Day by Day

Skaha Climbing Trip

2009-04-20T21:32:00.000-07:00

April 4 - 19th - Nice trip out to Skaha for climbing and time with my family.
Despite lugging a camera around I didn't take much for pics..

XC Ski day.

2009-02-22T20:03:00.000-08:00

Finally downloaded my memory card dating back to just after Christmas.
These two are from a fun day just outside Golden with a couple friends.

Cheers,

Banff / etc

2008-10-18T19:44:00.000-07:00

Skaha Trip

2008-09-11T23:43:00.000-07:00

Summer Update

2008-07-15T19:59:00.000-07:00

A quick update on the last four months.
1. Sold my van. I miss it but life is simpler now that I only own one car.

2. I've been climbing

3. ..and working lots - so I climb some more to forget it all.

4. ..and I've seen some funny stuff. It's not every day that you walk up to a crag and find a japanese tourist in a bright pink shirt checking out the rock.

Now it's time for bed.

Things best left forgotten

2008-04-06T20:41:00.000-07:00

Day in, day out we rely on our memory to guide us through:

Red light stop, green light go. Names, numbers, turn right, meeting for dinner tonight. Up the stairs, down the street, dark coffee with half a sweet.
All those memories that move me through each day.

You wonder, how does it all fit? Sometimes memory seems so finite, how could I possibly remember another password?

"I'm sorry, I had to memorize too many passwords and now I don't remember my own name"

An old song plays and 30 years fade away. I'm a time traveler in my own head. It's a sunny day and the wind is in my long hair. Bike tires howling. Smell of hot pavement. More old songs, more old memories. Laughter, tears.. ahh life can be bittersweet.

What if all old things were banished from your life? Photos, songs, smells - would you lose the memories associated with them? Or would the old things still come back in your dreams?

Some days I only wish I could remember, and some days I only wish I could forget.

The best of March.

2008-03-17T21:06:00.000-07:00

It's been a good winter.
Here's a few highlights.

Johnston Canyon - Ice Day

2008-02-10T19:30:00.000-08:00

Stop Canadian Junk Mail

2008-02-10T19:08:00.000-08:00

It's beyond ridiculous the amount of unaddressed mail (e.g. Junk) gets delivered. Glossy flyers, cards, pizza menus, free magazines. Most of it goes directly into the garbage or to be recycled. On an environmental level I'd call it criminal.

Here's an easy way to stop the junk mail that Canada Post delivers.
http://www.reddotcampaign.ca/

Good bye 2007, Hello 2008

2007-12-31T21:27:00.000-08:00

Well, the final hour of 2007 is ticking by.
What a wild year it was, at times a wild horse doing it's best to buck me off and others a trusted steed to carry me home.

It's hard to sum up the last year but the one constant was change. New lives started, old lives changed. The gain of new friends and the passing on of others.

A moments silence for those that will no longer walk among us. Remember that they live on in our hearts and the good memories we share.

My deep thought for the year:
We only have the moment in front of us and nothing more.

This is not a reason for despair. If pure joy can happen in a second, just think what you can do with a year.

Happy 2008!

Dec 23rd & 24th

2007-12-24T21:52:00.000-08:00

Drove out to see my parents on the 23rd. Roads were kinda nasty through Rogers Pass and on down to Vernon. Lots of vehicles in the ditch. Took me about 11 hours from Calgary to Oliver. Made for a long day.

Took a break and went for a small explore.

Here's a few pics.

Merry Christmas!

I'm alive

2007-12-16T20:32:00.000-08:00

..despite not posting anything to my blog in nearly a month, I am alive. Alive and well I might add.

Ice climbing season is in full swing here and I've been getting out at every opportunity. Went out to Evan Thomas Creek today. Remembered all my gear except my water. Not sure if it's related but I had the worst calf cramps ever while climbing.

Christmas is just around the corner. Hard to believe but I've only got five days of work left for this year.

A merry Christmas and happy new year to all my friends, near and far.

Ian

Full Moon

2007-11-24T20:31:00.000-08:00

Went ice climbing today at Heart. Good day, nice walk out under a full moon.
Shot the following pic from the hood of Julie's truck.

