Gary Gabelhouse

. . . was a kid growing up in a bad neighborhood, landlocked both physically and economically in the middle of the country. This kid loved to read about Heinrich Schilman’s discovery of Troy as much as he liked to fight rival gang members. His love of adventure and science (along with two loving parents) separated him from his friends who found their adventures in detention schools, and later, prison. With stubborn surety he would become an adventurer, the kid grew up and . . .

. . . spent months at a time hiking and climbing in the jungles, forests and icy summits of East Africa and backpacking and living amongst the Maasai of Kenya’s Mara Reserve;

. . . as an international mountaineer, climbed extensively throughout Africa, Europe, South America, North America and Asia;

. . . climbed throughout the Bernese Oberland and in the Chamonix area of France with climbing legends, the late Dougal Haston and the late Alex McIntyre (included an Eiger North Face ascent).

. . . shared campfires outside of Narok, Kenya with George Adamson of Born Free fame;

. . . was later nominated to the prestigious Explorers Club by Sir Edmund Hillary and the late Dr. Barry Bishop (Governor of the National Geographic Society and member of the first successful American Everest expedition);

. . . Enrolled in the Cotner School of Religion and studied Eastern Religion and Christian sanctification;

. . . Was Associate Pastor of Epworth United Methodist Church. Continued seminary study and research in sanctification and sacramental ceremony as well as Bible Apocrypha ;

. . . was befriended by famous, science-fiction author, the late Isaac Asimov, who gave him many a tip on writing;

. . . developed curriculum material and published school texts in environmental science for elementary students--those books being utilized in schools to this day;

. . . has published numerous articles about his mountaineering expeditions in climbing magazines as well as literary journals;

. . . as an entrepreneur, published numerous articles and information for the entertainment and media-technology industry;

. . . after a respite in a Shingon Buddhist monastery in Koyasan, Japan, embraced the martial arts and went on to earn dan ranking in both Goju Ryu Karate and Daitoryu Aiki-Jujutsu. Still maintains ties with and takes regular pilgrimages to the Shingon Buddhist monasteries of Japan;

. . . investigated alleged alien ground images and paranormal phenomena in a remote, mountainous area Northwest of the Incan ruins of Ingaperca in Ecuador;

. . . was a technical consultant (climbing and mountaineering) with Columbia Tristar Motion Pictures.

. . . is now the Chairman and CEO of a market research and consulting firm in the media and media-technology industries. In his spare time he enjoys cultivating bonsai, oil painting, collecting Japanese Swords and religious artifacts as well as spending time adventuring with his daughter, Malindi, who was named after a town North of Mombassa on the coast of the Indian Ocean.

HIGHLIGHT EXPERIENCES....

Enjoyed campfires with George Adamson outside of Narok in Kenya

Worked with His Holiness the Dalai Lama in the development of the AMERICA ASKS project

Played tenor sax and cut an album with Doc Severinson

Lifelong student of martial-arts pioneer John Roseberry

Studied esoteric Buddhist ceremony at Shingon Monasteries in Koyasan, Japan

Associate Pastor, Epworth United Methodist Church

Created the concept of video advertising: TOP GUN / DIET PEPSI

Led numerous expeditions in Africa, Asia, Europe, Australasia, North and South America

Nominated to the Explorers Club by Sir Edmund Hillary

Direct student of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Leysin, Switzerland

First to canoe the Galana River in Kenya, East Africa

Worked with America's media icons including Ted Turner (CNN), Barry Diller (Fox TV), Sumner Redstone (Viacom), Bill Gates (Microsoft), Steve Jobs (Apple) and others

Honorary Shingon priest, confirmed at the Kongokai Keichin initiation--Koyasan

Studied with Lakota Medicine Man, Tony Yellowboy

First to backpack in the Maasai Mara Reserve

Worked at Louis Leakey's Hyrax Hill site at Nakuru

Befriended by science fiction author Isaac Asimov

Befriended by Wild Kingdom's Jim Fowler

Trained and taught martial arts throughout Japan and North America--earned dan ranking in Okinawan Goju Ryu Karate and Daitoryu Aikijujitsu

