A while ago I went to City of Rocks to climb some rocks (I’m a bit behind in blog posts, too busy doing things outside. Sorry. Sorta. But not too much). It was awesome. I’m pretty sure I kept saying that about every five minutes, how cool it was.
Because it was really cool.
Really.
Except it was actually pretty hot, as being out in the scrub in July generally is. Continue reading
Anhingas also make me happy. Because they’re awesome. I mean, come on. Look at that eye makeup and hairdo. Red eye, blue eye-liner, green eyeshadow, artfully disarrayed frosted spikes. Hotness.
Everglades National Park, Florida
Or savoring a cup of tea while sitting on a rocky beach in Cape Breton Highlands National Park in Nova Scotia, because you don’t have any pictures of leisurely tea drinking by the woodstove.
Camping up on Black Balsam, in Pisgah National Forest, North Carolina.
H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest, Oregon. I took this in May 2010. If I recall correctly, it rained pretty much the entire three months I was in Oregon.
Red-cockaded Woodpecker, Carolina Sandhills NWR, South Carolina. I spent a great deal of time chasing them around in the woods. It was fun. Other than the chiggers and the poison oak.
This has nothing to do with reading a good book, but surprisingly I don’t have any pictures of me reading. So here’s a picture I took of a Lava Gull and chick in the Galapagos Islands back in 2008. The adult is in breeding plumage, which is why it has the red eye-ring. And, it’s eye is closed. It’s napping. Parenting is exhausting, from what I hear.
Like planning our post-apocalyptic commune, or our skunk ape/NASA/unicorn conspiracy theory, or pretty much any time Meghan, Patrick, and I opened our mouths.
Skunk Ape Research Headquarters, Ochopee, Florida. Based on the drawings (which are based on a first-person description from someone who wasn’t the artist) in the “Skunk Ape Research Handbook,” that is totally a gorilla statue, not a skunk ape.
Climbing Castleton Tower with Max. I recommend climbing desert towers with someone who doesn’t say, “You know, if this tower fell over we’d be screwed” as you reach the belay on the 3rd of 4 pitches. Near Moab, Utah.
Thankfully I have no pictures of myself singing, so here’s another cool bird picture (you can never have too many). This is a Purple Gallinule, a sweet bird that lives in Florida. They live other places too, but this one lives in Everglades National Park. Well, that’s where I saw it. Maybe it was just on vacation.
Extra happiness: snuggling with both a dog and a cat. All those blond pet hairs covering your person and clothing are just pet love stuck all over everything in your life.
One of the many beaver ponds along the trail. Bridger-Teton National Forest, Wyoming.
And here’s a video of what is probably a Ruffed Grouse on Game Creek. It’s a good thing I ride slow, otherwise I might have run it over. These birds could definitely use some street-smarts.
Look both ways before you cross RUGR!
This post was inspired by my recent perusings of the Missed Connections on Craigslist. If you haven’t read through them and are looking for a complete time-waster on the internet (and are over 18, as some contain mature content– also, don’t open anything with a picture) I recommend it. Some of them are very entertaining (“You almost hit me in the WalMart parking lot, but you’re so hot, call me”). Oh so romantic.
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To get you in the right mood, here’s a song by Grace Potter and the Nocturnals called “Loneliest Soul.”
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You were dancing next to me, with your mesh trucker hat, plaid button-up short-sleeve shirt, Chacos, and climbing shorts. We made eye contact once, and then you disappeared in the crowd of identically-dressed men, all of which were more or less of equal attractiveness. So pretty much any guy who was at the concert can feel free to call me… Let me know what color my Crocs were so I know it’s you. (Hint: they’re orange).
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I need something
But I get nothing
My hearts pumping
I can’t leave it alone
I think you know
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We first ran into you climbing at Rodeo Wall with your friend. You both had your shirts off, and were leading some pretty good routes. We chatted. You had eyes for my friend. I had eyes for yours. We ran into you again, this time with your mesh trucker hat and plaid button-up shirt, at the Music on Main concert in Idaho the next day. You look better with a hat on (the jury is still out on the shirt). Also, my friend is quite willing to be flung. So go for it.
