Great day in the woods

After shooting this morning's sunrise on Lake Superior I spent most of the remainder of the day exploring a remote section of Hollow Rock Creek. Hollow Rock Creek has a couple of really cool waterfall areas that are difficult to get to... no trails lead to these areas, so you have to bush-whack your way in and believe me, the going is pretty rough!



Once you get to the waterfall areas, however, the effort is well worth it. The beauty of Hollow Rock Creek is not an "in your face" kind of beauty... its beauty on a smaller scale. You have to look closely to see it, but once you start to look you soon find yourself seeing things you would have otherwise missed. The weather was perfect for this day of exploration along Hollow Rock Creek: overcast skies with very thick cloud cover. The cloud cover makes for a very even, muted sort of light that is conducive to shooting under the forest canopy. Bright sunny days are less desirable when shooting in the deep woods as the rays of sunlight create areas of extreme contrast that are almost impossible to expose correctly in a photographic image.



(Above: "Trapped" - A leaf that was stuck on the bottom of the creek)

Also, once most of the leaves have fallen off the trees, that doesn't mean that you should put your camera away and stop venturing out into the woods. It simply means that you should try looking other places to find your images... namely, along the ground! Its one of life's great pleasures to wander along a little creek like Hollow Rock and look for all these neat little things that catch your eye.



(Above and below: Swirling leaves and foam)





(Below left: Pothole along Hollow Rock Creek)

Raise and Fly

First the balloon which is about 3 stories high when inflated is unrolled from the large bag it is kept in. Then several people hold the bottom open while cold air from a large fan is forced in. At the proper time a propane burner which is attached to the top of the basket that holds the balloonist under the balloon is used to heat the air in the balloon. As the balloon heats it raises until it standing straight up. The balloon crew holds it on the ground with ropes until it is told it can go by the balloon referees. In this photo you can see the baskets, called gondolas with people in them. Each balloon is piloted by a licensed balloon pilot. Most balloons are from the United States, but there are pilots and their balloons as crews that come from lots of other counties.

Leavenworth Ice ..

Jennifer was supposed to work Christmas and Christmas Eve, so I was trying to find something to do. I successfully wrangled Ryan and Dylan to be followers and climb an ice line up Icicle Canyon. I was hoping that the recent warm weather didn't destroy it, and we would be rewarded with an early Christmas present to ourselves.

We took a casual start and arrived in Leavenworth around 10am. The beauty of this route is the "ten minute" approach. So we readied ourselves at the car and hiked into the woods. The route was easy to find having done the trail to Condor Buttress earlier this year.

The route in Spring

Within ten minutes of hiking we were at the first step of the route. Since it was a bit steep, we opted to hike past it and start at the second step. So we roped up and started with the second step. The second step had an easier line on the right, and a steeper line on the left. Since it was the first lead of the day, and I wasn't sure how strong the ice was, we kept to the right side. After the step there was quite a bit of flat stream so I set a belay and brought Dylan up who then brought Ryan up. We unroped and hiked up the stream bed a distance before reaching the next step. While this step was a solid WI2, it was short and we decided to solo it as we knew there was more hiking above it.

While the climbing so far was generally easy, the ice conditions were quite variable. As I suspected, the wet warm trend from earlier in the week left the ice poorly bonded to the rock in some areas. A section of the first step had a hollow 3' square area surrounded by well bonded ice. This next step that also had areas of poor ice as well, but fortunately I used the pick holes from a soloist (who had passed us) so as not to damage the ice further when I went up.

Some more hiking through a now brushy and less open creek bed got us to the next step. This is where the real climbing starts. From the base of this next step, I thought I could make it to the base of the final step in one rope length. But once at the top of this step, there was a little more distance before another penultimate step. So I led to the base of that step and brought the guys up. I then led out on the penultimate step which was really fun. There was a bit of snow on the ice and there were some hollow sections, but I was able to sink screws in it fairly well including a 19 cm screw. Once at the top of that step I was in the basin below the final step and proceeded to the ice to build an anchor. Unfortunately, the ice on the final step was thin and I couldn't sink screws well. (I was out of shorties.) I had to use 21cm screws not fully sunk as the anchor.

