Diamonds Are Forever

June 3, 2018

Summit of the Grand Teton

It was just over two years ago that Laura and I met for the first time. Over a cup of coffee, we chatted about mountains, past and future adventures and generally had a good time. I told her of my plan to climb the Grand Teton with two friends in June of 2016 and I guess that is what got me a second date! As the cards fell, we ended up free soloing Army Route in Colorado Springs together on Memorial Day in 2016. I had a BBQ at my house afterward and she decided to show up and hang out. From then on, we hung out every day and always had an amazing time together.

Mount Rainier, WA

Adventures in Ecuador to Switzerland to Patagonia Chile and more, we learned a lot about each other and spent probably 50 or more nights in a tent together; now that's saying something!

As time passed I realized that Laura was amazing in more ways than I thought a woman could be. She truly loved me and put me first every single day. Making me happy was a priority.

After talking with her father and designing a ring, I had finally decided that this weekend was the time. I asked if we could go climbing at Eleven Mile Canyon since that is where we went for our first real day hanging out together.

Climbing two easy routes, I was struggling and Laura knew something was up. I asked if we could go sit by the river as we did years ago. She agreed and we walked to the river and found a shady spot to sit. On the rock, holding hands, Laura looks at me and says, "What's up? You're being weird." I sat there for a few minutes before turning on both knees and telling her that there is no single person in this world that I would rather have by my side forever than her. Pulling the ring from my coat pocket, I asked if she would marry me. "Of course", she says! I slip the ring on her finger and together we begin what will be the adventure of a lifetime!

Cayambe, Ecuador

Mtn Biking, Woodland Park, CO

Teotihuacan, Mexico

Matterhorn, Switzerland

Skiing at Copper Mountain, CO

Orizaba, Mexico

Donkey Racing in Idaho Springs, CO

Snowy Mountains, WY

Cannon Beach, OR

Having fun in CA

Lincoln Falls, CO

Torres Del Paine, Patagonia, Chile

Ruper

Ruper

Eldorado Canyon, CO

June 9, 2018

It’s the weekend and my friend needed a ride to the airport in Denver. I offered and since we would be moving early in the morning, Laura suggested we take the opportunity to hit Eldo for the day. 4:45am I am up and packing gear. Loaded up and driving shortly thereafter, we dropped Nick off at the Denver airport at 6:45 am and were in the canyon by 8:00.

Making the short hike to the approach slabs is always enjoyable in Eldo. The river roars and splashing your face and head in to cold water is refreshing in the early morning. Within 15 minutes we were at the base of the climb gearing up and working our way up the low class 5 slabs.

Ruper is one of the many classics in Eldorado Canyon, and is widely regarded as one of  the best 5.8 trad climbs anywhere. Some say it’s 5.8 some say 5.9 or harder, I thought the climb was straight forward and felt about 5.8 with no major difficulties except when on the first pitch I started up the left facing Rover variation rather than traversing right on easier ground.

The first pitch is rated 5.7+ but felt the most challenging for the first 25 feet. With good hand and foot holds, the climbing is quite secure. What makes classics interesting is that the rock is usually worn and polished making the climb slippery and more difficult due to the amount of traffic it sees.

The second pitch is the best; a wide, off width crack with good exposure. On to the traverse with limited protection and up to a tree for a belay, the climbing was spectacular and the sun was shining. What a beautiful day to be outside!

At the top of the third pitch, we rappelled down to the base of the second wall. 3 more pitches to the top were excellent crack and face climbing and a traverse under a huge roof that Laura led and combined with the last 5.4 section.

We reached the top of the climb in 4.5 hours and scrambled and rappelled our way down meeting some new friends along the way. On the hike out, we once again stopped at the cold river and soaked our feet and splashed our faces to cool off. The classics are always fun and entertaining and we hope to get on more soon. Ruper most definitely rates in my book as a climb I would do many times again.

 

Maroon Bells

Maroon Bells
Bell Cord Couloir plus Traverse South to North
June 2, 2018

The Maroon Bells aka The Deadly Bells (according to the sign at the trailhead) are some of the most recognizable mountains in the world. Their picturesque setting in Aspen, CO, just past 2 lakes and in a beautiful valley attracts thousands of visitors each year. Few of these visitors actually climb the dangerous peaks.

Laura and I have both climbed the mountains and completed the traverse; once being the time I completed the Colorado 14ers on North Maroon Peak, so when a friend of a friend asked about them, we had plenty of information to share. Dean is newer to difficult scrambling and low class 5 climbing while being unroped so he asked if we would be interested in joining him for a climb of the snow couloir the Bell Cord and a traverse between the two peaks. Neither Laura nor I had climbed the Cord so we agreed and set several potential dates. 

