I have guided the past 2 summers in Acadia National Park for a very reputable and certified outfit. I can safely say that I went up there with the notion of having a "working vacation". Being a student and all this seemed like a good gig: live in an amazing area for a summer, guide 4 days a week, climb a ton, and make money. Well, that is not the case. You make minimal money. I actually lost money, came back with less money than I went with. I didn't go out to eat once, cooked at home all the time, etc. Our outfit provided us with housing, but we paid rent. The few people that did make money lived out of a tent all summer. While this seemed like a good idea, it's not a permanent answer.

the climbing aspect: be motivated. I was the only person who got out all the time. The majority of the guides didn't climb at all. IT's hard to guide all day and then go work a project after being in the blazing sun hauling people up cliffs all day. My boss put it best, "if you're going to make guiding your primary source of income, you can't be a strong climber...because you will not have any time to climb. As soon as I heard this, my brain completely shut off to guiding. It was fun, but it kind of took the magic out of what I love about climbing.

You definitely need: cheap housing or free housing.