Save Red Rock!!!!

Me climbing at Red Rocks. It would be such an eyesore to look over my right
shoulder and see a huge development.

So Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area in Clark County, NV (about 20 min west of the strip) is currently threatened by development. If you care about keeping our wild place wild please visit www.saveredrock.com for more information and to learn what you can do.

To sum up what is going on they want to build a major development with around 7000 homes with all the support and infrastructure buildings and items you need for a development this big right across the street from the entrance. (i.e. schools, police stations, fire stations, gas stations, strip malls, etc.) Some people have argued that this is not that big of a deal, but if you have ever visited RRCNCA you would know that this will be a major eyesore and create a multitude of problems.

Please write the Clark County commissioners and let them know you do not support this plan. The Access Fund has a form letter you can use if you can't think of something to say on your own. Some people suck at coming up with things to say, I get that I'm usually the same way.

My dilemma

Well I went climbing today with a friend and took Ares with me. While climbing I realized I have a small dilemma, I really want to start photographing climbing. I have ideas in my head for so many awesome shots but I never have the chance to take them. Obviously I could go out and take pictures of random climbers climbing, but the problem with that is that is time I could spend climbing myself. I think the only solution is to start climbing in groups of three or maybe four. That way when I'm not belaying or climbing I could be taking pictures.

Of course part of the problem with that is most of the people I go with I am bringing all the gear, which doesn't leave me with my own gear to rig me up to take pictures from different angles. I could just take all of my photos from the ground or from places where I can hike up, but that's kind of lame. I'll figure something out, one of my friends just bought some gear and another is about to so maybe I will start having the chance to take more photos, if only I can get more friends to go out climbing at the same time.

On a side note Ares was stoked to use his new camelbak (water backpack as he calls it). He thought it was very cool and had a lot of fun hanging out with us. He was very good and waited somewhat patiently for the sucker my friend Phil promised him if he was good.

Camping in Big Cottonwood Canyon (Cont.)

Climbing while camping was fun. There was plenty of climbing to do but I couldn't find much that was Ares safe. We still had fun though.

Looking up the climb after I just finished leading it. Matt's getting ready to go up.

Matt at the top of the climb in the previous picture.

Ares chilling, watching us climb.

I got into an argument with the rock on my way back down. Mr. Rock didn't like what I had to say and I lost the confrontation.

Camping in Big Cottonwood Canyon

I wanted to take Ares camping before he went back to see his mom so we went camping up Big Cottonwood Canyon. It was a nice short trip, just two nights, but I think it was about perfect for Ares. We took Matt with us and some of my friends met up with us on Tuesday to hang for a little bit.

Ares trying out his sleeping bag before we leave.

Ares cooking a hot dog.

I put Ares on Squrriel watch while we were camping. So every time a squrriel came out and he saw it he would run up to it and scream at it.

I love this picture just because he looks like he's deep in thought. Keeping warm in the morning.

Rock Climbing AF Canyon 2JUL2011

So the day after we went up Rock Canyon I decided I wanted to try out American Fork Canyon. I've never climbed up there before so I got on Mountain Project and looked up some routes. We headed up and bushwacked up this scree slope until I was finally willing to admit we weren't in the right place. We hiked back down and looked around for some other climbing.

I finally figured out the correct way to get where I was trying to go, but then I realized I didn't bring a lunch and neither did anyone else. We decided to run into town and grab a sub and then head back up. We hiked up the correct approach and found the climb we were looking for. I lead it, I believe it is only a 5.6 after which Monica and Matt both sent the route on top rope. It was fun, really easy, and a good route for me to practice leading on.

Getting ready to go up

Yes a bolt to clip into

Almost to the top, that's Monica on belay

Setting up the top rope

Getting ready to belay, Monica is getting ready to go up

Climbing Rock Canyon 1Jul2011

I went rock climbing on the 1st with my brothers, my son, and some friends. We tried some routes on a crag called the kitchen up Rock Canyon in Provo. We top roped it and I'm embarrassed to say none of us did so good.

Ares loves to play with my stuff, I gave him this rope because he said he needed some so he could go climbing.....guess I won't be using it anymore.

This is where I kept getting stuck. I don't know what my deal was, I just could not get a good grip on the rock. I know I know, I'm really just weak.

Me rappelling after setting up the route.

Vincent watching while I belay, I have no idea what is up with the face I am making.

Ares pretending to climb.

Climbing in the California High Desert

Wow, it's been a while since I posted anything. I went down to California for my brother's wedding this last weekend and had the chance to do some climbing outside of victorville. The crag was next to the Horsemen's center in Apple Valley. It was alright, the rock was just like Joshua Tree, but the climbs weren't that great. Sketchy bolts and anchors and the easier climbs all seem to have a crux that makes them a lot harder then they are actually rated in my opinion. Still it was a lot of fun. Hope to go camping soon, I'll post again if I do.