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No idea who you are, but seeing that sticker makes me homesick for Boulder. I just want to say hi and reminisce about Colorado rock for a while. Also, since you seem to have a gym membership, we should climb sometime.
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Your outfit makes me question your sexuality a bit, but then again you are a trombone player. I was quite impressed by your chops and by your acrobatic ability as you stood on the shoulders of the male dancer and helped lift up the female dancer. If you want to duet, I’ll bust out my clarinet and we can play some funky music, white boy.
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You gave me a weird look as I was sitting on the side of the road with my collection of 10 ft mist net poles, large backpack stuffed with mist nets, banding supplies, and a scale, waiting to get picked up after a morning of bird banding. Yeah, that’s right, I saw you looking at me. Anytime you want to come learn about bird banding, you are more than welcome to visit our banding station. Just stop on by, I’ll give you a personalized tour.
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Sweet dreamin’
Strange feelin’
My hearts reelin’
I can’t leave it alone
I think you know
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We talked about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle movie that was playing on the tv above the bar. I ordered happy hour curry and a beer. You brought me a huge stack of napkins, and then a rag to mop up the curry I couldn’t seem to keep on my plate. I promise I’m not usually that messy, it’d just been a long day and I had just finished climbing at the gym. Invite me back (and pay for my curry) and I’ll prove to you I have better table manners. Also, I want to see the end of the TMNT movie.
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You messaged me about climbing in Pennsylvania a year and a half after I put up the post. Not sure what part of “I’m in PA for 6 months for an internship, looking to get out and climb. Will only be here until November” you didn’t understand. I have since then had two different internships in two different states, and have accordingly updated my Partner Finder profile. But yes, we can totally meet up and climb maybe sometime when I’m back East in three months. Because I definitely want to spend my three days at home driving two hours to climb at McConnell’s Mills (40 feet tall, 25 routes total, especially after living in Colorado and Wyoming with Eldorado Canyon, the Flatirons, and the Grand Tetons less than 20 minutes away in my backyard. I’m always looking for climbing partners, especially ones who can’t read real well.
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Are you lonely
Like I’m lonely
I am the loneliest soul
So leave me alone
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//
Boulder, Colorado is a mix of all sorts of things, but most of them have to do with being outside. This is a town where one can buy oxygen*, grass (wheatgrass or marijuana), and water at exorbitant prices, but can also be immersed in all three for free in any of the more than 40,000 acres of protected green space in and around the city.
Perhaps the most iconic symbol of Boulder is the image of the Flatirons, rock formations located just west of town. Named by pioneer women who thought they looked like irons (not especially creative, but an apt description), they are conveniently located a few minutes from downtown. The Third Flatiron stands 1,400 feet tall, and was first climbed by Floyd and Earl Millard in 1906, the earliest recorded rock climb in Colorado. Since then it has been climbed thousands of times in a number of fashions, including by two men wearing roller skates, by only the light of the full moon, and naked.
The Flatirons
Boulderites like to play hard. The city hosts a “robust biking culture,” and many take advantage of the roughly 300 miles of bike lanes and paths, which are used year-round. On an average day, city employees counted 3,574 bikes in the downtown area. About 15% of the city’s annual transportation budget goes towards bike programs, and about 10% of all work commutes are made by bike, almost 20 times the national average.
The first people to live in the Boulder area were Native Americans of the Arapahoe tribe. Then in 1859 came the white men and the Boulder City Town Company, who divvied up the land into parcels and sold them for $1,000 per lot, later lowered to attract more buyers. The Territory of Colorado itself wouldn’t be established for two more years. Prior to 1861 Boulder was part of the Territory of Nebraska, which probably has nothing to do with the University of Colorado Boulder Buffaloes / University of Nebraska Cornhuskers football rivalry. The University of Colorado has been up and running in Boulder since 1877, and today hosts about 30,000 students.
The University of Colorado Boulder campus
Without Pearl Harbor, Boulder might not have grown into the town it is today. During WWII, the US Navy located its Japanese school at UC Boulder, which brought people from all over the country to the area. After the war, many of them came back, increasing the population by about 10,000. The 300 days of sun a year probably had something to do with it. Today, the population is just under 100,000.