Climbed, trekked and worked with the father of American mountaineering, Paul Petzoldt

Studied Shamanism and the Ayahuasca on the Rio Pastaza in Ecuador

Gary Gabelhouse is and always has been an explorer, both of the physical world and of the interior realms of the body, mind and spirit. His international climbing exploits allowed him to study ancient and primitive religious ceremony on six of the Earth’s seven continents. During the late sixties and early seventies Gabelhouse studied neurobiology, animal behavior and biopsychology at the University of Nebraska. During this time he explored the contemplative disciplines of Eastern religions and how such practices affected brain chemistry. Gabelhouse continued to hone his mountaineering skills and became involved in other adventure sports such as hang gliding, SCUBA diving, ski mountaineering, white-water rafting, canoeing and kayaking.

After graduation, Gabelhouse’s interests in religion and religious ceremony led him to become a seminarian and later an Associate Pastor at Epworth United Methodist Church in Lincoln, Nebraska. During this time he studied at Ilif Seminary in Denver, Colorado and under the auspices of the Ecumenical Institute, researched the neurobiology of meditation and prayer. In 1969 Gabelhouse was initiated into the practice of Transcendental Meditation. Some years later and while working as a climbing instructor at the L’ecole du Alpinism in Leysin, Switzerland, Gabelhouse had the opportunity to study TM directly under the founder of the movement, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.

Gabelhouse’s climbs and expeditions took him all over the world and immersed him in many cultures. These expeditions gave him a window of opportunity to experience and directly study Shamanism and animism in Africa and South America as well as Shingon and Tibetan Buddhism, and Shintoism in Asia. From 1974 through 1978 Gabelhouse staged numerous expeditions and traveled extensively throughout Africa. His African sojourns led to his meeting and working with scientific luminaries such as Louis and Richard Leakey, George and Joy Adamson and Jane Goodall. He also formed deep friendships with less known, but perhaps more colorful Africans such as Phil Snider (Director of Abedarre National Park in Kenya who attacked poachers with shotguns slung from his ultra-light glider); Joseph Omira (Guardian of Mt. Kenya who played Sigorney Weaver’s tracker in the movie Gorrilas In the Mist); Ian Allan (pioneer climber in Africa); and Vince Fayad (American expat who disappeared one night).

At a State Dinner in New York’s Lotus Club in 1988, Gabelhouse met and was befriended by Sir Edmund Hillary. After ongoing communications between the two, Hillary nominated Gabelhouse to the prestigious Explorers Club. Through his association with the Explorers Club, Gabelhouse met other adventurers with whom he would eventually climb: Willie Unsoeld, Dick Pownall and Dr. Barry Bishop (1st American Everest Expedition); Royal Robbins (father of American rock climbing); and, Yvon Chouinard (famous alpinist and founder of Patagonia). Other explorers and scientists also formed friendships with Gabelhouse, including Isaac Asimov (science fiction writer); Hugh Downs (Today Show host and world class sailor); Jim Fowler (Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom fame); and Heinrich Harrer (Austrian climber and mentor to the Dalai Lama who wrote Seven Years In Tibet).

On his fortieth birthday Gabelhouse enrolled in a dojo and began to study Gojuryu Karate. To enhance his understanding of the arts, he started to stage regular, solo training trips throughout Japan. During these training trips he also studied the relationship of martial arts with Buddhist religious ceremony when he was in residence at the Shingon Buddhist monasteries of Koyasan, Japan. Gabelhouse continues to train and teach both Daitoryu Aikijujitsu and Okinawan Goju Ryu Karate--holding advanced dan ranking in both.

Gabelhouse has worked as a naturalist, biology teacher, dock worker, pastor, hod carrier, Swiss climbing guide, martial-arts instructor, magician, door man, gambler, river guide, security consultant, musician, writer, sales executive, and is currently an active author of thrillers and CEO of a media-research firm. His hobbies include bonsai cultivation, oil painting, fishing, collecting art, religious artifacts and Japanese swords.