In Hike, Photography, TR on
20 January 2007 with Comments Off
Mileage: 4 miles (+/-)
Dean and I weren’t feeling too ambitious. It had just been too long since we’d been outside, and with only a limited amount of time, and in-shape-ness, we decided to play it easy and head back to Franklin Falls for an easy winter camping shakedown.
Quick load-up of the snowshoes and packs and we headed up to the Pass. The trailhead was mostly empty, so we backed into place and started heading back down towards the falls. It only took us an hour or so to make it back there but it was dark by the time we were able to stomp out a place for the tent… ON THE ICE.
Yup, on the ice. The only flat place stable enough for us to pitch the tent was about 40 yards down from the main falls near where the trail headed back up. The ice was about 4-5 inches thick, but after getting things settled and dinner going, it was a bit unsettling to hear the water flowing directly underneath you. It wasn’t the quietest campsite I’d ever been in - the falls was doing its thing quite nicely and the westbound side of I-90 was just overhead with snowplows coming by every 30 minutes.
Dinner was quick and easy, with Dean’s Jetboil knocking out water quickly for a couple of freeze-dried meals. We had neglected to pack cards or a book or an iPod or anything, so we decided to just get some rest and call it an early night.
A couple hours later - maybe around 10…
POW! KA-RACK! Shuffle shuffle shuffle slide slide slide
I was instantly awake - heart pounding and my feet already scooting out of my bag and heading towards my boots.
Dean was doing the same thing, but it was over as soon as it started. Adrenaline pumping, I pulled on my jacket and boots and stepped outside with my camera to see what had come down, and how close it was. We had picked this destination because of the snowfall up higher and the considerable avy danger, so we figured a chunk of ice had broken free and tumbled down in the rocks. I took a few night shots and shuffled back into the tent.
It took both of us a while to get back to sleep, and even then it was fitful and light. The water running under your head wasn’t the most comforting sound, even though we knew the ice was solid. The rest of the night pass uneventfully though, even with the sounds of snowplows dropping their blades on the freeway above our heads that sounded like avalanche cracks. The next morning we were up early, downed some water and packed up. It was just barely snowing, but there was around five inches of fresh stuff to plow through on the way back, which provided a lot of good photo ops. The whole excursion wasn’t that spectacular - a simple overnight hike in the snow - but it was a good exercise in snow camping and stretching out the legs. Didn’t see too many people on the way out, but we did come across a nice solid igloo someone had made…
Breakfast at Gordy’s - excellent as usual, and a perfect way to finish off the morning.
In General on
3 January 2007 with no comments
Having grown up in Wyoming and Washington, my perspective on the Great Outdoors is pretty biased. I’ve been lucky enough to live and travel in some of the most beautiful parts of the country, and thanks to my father and his example, have been able to experience that beauty up close and personal through family trips, Scouting, Search and Rescue, and even now, just heading out by myself or with friends or my children into the mountains to refresh and recharge my spirit. This has always been a part of my life, and something I’ve probably taken for granted. My experiences outside define a large part of who I am and how I see the world, and it’s something I really value and give thanks for daily.
This year I’m fortunate enough to be able to participate in a program through Backpacker Magazine, that will help give others an introduction to those same kinds of experiences. The “Summit for Someone” program is put on by a non-profit group called Big City Mountaineers out of Colorado. BCM provides urban teenage youth in need of positive adult mentoring with challenging, safe outdoor experiences designed to build self-esteem and positively impact their beliefs about themselves and others. The program has climbers such as myself raise funds that will send at-risk teens from around the country out on a 8-day backpacking or canoe trip, and allow them to experience the great outdoors in a way they might not otherwise have a chance to.
This coming July will hopefully find me climbing Mt. Olympus as part of the program (not with the kids, but as part of a guided group of climbers sponsored by BCM), and I will be working on raising funds ($3500) from now out until a month before my trip. I am appealing to those of you who read through all of this to help me reach that goal, and if you’re willing, then please click through to learn more and donate. Any amount is appreciated, and all of it makes a difference.
I’ll be making some progress in both raising funds and getting into shape over the next few months, and will keep things up to date here as often as I can with photos and trip reports from training outings, so stay tuned.
1987:
2004:
In Oregon, Search and Rescue, Weather on
11 December 2006 with no comments
Is all you can do sometimes.