According to a mile-high list of publications, Boulder is an ideal place to live if you are: a woman executive, innovative, a biker, happy, a foodie, well-read, an in-shape baby-boomer, educated, brainy, raising an outdoor kid, an artist, someone who works for a technology start-up, part of a LGBT family, or someone who likes trees, among other things. Says one local, “I love Boulder, sure there are a lot of people who are weird as shit (last night I had a 50 something hippy tell me she could teach me yoga while having sex with my girlfriend) but that’s half the fun of living here.”
Frosty Flatirons
References:
10 Things You Didn’t Know About The Third Flatiron. By Amanda Fox, Climbing Magazine. http://www.climbing.com/climber/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-the-third-flatiron
The Best Bike Cities in North America: Boulder, Colorado. By Sarah Ripplinger, Outside Magazine. http://www.outsideonline.com/adventure-travel/north-america/The-Best-Bike-Cities-in-North-America-Boulder-Colorado.html
The Best Cities to Raise an Outdoor Kid: The Winning 25. By Jason Stevenson, Backpacker Magazine. http://www.backpacker.com/august_09_the_best_cities_to_raise_an_outdoor_kid/articles/13125
Boulder, Colorado: The City Everyone Loves to Love/Hate. By Ryan Krogh, Outside Magazine: http://www.outsideonline.com/adventure-travel/best-towns/Boulder-Colorado.html
Boulder, Colorado USA (Boulder Conventions & Visitors Bureau): http://www.bouldercoloradousa.com/
City of Boulder, Colorado Homepage: http://www.bouldercolorado.gov/
The Gore-Tex Vortex. By Marc Peruzzi, Outside Magazine. http://www.outsideonline.com/adventure-travel/north-america/united-states/colorado/boulder/The-Gore-Tex-Vortex.html
Mountain Project Boulder page, submitted by John McNamee: http://www.mountainproject.com/v/boulder/105801420
Oxygen bar’s clients are encouraged to inhale. By Barbara Hey, Denver Post. http://extras.denverpost.com/life/oxygenbar0328.htm
Wikipedia: Boulder, Colorado. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boulder,_Colorado
Wikipedia: Colorado-Nebraska football rivalry. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado%E2%80%93Nebraska_football_rivalry
Picture Attributes:
Boulder postcard: http://www.yoganonymous.com/
CU Boulder campus: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:CU_boulder_campus.jpg
Flatirons images courtesy of the author
Joshua Tree, California
My first piece has been published on the Outdoor Minded Mag website! I also did the layout, of which I am quite proud. It’s really fun to mess around with making things look just how you want them on the page, and I can spend hours tweaking spacing and sizing… it’s amazing how much time passes when you’re moving pictures around.
This piece has been in the works for quite a long time, since the last time I went climbing in the Red River Gorge in Kentucky, which was a few years ago (2010 I believe…). It started as a journal excerpt, written as we were driving back to and from the climbing sites, and added to while waiting for pizza at Miguels after a long day of climbing (the pizza shop/campground/place to buy any gear your need or want/hang out for climbers in the Red– Miguels Pizza and Rock Climbing Shop). I had wanted to finish it for a while, but other things got in the way (life is annoying like that sometimes). Glad I could finally get it done, and especially excited that I could get it published and share it with everyone!
Here’s an excerpt:
Rock climbing is like an infection, some tiny bacteria that snuck in through a cut, multiplied, and almost without knowing it you’re speaking the lingo—words like “beta” and “redpoint” and “crimper.” You’re wearing the unofficial uniform of patched down jackets and ratty torn pants, spending hundreds of dollars on ropes and carabiners and bits of webbing and tight uncomfortable shoes, driving hundreds of miles so you can haul yourself up hundreds of tiny ledges and holds. It’s hard to figure out why you do this. It’s also hard to rationalize why being a climbing bum isn’t a good (long-term) life choice. – See more at: http://outdoormindedmag.com/why-i-climb-2/#sthash.w5bxg7OG.dpuf
Check it out, “like” it, share it, tell everyone you know! And do the same for OMM, because it’s an awesome magazine that everyone should read on a daily basis. Especially because I’ve now edited two pieces (and written one), which are contributing to the general awesomeness.