First Ice Day

2007-11-11T21:40:00.001-08:00

Got out to King Creek with some friends on Saturday. Typical crazy Alberta weather. 18 or so degrees in Calgary. Raining on Hwy 40 but cold in the canyon. Didn't expect to climb really, but was pleasantly surprised.

Wasn't sure what to expect from myself. I was keen to climb but thought it possible I'd sketch out once I got off the ground. Wasn't the case at all. The climbing was great! I even finished up by leading a route. Crossing the log bridges over creek did make me nervous. I ended up testing how waterproof my boots were by plowing the creek while my friends tiptoed across the slippery logs.

Guess I can stop worrying about being able to climb in time for the Canmore Ice Festival.

Ground Fall

2007-10-15T20:34:00.000-07:00

A quick update. While climbing at Wasootch I had a groundfall. I slipped and fell when moving above my first piece of pro and hit the ground from about 12-14 ft up. The .3 cam slowed me down a little but didn't hold. Not sure who hit the ground first. Me or the cam.

I landed on my right side partially curled up in a ball. Had my hands & arms tucked in so didn't hurt them but my right ribs and hip got slammed really hard. Knocked my breath right out. Not sure how long it was before I could breathe again but I was starting to wonder if I was going to black out first. Julie was asking me stuff like "are you ok?!?" "what's hurt" but all I could do was flop around like a fish while my body tried to sort out what the fuck had happened and how to breathe again.

Adrenaline is a funny thing. As soon as I could breathe I sat up, and did a quick self check. Wiggle toes? check. Move fingers? check. Elbows, shoulders, collarbone, etc. check. OK! Time to get up and get back on that climb!! But a couple minutes passed and then the pain from my ribs started to sink in. hmmm maybe I'll just sit here and catch my breath a bit longer.

About that time my friend Lyle and his friend Lynn wandered up. She's trained as an EMT so she gave me a good feelup (thanks Lynn!) and Lyle climbed the route for me and cleaned up the gear that Julie had left up.

Of course, the usual post accident questions have been swiming through my head. What did I do wrong? What could I have done differently? In short, I should have treated the first placement as seriously as I treat any placement higher up. If I'd been placing that cam underneath an overhang or before a long runout I would have backed it up with a 2nd piece of pro.
I was very lucky in how I fell and what I landed on. It could have been a lot worse.

In short: Never forget that climbing is dangerous and disaster is often only a decision away.

Well, the painkillers are kicking in so I'm going to bed.
Hopefully the ribs will heal up quickly and I'll be back at it shortly.

Vaseaux Lake

2007-10-12T22:34:00.001-07:00

exploring the possibilities

2007-10-09T22:34:00.000-07:00

Thanksgiving

2007-10-08T22:45:00.001-07:00

Road Trip Part I

2007-10-07T12:00:00.000-07:00

Calgary to Oliver via Rogers Pass.
Oct 7th, Sunday 1:30 PM to Sunday 11:15 PM
733 KM

Sleepless nights and Wool Beanies

2007-09-28T05:39:00.000-07:00

Various Pics

2007-09-24T22:16:00.000-07:00

Complexity is not the Cure.

2007-08-22T20:29:00.000-07:00

Think about it.. there are not many problems that we can improve by making them more complicated.
Doesn't matter whether it's a relationship problem, a business problem or a health problem.

The cure is almost always the same: Simplify and stabilize.

Now I just need to get that on a tshirt or something so "I" don't forget.

Priceless

2007-08-19T00:50:00.000-07:00

Cost:
One VW Westphalia Van - $10K
1/2 tank of gas - 32.35
Refill BBQ tank - 4.87
4 ears of taber corn - 1.99
T-bone steak - 6.84
2 big turkey and cranberry sausages - 5.05
Cesear Salad kit - 4.99
Climbing ropes, shoes, gear, etc.. $900

Day out rock climbing with friends and having a parking lot BBQ after the storm chased everyone else away? - Priceless!

Bonanza

2007-08-16T20:08:00.000-07:00

On Sunday three friends and I went to assault a classic climbing route near Devils Gap, an area commonly known as "the Ghost". It was a long, long day and could probably be a pretty long story.. but I'll just give you the short version..

We did a classic route called "Bonanza". The route was first established in 1976 by some rough-tough mofos. 260 Meters up, up, up over a bit, back a bit and up some more.. It basically follows a crack in the mountain almost to the top. There are some bolts, (and some old pitons) but most of the route is protected with self-placed gear. (cams, nuts, hexes, etc) First climber puts them in, the 2nd takes them out again... it adds a very large mental aspect to the physical challenge of hauling yourself up a mountain.

