Hiking the South Sister - July '09

The South Sister is the 3rd tallest mountain in Oregon, and yet is totally hikable without any gear. Its about an 10 mile round trip from the trailhead, but the last 1/2 mile to the summit takes about an hour...real steep and loose cinders make for slow going. Mid July I set out with a bunch of scouts to get to the top.


The view is unbelievable -you can see about half the state from the summit; on prior hikes I'd been able to pick out Mt. Rainier to the north, and Mt. Shasta to the south.


Like other times up this mountain, I was reminded that:

1) its really easy to underestimate how much water to bring on something like this

2) really steep downhill is just as bad as steep uphill

3) getting to the top makes it all worth it

Mindblowing snowy peaks and deep blue glacial lakes are impressive, but expected. What's totally unexpected on a hike like this is...butterflies. They are everywhere, especially at the summit. I can't imagine what they doing up at >10,000 feet, but its like being in a windstorm in autumn with the leaves blowing all around you. I tried to get a little video

Sedona May 09

The whole family came to the desert with me on biz for a long Mother's day weekend ...cashed in a few marriott points to stay at a place with waterslides. Also took a drive up north to Sedona to check out the famous red rock formations. We figured with it being 108 in the valley, it would be nice and cool up in the mountains. It was a chilly 95 degrees.


The vistas were spectacular, but it was a little toasty for any real hiking in the middle of the day.








We all pretty much stuck to the path at this roadside rest stop

Phoenix - South Mountain Park -March '09

Not far from Ocotillo is a desert park with a bunch of trails. For somebody that lives in the mossy Northwest, the cactuses and desert plants are still a bit of a novelty. I went for a hike one evening and was amazed to hear a pack of coyotes start howling. I broke out the camera and shot some video so that I could share it hear....I think it was much better in person, the audio that got recorded sounds more like the neighborhood dogs barking at the UPS man. But here it is anyway. Trust me, it was cool