About this site

This site has stories and pictures of my outings, both with family and friends. It also details the "Celebration of Life," dedicated today to the spirit of big Jeff Walker who died of cancer at the age of 43. An explanation of the Celebration, and steps to prevent cancer, accompanies the Celebration's 2002 version.

You will note that (most of) my pages do not give precise route information. You may criticize me as a romantic, but I believe in adventure. Sure, I use maps and read trip reports, etc. but I also do a lot of trips based on a whim. I'll gladly exchange the trade route that takes the fastest, easiest line to the summit and instead take the unknown route that looks cool, even though it might not get me to the summit. I'm famous for ridgewalks, loops, and "long cuts." Eric Blehm, in his book The Last Season quotes Randy Morgensen:

"All your life, someone is pointing the way, directing you this way and that, determining for you which road is best traveled. Here is your chance to find your own way. Don't ask me how to get to McGee Canyon or Lake Double-Eleven-O. Go, on your own. Be adventuresome. Don't forever seek the easiest way. Take the way you find. Don't demand trail signs and sturdy bridges. Don't demand we show you the mountains. Seek them and find them yourself."

So don't be in a hurry. Don't worry so much about getting to the top. It's the going, not the getting there, that will free your soul.

I also agree with Morgensen's sense of the importance of wild lands. Tread lightly on the land. Practice backcountry travel that leaves no trace: no garbage, no poop, no tire tracks, no cairns, no sign of man. Our children, and their children, deserve a chance to experience the blessings the wild lands have bestowed on us.

Standard disclaimer about hazardous activities goes here:

"You are what you is" (F. Zappa).