Back to the story.

The first pitch was some of the harder climbing I've done. Stemming across a wide slightly greasy crack until my feet and calves begged for mercy. In normal climbing, sport climbing, I would have just come down, had some water, a snack and maybe even a nap while my friends tried it out. Not this time. I caught up with my climbing partner at the first belay station and proceeded to grunt, groan, curse and whine until he was ready to continue. Continue is exactly what we did. He'd go up 50 or 60 meters, setup at the anchors and I'd come tailing after. By about the third round of this I wasn't so sure I'd be making it to the top and that my friends might just have to leave me behind for the rats and vultures. Fortunately a drink of water, an energy bar and some easier climbing brought things around. By the time we reached the top I was even having fun again!

The descent was a small adventure in itself. We traversed across the mountain, dropped into a bowl, descended down a wide drainage and finished off with a two part rappel which ended next to a small waterfall.

Round trip time? Left the truck about 11 am and got back at 10PM. Tired? Oh Yah.

Here's a few pics.

Today

2007-07-28T21:24:00.000-07:00

I climbed this today.
Had to drive, bike and hike to get there.
Totally worn out!

1st trip in the new bus

2007-07-25T22:35:00.001-07:00

First On Race Day or..

2007-07-07T11:11:00.001-07:00

Found On Road Dead

I'm back from my whirlwhind trip to BC.
The plan was to have a couple relaxing days with my parents in the Okanagon, a couple days climbing with Randa, and a couple days wandering the West Coast with Zak and Mandy. Figured I'd see some other friends along the way.

It's a long story but the short version is a small bit of hell broke loose and crashed on my poor balding head.
I shouldn't complain as there were many happy moments scattered through. Friends, Family, Fresh Cherries picked right off the tree.

Here's a few pics to explain.

a bowl of cherries

2007-06-25T23:40:00.000-07:00

It's well past bedtime but I'm busy enjoying a bowl of cherries picked fresh off the tree outside my parents trailer.
Earlier today I took a bowl of cherries to my dad, who's in the Penticton hospital recovering from surgery on his leg.
His poor leg is so bruised and swollen, it must hurt like crazy. But he smiled just like always when we walked into the room
Check out the photos of took of him.

If you want the full story of my dads accident then you should check out my mom's blog: suresimple.blogspot.com

g'night

busy, busy, backsoon

2007-06-03T23:22:00.001-07:00

Hey ya'll.

May was a super busy month.
Despite falling behind in a couple things I have to say my life has been pretty blessed.

See photos:

Spring

2007-05-14T21:47:00.000-07:00

Wasootch Tower - 1st attempt

2007-05-06T18:14:00.000-07:00

I've been climbing at Wasootch Creek for several years now and have many good memories of sunny days on the rock with my friends. Overlooking the sport crags and the dry creek is Wasootch tower, a small but impressive looking spire.

I'd heard there was route up it but only recently checked into it. After a bit of searching on the intarweb I found this gem of a page.

So, armed with some beta and a rack of gear Julie and I went exploring. We had a good trudge up the hill but we turned by back snow before we got above the treeline. Oh well, it was still a great day out.

Watch for attempt #2 once the snow melts a bit more.

PS Check out the tracks we saw. Looks like Cougar tracks to me.
I'm not 100% but sast week while driving back from Mt Kidd we saw a wolf standing on a hill above the road. If it wasn't a wolf it was certainly the biggest darn coyote I've ever seen.

Gear Mods

2007-05-05T03:25:00.000-07:00

Now that ice climbing season is over I've been getting a few things fixed on my gear so that next winter's climbing should be a little bit smoother. Got one of my backpacks modified to suit my ice climbing gear a bit better. I'll have to snap a couple pics but in the meantime I'll post up my recommendation of the shop before I forget,

Alpine Threadworks
http://alpinethreadworks.com/

Neil is based in Calgary, has a basement of gigantic sewing machines and is currently my recommended spot for backpack repair and modification.

Getting ready for spring..

2007-04-19T21:33:00.000-07:00

You wouldn't know it right now but supposedly it's April. Raining, snowing, blowing, -3 and miserable. Sure feels like spring I tell you. Yeah, spring..

