Sperry Peak June 30, 2009

Full set of picture are here.

With adventure on our minds, Dane and I set out for the Mt Loop Hwy. Our plans included summiting Sperry and Vesper.
We got to the trailhead and were on the trail by 8:00am. The first part was pretty easy going, a bit steep in a few spots but a good trail though. The crossing of the Stilly was a bit percarious as it was a few small branches with a 7" diameter log on top of them. We quickly found ourselves in the open air looking up the snow covered basin towards Morning Star Peak.



We headed towards Headlee Pass with the sun in our faces. We headed up the steep gully and were glad that we had our crampons and axes with us.



Near the top the snow was gone and we still had to use our tools as the terrain was really steep and non forgiving. At the top we kind of wondered if we were actually on Headlee Pass. After removing our crampons and taking a short break we headed down the backside and soon found the trail as it led towards the lake below the peaks. This further made us question our "Pass".
Made good time getting to the lake and decided to head up to the more difficult summit of Sperry first and Vesper 2nd.
Vesper was really pretty covered with snow.



We made our way up the slab rock behind the lake as snow melted and made little streams through the rock. My route up did not anticipate a return trip down as we planned on taking the ridge to Vesper.
Oh, forgot to mention that I had forgotten my ax at the top of the pass and therefore would be handicapped for the remainder of our route to the summits, d'oh.
As we got further up and traversed some rocky sections we realized that a ridge traverse to Vesper was not in our best interest and then thoughts of returning down the slabs to the lake started to occupy my mind. At that point my anxiety started to climb as we gaind more elevation. When we reached the ridge below Sperry I informed that I was done for the day. My anxiety was getting the better of me and I was not eager to climb up to Sperry.
I mentioned to Dane that I did not want to keep him from a summit attempt and that I'd wait for him where we were. We set a turn around time for him as we relaxed. After about 20 minutes I told him that I wanted to reconsider my decision to summit Sperry, but I would leave my pack behind as it makes me feel top heavy and unstable due to it's size and design. He was happy with my choice and offered to carry my DSLR in his pack so I could get summit shots.
We headed up and took advantage of many veggie belays along the way. Before we knew it we were at the summit block and Dane took to the summit first as I stood on the false summit and snapped some photos.



We hung out on the summit for a bit and soaked in the views and some food that he brought up.





Ah the views!!!!!



We headed back down to my pack and went down the the slabby section above the lake that I had dreaded returning to. Much to my surprise I felt rather comfortable heading back down it as it was much wetter from increased snowmelt during the day. I realized that when I'm on a regular trail I don't think very much about my foot placement or holding on to anything. While on this section I was very deliberate with my foot placement and looking for good handholds. By taking things literally one step at a time I felt calm and comfortable and descended safely.
We returned to the lake and got a few shots as we took another short break.





We knew earlier that an attempt of Vesper would be another day as the day was getting away from us.
We returned to the trail and near Headlee Pass I ran to the other spot and retrieved my ax. Turned out that we were one gully away from the Headlee gully.



We donned our crampons and axes and started to descend from the pass.
As we started Dane stopped about 10 feet down and when he moved again he slipped and started going down. All I could do was watch helplessly as he slid over some exposed rocks before arresting himself. With shaken nerves and slightly sore elbow he was good to go after a few minutes. It spooked the crap out of me since I knew the feeling after my quick trip down Baring a few years ago. Getting himself ready to descend again he slipped and arrested very quickly. Cursing the pass he opted to downclimb the pass instead. It was slow going but safer for him. He got to a safe spot about 40 feet down and hid behind a tree as I headed down in the same manner. After about 30' down I opted to plunge step instead as I felt safer doing that with the soft snow. Finally after a little extra time we made it off the snow and at the bottom of the gully. We gave Headlee Pass the bird and continued along our way.
We got a few nice glissade runs in as we descended through the basin to the trail.
We returned to the car after an 11.5 hour adventure.
We are anxious to attempt Vesper but would rather for wait until Headlee Pass thaws out.
As I slowly push myself and improve on my skills I'm learning to accept and know my limits. Knowing when to stop and calm myself down made all the difference for me on this trip. I'm fortunate that I have friends that accept and respect my limits and help me to be a better hiker and take the time to help me when I need it, thank you Dane and to all the moron hikers that I take to the trails with!!