I brought Ryan up and he belayed Dylan up. We discussed the final pitch when we were met with another soloist. We chatted with him a bit. (Turns out the other soloist was his buddy.) And then we let him go ahead of us. The left side of the final step starts with about 12' of 85° ice. It has been climbed as it had pick marks. The right side had also been climbed usually on the far right. I decided to take something right up the middle where I knew there would be pro (wrong) and it was a bit steeper than the right side.

I started up heading toward an icy rib that looked like it offered good protection. Unfortunately, it would not take a screw all the way and I had to tie it off. The stance also was not great for placing the screw and I really worked my calves while placing it. Just past the screw the ice was tympanic and did not feel comfortable, but this passed. A little further up and I found a rest stance, so I placed another screw in shallow ice. My calves were really getting worked and I decided instead of heading a bit to my left for a short step, that it was time to head straight for the top. I worked quickly and methodically through the final bit of the pitch and was on flat ground heading for a large Ponderosa. Once there, I made it my anchor and brought Dylan up. He belayed Ryan up while I sought out the descent or a possible continuation.

Most parties stop where we did and descend. This is the option we choose after the bits of ice above our location didn't seem to offer any great climbing (that we could do.) So we headed down, following the trail of footprints in the snow. Most of the descent was fine to do in bare boots, but there were a few icy sections that would have been nice to do in crampons. Not sure it would have benefited to leave them on the whole descent, but Ryan did and he didn't complain.

This was fun route, but the climbing really starts farther up and the first few steps are warm ups. Due to the short approach and the length of the non technical portions, it is an easy day trip. (Car to car for us was around six hours.) The ice wasn't in the best condition, and was hacked out in a few places as well. (Very different from how we found The Goatee.) The climbing on the upper three pitches was great, and I'd go back to do this again.

My pics are here.
(Dylan took pics, but I haven't seen them.)

Summer

Weather patterns around the mountain have settled down. High pressure has been sitting in the area since Independence Day. Skiers, climbers, and ravens soaking up the rays at high camps are rewarded with unencumbered views of the Cascade Range.



Routes around the mountain all seem to be in 'typical' shape for this time of year. Check specific route conditions using the links to the right. July brings quick changes to conditions on the upper mountain. Be sure to ask rangers about the most recent updates while checking in for your adventure.



On another note, we'd like to give a special shout out to our extended climbing community for all your gracious assistance, positive vibes, food, gifts, and thoughts. We appreciate all your help and look forward to seeing ya'll back up on the mountain soon.

Guess what is (nearly) finished!!!

Okay, this is a "brag" post. . .

Four months ago today I embarked upon my second major scanning project for ... The first project was to sort and scan my mother's photograph albums which took from April through August. There is still one group of photos left with that project and, in my goals for .., I stated that I hope to have those done by the end of March.

The second project, sorting and scanning my genealogy files and documents, was started on September 22nd and I'm *EXTREMELY* happy (relieved, thrilled, pleased as punch, etc.) to report that it is *ALMOST* done! The last group of documents to be sorted and scanned are those that pertain to my ancestors, shown on the table in the photo above. The two tallest piles belong to the Brubaker and Phend families. These will be scanned to both jpg and pdf format. After being scanned, these documents will be put into protective pages and placed in three-ring binders.

Other files that were scanned and kept were put in folders and are being stored in small "bankers" boxes in the garage. Only about a third of the files that I had were kept. Everything else has been recycled, most of it scanned first, but not all. The binders on the shelves and the folders and in the filing cabinets consumed nearly 40 linear feet, while what was kept amounts to about 13 feet (9 bankers boxes 15.5" deep and the papers on the table).

Two empty filing cabinets. Now there is the "problem" of what to do with the 3-ring binders and hanging file folders that are no longer needed. As you can see below, the three tall bookcases have been removed. They were sold, at a very reasonable price ;-) to a friend.

The "before" photo, above, was taken November 13, ... And below is what it looks like now (photo taken yesterday).

Another view.

The "before" photo is above (taken November 13, ..) and what it looks like now is below.

