About

Maia Josebachvili, Founder & Guide

Maia grew up watching too many Indiana Jones movies and decided at a very early age that she was going to try everything in the world once. It hasn’t been easy, but she’s making a dent. She graduated from Dartmouth College with a degree in mechanical engineering (that comes in handy when rigging up bear bags in the woods) and went on to be a derivatives trader on Wall Street for two years. That wasn’t much fun compared to her side job though—Maia is a professional skydiver with over 650 logged jumps. She’s also a sponsored mountain-bike racer, marathoner, triathlete, and SCUBA enthusiast with some 200-odd dives.

It really came as no surprise when she quit her trading job in 2007 to travel around the world for a year. Her journeys have taken her to over 40 different countries on six continents. Highlights include hiking to Everest Base Camp and summiting Kala Patthar (19,208 ft) in Nepal, running an adventure marathon race in New Zealand, extensive backpacking in the Andes mountains in South America, cycle-touring throughout Eastern Europe, and hiking expeditions throughout the Middle East.

Maia has recently returned to New York City to start Urban Escapes and share her love and passion for the outdoors with fellow New Yorkers. She has been guiding outdoor trips for the past six years and is excited to finally be able to do it as a full-time job.

Danny Nathan, Head Guide

Danny grew up spending every spare moment somewhere in the backcountry. An interest in the outdoors started at a small summer camp in Minnesota and eventually led him all over the country in search of his next adventure. His experiences as a wilderness trip leader and climbing guide have taken him from the Maine coastline to the volcanoes of the pacific rim and as far north as Alaska.

Backpacking was the first lure, which then led to rock climbing and mountaineering. The obsession has earned him some odd looks for antics like building a climbing wall in the bedroom of his college apartment and scaling the walls of an ancient fort in Israel, but the training has proven worthwhile on a variety of climbs including Mt. Shasta, Mt. Ranier, the Grand Teton, and a slew of others that he can’t even name. Danny learned early on that his happy place is somewhere above treeline, though he’s spent a fair bit of time on the water sea kayaking and negotiating whitewater as well.

He currently passes his time during the week as a digital strategist, designer, and writer.

Bram Levy

After a childhood of herding cattle and clearing brush in the suburbs of Richmond, Virginia, and living in 7 cities in the last 10 years, Bram has finally settled in New York. Office monkey by day, he continually seeks new forms of adventure by night and is thrilled to be linked up with the Urban Escapes team. 

Having hiked in the Himalayas, scuba-dived in the Great Barrier Reef, sand-boarded in the Sahara, snow-mobiled in the Rockies, and floated in the Dead Sea, Bram is guilty of an insatiable desire for traveling the globe and then gloating about his adventures. His most recent escapades landed him as an outdoor guide in Southwestern Spain through Olive country and at home here in the Pocono Mountains.

Nate Senge

Nate was duct-taped to a pair of skis by his mildly deranged father soon after taking his first steps at nine months (talking would come out of necessity a few days later). From that point forward, he has traveled the world in search of worthy summer and winter backcountry exploits. Favorite backpacking spots thus far include Utah’s Wasatch range, Wyoming’s Tetons, Alaska’s Chugach, Mount Soufrère of Guadeloupe, the Alps, the triple peaks of Haguro-San, Japan, and the Wudang Mountains of eastern China. He has undergone two extensive wilderness solos in Colorado, numerous multi-day backpacking trips, and has skied some of Jackson Hole’s rowdiest backcountry lines—including the infamous “Central Couloir” on Cody Peak, for which he was documented by an Alaskan film crew.

Nate is Urban Escapes’ winter sport guru (Level I and II avalanche certified) and is eager to share his experiences with fellow New Yorkers. He looks forward to escaping beyond the city limits as many weekends as possible!

Joe Regenbogen

At two weeks old, Joe’s mom took him to the zoo for the first time and he’s loved nature ever since. Growing up in Rochester NY, he enjoyed sailing, hiking, and camping with the family, and got officially hooked on the Wild while spending a summer backpacking in the Rocky Mountains after high school. 

Joe attended Colgate University, and worked as a WOFR certified outdoor guide, leading trips ranging from spelunking to outdoor survival. After graduating, Joe moved to southern Spain to teach English, and currently works at an Ad Agency in New York. Ever in search of a new adventure, his travels have led him around the world—surfing bone numbing waves in Ireland, racing tall ships in the Atlantic, and skiing the Swiss Alps. And while exploring new places is a true passion, Joe is often just as happy spending an entire day watching action movies and eating way too much. He’s an enthusiastic member of the Urban Escapes team who loves sharing his outdoor knowledge with new and interesting people.

Brittany Myers

It was on Mountaineer Guide Training Course in Chilean Patagonia last winter that Brittany realized she had to find a way to integrate her passion for outdoor adventure into her New York City lifestyle. She brings to Urban Escapes a wealth of knowledge and experience with adventure sports in and around one of the greatest cities in the world including hiking and camping in the Hudson River Valley, climbing in the Shawangunks, surfing in Long Island, and sailing the Hudson.

An avid runner and rock climber, Brittany has lead trips in and around the New York region and has outdoor experience throughout the United States and Chile. Brittany is First Aid, CPR and AED certified. She has had training through and is a member of the Wilderness Education Association.

Tim Spellman

Tim grew up in the backwoods of Wisconsin where lack of electricity and flushing toilets pointed him in the direction of outdoor adventures at a very young age. Though Tim finally decided to enter civilization, he’s never strayed too far from the wilderness he loves dearly. His interests have taken him on many wild adventures, such as a 32-day canoe expedition into the northern forests of Saskatchewan, where he and his trip mates explored lakes that had not likely been traveled for 15 years. Tim spent his summers in college as a guide on river and lake trips in Northern Wisconsin.

Dan Rosenberg

Dan has been the greatest athlete you’ve never met for his whole life. After playing soccer and basketball all the way through college at Duke University, Dan chose to apply his tremendous athletic prowess towards more adventurous pursuits once his Wall Street job proved to be completely boring. His recent hiking experiences have taken him through New Zealand, the Caribbean and Israel. He’s also an avid rock climber, mountain biker and SCUBA diver. He can’t wait to bring you to new levels of outdoor excitement.

Nell Hutchins

Born in D.C. and raised in Pittsburgh, Nell spent her summers camping in the woods of West Virginia and kayaking and rafting the Youghegeny River. After attending Boston University, Nell joined the Teach for America organization in New York City. While she has made a meager living as a middle-school English teacher for the last four years, she plans to take this next year off to live in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and travel South America.

Not to fear though, Nell is sticking around to share her guiding experience with us for one more season! For five summers, Nell has led teenage campers on overnight expeditions and hiking and rafting trips. This past fall she took her eighth-grade students on a week-long Outward Bound course in North Carolina. Nell loves photography, music, running and continues to camp, bike and whitewater kayak whenever she can.

Interested in joining our team?

We’re always looking for exciting individuals who share our philosophies and love for the outdoors. Experience guiding is a plus but we’re willing to train the right people. us to tell us about yourself!