Fortune and South Ingalls Peaks

Full set of pictures is HERE.
While I spent Sunday night and Monday at Red Top LO, Dane came up with a few ideas for us for Tuesday’s hike. One idea was Fortune Peak with a possible side trip to S. Ingalls. We decided that would be a great trip and on Tuesday morning I picked him up at 6:15. By 8:30 we were at the TH putting our boots on and getting ready for the journey ahead.



We opted to make a loop out of it and took a right at the Longs Pass junction shortly after the trail started. After a bit of time we encountered some snow but we were able to stay mostly on track with the buried trail. Somewhere we lost the next junction but we knew that we were doing alright and were heading north towards Ingalls Pass. By 11:00 I think it was we were at Ingalls Pass with Stuart staring us in the face.





Down below we saw an empty camp with 3 tents sitting on a dry slab of rock. Not being too certain of the snow conditions we sported our crampons and axes and descended into the basin. We did try to stay high and traverse our way around to a route we spied up to S. Ingalls. We decided on a south slope ascent rather than increase our distance and hike the saddle between the two Ingalls summits. We passed two other day hikers who had already made the summit and they told us that the snow for the most part was fairly soft. We decided to keep our crampons on and headed up towards the summit. With axes at the ready we started up the steep slope to the ridgeline. The higher we got the steeper the slope became. Self belay found itself to be rather helpful a few times for us as the snow consistency changed.
Finally we made the ridge and we were staring at the southern approach to S. Ingalls.



We dropped our packs, grabbed Clif bars and our cameras and we set off for the summit. The first part of the ascent was rather easy as it was just on some loose rocks and talus. Within short time we were at the base of the massive summit block.
With Dane helping to eye the route I headed up the scrambly rocks and took my time and had a good time. Now, I’m not a big fan of exposure or crazy scrambling routes, but I found this first section to be pretty good. I got up to a decent spot to stop and Dane quickly joined me. We continued in this manner all the way to the summit where the views were spectacular!!! Oh yeah, I checked the route from the north and it was significantly easier, or so it looked. We took in the views of Stuart and the other peaks in the area, had our small snack and snapped some photos.



I was a bit nervous about our descent as it’s always easier to go up than down. This time Dane would lead and help me from below. I spied a slot route just below the summit that we decided would be better than our route up so he started downward. With the exception of one tricky spot, this route was pretty good and enjoyable.
We rejoined our packs and eyed a route to Fortune just below the ridgeline. Dane led the way as we crossed a snowfield heading towards some rock.



I felt more comfortable on the snow rather than the rock, but I followed Dane’s lead. This route was not as straightforward as Ingalls was, and it was a bit trickier too. As we pressed onward we were in constant contact and he was checking to see how I was doing and how my comfort level was at. I could have turned around at any point I knew, but I wanted to push myself and my limits a bit, but not too much, the punishment for to much risk was too great. There was one spot that made me want to chuck my pack down the mountain due to its cozy nature as I had to half crawl under a rock. At that point I knew that turning around would not be an option and that if I had to bail it would be straight down towards the snowfield.
*Note to self, smaller and lighter pack for this kind of stuff in the future*
After a few nerve wracking moments we were done with this section and we got back onto the ridge and made it to the summit of Fortune. I couldn’t believe our route here and how short it looked but how long it felt.



We snacked and snapped more photos and just relaxed for a bit. Dane almost fell asleep and I just chilled.



We had considered descending the west ridge but decided to head down the south ridge instead. The first section was easy through some short trees and talus /scree. We found ourselves on the ridge with an awesome looking glissade below us. Dane headed down first and got a fairly long run in. With his camera rolling I headed down next. Wow!!! That was a fast run down. The first section of 5 feet was steep and the rest was steep too, but not quite as much. I joined Dane in the run out and he asked how long I thought it would take us to hike back up for another run!!!!! We were exhausted!!! WTF Dane???? W did head back up and this time I went down first. I got to my pack and took some photos as Dane headed down. With his camera in one hand he was all over the place, it was funny to watch!!!
Wet and chilly we continued our hike down and found a talus/scree slope to take down to the trail in the Esmeralda Basin. Quickly the route got a bit hairy as avalanches had ripped the slope apart. Cliffs sprang up and we’d have to quickly change course.