How did I accomplish this feat in four months? It is due to several things actually, among which are:

• Retirement. No way could I have gotten it done in four months if I was still working, maybe in four years, maybe!
• Being single with no kids. Though I do have errands to run for my Mother and I have to make sure she gets to the doctor and other appointments.
• A stubborn streak (perseverance) that was inherited from my Mother. I just made up my mind that it was going to get done, one way or another!
• And finally, the Fujitsu ScanSnap S300 document scanner, which I heartily recommend. In four months of use and after sending nearly 30,000 pages through it, I had only a couple of paper jams and none of them seriously damaged the paper being scanned. I've definitely gotten my money's worth from this little gem. Thanks, Denise!

Of course, I still have to add file data and captions to all of those image and pdf files, but at least they are scanned and accessible on the computer. I've already had a need to access some of those files and I must say, it is much quicker to click through several pages of a pdf file than it was to find the binder they were in and flip through the pages. And yes, they are all backed up to the laptop and an external drive, though I haven't yet overcome my fear of "losing" all of those electronic files...

Into the Mountains

Wednesday, April 6th - - After leaving Monahans Sandhills I continued west on I-20 about 130 miles to Van Horn where I turned north onto Texas Highway 54, which runs in-between several mountain ranges – the Boulder and Delaware are to the east while the Beach and Sierra Diablo rise up in the west.



The photos below were taken shortly after leaving Van Horn. These mountains were on the west side of the highway – a variety of interesting peaks.

Las Trampas Leaves

Las Trampas Leaves, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

Although it's not as pronounced as on the East Coast, there is some fall color in California. This tree in Las Trampas was particularly bright.

Anybody else have fall colors nearby?

State of Grace

I sawher picture in a magazine and it was instant girl crush. I had never seen a creature so beautiful: She was like a graceful, violent, dirty Snow White. "That's Maureen Bruno-Roy," I was told, "she's a professional cyclocross racer." Half a year later, I was sitting in her kitchen. "Mo" was making tea while talking about her massage therapy business and riding Dutch bikes for transportation in Belgium. "Racing..." she shook her head with a smile when I brought it up, as if the concept both amused and confused her. "I am grateful that I happen to be good at it, but it's not everything." She showed me her pink Shogun mixte, which she rides to work in her regular clothes. She spoke about how much she loves bicycle infrastructure. Later we looked over her fleet of sponsored, impeccably tuned racing bikes in the basement. "You are welcome to borrow one," she said, as if talking about lending me a sweater...






In between sips of coffee, I glanced up at the television screen with boredom, watching the race with unseeing eyes. A man in a zip-up sweater and a baseball cap glanced at me from the bar, then stood up and walked over to my table. He began to narrate the race in my ear as it unfolded, telling back stories about the riders and their behind-the-scenes dramas, then interrupting himself to describe what it was like to corner in the rain on a particular descent that was coming up, then interrupting himself again to speculate about the psychological state of the riders as they prepared to execute some maneuver I only vaguely understood. This was the 1989 World Cycling Championships race and he made it happen live, right in front of us. That was how I met the race announcerRichard Fries. Later I snapped some shots of him at the Providence Cyclocross Festival. I wonder whether he realised that in some way he was responsible for my being there...








When I started riding with the legendary randonneusePamela Blalock, the thing that stunned me was that I never felt slow or inadequate. How could it be that I struggled to keep up with ordinary cyclists who were just slightly more experienced than me, and yet the Climbing Goddess and I seemed so effortlessly in sync? This was my first taste of a strange paradox: Riding with people who are way, way better than me is easier than riding with people who are just a little better...







For a brief portion of a group ride, my path once crossed with the awe-inspiring endurance racerJohn Bayley. He rode next to me in the tail end of the double line we formed as if it were the most normal thing in the world for the likes of him to be riding with the likes of me. He truly made me feel that it was. We entered a stretch of dirt road that was rutted out and iced over in spots. As we chatted, I saw that, side by side and at considerable speed, we were approaching a narrow ridge between two deep ruts that only one of our wheels could possibly fit through. Before I knew what was happening, he wiggled ever so subtly and I instinctively followed suit, and without breaking stride, we both ended up riding along that narrow ridge without crossing wheels or slipping off of it. I doubt John even remembers this, considering he just kept cycling and chatting blithely while it was happening. But the incident was etched into my mind. "So this is how you do it..."