COOPER SPUR, Ore. (AP) - Rescue teams headed up the flanks of treacherous Mount Hood on Monday to search for three climbers reported missing in heavy snow, but were ordered off the mountain when conditions became too dangerous.
Having been lost before, as well as having gone through both search and rescue training and missions, I can feel for everyone involved and only hope for the best of outcomes. The right guys are out there (Portland Mountain Rescue, Hood River Crag Rats), and at least the guys have the skills they’d need to stay alive. The problem is the weather, which isn’t exactly cooperating, and in those kinds of cases all you can do is wait and pray.
And hope.
In Hike, Photography, TR on
30 November 2006 with 1 comment
Mileage: 4 miles
With the long Thanksgiving weekend bringing us up to the Seattle area, I’d brought along my pack and gear for some kind of outing. Luckily Mark was able to make it out on Saturday and we decided to go snowshoeing up at the Pass. I’d just bought a couple pairs of snowshoes on sale at REI the day before, so that coupled with all the fresh snow promised a good workout that morning. Avalanche uncertainty pointed us towards the Gold Creek area, and with our typical early morning start, we turned on the headlamps and started shuffling up the snow-covered road.
The road was pretty well-packed, so the snowshoes weren’t that helpful for the first little while. Once we hit the deeper trail though, we were glad we’d brought them along. We were only out there for four hours or so, but managed to hike ourselves silly and get some really good photos. It was a good quick outing and nice to be able to pull off considering it had been a while since I’d been out down in Vancouver.
Happy Birthday, Mark!
In General, Photography on
16 November 2006 with 1 comment
Having started my climbing “career” in Washington probably around 15 years ago, I’d read and heard a lot about one Fred Beckey. Articles in outdoor magazines and the Cascade Alpine Guide series were my only real view into who this guy was and what he’d done, but after some time I discovered a more of his work (Challenge of the North Cascades) and really started to recognise what a unique character he is.
Last night Mr. Beckey gave a nice little slideshow here in Portland that I was lucky enough to attend. He spoke for almost two hours about the mountain ranges in North America and just how lucky he was to be able to get up them with various partners and in various conditions. He’s actually a great photographer and has a good eye. The photos of his slides I snuck don’t really communicate that very well (I wasn’t looking at my settings) but you get the idea. After the slideshow he offered to sign books and chat for a bit, so I went down with my older CAG (the brown one) and had him drop his signature on it. I asked him about his China trip next year and he lit up and said they’ve got a financieer now and if I can talk Nike into getting them some shoes I can come along. I smiled and told him, “Well, I work with Converse, so I’ll see what I can do!”. The folks in line behind me chuckled and I thanked him for his time and shook his hand and that was that.
I had run into Fred a few times before back in North Bend. A few years ago I saw him sitting at Denny’s on our way out, and I walked up to him with Ian in my arms to say hello.
“Excuse me, Mr. Beckey?”
“Mr. Beckey?”
…
“Fred?”
He was sitting there with his little notebook reading and eating an omelette or something and didn’t even budge. I didn’t want to make a big scene or anything, so I just smiled and said “Nice to see you…” and kept on going. I really couldn’t belive I’d been snubbed by someone who I’d always considered a bit of a hero or something, so I was practically laughing outloud as we walked out the door. Amy was totally confused so I quickly explained who he was. Right in front of the restaurant was his red subaru parked almost diagonally across the two handicapped spots, with a ton of gear and stuff in the back. I just laughed again and smiled all the way home.
You have to realize, I had pictures of this old man up on my wall in college, and Fred Beckey was my pen name in my freshman english creative writing class. The fact that his backyard was my backyard was just fun - and made for a lot of good reading and armchair mountaineering, as well as actually following in his footsteps.
The other time I met his was in Marten Volken’s climbing shop in downtown North Bend. Fred had come in and was talking about his new AT skis with the crew there in the shop, and it was the first time I’d considered that the reason I was snubbed back at Denny’s was probably because the man is pretty deaf. You really have to talk loudly to get his attention, and this thought was only reinforced at the slideshow. Standing in line watching people try to ask him questions was pretty funny while they tried to get a straight answer from him, and he’d just smile and repeat himself a few times about something close to what they’d ask, but really not quite. It was just nice to know he’s maybe not as cranky as I’d first thought…
All in all, it was a fun evening and a pretty cool chance to meet someone I’ve admired for a long time. For a guy in his 80’s he’s still hustling and that’s pretty inspiring.