Finally we made it to the trail where we took a break and begged for the car to appear. With fatigue setting in we lumbered down the last 2 miles of trail and 900’ of elevation descent until we saw the happy sight of the parking lot and my car. 8.5 hours and almost 4000’ of gain later we had two awesome summits under our belts and a 2 hour drive back to Seattle. Dane snored half the way back home and I tried to drown out the noise with my stereo.
What a great day to push myself and tag a couple great summits with a friend.

Bat N' Rouge 2009

This was the wildest game of softball that I've ever seen. Every year on Capitol Hill the Gay community kicks off their Pride celebration with this game. The Dykes do battle with the Drag Queens for supremecy. I have not had this much fun in a while.
The Dykes came prepared with their Flannel shirts, mullets and some even had their toolbelts with them.



And the Queens, well they are Queens through and through.



The rules of the game are simple. The first inning is played by standard rules. The second inning has, well, no rules. Being a fund raiser, one can donate money during the even number innings and they can buy strikes or balls, base hits, outs or even home runs. You can also have a batter hit with a crooked bat, hit from their knees, runner can be told to run backwards, skip, or even crawl.
For another rate one can pay to have two Dykes wrestle between innings on the infield.



There was an appearance by the Knights of Malta who donated money to the Capitol Hill Alano Club, who the fund raiser was for.



The Sisterhood of Perpetual Indulgence was in charge of selling raffle tickets.





At one point a Queen was given a Dyke make over complete with a mullet, toolbelt and even a backpack, oh yeah, and her very own flannel shirt too!



One Dyke was so smitten by the new Dyke that she even proposed to her.



Sadly for the real Dyke she was turned down....



With Dyke names like: Amanda Wreckin With, Trailer Trash, Boobs, and Queens with names like: Victoria's Secretion, Miss Peaches, and Skipper how could anybody not laugh their butts off.
Years ago I would have never expected to see myself at an event such as this, much less enjoy myself, but I'm finding that I'm really enjoying living on Capitol Hill and all of the floavor that it has to offer. I won't be adjusting my sexual preference at all, but this neighborhood is helping to open my eyes up to so much in life and helping me enjoy life so much more than I have in the past.
To see plenty more pictures on my Flickr page go HERE

A hike with friends

I haven't been on a good hike in quite a while and I was getting restless. I called Adam and Dane and we headed out to Putrid Pete's Peak off I-90. The trail is not maintained but does get quite a bit of use. Most refer to it as a boot path. The route was snow free and straight forward. We made it to the summit in good time and safely.



From there we traversed the ridge connecting to Mt Defiance to our east.



WE encountered a bit of snow but managed quite well and didn't fall at all. The last bit of the ridge was a bit tricky and through some thick trees but we were soon rewarded with the open summit and more views to gaze our eyes upon, complete with thawing lakes far below.





We headed down after about 30 minutes on the summit and had a somewhat tricky descent through some snow in the trees. We made it down to the main trail safely and headed down to Mason Lake which sits below Bandera Peak.



I don't know the stats for this trip, but it was long but a lot of fun with close to 4000' of elevation gain I believe.

Photos from the ballpark

I have hundreds of photos that I've taken while attending a Mariners game at Safeco Field but I've never taken any like these before.

Not so lucky bamboo plant

I awoke today and walked into my living room and saw carnage on the floor from a 4 year old Lucky Bamboo plant all over the floor. Those who are aware know that these plants grow very slowly and take patience. This plant was about 18" tall but has been reduced to a stub no thanks to my cat Charlie. He chomped on all but one of the leaves, bad kitty!! I guess that's what i get for moving his climbing tree from it's usual spot in front of the picture window.......
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Getting ready for the game

I got a call from a friend the other week inviting me to the Mariners vs Baltimore. Of course i had to say yes to the invite.
Baseball is something that has brought me closer to my sister and niece. We have not missed an opening day at Safeco Field in four years and don't on missing one any time soon.
The only game where my loyalties are torn is when the Detroit Tigers come into town. I grew up cheering for the Tigers back when Sparky Anderson was the manager. Sadly i never got to go to a game at Tiger Stadium.
The game of baseball will always be in my heart.
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