As a rider, Emily surprised me with her psychic abilities. When we cycle on narrow roads with traffic, we will ride single file and she will go in the front. And when she does this, Emily somehow knows exactly what speed to maintain so that I am right behind her at all times. I want to go faster and suddenly she is pedaling more vigorously. I slow down a tad and so does she, as if anticipating my fluctuating energy levels. "But Emily, how do you do that?" She says that she can see me in the corner of her eye, but I don't buy it. I try this when I ride with others, and find it impossible. I never, ever know how fast to go when I'm in the front. I'll think that I am going at a consistent pace, but then I'll look over my shoulder and see that I lost people; I feel like a jerk. Some day I want to be psychic, like Emily...









I could not get over the wayPatriarode her racing bike. It was with the attitude of riding a beach cruiser. Easy-peasy, fun-fun-fun. We rode so close that our handlebars were almost touching and I hardly noticed. We talked, we laughed, we gossiped, and before I knew it we crested the hill that I thought I was too out of shape to tackle without disgracing myself.It was 35 degrees Fahrenheit.A group of men from another local club passed us going in the opposite direction. Feeling feisty, we waved at them exhuberantly and they yelled something in a cheerful tone before disappearing. When I mentioned my struggles with clipless pedals Patria reacted as if we were discussing fashion accessories. "Why don't you try the shoes I wear? You might like them better. And they come in this cute color..." A week later I was riding clipless. No practicing in the parking lot, no problems. Everything is easy with Patria...






When I first visited the Ride Studio Cafeover two years ago, there was a tall, boyish man working there, making coffee and sweeping floors. He made my Americano, and told me his name was Rob. I assumed he was the barista, and he did nothing to contradict this impression. We'd chat when I visited the shop. I thought he was nice. Some months later I asked the guy at the cash register whom to see about test-riding a Seven. He pointed to the barista. "Talk to him, that's the owner." "The owner of what?" I asked. "The owner of Seven Cycles. And the Ride Studio Cafe."



It's been almost a year now since I formally joined my cycling club. It is not my intent to promote them here, but only to thank them. It is through this club that I've met all the people described here, who have opened up my mind, challenged my pre-conceived notions and expanded my point of view. Some people help you and you feel grateful, indebted. Others help you and you don't even know it. A person who can do that has achieved a state of grace.

Paris Recap

Our TGV ride back to Paris went off without a hitch, and we took the metro back to our hotel. (The same one we stayed in earlier.) We wandered about a bit to look for Le Maison du Chocolat, a famous Chocolate shop. On the way there we went into the Bon Marche a large high end department store. After only a few minutes, we felt out of place and exited the Bon Marche. We finally found Le Maison du Chocolat and purchased a few items before starting to make our way back to the hotel. On the way, we passed Napoleon's tomb and we visited the Eiffel Tower one more time. We went to dinner for a final time and had a nice meal before taking a stroll back to the hotel.

Napoleon's tomb

Au revoir Paris

In the morning we ate breakfast at the hotel, and then headed to the airport.

Overall we had a great time on this trip. We enjoyed Paris, but it reminded me just how many people in Europe smoke. (It seemed like 80% of people over age 12 in Paris.) It has been a while since I've been to Manhattan, but Paris seemed dirtier. Most likely due to people not picking up after their dogs. (In defense of Paris, they encourage street disposal of garbage like cigarette butts into the gutter where they are washed into the sewers daily.) However the air was warm and humid and left me feeling dirty every day. It took some getting used to opening the doors yourself on the metro as well, but these are quirks that are enjoyable about traveling. At first in Paris we were very shy about talking to people and we got better throughout the trip as well. There are plenty of world class museums in Paris and lots of interesting things to do. We mostly stuck to the touristy things, but those can be fun too.

Alsace was a nice change from Paris as it was small towns and cooler temps. (At least they felt cooler.) It was fun to start sampling regional cuisine and get out on bicycles. It was a wonderful experience staying in the Medieval town and in an old building as well.

