ELEVATED

Officially WFA Certified, and technically, a NOLS alum!...

Sun, 12 May 2013 19:03:44 -0500

Officially WFA Certified, and technically, a NOLS alum! Although, I’ll feel like I’ve earned that second title after my trip to the Pacific Northwest this summer for my two-week course.

"Mountains should be climbed with as little effort as possible and without desire. The reality of..."

Fri, 10 May 2013 18:05:00 -0500

“

Mountains should be climbed with as little effort as possible and without desire.

The reality of your own nature should determine the speed. If you become restless, speed up. If you become winded, slow down.

You climb the mountain in equilibrium between restlessness and exhaustion.

Then when you’re no longer thinking ahead, each footstep isn’t just a means to an end, but a unique event in itself.

This leaf has jagged edges. This rock is loose. From this place the snow is less visible, even though close.

These are things you should notice anyway.

To live only for some future goal is shallow. It’s the sides of the mountains, which sustain life, not the top.

”

- Robert Pirsig. This reminds me of our expedition leader, Chris Warner, and his idea that people can “reach the peak, but miss the point.” The journey is the reward.

From one of my favorite writers, be thankful for the...

Fri, 10 May 2013 18:01:00 -0500

From one of my favorite writers, be thankful for the weekend—and for everything in between, too. Watch “This is Water.”

Photo

Sun, 05 May 2013 22:11:54 -0500

Words to live by when living through a crisis, according to Neil...

Thu, 02 May 2013 18:55:26 -0500

Words to live by when living through a crisis, according to Neil Gaiman: “make good art.” Amen.

Stage Blood

Thu, 02 May 2013 18:49:45 -0500

Getting Wilderness First Aid certified with the Wilderness Medical Institute of NOLS next weekend at REI. This was part of the preparation email for the course:

“Please dress accordingly for indoor and outdoor activity. Also, this course uses stage blood for realistic scenarios, which may stain some fabrics. Please wear clothing you do not mind getting dirty/stained.”

If it’s wrong to be stoked about getting covered in ketchup blood, I don’t want to be right.

The Texas 4000 Alumni Network ATLAS 2013 Challenge

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 19:01:00 -0500

Last chance for any Texas 4000 for Cancer alumni to get in on The Texas 4000 Alumni Network ATLAS 2013 Challenge before it closes tomorrow, April 30, at 11 p.m. CDT.

The goal is to try to log as many miles on your bike for four weeks between Wednesday, May 1 and Wednesday, May 29 as a way of getting ready for the ATLAS Ride.

So far, we have 19 alumni signed up for this friendly competition.

The perks are:

It’s FREE (sans the ATLAS registration fee).
Participants will get a cool bandana designed by one of our awesome alumni.
AND the alum who racks up the most miles will receive a special t shirt and the title of ”Champion of the Texas 4000 Alumni Network ATLAS 2013 Challenge.”

And the rules are:

You must be a T4K alum registered to ride ATLAS. If you haven’t already registered, please click here.
You must message me by 11 p.m. CDT on Tuesday, April 30 to officially sign up. You’ll then be granted access to a Google spreadsheet to log your miles in daily.
Any outdoor rides between Wednesday, May 1 and Wednesday, May 29 are eligible. That includes social rides, commutes to/from work, participating in a triathlon, mountain biking, unicycling, etc. The only catch? You must be wearing a helmet during the ride to count it for mileage.
No cheating. This is supposed to be fun and on your honor, so please mark your mileage correctly, and don’t mess with anyone else’s totals.

…So, would anyone else like to join us? If yes, check the Texas 4000 Alumni Facebook page for information on how to contact me. Remember, the deadline to sign up is 11 p.m. TOMORROW, April 30!

"My father considered a walk among the mountains as the equivalent of churchgoing."

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 23:09:15 -0500

“My father considered a walk among the mountains as the equivalent of churchgoing.”

- Aldous Huxley

The Best Weekends are Spent Outside

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 21:50:41 -0500

I went climbing at Reimers Ranch today. I ended up smelling like sweat, sunscreen, and dirt for a solid eight hours. And I kept having flashbacks to the Kilimanjaro hike whenever I would traverse across rocks and stare at the person’s backpack walking along in front of me.

Needless to say, I’m so happy and so tired after a weekend well-spent.

Ouch

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 21:38:00 -0500

Who knew “jug rash” was a four letter word?

…p.s. Tiger Balm and a foam roller are the two loves of my life right now. My IT band is so happy.

Out in the Great Alone

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 15:25:44 -0500

Out in the Great Alone:

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race pushes participants to the brink on an unforgiving trek to the end of the world. And, as one writer who tracked the race by air discovers, that is exactly the point.

Wishlist

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 19:31:00 -0500

So remember that time I had over 50 books on my wishlist and not enough time to read all of them? I’m drowning in pages of text over here; I might love books a little too much.

The List: The 11 Best U.S. National Parks For Solitude

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 23:09:33 -0500

The List: The 11 Best U.S. National Parks For Solitude:

I sure do love this list. St. Elias is one of my favorite mountains ever. And number 11 needs to happen soon, too.

blue-ridge-mountains: Ragged Wood || Fleet Foxes

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 21:47:12 -0500

blue-ridge-mountains:

Ragged Wood || Fleet Foxes

Indoor Camping

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 21:43:15 -0500

I took a Map & Compass Navigation Basics class at REI tonight. When it finished at 9 p.m., I totally missed my chance to play hide and seek with the retail staff, and stay overnight in the store.

Until next time, sleeping bag wall…

Living on One Dollar

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 22:56:00 -0500

Living on One Dollar:

Have an hour to spare for enlightenment? Watch as four young friends set out to live on just a dollar a day for two months in rural Guatemala. They battle hunger and parasites, as they attempt to understand how 1.1 billion people survive at this level on a daily basis. I’ve seen a lot of similar sights in Tanzania, and throughout many of my travels to Southeast Asia. And, there are plenty in the United States who face similar challenges, too. On this Earth Day, my hope is that sharing this documentary will make viewers repair, reuse, and recycle the things we’re lucky to have.

Flow

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 18:44:49 -0500

Flow:

“In addition to the experience itself, where you are actually in that state of Flow, there is the phenomenon of afterglow – that warm feeling you get afterwards, that intense satisfaction of having achieved something that you worked hard for.”

"When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world."

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 18:26:00 -0500

““When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world.””

- John Muir

The Hallmark of a Good Weekend

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 17:27:23 -0500

I’m a card-carrying Austin Rock Gym member now. Who wants to climb?

"One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple."

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 23:59:53 -0500

“One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple.”

- Jack Kerouac, Dharma Bums