Snow shoeing in February

We went snow shoeing up the alpine loop this last weekend. Here are a few pictures of the fun.....

Utah Mountaineer TOW 3

My tip for this week is more like a rant. Parents - WATCH AND KEEP CONTROL OF YOUR FREAKING KIDS. There is nothing more irritating then bombing a hill on my ski's and having a kid suddenly just start cutting across the slope in front of me. Or climbing in the gym and working on a difficult problem and having to stop because a kid is standing underneath me and I don't want to fall on them.

Being a parent I know this is difficult. There are many times I have had to run after my son and apologize to people for him getting in the way. And when parents do that I brush it off like it's no big deal. What upsets me is when parents just let their kids run wild with no concern for how it is affecting others. If you don't want to watch your kids and try to keep in control of them then in my mind you have two options.

Option 1: Don't have kids if you don't want to watch them and take care of them.

Option 2: Don't take your kids out around others if you can't or are unwilling to keep control of them.

Ares playing and exploring....in a secluded area.

Please just watch your kids. You as their parent should be worried about their safety, as I am worried about my own while exploring the great outdoors.

Utah Mountaineer TOW #2

Well here it is the second tip of the week and it is two days late, see what happens when you go on vacation and leave your computer and Internet behind? Well this tip of the week will be short and sweet and is based off of an experience I had while on vacation in South Carolina.

If you look at the previous entry in my blog you will see that I went to Congaree NP while I was there. As I pulled in my mind got to racing, (my girlfriend will probably read this and wonder why I didn't tell her any of this because I am always so quiet and she has to start all the conversations) I thought to myself it would have been a lot of fun to go camping if we had any camping gear. Then as we started walking and exploring the park I realized I was breaking my number one rule: Be prepared for the worst.

In order to be prepared for the worst I always carry a small survival kit with me when I go hiking, even if it is just a short one in a very popular area. As we started walking I realized how screwed we would be if we happened to get lost or hurt. We had no water, no food, no compass, no first aid kit, and no way to get in touch with anyone if we lost cell service. Then I started thinking of all the other ways that having my survival kit with me could have been beneficial throughout my trip.

My basic survival kit consists of several key essentials and then other stuff I throw in as extras. I carry my survival kit in a small Camelbak backpack so that I will always have 2 liters of water on me, I also always have granola or Clif bars for some energy. Other basic items that I always have in my survival kit include: a first aid kit, whistle, compass, multi-tool, flashlight, extra batteries, headlamp, and fire starters. I will also usually carry some light rain gear, an additional knife, change of socks, a beanie or warm hat, and a GPS. All of this gear fits in the little backpack I have. Below is a picture of all this gear.

Not only would this have been smart to have with us as we walked through the NP, (as well as the correct thing to do) it could have helped in other situations as well. For example I got to thinking if I got a flat at night on the highway there it would have been nearly impossible to see, having the headlamp in my survival kit would have helped with that. There were a couple of times that I wished I would have had my multi-tool as well.

As you can see from the size of my bag it wouldn't have taken up that much room in my checked bag (it would have had to been checked because of the knives). Always, always, always take a survival kit with you into the wilderness that is appropriate for the environment you are visiting, when I am going out for short hikes or snowshoeing in the winter I usually add more cold weather clothing to my survival kit. And as my recent trip taught me, it might be worthwhile to take it everywhere because you never know where you will end up. A survival kit is key to exploring the wilderness safely.

Congaree NP

So I just got back from South Carolina and had the chance to go to a National Park on the East Coast while I was there. This was the first National Park east of the Mississippi that I have ever had the opportunity to visit. I have been to many National Monuments and Battlefields in the east but never a NP.

The park we went to was Congaree NP, it is what is known as a floodplain forest (what we in the west would call a swamp). It was quite different from every other NP I have ever been to as like most of the east coast it was extremely flat. It obviously was winter when we went and being a deciduous forest was very dead looking. Despite this it was still very beautiful. One thing that I do know is that I don't think I would want to visit during mosquito season, this place has what they call a mosquito meter.....if you need a mosquito meter that means there are way too many mosquito's for this guy.

Congaree NP has some nice "hikes" and from what they say is very fun to explore via canoe or kayak. Like a dumbass I forgot my camera so I don't have anything to show for my visit there but if you would like to see what it looks like or to get more information on the park visit: http://www.nps.gov/cong/planyourvisit/hours.htm