Burgundy was fun too. We were hoping to have more time, but the train mishap killed that time for us. Another bike ride to vineyards was scheduled, but we had to drop it. If we were going back to France, we'd hit the dining scene in Lyon more and give Lyon a second chance as well.

What can I say about Chamonix? I could live there. Well, except for the alpinism as fashion thing. Way too many people walking around the village in mountain boots and action pants. They aren't wearing backpacks, so theoretically they could have changed into more comfortable shoes (and pants) where they left their backpack. It is like people who leave their ski lift tickets on their jackets. That style sort of irked me, but the town is nice even with its limited options.

Provence was pretty great too. Unfortunately due to the holiday, we kept our Provencal excursions to a minimum. This meant we did not make it to the French Riviera which was on our list. I am also bummed about not getting to swim in the Mediterranean Sea. Oh well, I guess there is next time. Dining in Provence gave us more access to vegetables which seemed lacking during most of our meals farther north.

We also were unable to fit in a viewing of Le Tour. This is mostly because we planned last minute and bookings were hard to come by. But also because we planned our itinerary to be almost opposite of where the tour was. We were in Colmar a week before the tour was supposed to visit, and we really hoped to watch it on TV when we got back home, but you need cable to watch the tour. Oh well. This is one reason I would consider going back during high tourist season.

We had lots of great food on the trip as well. However, I (being from the NE USA) am not used to the slow eating. Sitting down to eat would mean at least and hour and a half of restaurant time. The only way to eat quickly, which is what Jennifer and I did was to buy a baguette and cheese and eat it in the park. It is also quite difficult for Jennifer as a vegetarian in France. Fortunately she eats fish, but there are not a whole lot of main courses that don't involve meats. Some restaurants we had to seek out because they had vegetarian options. Others had noticeable vegetarian options so we chose those. It did mean we didn't always get to eat where I would like to, but compromises need to be made. France is also great for the ability to eat outdoors. I think we ate inside only three times on the trip (not including trains.) This made for some enjoyable dining. Except for when smokers would sit at the table next to you. So if you wanted to avoid smoke it made sense to eat indoors.

Our train travels and limited French vocabulary also made the trip interesting. Although it made us discuss entering The Amazing Race a bit more every time we traveled. We had a lot of fun overcoming the adversity and it made us stronger. Neither of us ever got frustrated to the point of being un-fun. (Although I was close with the unadvertised closing of the line that went to Versailles.)

Attempting to speak French was also a funny experience too. I had a few classes about 5 years ago before moving to Seattle, Jennifer actually got to finish the class, and had previous Spanish lessons, so I thought she would be better. But she often confused Spanish words with French words, while my French made me feel like I was fluent in German. (Which I am NOT.) We got by and had some fun with most people who did not speak English.

On that note, the people were very pleasant in France. There was really only one incident that is not indicative of society that stood out. We were walking down a street and a homeless Parisian man mumbled some angry stuff at me and then spit in my general direction. I am not sure that had anything to do with me being a foreigner as he may not have know that. Many times we would order from menus or ask for tickets at a museum and get replied to in French. Although I did ask for a map at Versailles (in French) and was asked if I wanted the English version of the map. (I'm sure my pronunciation is terrible for most things.) It was nice to know we could get by with our limited language skills.

Jennifer really enjoyed the trip as it was her first time off the continent of North America. Every place we went was new and exciting to her, and she always said we should have spent more time there. She had a lot of fun and it was her first time seeing, touching, and being in human structures that were 400+ years old.

It was overall a fun trip, and one that I wouldn't mind duplicating in a different country. Although I am not a big fan of going during high season because of the crowds and the costs. There are advantages though which was more festivals, special events etc. happen during the tourist season. But in the future we will have more time to plan. For now, I am glad to be back home in the Cascades.

A "Special" Sunrise!

Why is this sunrise special? 'Tis the anniversary of my birth! The morning of February 17th was a little chilly but it turned out to be a splendid day. A beautiful sunrise. Blue Skies. Sunshine All Day. Temperatures in the upper 60s.

