Tag: new mexico
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A Taste of Van Life: Climbing, Hiking, and a Desert Wedding
July kicked off with a bang! Three commitments lined up for an adventurous and fun filled week: a pair of friends were celebrating birthdays with a local climbing trip, our PCT friends were coming to Colorado to backpack, and a couple was getting married in the New Mexico desert. There was quite a bit of…
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A Climb Worthy of Two Thumbs Up – The NW Ridge of The Thumb
The Sandia Mountains have a lot impressive granite fins and spires packed into a small mountain range. I remember hiking the La Luz trail for the first time in 2020 and seeing climbers dot the towering walls all around. At the time, I never really thought I would be one of those climbers, questing up…
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Baby’s First Alpine Climb: Wiskey Ridge, Sandia Mountains, NM
A few weeks after our little climbing adventure in Spain, Maggie and I had a free weekend. The psych was still high, so when Maggie asked me what we should do, I said, “Well I was thinking about this ridge traverse in the Sandias.” I showed Maggie the route and she was instantly stoked to…
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Big Days with the Boys – Mt. Massive, Jicarita, and Bandelier
I’m not going to lie, Maggie’s knee injury was a major bummer. More so for her than me, but it put a damper on all the things we love doing together outside. I had big dreams for summer 2024, which largely disintegrated along with Maggie’s ACL. I stayed by Maggie’s side as much as possible,…
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From the PCT to NM – The Pecos Wilderness and Beyond
On our first day of the Pacific Crest Trail, Maggie and I briefly met another couple, Bennett and Gina. We ended up leap-frogging each other all the way to Crater Lake, hanging out together in a handful of trail towns, and building a budding friendship. They even hosted us in Chicago when Maggie and I…
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Learning to Climb Clean – El Rito, NM
If you’ve read some of my posts, you have probably come to understand that I quite enjoy hiking and running in the mountains. Spending five months on the PCT, doing nothing but hiking, was incredible and I loved every day of it. That said, the trail itself is kind of boring, rarely exceeding a grade…
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Archeological Eclipse – A Reunion of Wayward Adventurers
Maggie was making her way from Montana down to New Mexico, there were a few places on her route we wanted to explore. The timing happened to be perfect for catching the annular solar eclipse that was passing over New Mexico! 11 October 2023 Maggie and I made plans to meet up in Mesa Verde…
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Old Stompin’ Grounds, New Adventures – New Mexico
Maggie and I explored a good portion of New Mexico in the three years we lived there. Even so, it is thrilling to look at a map and find there is yet more to do. Fired up by the recent backpacking trip in Montana, I felt compelled to get out and explore new places in…
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A Brief Stint as a River Rat (Featuring Motion Pictures!)
I don’t exclusively climb mountains. As skiing is to winter, rafting is to summer. How cool is it that you get to float on the very water you skied on?! While I don’t actively seek out water sports, I have a few friends that have worked as raft guides. When an invite comes my way,…
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Throw Them Peaks in the Bag – CO & NM High Country
In between the dreadful days of job hunting this past summer, I got out peak bagging in the Rocky Mountains. As the snow finally melted out above treeline in mid-June, I set my sights high. There is something wonderful about the alpine that I can’t put into words. The clear air, the wide open views,…
Distance Over Time 