Despite *spring* feeling like winter I've been busy getting ready for summer. Getting the bus ready for another summer of camping, putting away the winter gear, cleaing out closets and storage rooms. Unpacking boxes, packing boxes, etc, etc.

I had a fabulous winter and I was sad to see it go but it's nice to spend a couple weeks getting regrouped and ready for the next 1/2 of the year.

Well, it's late and time for bed.

more pics from Saturday

2007-04-09T22:55:00.000-07:00

End of the Season

2007-04-08T22:34:00.000-07:00

As I sit here with a decent sunburn across my neck and forehead it's hard to deny that ice climbing season is pretty much over. Not that it doesn't get sunny during the winter but you're usually so covered up that little more than your nose see's the sun.

Saturday, Julie and I returned to Cline River. Last weekend it was bitterly cold and the ice was brittle, brittle enough that I backed off the climb I really wanted to do and went up the easier line next to it. Yesterday when we arrived it was obvious the weather had changed. Almost all the snow was gone, and instead of piling on the layers of clothes we kept taking things off. Climbed beautiful blue ice in a tshirt. No gloves, no jacket, no hat (yes mom, I was wearing my helmet) and my feet were sweating inside my boots.

It would have been great to have another day like that but today was even warmer and I didn't trust that the ice would still be solid. So...... I cleaned and organized all my gear and got it ready to put away for the summer. The most summery moment of the day was when an orange butterfly flitted by and landed on my helmet. Perhaps it mistook the bright stickers for flowers.

I'll put up some more pics later in the week, but for now.
It's bedtime.

Nordegg

2007-04-04T22:43:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Julie and I stayed in Nordegg and went ice climbing at some of the nearby destinations.
Interesting place with an interesting history. The local terrain was a lot more diverse than I imagined it would be.
The photo below is from the Cline River. Beautiful spot! Nobody there but us, a flock of Cedar Waxwings and the deer we didn't see - but their tracks crossed ours several times on the way out.

Here's bit of info on Nordegg (if'n your interested)
http://www.travelnordegg.com/
http://www.ghosttowns.com/canada/alberta/nordegg.html

training..

2007-03-22T21:29:00.000-07:00

An interesting thought occured to me today while at the climbing gym. How long does it take to get strong and adapt to the load you're putting on your body? It's obvious in a specialized sport like climbing that adaption is more than just muscular.

I found a really interesting article on an Australian Rowing web site.

"The speed with which the various tissues of the human body adapt to a higher load varies widely from one tissue to another. The speed of adaptation is inversely proportional to the half-life of the cells of the tissue, being defined as the time required by the organism to replace half of the cells of a given tissue. In the sequence muscle > bone > ligaments > tendon > cartilage, the half-life increases with over a factor of 13, from 4 wks for muscle to over 1 yr for cartilage."

Here's the full article: http://www.rowperfect.com.au/tissue_adaption.html

Over a year for cartilage to adapt? No wonder people who are new to a sport have such a high level of injury. It's easy to push yourself hard, especially since your muscles adapt fairly quickly.

I'm too tired right now to say more than "wow, I guess overtraining is a bad idea"

This flax

2007-03-14T21:58:00.000-07:00

This has long been one of my favorite stories, I liked it so much I even put it at the top of my blog. But after looking at it for a couple months decided I'm not dispensing any zen wisdom here and probably don't even discuss it that much.

So here's the story: A monk asked Tozen when he was weighing some flax, "What is Buddha?" Tozen said, "This flax weighs three pounds.

Hah, It's been nearly 15 years since I first read it, and I still chuckle almost every time.

Saturday

2007-03-10T21:56:00.000-08:00

Yamnuska

2007-03-05T18:42:00.000-08:00

Spent a very nice Sunday afternoon hiking up Mt. Yamnuska with my buddy Steve. Not sure of the exact tempurature but the lower trails were a combination of slush and mud, and I was down to just a shirt (no jacket, no toque, no long undies, no pants.. uhh scratch that. Still had my pants on, although I suspect shorts would have been plenty comfortable)

We didn't go all the way to the summit. Yam is a wide mountain and doing the full circuit takes longer than we had time for.
It's been about three years since I've been on Yam. Injuries and responsibilites have kept me away. Felt rather good to be panting up the familiar trail to the top. Got some good memories on this mountain.

