HighPoint
Executive Expeditions
A wilderness intensive for men and women ready to grow as humans as well as executives. Four days in the Utah high country. Real mountains. Guided inner work. A small group of peers who will see you more fully than most people back home.
"In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks."
— John Muir
WHAT HIGHPOINT IS
Not an offsite with nicer views.
A reset.
HighPoint is a small-group wilderness intensive built on the same framework as Pete's individual coaching work — inner alignment first, action second. The difference is context. The mountains strip away the usual props and give you a different vantage point on your own life.
We'll discuss goals and performance. But the primary focus is on who you are as you pursue them — and whether that person is leading and living in a way that actually fits.
⏺
Leadership & Career Transitions
Promotions, exits, new mandates, and the question of what comes next after a long climb.
⏺
Psychology & Inner Work
Individual coaching, group dialogue and reflection designed to surface patterns hard to see from inside your daily context.
⏺
Meaning, Purpose & What's Next
Questions that don't fit neatly on a quarterly plan — asked in a space designed for honest inquiry, without dogma.
WHAT YOU'll EXPERIENCE
Three things working together.
A whole greater than its parts.
HighPoint is more than one thing — it's three, woven together deliberately. Each element does something the others can't by themselves.
01
Immersion in real wilderness
We hike through Utah's high country — alpine lakes, expansive sky, quiet nights under stars. Several miles with packs most days, in wild terrain. No screens, no notifications, no performance.
The wilderness is an active part of the work. How you navigate days on the trail — where you go in your head, how you relate to discomfort, what you notice when things get hard — maps directly onto how you navigate challenges at home.
02
Guided inner work & coaching
This isn't trust falls, ropes courses, or standard corporate retreats. We emphasize structured reflection, small-group dialogue, and individual coaching.
The work helps you see what's true right now: patterns, stories you tell yourself, places where you're leading in a way that fits and where you're contorting. Individual sessions with Pete let you go deeper on what's emerging in real time.
03
A trusted group
container
You'll travel with a small group of people at similar inflection points, with similar stakes, asking similar questions. It creates a space where you can speak frankly about what's going on at a deeper level.
Something happens when a small group of accomplished people drop the performance for four days. Conversations become different from anything most of us have access to in our regular lives.
WHO IT'S FOR
Leaders at an inflection point.
HighPoint is for senior leaders, founders, and high-potential professionals who sense something about the current chapter isn't working — or feel pulled toward a version of success more aligned with who they are.
Navigating a transition
A promotion, exit, new mandate, or shift calls for a different version of you — one you haven't fully inhabited yet.
Redefining success
Your current definition of success no longer fits who you're becoming, and you haven't found a better one yet.
Quietly dissatisfied
Burnout or a persistent sense that more of the same isn't enough — even when everything looks fine from the outside.
Seeking alignment
A desire for more coherence between who you are and how you lead — a gap you haven't had space to examine.
THIS IS A GOOD FIT IF
→ You're ready to carry a pack, sleep under the stars, and be honest with yourself and others
→ You're willing to do real inner work beyond collecting another framework
→ You want structured space to evaluate your life
→ You value sharing with and learning from candid, grounded conversations with other leaders.
THE EXPERIENCE
Four Days.
A different kind of work.
Exact logistics evolve from expedition to expedition. The throughline: step out of your life to see it more clearly, then return with grounded commitments.
BEFORE
Preparation & Foundation
We begin well before you step onto the trail. Pre-work helps you arrive with intention.
→ Personal assessments and reflection exercises to map your current landscape
→ A 2-hour 1:1 coaching session with Pete to clarify what you want to explore and why now
→ Gear guidance and logistics coordination
DAY 0
Arrival & Orientation
Arrive in Park City by September 2. Gear check to review personal clothing and equipment. Group dinner to meet fellow participants, Pete, Ken, and the guides. Set the tone for the work ahead.
DAY 1
The Experience Begins
Group breakfast, store luggage, shuttle to the Uinta Mountains trailhead. Electronics collected. A lower-mileage day to ease into the wilderness. Evening camp and initial group work.
DAY 2
Into the High Country
Longer hiking day to reach base camp, in small groups to foster intimate conversation. Pre-dinner exercises and group dialogue. Evening fire and deeper connection as the group finds its rhythm.
