Mountains, backpacks, roadtrips, and other adventures
Camped in the van near Palouse Falls, Washington, last night, and ate breakfast at the picnic area in the morning. The falls were peaceful and nice. Spent the afternoon in Lewiston, Idaho, working on some writing and checking out the waterfront. Weather is warm and nice. Heading up HWY 12 tonight on my way to Missoula.
Outfitted the Steely Jeff with some new shelves today. Yay! Such organized! Other provisions recently acquired include a basic tool kit, a fire extinguisher, a phone mount (for GPS), a tape deck adapter (for audiobooks), a razor scooter, prayer flags, and a journal.
I moved out of my place in Portland last week, and have the van more or less packed for full time living now. I paired down a LOT of stuff. I’m down to just essentials — clothes, bedding, camping and hiking gear, and a cooking setup. I think I have more or less everything I need. We’ll find out soon enough.
I leave tomorrow for a 3 week trip through Idaho, Montana and Washington. Key stops are Glacier National Park; my Auntie Marita’s house in Eureka, Montana; and my sister’s house in Seattle, Washington. I have a lot of side options on the list too, so there should be many other stops. This trip should be a good test for extended traveling. Fingers crossed!
One of the perks of living in Portland is getting sweet views of Mount Hood when flying into PDX. Caught this photo while flying in from New York last Tuesday. I could look at this mountain all day!
I climbed Mount Rainier with 4 friends in mid-August, 2018. This climb was by far, the the most challenging climb I have ever done. We ascended some 9,800 feet, and traversed about 8 miles of open glacier on a rope team, crossing rock fall, piles of seracs, and massive crevasses. It was strenuous physically, but equally difficult mentally. The level of hazard on summit day required constant attention to safety for the whole team. Still, it was an amazing experience. Mount Rainier is an incredible mountain, with some of the most beautiful terrain I’ve ever seen.
My friend Brookie organized this 40 mile loop through the Eagle Cap Wilderness in the Wallowa Mountains for her 61st birthday. Trip was set for early August, 2018. On the itinerary was a 4 day, 3 night backpack trip, including Horton Pass, Eagle Cap Peak, Moccasin Lake, Glacier Lake, Hawkings Pass and Crater Lake. The weather was hot, and we had a couple of long days, but we had a fun group, some nice trail surprises, and great views of the Wallowas.
This website is still pretty new, but I added a few trip reports from some recent adventures this week. Check them out at the links below:
The Enchantments: A long 18-mile thru-hike I did with some friends across the beautiful Enchantments in Washington.
Camp Muir: A solo training climb I did up to Camp Muir on Mount Rainier’s southside.
Mount Hood: A southside climb up Mount Hood, with an overnight on Best Known Method Ridge.
Mount Shasta: A 4 day climb up Mount Shasta via the Clear Creek route.
A few weeks ago I purchased a 2001 Volkswagen Eurovan MV, (A.K.A. the USS Steely Jeff), for an upcoming road trip through the western US. I’m planning to travel and live in this van while I’m on the road, and so far I think it will suit my needs. This post provides a brief tour of the Steely Jeff and introduces a few crew members who will be joining me along the way. Continue reading “Steely Jeff: Tour and Crew”