Think I first wandered up it when I was 16 or 17. Still remember sliding down the scree slopes in my running shoes, and having to stop and pick the rocks out. Now, 20+ years later I've got good boots and gaiters to keep the rocks out but it's still a thrill to go racing down the scree.

Decisions

2007-02-28T20:37:00.000-08:00

Last fall I was visiting my parents in BC and we watched a fascinating program on the medical use of maggots. Seems that maggots only eat dead flesh, which makes them perfect for cleaning out large infected wounds. Disgusting? Yep, but it's hard to argue with success. Several patients were profiled including this poor diabetic gentleman that had both his legs amputated and was at risk of further amputation if his wounds didn't heal. Apparently diabetes is the leading cause of amputation of lower limbs. I had no idea. It's hard to imagine how terrible that would be! Most of us would do almost anything to avoid a similar fate... or would we?

Cancer, heart attack, diabetes all seem like such extreme outcomes. Extreme as in what we do on a day to day basis doesn't seem to matter. It's not like eating a donut is going to make your leg fall off! Or, at least that's what it seems like. Looking at long term trends and lifestyles though... that donut can make your leg fall off. That one cigarette you need to relax can kill you.

The decisions we make each day define our lives.
Think about the choices you make. I know I'll be thinking about mine.

B&W

2007-02-27T15:14:00.000-08:00

more pics from Sunday

2007-02-27T00:49:00.000-08:00

A day in the country

2007-02-25T22:58:00.000-08:00

Got a late start on the day, didn't sleep until nearly 4am and when the alarm went off at eight I wasn't much in the mood for getting up and stomping around out in the snow.. so, we slept in and eventually loaded up the gear and got out of town around 12:30 Thought perhaps of climbing at King Creek since the approach is so short but there were seven cars in the parking lot. Gotta hate it when other people are just as lazy as you. Hood Creek looked interesting so we left most of our gear in the truck and went exploring. Shoulda brought snowshoes. There was a decent looking ice climb way up the creek but it was too late in the day. Pretty hike though.

Enjoying the new camera. Got a Pentax K100D though work. Great for a small digital SLR. The case fits on my backpack's waistbelt. Kinda nice not having to develop film. Shot a lot of pics today that I usually wouldn't. Plus Julie took a lot of photos while I drove (including the blurry moose) She was so excited I think she was having trouble holding the camera still. Didn't look full grown but it still was a big animal. Blended right in with the trees when it wasn't moving.

Well, its late and I got lots to do tomorrow.
Enjoy the pics!

Saturday afternoon

2007-02-24T15:16:00.000-08:00

camera testing..

2007-02-14T15:57:00.000-08:00

So, one of the things that got stolen was my little digital camera.
Small, light, waterproof and fit in my pocket. Pretty much perfect for documenting outdoor adventures.. only problem was I didn't much like the photos I took with it.
Years of shooting with SLR's, medium format and large format cameras have made me accustomed to shooting the way I want.. not the way the camera thinks I should shoot.

So.. considering sacrificing some convenience for control. Trying out a Pentax Digital SLR. Not too big, lots of lenses available, etc.

Here's a test shot.

What ice looks like..

2007-02-07T10:57:00.000-08:00

Got out on Sunday for a shorter day. It was a stunner of a day. Had to have the windows open while driving around town and we were hiking in just our shirts. The ice climbing was great. The feel of sinking your ice tool into some plastic like ice is sweeeet! Hard to describe but it's an even harder feeling to forget.

Didn't take any pics but here's a photo from Chantilly Falls.

Photos from Ron

2007-02-07T10:52:00.000-08:00

My good buddy Ron (green homer helmet) felt sorry that I was too dumb to backup my ice climbing photos and sent me some that he'd taken on our recent outings.
Enjoy!

Security comes from within

2007-01-31T23:45:00.000-08:00

It's been a couple weeks since I last posted, and I've had a bit of time to think about this whole breakin thing.
There's no denying the inconvenience factor. The reports, the paperwork and the shopping for replacements items. You can get more stuff but you can't ever get the time back. A bright side to the experience has been the response from my friends - multiple offers to loan me anything I might need whether it be climbing gear, cameras, bikes or just a friendly ear. My most precious possessions are those that can't be stolen.

