Kathy Calvert grew up in the Canadian Rockies. In 1974 she became one of the first female national park wardens in Canada; in 1977 she was a member of the first all-women expedition to Mount Logan and in 1989 was on the first all-women ski traverse of the Columbia Mountains from the Bugaboos to Rogers Pass. She is the author of four books: Don Forest: Quest for the Summits, Guardians of the Peaks: Mountain Rescue in the Canadian Rockies and Columbia Mountains, June Mickle: One Woman’s Life in the Foothills and Mountains of Western Canada, and Ya Ha Tinda: A Home Place - Celebrating 100 Years of the Canadian Government's Only Working Horse Ranch. She and her husband, Dale Portman, live in Cochrane, Alberta.

Dale Portman spent nearly 30 years working for the warden service, often involved with backcountry travel, mountain rescue and avalanche control work in Jasper, Banff, Yoho, Glacier and Revelstoke national parks. He has written three books about his experiences working in the mountains of western Canada: Riding on the Wild Side: Tales of Adventure in the Canadian West (2004), Rescue Dogs: Crime and Rescue Canines in the Canadian Rockies (2009) and co-author of Guardians of the Peaks: Mountain Rescue in the Canadian Rockies and Columbia Mountains (RMB 2006). Besides experiencing other cultures in foreign lands, Dale’s greatest love is for extended trips to remote parts of the Canadian Rockies, whether on skis, on foot or on horseback leading a couple of pack horses. He and his wife, Kathy Calvert, live in Cochrane, Alberta.