After spending three days in San Antonio with my friend Diana (also a Joslin cousin, 3rd cousin once removed - and thanks Diana for your hospitality!) I checked the weather forecast and saw that Padre Island and Corpus Christi were supposed to have several really nice days, I headed back east. I wasn't disappointed.

I arrived at Padre Island National Seashore at about noon on Tuesday to clear skies and sunshine and left on Thursday morning with gray clouds blanketing the sky and blocking out the sun. But it was still warm! Two days of strolling the beach and soaking up the vitamin D. Quite nice, thank you very much.

Roses are Red ...and Welded in Steel

While I enjoy receiving flowers on special occasions, it's always a little sad when they wilt. So for our anniversary a couple of weeks ago, I asked my husband for a steel rose from Spooky Bikes. With Valentine's Day coming up, I thought I'd mention it and post some pictures. These beautiful roses will last, and they make for a lovely way to mark an occasion while supporting a local artisan.I love mine; it is even nicer in person than in pictures.







Spooky Bikesare somewhat of a cult manufacturer, making road, cyclocross and mountain bikes in Bellows Falls, Vermont. I met them at theNew England Builders Balla few months ago and had a chance to see a few of their bikes. The steel roses are a side project, welded by Chris Traverse ("...alone with my cat and my coffee making roses that will make other people smile...").The majority of proceeds will benefit theSunset Ranch BMX Parkin Western Massachusetts, which Chris established and continues to grow.






The roses are made of a mild steel, one petal at a time. The petals, hand-tooled leaves and braided weld-wire stem are then TIG-welded. They are available in a raw finish, or dipped in bright red acrylic paint.My rose is the red-dipped version. Only the tips of the petals are dipped in paint, still leaving sections closer to the base raw. The bare steel and the rainbow rings around the welds contrast nicely with the liquid look of the red. It is a dramatic, visually textured combination. The appearance of the flower is natural and organic, not cartoony.






There is variation in the shape of each petal, each stem, each flower.As it ages, there will be increasing natural colour variation.The steel looks delicate, but feels rather strong.






The roses are available as single flowers ($33), vines ($85), and dozen roses bouquets($250), in both the raw and the red-dipped finish. Order soon in you want yours to be made in time for Valentines Day. Delight your darling and support our local bicycling craftsmen. A beautiful combination.




Says welder Chris Traverse: "The look on my friends faces when they pull into the trails to see what's new to ride is the same look on people's faces when they open up one of my roses." Chris has had an interesting history. Read his full statementhere.

Pangbuk Ri

Lead climbing ranger David Gottlieb and friend/former climbing ranger/Pacific Northwest hard-man Chad Kellogg put up a harrowing, spectacular, and unprecedented ascent of Pangbuk Ri in Nepal (pictured to the right). Starting their climb early on 10/10/11, they summitted and returned to basecamp in an epic 50 hour push.
Read the full trip-report on Chad's blog here, and see some awesome photos and short video from David's blog here.

With decent weather over the long weekend, lots of backcountry snow enthusiasts were out playing. The NWAA (Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center) started posting updates, check them out here.
Have a safe and inspirational holiday season!

Farewell Festival

Last night Laura and I decided to take advantage of the last day of the and stack a few of our favorite activities. Laura came up with the name "The Farewell Festival." Not really a festival, but a seriously fun day of outdoor activities. Ideally we plan to continue this in upcoming years as well. Here's my recap of our great day!



Phase 1 - Skiing, Seven Springs resort (Somerset Co.)

First activity of our festival was to get in some skiing at Seven Springs. Ice climbing conditions have been dismal thus far, so we've been enjoying some local man made winter and decided this would be the first activity of the day. We left home in time to make a run down from the North parking lot and hit the lifts at 9:00AM when they first started running. We skied for about a couple of hours enjoying the best conditions of the season thus far. There were no mojo sapping crowds as in previous holiday mornings up there, just perfectly groomed, fast running slopes. Yesterday we had 7" of fresh snow which had skiers and boarders swarming the mountain like bees on a hive. We usually only stay until the lift lines take longer than the runs down the hill. Yesterday was a very short day. If we hadn't planned multiple sporting events for our farewell festival day we definitely would've stayed longer to take advantage of short lift lines, fast conditions and fun jibs. Laura and I cruised some hills, hit some rails all the while filming our hijinks! Alas we had to move on to the next phase of our festival which required considerably less clothes than our phase 1 jibwear!