Here's an old Zen story that I like.

A Zen Master lived the simplest kind of life in a little hut at the foot of a mountain. One evening, while he was away, a thief snuck into the hut only to find there was nothing in it to steal. The Zen Master returned and found him. "You have come a long way to visit me," he told the prowler, "and you should not return empty handed. Please take my clothes as a gift." The thief was bewildered, but he took the clothes and ran away. The Master sat naked, watching the moon. "Poor fellow," he mused, " I wish I could give him this beautiful moon."

The thief may have made off with some of my more expensive possessions but in terms of value he left empty handed. The love of my friends and family was far beyond his grasp.

Don't think too highly off me though, had the thief been in my house I quite likely would have done my best to lay a good thumping around his head and shoulders. Since it's been 10 years since I've done violence to anything tougher than a day-old donut, you'll now find me down at local kickboxing gym trying to sweat off the laziness of the last several years.

Gotta buy a new digital camera tomorrow, so there should be photo reports of my weekend adventures once again.

Until next time,

Security is an illusion

2007-01-09T20:57:00.000-08:00

We take a lot of things for granted in life, especially here in North America, so it's usually a surprise when something goes wrong. As in something worse than traffic being bad or not getting what you ordered at the restaurant.

Today my lesson started when I came home and discovered some cretin had smashed the window in my back door, opened it and helped themselves to my laptop, digital camera, my swanky Gary Fisher Mountain Bike and a few other odds and ends.

The Police came by to check it out. Nice guys, very helpful. Apologized that they couldn't take their shoes off. Hopefully my insurance company will be as good natured.

It was a bit surprising, as the thief was very selective in what he took. Only the lightest and newest. Left my old Rollie and my 4x5, left the imac, my scanner and my big PC behind. Didn't take the nice bottle of Red Wine my boss got me for Christmas but he did run off with the chocolate bar that I was very, very much looking forward to having a bite of!

Oh well, I'm grateful for what I have left. Kinda wish he'd taken more. I had a big pile of stuff in the living room that I was going to take the thrift store tonight. He left me with all that crap (sigh) There should be a rule. If you're gonna break into someone's house and steal their good stuff then you should have to take away an equal amount of their crap.. or clean their bathroom... speaking of which, if I see the rascal riding my bike around I'll be sorely tempted to scrub a toilet bowl with him! :)

old reliable

2007-01-02T23:18:00.000-08:00

Today I bought a new battery for my bus. Put it in after dinner, only took about 15 minutes including a new cable end.
Hopped in the front seat, turned the key and it started right up. Which was kinda surprising given how little I've drivin it lately and how little maintenance it's had the last few months.

On the other hand my Jetta is sitting across town refusing to start. It's 18 years younger and has had recent work done to it. Even by a licensed, factory trained mechanic... Which doesn't seem to matter the least bit when it comes to reliability.

In times like these I'm torn with indecision. Buy a new car with warranty, new car smell and *hopefully* no problems.. or to buy the oldest, simplest set of wheels I can find? Something like a 1968 Dodge Dart with a slant six and three on the tree. It ain't fast, it ain't pretty but it's simple. Or maybe get an old bug to keep my bus company and provide a bit better economy on longer trips... but then people might call me a hippy and run me off the road with their giant trucks and SUV's.

Oh well. Don't have to decide now. The old bus is eagerly awaiting a longer drive tomorrow and so am I.

Junkyards

2006-12-18T18:33:00.000-08:00

On Friday I took an ice climbing course with Ron, Julie and Sylvain. Local guide Mark Stewart took us out for the day and taught us a whole bunch. We hiked up to the Junkyards, a popular ice climbing spot just above Canmore, as the sun was rising and hiked back out again after dark. It was a fantastic day!

Here's some pics:

... and yet more ice climbing

2006-12-10T12:24:00.000-08:00

Ron, Sylvain and I went up Evan Thomas Creek to a climb called Chantilly falls. Beautiful spot.
+2 and still my toes were cold! Not much to say, today is "chore" day and I gotta get back at it.

regret

2006-12-08T12:26:00.000-08:00

It's not very zen like to have regret or to wonder about past decisions, but sometimes it's real hard to not look back and wonder just how you could have possibly fucked up so badly.

