Lower Buckskin Gulch The following morning, with lighter packs, we continued down Buckskin Gulch to the Paria River. It was about six miles downstream to the confluence. After a quick dunk in the river and a little playing around with quicksand, we were on our way back up the canyon. We stopped at the midway exit to grab our overnight stuff and then retraced our path to Wire Pass. (more…)
Deep in Buckskin Gulch. Buckskin Gulch has the proud distinction of being the longest slot canyon in the world. All slot canyons by definition have sections of tight narrows, but the depth and length of these narrows can vary. Some are actually quite short, often measured in yards. Others can go for longer, even as long as a mile, before it opens up and higher ground can be reaches. The...
One of the many rappels in Water Holes Canyon Water Holes Canyon is a slot canyon just south of Page, Arizona. It empties into the Colorado River from the east, just below Glen Canyon Dam. Like Antelope Canyon, Water Holes is on Navajo land and requires permission to access. (more…)
It was time for a fall desert trip, so a group of us headed down to Page, Arizona, with a list of canyons and slots to check out. We started with Antelope Canyon. (more…)
Breaking trail to the high point in the upper basin. Castle Peak’s 14,000 foot summit is up above. Conundrum Peak doesn’t make the cut as an official 14er according to the Colorado Mountain Club and the 300′ rule. But the Conundrum Couloir that splits its east face is such a classic climb and ski that it deserves a spot on every Colorado ski mountaineers checklist. A friend told me that...
Christy and I returned to run the Bear 100 again last weekend. I guess we’re just gluttons for punishment. We gave it our best and finished the 100 mile course with 23,000 feet of elevation gain in respectable times, though we were both a bit slower compared to last year. We ran unsupported, that is without crew or pacers, and speaking for Christy as well as myself here— five days...
Camp at the first Dry Lake. Continuing with our exploration of the peaks and valleys of the Sangre de Cristo mountains, we headed up to another new area, Dry Lakes and Horn Peak, 13,450 ft. (more…)
Descending from Castor’s summit. The route started all the way out on the snowy plateau in the distance. With the race behind us, we made our way from Zinal to Zermatt where we would finally be able to make use of the 40 lb. duffel of climbing gear we had been carting around with us. (more…)
We ran the 2014 Sierre Zinal 31k race in Switzerland and put together a somewhat shaky video from out on the course.
Buckskin Pass The summer wouldn’t be complete without getting out on the Four Pass Loop. There was actually a good amount of snow on the peaks after a recent round of cold, bad weather– kind of unusual for this time of year. It sure made for a pretty day and a great run. (more…)