Friday evening after work, Dean picked us up at home and we all headed west. Stopping only in Buena Vista for a quick dinner, we arrived in Aspen and at the Maroon Bells parking area just before 10 pm. Tired and ready for an early wake up call; Laura and I tossed our sleeping bags in the grass and crashed under the stars for the evening. Waking up at 2 am and eating breakfast, we were ready for the task ahead and began walking at 2:30 am. Passing by Maroon Lake and then on to Crater Lake 1.5 miles up the snow free trail, we reached the cutoff for the bell cord in 45 minutes. Up we climbed, around some cliff bands and eventually reaching the continuous snow couloir that climbs for almost 3,000 feet and bisects Maroon and North Maroon Peaks. Climbing snow for the next few hours, we reached the exit of the couloir around 7 am and took a short break before making our way to the summit of Maroon Peak. After spending just a few minutes atop the mountain, we decided to head down and begin the traverse to the North.

The traverse between the peaks is mostly scrambling on loose Elk range rock with a few short low class 5 sections mixed in. Although Laura and I are comfortable here without ropes, Dean chose to bring a rope for security on these sections. When the exposure and difficulty increased, I was happy to set up an anchor and belay for Dean and he quickly moved past the challenging sections.

10 am and we were on the summit of North Maroon Peak. Looking at the very snowy descent, we knew we were in for a tough trip down the mountain. Postholing and falling through the snow to our waists, the snow was soft and slippery so when we had the chance to find the trail, we took it. Finding the trail and then losing it again multiple times, we eventually bushwhacked to the lower sections of snow free ground after 6 hours of down climbing. Finally making it back near Crater Lake, we made the casual hike out with the tourists and finished our amazing day in the hills at 13½ hours.

Wheeler Peak, NM

May 25-28, 2018
Wheeler Peak, NM

What’s the plan for Memorial Day? Ike texted me and talked about making a plan with our friend Ethan since we haven’t caught up in far too long. Ethan suggested Wheeler Peak, New Mexico’s high point at 13,159’. We all made a plan to meet after work Friday and spend the weekend it the Taos Ski Valley area. As always, things change and the adventure begins far before the real plan comes to fruition.

Ike and Mike drove down from Loveland and we loaded up the car with all of our gear for the weekend. With four of us in the car, the fit was tight, but we made it work. By 6 pm we were headed south and on the same timeline as Ethan who was coming from Aspen. Just after crossing into New Mexico, a deer darted out in front of me and before I had a chance to get to the brakes, we had collided and the trailblazer was torn up. Major front end damage and engine knocking, we would need to leave it on the side of the road overnight, so we called Ethan to come get us. Within 15 minutes he was there and we were loading up his truck with gear for five. Finally arriving near the ski valley, we lucked out and found an open campsite, so we set up tents, had a few beers and called it a day.

Saturday was supposed to be the day we climbed Wheeler Peak, but instead it was spent dealing with the now dead trailblazer. Not wanting to deal with repairing the vehicle in New Mexico, Ethan drove us to the next town down and we grabbed a uhaul trailer for the trailblazer. Laura’s mother picked up my truck in Colorado and made the 4 hour drive to meet us. We loaded up the trailblazer, had a barbeque in the Dollar General parking lot and Laura and her mother took it home to Colorado leaving me and the guys to chill out and relax.

The next morning Laura drove back down and met up with us and off we went to climb the mountain we were all here for. We decided that we would make a loop out of our day, so we parked one truck at an upper trailhead 3 miles up the road and left one at the bottom of the road where we started hiking. Bull of the Woods trail is a very scenic and easy 7 mile hike to the 13,000’ summit. The views are amazing and experiencing the beauty of the area was great since I had never been there before.

Taking our time, we summited the mountain at 1 pm, spent an hour relaxing and enjoying the beautiful day and then started our hike out via the Williams Lake trail. Half way down the mountain, Ike got excited when we encountered a snow field and decided to make a snow angel. Taking pictures and laughing out loud, we were all having a blast. An hour later we reached Williams Lake at 11,000’ and while it is filled with snowmelt, Ethan, Ike and I all decided to jump in for a swim. We were only able to stay in the water for a minute or so before jumping out and welcoming the warm sunshine on our backs. We relaxed, dried off and headed toward the truck.

When we got to the truck, we cut up our customary cheese blocks and devoured two blocks as fast as I could cut them. Back at camp, we barbecued once again and relaxed the night away.

The next morning we visited some natural hot springs and swam in the Rio Grande River before all heading home. It is always an adventure with these guys, but these are the times when you really do find out who your friends are. Not one complaint about dealing with the damaged car, just an automatic willingness to help in any way possible. All relaxed and having fun no matter what, I couldn’t ask for anything more than to spend some time outdoors with an amazing woman and some rad dudes.