Recent Developments

2006-12-03T21:33:00.000-08:00

Developed a few rolls I had laying around.
Here are some of my favs. The untitled photo is my dad (trying to smile nice despite being cold)

A cold day climbing is better than a warm days work

2006-12-03T20:44:00.000-08:00

On Saturday Ron, Julie and I met up reasonably early (or ungodly early depending on your point of view) and after topping up on coffee, goodies and gas headed out to Heart Creek to check out the ice falls there. Not only were we the first ones there but for most of the day we were the only ones there. It wasn't the warmest day and the ice was a bit on the brittle side. Chunks and pieces were flying all over as we chopped our way through looking for good placements. Good fun but a bit tiring with all that swinging going on.

Not sure why but climbing makes me soooooo happy. Maybe it's the temporary setting aside of all the worlds problems while I step up to the challenge before me? Maybe it's tapping into something a bit more primitive? Not sure but I sure do like it.

Here's a few pics.

Pretty Darn Lucky..

2006-11-19T20:57:00.000-08:00

..to live where I do.
A few misc pics from a couple different trips (not all pics by me)

Shouldn't we slow down a little?

2006-11-19T15:26:00.000-08:00

On Saturday Julie and I went looking for ice climbs again. Felt the need to stretch my legs (and lungs) a bit so we went to Opal Ridge in Kananaskis, puzzled over the directions in the ice climbs guide book and eventually put our boots on, loaded up our packs of heavy gear and hiked up the ridge looking for frozen water... Nice steep hike.. but we struck out on the ice thing. Which may have been a disappointement but wasn't surprising. It's been rather warm and windy the last while.

Made it back to the car just as it was getting dark, packed up our stuff and headed back to Calgary. Just short of Opal creek we pulled up to an accident scene. Some unfortunate skiers had run into an even more unfortunate moose. One dead moose, One dead Jetta, All skiers alive but they were anxiously awaiting the ambulance to come take care of the driver.

One of the sadder things about the accident was that the dead moose had a moose buddy who was still hanging around and didn't want to leave despite all the people, cars and flashing lights. It stood forlornly in the ditch, it's head hanging low, looking at us, looking at the dead moose and looking to the dark woods. I don't know if Moose cry or if they mourn but there were certainly tears among the people that had stopped to help with the accident.

I wasn't there when the accident happened and I don't know why it happened. Excessive speed? A moments distraction? Maybe just really bad luck for everyone involved. I do know that people drive too fucking fast in the parks though. It's not easy driving down twisty, dark roads without being distracted by the stereo, your friends, the assholes behind you with the brights on, etc.. and it's hard to stick to a reasonable speed when the speeding cars behind you start piling up, but maybe we should all stop for a second, consider the consequences of what we're doing and take a little responsibility. ... and I'm not just talking about driving.

Finding my way

2006-11-16T21:16:00.000-08:00

Part of the adventure in ice climbing is merely finding the routes. Great directions like.. Small canyon, 3rd major drainage from the west. 2-3 hour approach through mixed terrain. You'd almost think you were searching for Pirate Gold! Anyway.. since I don't have a GPS and have been too cheap to buy one I bought a compass, figured not spending hours in the woods wandering around in circles had to be worth at least $11.50

So far.. it's defnitely been worth it. On Sunday I tried to find a route on Mt Kerkeslin but ran out of time and daylight before I found it. After a couple hours of bushwhacking we got back to the road about 20 feet from where we started. I have to say I'm pretty impressed. Still might buy a GPS though..

Jasper

2006-11-16T20:27:00.000-08:00

Left Calgary on Saturday afternoon, spent the night in Rocky Mountain House and then headed up to Jasper. Just got back on Tuesday night. Was a really nice trip. I'm too tired to talk so I'll let the photos take over.

Wintertime Nov 8th

2006-11-16T20:10:00.000-08:00

Seems like Winter has arrived in Calgary and it's time to put the Bus away for it's winter nap.
Summer seems like a long ways away but I'm already looking forward to more camping and climbing trips.

Ice, Ice Baby!

2006-11-05T19:24:00.000-08:00

Still got gear to sort, clean and put away (not to mention laundry, dishes, etc) so I have to be brief.
Anway.. Had a great weekend and thought I'd share a few pics.
Julie and I hiked up Kings Creek to see how the ice was forming. Brought our gear as training weight but didn't really expect to climb anything. The 2nd seep was looking pretty good so up we went. Yay! The ice climbing season has officially started.