DAY 3
The Deepening
We remain at base camp. This is the pivotal day — more time, more stillness, more space for what's emerging.
→ Individual 1-hour coaching sessions with Pete to calibrate and deepen the work
→ Solo time for reflection and personal work
→ Optional activities may include fly fishing, paddleboarding, guided rappelling
→ Evening fireside dialogue with space for what matters most
DAY 4
Integration & Return
Hike back to trailhead, with solo intervals for synthesis. Return to Park City — showers, rest, and a closing dinner where we unpack learnings and commitments. Recommended earliest departure: morning of Sept 7.
AFTER
Translation to Action
Follow-up coaching sessions to translate insights into concrete commitments and experiments. This is where implementation begins and mountain clarity becomes daily practice.
THE COACHING
The same framework.
Different terrain.
HighPoint is built on the same backbone as Pete's individual coaching work — the A5 Framework — in which inner alignment always precedes action.
Outer terrain lets us see inner terrain more clearly.
Who am I becoming as I'm working and leading?
What haven't I said out loud about what I want next?
What is success for at this stage of life?
Who do I want to be on the way to what I'm building?
Where do I lead in a way that fits — and where do I contort myself?
OUTCOMES
What you leave with
Outcomes vary — each experience is as unique as you are. Leaders who do this work often take away the following:
01
Clearer ideas about the next chapter — and a more honest relationship with your ambitions and fears.
02
Commitments to change how you spend your time, attention, and energy — grounded in what truly matters.
03
New peers who see you more fully than many people back home. Plus coaching to translate clarity into practice.
"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes."
— Marcel Proust
WHO'S LEADING YOU
Two coaches.
Complementary strengths.
HighPoint is co-led by Pete Deininger and Ken Hood,
supported by licensed mountain guides.
Pete Deininger
EXECUTIVE COACH · HCC · ACC · NOLS
Pete is an executive coach, former CEO and institutional investor, and longtime mountain person. He brings 30 years of experience working with executives and growth-stage leaders, formal training through the Hudson Institute of Coaching (HCC) and ICF (ACC), and extensive backcountry history including multiple NOLS programs. He has walked the path himself — leaving a successful career in institutional investing to build a more aligned life. His coaching focuses on the intersection of professional success and personal wholeness.
Ken Hood
LEADERSHIP COACH · PHD · HCC · IFS
Ken is a leadership coach, author, and guide who helps leaders access deeper wisdom. He holds a doctorate from Duke University and a master's from Princeton Theological Seminary, is ICF certified through the Hudson Institute, and brings two decades of experience guiding people through transition. He's certified in Internal Family Systems (IFS) and somatic trauma therapy, and teaches contemplative practice — particularly for people who don't consider themselves meditators. Ken nurtures inner work without dogma.
Pete and Ken partner with experienced mountain guides who handle route planning, wilderness safety, and logistics
so they can focus fully on coaching and group process.
Essential details
LOGISTICS
DATES
Sept 3–6, 2026 (arrive Sept 2, depart after dinner Sept 6 or morning Sept 7)
LOCATION
Uinta Mountains, Utah. Base in Park City.
GROUP SIZE
Maximum 8 participants
PHYSICAL
5–10 miles hiking daily, 30–40 lb packs. Challenging, but elite fitness not required.
TECHNOLOGY
Phones and devices collected at trailhead. Dedicated cameras welcome.
INVESTMENT
Pricing confirmed upon application.
WHAT'S INCLUDED
→ Pre-trip assessments and 2-hour 1:1 coaching session
→ Group dinners before and after (Sept 2 & 6)
→ All expedition meals (chef-crafted backcountry food)
→ Group gear: tents, sleeping bags, pads
→ Transportation to/from Park City to trailhead
→ Experienced mountain guides
→ Individual and group coaching
→ Post-trip integration coaching and follow-up
YOU'LL PROVIDE
→ Travel to/from Park City
→ Personal footwear and clothing (detailed gear list provided)
→ Local lodging pre/post trip (suggestions upon request)
READY TO TAKE THE NEXT STEP
If something in you is
leaning toward this —
pay attention to that.
HighPoint operates in small groups so we can do real work together. We're finalizing details for September 2026. Join the waitlist to hear when applications open.
Questions? Contact pete@altivist.com
"The mountains have a way of clarifying what we've been postponing."
-Pete