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The Transformative Power of Words
Earlier this week, The Mountaineers hosted a speaking event with the iconic father-son duo: Jim and Leif Whittaker. I was honored to introduce the Whittakers to our audience, and even more grateful to experience their presentation full of brand new, never-before-seen...
Owning My White Privilege to Support a More Diverse Outdoors
This week Backpacker Magazine posted an article about diversity in the outdoors. In "How Do We Make The National Parks More Diverse?", author Ted Alvarez presented four perspectives from experts discussing ways in which we can help break down barriers and increase...
Turns All Year: Month 62
Winter has been good in the Pacific Northwest so far this season. Early on we had an abundance of snow, most of which was relatively stable in the backcountry until recently. Better still, it was light, fluffy, and playful powder. None of that 'cascade cement'...
Happy New Year!
The holidays are a complicated time. While some people enjoy huge celebrations with loving families, many spend them alone with little fanfare. I was one of the lucky ones. I grew up decorating locally-acquired, "Charlie Brown" Christmas trees, hanging stockings on...
Why We Go
I recently joined the board of the Northwest Avalanche Center (NWAC) - our local avalanche forecast and education center - and I'm really excited to learn more about the nonprofit and its mission. When I started backcountry skiing 5-years ago, I had no idea of the...
Colors of The Mountain
My friend is a real Dick. I had the audacity to post a photo of me with "Rollercoaster Face" in the mountains, and he decided to respond with a rewrite of "Colors of the Wind" from the not-at-all racist, highly popular Disney film Pocahontas. I loved it. I made some...
Turns All Year: Month 61
For November turns this year - the first official turns of the season - I revisited the place from October and wow, did it look different! I went with the Sippel Sisters, a pair of real-life twins and the born-into owners of one of the best potential band names...
My First Selfie
Going through a box of old pictures the other day, I came across what I believe is my first selfie. Based on the glasses (and the teeth and the bangs and the seersucker shirt), this is roughly 1992, and I am 8. We had the 1989 GMC Safari van for at least 12 more...
Happy Thanksgiving
As someone who posts a new blog every Thursday, I'm growing the love the fact that I have one required time every year to give thanks.I'm thankful for a lot of things this year: my incredible friends and family, a supportive community of adventurers, and of course the...