PS: Check out my awesome new boots!

Happy Halloween

2006-10-31T17:57:00.000-08:00

Well.. I've got too many things to do and not enough time to do them in... so I have to brief.
After a nice visit with my parents I am back in Calgary. The Jetta ran fine, as long as I kept it to 80-85 and the roads were great until I got past Golden - then the roads weren't great at all. In fact, they were lousy!

I'm off to a house party to carve pumpkins and frighten any children that come by for Candy. (BOO!!)

Visiting the Parents

2006-10-29T11:03:00.000-08:00

I took Friday off of work, loaded up a weekend's worth of supplies and headed out to see my parents in BC.
It's nice to see my folks. Haven't seen them since the end of August when they moved away from Calgary and off to the sunny okanagon. hmmm.. it ain't so sunny right now. Raining and blowing. ugh. It's not so bad sitting around, drinking coffee and talking but on the way here my car developed an odd miss and after conferring with my mechanic we decided there's a few things that need checking/adjusting before I drive back to Calgary on Monday. ..and since I have to work on the car, the weather has turned nasty.

Yesterday wasn't nasty though. We loaded up the truck and went exploring. Got off the main highway and dawdled over the tight, winding back roads. It sure was pretty! Check the photo of the vineyard.

Anyway.. the sun is starting to come out so I'd better get ready to pop the hood and get greasy.

New Camera

2006-10-25T23:40:00.000-07:00

Just acquired an old Olympus XA. Looks like a little point-n-shoot but has a nice lens, decent viewfinder adn the ability to adjust the focus/exposure.

Here's three random photos from my first roll (Hp5+ developed in Rodinal 1:25)(negs still wet while I scanned them)

More Babies

2006-10-20T20:20:00.000-07:00

Nate

2006-10-20T12:49:00.000-07:00

Night

2006-10-19T21:53:00.000-07:00

Thanksgiving weekend.

2006-10-16T21:36:00.000-07:00

Thanksgiving 2006.
All my family has moved to BC and if I wanted turkey (and didn't want to cook it by myself) then I would have to leave my cave, be social and hope to be fed a nice thanksgiving feast by someone other than my mom.

Fortunately a bunch of my friends booked the Elk Lakes Hut (cabin for those not used to mountain speak) and we hiked in the 10 or 12K for the Thanksgiving weekend. I'm blessed with friends who like to cook. So, not only did I get turkey, potatoes, stuffing, pumpkin pie and more.. but the night before I had wild rice, baked salmon, an interesting Asian Mushroom soup that Randa dreamed up and a fantastic Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake that Ron cooked and carried in.

We may not have had to bring tents, or mattresses or cooking implements but the packs were still pretty heavy.

Thanks to my wonderful friends for a great weekend of food, laughter and time in the mountains.

Here's a few pics from the weekend.

Battle of the Bulge

2006-10-16T21:28:00.000-07:00

If I was a bear I'd be quite set for the winter hibernation. Despite being hairy, grumpy when woken up and maybe even willing to maul tourists for their lunches - I am not a bear and won't be hibernating anytime soon. Which is shame because sleeping for six months and waking up skinny seems a much better alternative to avoiding all the nice greasy, fattening foods I like and doing odd rituals like.. exercise. Speaking of which.. I went for a walk/run tonight. Now that it's nearly winter and gets dark early it's easier for big hairy bears to go running through the neighborhood without being snickered at or having small children go scampering back into their homes out of fear. Plus my beet red face doesn't show unless I get caught in the lights of a passing car, but then I just growl and posture until they go away.

So, tonights results: 40 minutes walking and running the hills in my neighborhood.
It may not seem like much but it feels like a victory to me. Especially since this time last year I was nursing an injury and could barely walk for five minutes let alone run.
I'm going to celebrate it with some nice healthy lentil soup... and maybe a teeny little bit of chocolate.

Friends are a gift.

2006-10-14T22:56:00.000-07:00

There are many gifts given to us. Life, sunshine, birthday presents, housewarming presents, etc. The gift I'm thankful for today is my friends.
They truly make my world a better place.

Here's a few pics of just a few of my favorite people.

Enjoy!