Through The Looking Glass

http://www.highinfatuation.com/blog/turning-points/

Above is a link to Steph Davis's blog. I wrote her a letter and her response was very helpful.

Well, it really hasn't been fair of me to keep all of you in the dark for so long. I guess my pilgrimage started about a month ago when I boldly signed up for a Wilderness First Responder course. Like the falling of tiny pebbles that begin a landslide this course opened me up to so many different possibilities and inspired within me a passion I didn't know existed.

Long story short, I had a massively mind blowing time during the course where I met some simply astounding people who I am proud to call my friends. I want to continue down this path and one of my goals now is to become EMT certified.

After the WFR course I found myself in Alaska where I did a shit load of hiking and kayaking and came to the conclusion that I would like to move there. Plus there is this pretty cool girl there that I kinda like.

So after Alaska I came home and felt like I had done some pretty good endurance training while away (in 4 days I hiked 26 miles and had a cumulative elevation gain of over 10,000 feet). So, since I wasn't in any shape to strap on a climbing boot, I headed to the mountains with a snow board strapped to my back. Boon, Steve, and myself attempted to summit Adams in a day (a mere 12,500 foot endeavor) with slightly over 70lbs strapped to our backs. I pooped out just beneath the false summit at 11,000+ feet. and my compatriots managed the false summit before feeling like they were going to die. Epic fail, but the snow board back down from base camp the next morning was nothing short of amazing (with the exception of getting lost in the trees).

The following weekend I managed to do Muir and snowboard down which was probably the most fun I've had on a snowboard since Baker earlier this year. The next day I got up and did a really fun summit with some awesome friends, Gretchen, Steve, Laura, and Samy. The glissade down was fast and furious and I could not stop laughing from sheer enjoyment. Plus I got to meet some mountain goats.

Last weekend I did Mt. Si in a couple of hours round trip. The run down destroyed my knees for the next two days but it was a lot of fun and I finally feel like I have some endurance back. The only down side, besides the crippling pain in my knees, was the fact that the entire time I was in a rain cloud and when I got to the summit I couldn't see a damn thing. Real glad I brought my camera.

This week I have been fast at work to try and get all of my possesions in order and organize my route to Alaska as well as move out of my apartment. I've been really excited for some kind of change to occur in my life, and while I leave a lot of amazing people behind I look forward to new places, people, and adventures.

I've gotten to the point where I can squeeze my foot into a climbing shoe so I'm really psyched to get out to little si and Exit 38 as much as possible before I go. Plus, I want to summit Rainier and make one last trip to Lake Serene (let me know if you are interested!!)

My schedule looks like this:

July 28th is my last day in Olympia. That evening I move to Seattle to house sit for my mom while she is in Ireland and France.

August 16th is my last day in Seattle. That morning I will leave Seattle and head to Squamish for a few days before heading north to Alaska.

By August the 23rd I will finally touch down in Alaska!

Not entirely sure what is going to happen in Alaska. I have looked into getting EMT certified for free through Search and Rescue so that looks to be a promising course of action (fingers crossed). I also need to learn how to bolt rock because I have found one of the most amazing crags up there. It will only be climbable for another 3 months but hey, I might be able to establish some sweet top ropes. Other than that, the climbing front for me will consist of rock rings and a hang board, at least for the next 8-10 months.

Anyway, I love you all and I will definitely keep updating my blog even though it might turn into a hiking/back country snow boarding blog for a while.

Oh yeah, I've got a new camera now which I love so lets hit the crags for a photo shoot!!

Its 2011 and Everyone is Still Alive

Good grief Charlie Brown! What in the hell have you been up to? Hmmmm, besides the usual? Not much, I guess...

It's definitely been an 'intriguing' start to the next year. Not a whole lot has changed really. The weather is always changing; I'm growing older; I'm learning new things; my outlook on life and people, places, and things is changing; so I guess a whole lot has changed. I think a smart person once wrote "Change is the nature of existence". This seems to be the theme to my meager and unrelentingly ambiguous life. Instead of fighting the tide I've embraced this fact and tried to go with lifes ever evolving ebb and flow. I would desire not to get too stuck in the muck and mire of dwelling in the past or rehearsing the future. Another smart person said, "Rolling in the muck is not the best way of getting clean." So with a fresh face, and strong desire to move forward I've made a comittment to return to school and finish my masters degree. With that I've also taken up a new outdoor interest: snowboarding. It's something I've wanted to try for a few years now. When I lived in Colorado as a kid (age 9-15) my parents would take my brother and I up to Winter Park for skiing. My father, being quite proficient at the sport was gone in a spray of snow flakes, leaving my brother and I to fend for ourselves. After a few times out we eventually got the hang of it and I can remember blasting down the steep snow covered hillsides manipulating the two skinny and long planks strapped to my feet with great ease and having an absolute blast. Not to mention the beauty of the mountains and the warm embrace of the lodge afterwards. So after a great deal of hand wringing and hopping from one foot to the next I finally made the financial plunge and invested in a few things I would need to get the adventure off the ground.

So far I've been out three times; twice to Crystal Mt., and once to Mt. Baker. I have to say that all three times were more than I had hoped for. With the occasional 'slam', I've actually managed to start carving as of my last trip, and I finally have garnered some visible control. My main goal has been to get good enough to start doing back country (i.e. Rianier), but really, it's just been invigorating to get into something new.

Mt. Baker parking lot.

Crystal Mt. My first time out was a heart wrenching one. My 'friends', all quite good and well seasoned skiers and snowboarders thought it a downright traditional faux-pa not to throw me down a double black diamond my first day out. This is said black diamond, The Powder Bowl. I took a lot of seats going down, but made it unscathed, and ended up going down another three times.

Mt. Rainier, as seen from the summit of Crystal Mt.

Now don't get scared. I've not given up climbing in the snowy white face of some new outdoor adrenaline fix. If anything it's given me a new perspective on climbing; hell on life in general. Yesterday I had a great breakthrough and managed to carve down my first black diamond with no falls and no drifting. I got to the bottom and had this supreme rush of clarity and unadulterated joy. It was like clipping the chains of my first outdoor lead all over again without the slightest notion of what this might do for my climbing ego or scorecard. I couldn't stop myself from hugging my friends and looking as if I had taken a large hit of laughing gas for the rest of the day. It was an overwhelming sense of accomplishment. And while this is the same reason I climb, it was amazing to find it in another activity. The struggle of learning how to move over snow/rock effortlessly; taking huge whippers or slamming after catching an edge is such an enlightening process that locks you into the 'moment'. It allows you to let go of so much that keeps you from enjoying these present moments in life that are happening all the time.

"A much more interesting, kind, adventurous, and joyful approach to life is to begin to develop our curiosity, not caring whether the object of our inquisitiveness is bitter or sweet. To lead a life that goes beyond pettiness and prejudice and always wanting to make sure that everything turns out on our own terms, to lead a more passionate, full, and delightful life than that, we must realize that we can endure a lot of pain and pleasure for the sake of finding out who we are and what this world is, how we tick and how this world ticks, how the whole thing just is."

Good friends Stephanie and Kyle at Mt. Baker. Such a great day.

Peace in the mist.

Best for friends for life! Right? The view was amazing, the weather was sunny, and the runs were open and not crowded. Can't wait to go back.

Bye! Thanks for reading...