, and we do that twice a year. That pays the bills for the rest of the year,” Jamieson says. On average, he estimates that he works three months of the year and climbs the other nine. He just spent a month on a big wall in Madagascar, is currently in Greece, and plans to climb around Europe until mid-November.

Although window cleaning is physical, Jamieson calls it more of a “nice quiet job outside” that still allows him to train for climbing. More importantly, he relishes not staring at a screen. “The computer side of things is really tiring,” he says. “In a way, I feel more tired doing that kind of work than by doing more physical work.”

Jamieson’s advice for aspiring climbers is to look for job opportunities through the community and personal connections, not on job listing websites. “If you want to go on expeditions, be away from cell service for a long time, and be in a place where you can’t work remotely, then some sort of blue collar job is probably the way forward,” he says.

Suzanna Lourie: Guiding and Christmas Light Installation

When Suzanna Lourie isn’t pushing her personal limits on Alaskan or Peruvian peaks, the alpinist works as a guide in Colorado and Washington. In general, Lourie spends six months working and six months climbing. Last year, she guided in Denali National Park for a month, then squeaked in a personal ascent of Ham and Eggs (WI4 M4; 3,000 ft). “I feel very fortunate,” she says. “This year I’ve been going to so many places. I’m like, ‘Cool, I’m making this work,’ but that hasn’t always been the case.”

During the summer and winter, Lourie puts her American Mountain Guide Association (AMGA) Assistant Alpine Guide and Apprentice Rock Guide certifications to good use, working five days per week. Her summer gigs are via ferrattas and rock climbing around Ouray, and in winter, she guides ice climbing in Ouray. In the spring and fall, she uses her guide money to pursue personal climbing. Later this year, for example, she plans to visit Yosemite and Canada, then return to Ouray for the ice climbing season.

Before becoming a guide, Lourie worked as a newspaper reporter, travel writer, and bartender in Costa Rica. Now, she supplements her guiding days by managing the Ouray Ice Park’s social media and installing holiday lights in nearby Telluride, Colorado. “You can basically work as much or as little as you want,” she says of the Christmas light installation. “I’ve definitely gotten a lot of guide friends to help with that.” Lourie admits that she hasn’t quite found her perfect schedule yet. “If I had something more reliable to do part-time or remotely, that could help take away some of the financial stress in the off seasons.”

For other climbers looking to piece together income, Lourie recommends a seasonal job. “It’s easy in a town like Ouray, that’s very tourist-based,” she says. “In off seasons, most people aren’t working, so if you’re in the service industry or anything like that, you’re going to have some down time.” She emphasizes the need to evaluate sacrifices. “Look at how much you need to make to live—and what you’re willing to give up to be able to climb more.”

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