I spent a two-week gig guiding in Yosemite Read More ...

Continue reading Two weeks in the “Range of Light” at PMags.com.

Two trips and eight days of guiding. Slushies, alpine views, mountain lakes, fascinating people, skills taught, and lots of wildflowers. Read More ...

Continue reading Tiptoe through the wildflowers: Another Skurka Guiding Trip at PMags.com.

A look at the second edition of The Ultimate Hiker's Gear Guide by Andrew Skurka. Read More ...

Continue reading The Ultimate Hiker’s Gear Guide – 2nd Edition at PMags.com.

Some initial impressions of the High Route 1FL shelter. Read More ...

Continue reading An overlook: Sierra Designs High Route 1FL at PMags.com.

Initial impressions of the Sierra Designs Flex Capacitor backpack. Read More ...

Continue reading First impressions: Sierra Designs Flex Capacitor at PMags.com.

Another winter backpacking trip with Andrew Skurka in Rocky Mountain National Park. Read More ...

Continue reading Winter in the park 2015 at PMags.com.

Another backpacking fundamentals course I assisted on with Andrew Skurka.

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I work as an IT Monkey to pay the bills. What started off as a way to save money between hikes turned into a career.

It is not my passion.  I just think logically and analytically.  And I am reasonably good at what I do.

Working in technology will never inspire me the way putting together the perfect lasagna and sharing it with friends will, wandering the site of an ancient battle and thinking “Here’s a focal point of history!” (while my German national someone sweetly points out that some of her distant ancestors may very well have massacred some of mine!) and, of course, the time spent in the wilds.

Technology is my vocation.  Cooking, history and the outdoors are avocations.

One pays the bills.

Continue reading Tromping in the Basin – Skurka Backpacking Fundamentals Trip at PMags.com.

A weekend where I again assisted with a winter backpacking course.

Winter backpacking is, at first glance, not really that different from three-season backpacking.  You still need your usual backpacking gear: a shelter, stove, sleeping bag, clothing, sleeping pad and so on. Food is still cooked, hot drinks are still poured and routes are planned out on a map.

Except that the gear is heavier and bulkier. Tasks take longer. Being warm and dry takes a little more proper planning and work. Hydration seems a little more difficult. And you may even need extra equipment in the form of skis or snowshoes.

Winter backpacking is rewarding…but it does need a little bit of extra planning, requires more attention to detail and the right mental attitude.

With all that in mind, I again assisted on a winter backpacking fundamentals weekend with Andrew Skurka. A great way to kick-start and gain skills in deep winter backpacking.

Continue reading Winter backpacking in Rocky Mountain National Park at PMags.com.

Some trips I’ll be guiding with Andrew Skurka  in 2014.

I will again be assisting Andrew Skurka with some trips in 2014.

As in previous trips, I’ll be assisting Andrew with some trips to Rocky Mountain National Park.

• Level 1: Backpacking Fundamentals in Rocky Mountain National Park
• Level 3: Winter Backpacking
• A possible third trip TBD

These trips are a great way to “fast track” your way to help learning valuable outdoor fundamentals: land nav, shelter and site selection, basic hygiene and sanitation, applied first aid and the other myriad of outdoor skills that many people (myself included!) fumble their way through.

If you are an experienced three-season outdoor person, the winter trip is a great way to experience the beauty of winter in a constructive, fun and informative way.

Not everyone has the free time and resources to spend many weekends learning by trial and error these outdoor skills.  

Continue reading Guiding with Skurka 2014 at PMags.com.

A wonderful trip to Rocky Mountain National Park. I again assisted Andrew Skurka.

Fall is a sacred time for me.

There is no hyperbole in that statement.

It is the time of the year when I need to be outside. To embrace the chill of the autumn night and revel in crisp air of the autumn day.

The aspen are ablaze in yellow and the ground is covered in a mix of pale yellow and russet-colored leaves. There is the slight smell of damp leaves underfoot mixed in with the sharp smell of pine needles.

Seems as if nature is making one final push to reveal her splendor before winter sets in.

Perhaps it is an overly romantic view of this time of the year. But it is a time of the year I embrace. A season I look forward to every year. And it is when I seem to enjoy the outdoors the most.

Continue reading Fall in the Park at PMags.com.