Phase 2 - Ice climbing, Ohiopyle State Park (Fayette Co.)

After Seven Springs, we made a pit stop at home to exchange gear and clothes. After a quick change out of our baggy ski attire into more trim fitting climbing duds. We packed up the Subaru and set off to Ohiopyle. Meadow Run was our destination. We filmed more pre-climbing stupidity in the car then set off for the crag. Not much ice was to be found, but we managed a few laps each on Season Finale M6. I was anxious to see how my injured shoulder would handle dry tooling. I've been resting it for several weeks now under the care of my good friend Dr. Andy. It seemed to work fine for the limited climbing we did. Also to make my climbing day sweeter was that I finally tried my new Lowa Ice Comp "fruits".

Lowa Ice Comp GTX

They were quite fun and much lighter than my standard mixed boot and crampon combo of Lowa Mountain Expert GTX and Petzl Darts. They should prove to make for some fun climbing this season! With still more festival fun ahead we had to pack up and move on to even funnier looking outfits and phase 3. NOTE: Visiting climbers looking for ice. Next weekend should have some drips forming up. Check for ice condition updates both here and on NEice.com



Phase 3 - Winter Running, Mammoth Park (Westmoreland Co.)

Running is a great interest of mine. I've been running for a number of years now and have logged many, many miles and lots of elevation on both trail and roads. It's a great way to keep your cardio in tip top shape (be sure to focus on hills for climbers). Laura started running this fall and has been working hard while following a safe, proper training schedule. Today was proof how much effort and dedication she's put into becoming a runner. Conditions were less than ideal, but she crushed her 30 minute workout today in proper style. We made the short drive to Mammoth Park, a local county park that has a nice 1.04 mile brick exercise path that is usually kept clear of snow for users. The thermometer in the car read 35 Degrees with gloomy skies. The path was plowed, which resulted in removing the snow, but in its place remained ice. Running it required careful and attentive footwork. Several times I found myself having flashbacks to my morning rail slides at Seven Springs. It was a great run to end the year. Laura followed her program and ran 3 laps like a champ completing a 5k for the first time in winter conditions. I ran 4 laps in a slippery 29:42 then running an easy mile to cool down. We walked together and filmed some running segments for future laughs. We had an amazingly fun day of activities. We're going to be heading out early in the morning to follow our New Years Day climbing tradition. We're heading to the Higher elevations to see if we can't find a New Years first ascent!



Farewell ... Hello !



Happy climbing,

Tim and Laura

Bulletin

We interrupt Fossil Week to bring you this important bulletin.



A phlox bloomed.

A migrating Louisiana waterthrush sang.

A snake slithered.

Butterflies fluttered by in numbers.

Crabapple trees were planted.

Mosquitoes have been slapped and ticks have been pulled.

Shorts have been worn AND frosty car windows have been scraped.

In other words, it's spring.

Contact Strength

Susy Goldner spent eleven years, long hours, every day of the week,perfecting her contact skills.

As Manager of Contact Centres for Virgin Blue.










It's the same meticulous approach she brings to her climbing.

A reliable sourceinformed jjobrienclimbing that Susy was caught in Kalymnos with detailed sequence notes, including a breathing and resting strategyfor her project in her chalk bag. Meticulous? More than a bit.








For a girl who has spent so many years helping customers get into planes she has spent a disproportionate amount of time jumping out of them. She told me one day how many skydives she has made, I don't remember the number but it gave me vertigo.












That's a Kaly' tan right there.









Working for an airline has it's perks, there's those handy refresher towelettes, and then there's the travel.

U.S./ Kalymnos / China / Nowra / back and forth to the Bluies.








Getting things sorted.





Susy sends "Wholey Calamity" 26 at Coolum Cave





They call her the G-Star












A decade of fronting an airlines' customer contact could go either way.

It could make a girl jaded or it could feed a commitment to improvement and a desire to excel.

Guess what Susy chose?





to be continued