Link: Why I Climb
Red River Gorge, Kentucky
Currently, my life is like this:
The Flatirons, just a short walk up the street from the house!
I am now living in Boulder, Colorado, in the basement of my good friend’s family. In exchange for room and board, I help out around the house, drive the little sisters all over the greater Boulder area, and help take care of the dogs. My friend and his mom are currently in Antarctica, so my nanny/dog walker/chauffeur/entertainment buddy/dish washer services should be in less demand once they return.
Max on a boat in Antarctica, looking chill.
Side note: To read about Max’s adventures, check out the blog on his photography website: Max Wilderness. He’s got some neat pictures up from his most recent adventures in Patagonia and Antarctica.
Buddy, one of my furry charges. He’s not nearly as innocent as he looks.
When not driving Mikayla and Ashley to and from school and/or swimming lessons and/or doctor appointments/massages/yoga, I spend my days working on an online travel writing class, which is offered through MatadorU. They have a website full of many wonderfully written articles and pictures on all sorts of topics, from more traditional travel fare to pieces on social issues to food to interviews. There’s something for everyone there, and I have spent many an hour exploring the site when I meant to be working. Counts as research, right?
Check it out here: Matador Network
I am also now an editorial intern with Outdoor Minded Mag, an online magazine based here in Boulder. Or, I should say, that’s where Lauren (the editor) lives and works, so that’s where it’s based at the moment. She’s a very awesome person, and yesterday we spent hours holed up together in a coffee shop working on laying out some articles. It was a lot of fun, and I’m really looking forward to working with her. She recently skateboarded from Boulder to Denver, and wrote about it on the site (check it out through the link below). The website launched 6 months ago, so we’re still getting things put together, but I see the magazine heading in a great direction and I’m excited to be a part of it.
Check it out here: Outdoor Minded Mag
I’ve been climbing whenever I can, which isn’t quite as often as I would like. Wednesday I met up with a friend and we climbed for around 4 hours straight. My arms were so tired I could barely make it up a 5.8 by the end of the session. Climbing routes are rated by difficulty, the most difficult being a 5.15, the easiest being a 5.0. I usually climb 5.10’s, and some easier 11’s. 5.8’s are easy, beginner routes, that I normally do as warm-ups.
This site explains the rating system much better than I can: Rock Climbing Ratings
Climbing Castleton Tower in Utah, 2011. That’s Max’s foot, I’m climbing.
I’m hoping to break out my poor downhill skis, which have been languishing in the basement for the past two years, and ski on some real mountains, and in some real snow! Last time I skied was in Ohio, and I’m not sure that counts (and yes, there are places to ski in Ohio, I’ve been to three of the five “resorts”. Didn’t realize there were that many, I just looked it up). Although that one snowboarder who was in the Winter Olympics, Louie Vito, is from Ohio. Columbus, Ohio, which is about as flat as it gets.
I have a few leads for paying jobs, since climbing gym memberships, lift tickets, and gas are a bit pricey. I’ll keep you updated.
That’s all for now, folks!
Aspens in the snow.
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| Blake and Lucas getting ready to climb. |
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| Lucas climbing. |
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| One of the areas where we climbed. All of these routes were too hard for me, so I just took pictures and belayed. |
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| Blake, almost at the end of the climbing route (the edge of the overhang). |
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| The view from my tent. |
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| Neat old truck at the campsite. |
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| A cute dog from a nearby campsite that helped me pack up my tent and then played fetch with me. Afterwards he decided we were inseparable and jumped right in the front seat of my car. He was ready to go back to South Carolina, though he maybe wouldn’t have been so eager had he known about the 6 hour drive. |
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| I wish I could climb trees like this snake can, it would make climbing trees to band RCW chicks much easier! |
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| Why hello up there Mr. Snake. |
I had a fantastic time climbing this past weekend, and hopefully it won’t be another five months before I can climb again!
Tales From A Wandering Albatross 
