Justin’s Kilimanjaro Climb
In September, I (Justin) summited Mount Kilimanjaro (19,341 feet) and here’s the recap of the climb.
Currently: September
Currently living/working: We wrapped up so many jobs this month! Justin’s grand total was 90 hikes & 25 presentations, while I did 47 hikes and 41 presentations! We’re mostly here this fall, so we’re keeping the yurt open for rentals as long as the weather doesn’t drop below 0. Going into the winter, Justin will keep up his part-time tourism job & I will keep subbing at the library.
Arctic Adventures: Volume 28—Flightseeing Tours
Earlier in June, the stars aligned and I was able to get on a flightseeing tour with Fly Denali! Given Justin’s two Denali expeditions, he’s been through the Alaska Range several times and for someone that doesn’t like small planes, he would do it again and again. So of course I wanted to do a…
Exploring Big Island: State Highpoint 46/50 AND National Park 58/63
Well, I might as well post our last Hawaii trip roundup as we are delayed getting back to Alaska from all our holiday family time and I need a distraction from that stress … Anyway, our last stop in Hawaii was the Big Island with a triple purpose of bagging another state high point, exploring…
High Point #45: Nevada
Justin & I hit our 45th state high point on Oct. 1: Nevada’s Boundary Peak! Trip Mileage: 10.6 miles (roundtrip) Hiking Time: 8 hrs 45 min Elevation Gain/Loss: 4,200 feet Last year while driving from Yosemite, CA to Boulder, CO after the Zero Landfill Tour, we realized we were driving right by Nevada’s state high…
Highpoint #44: Illinois
It’s been a hot minute since we checked off any state highpoints, mainly because the 7 left are pretty difficult to climb (Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, Oregon for Justin & Washington for me) or difficult to get to (Nevada, Hawaii and Illinois). Charles Mound, Illinois, is arguably the “most difficult to get to” because it is…
Denali Days 1-2: The End
Well folks, you can stop worrying, because Justin is off the mountain. He is not hurt or ill. He just did not feel it at all this time and decided to end his climb. My dad had this saying and it has always been a favorite takeaway for Justin and I. Justin really dug deep…
Denali Climb Gear List & Day 1
Folks, the day is upon us. Justin and his 4 teammates have landed at Denali’s base camp at 7,200 feet (Denali’s summit is 20,310 feet). The team sorted all their gear on Sunday and left it in the K2 Aviation hanger in Talkeetna, then stayed at an Airbnb in Talkeetna owned by a friend of…
Denali Training
It’s hard to believe this, but Justin’s Denali Climb (Take 2) is less than 2 months away!! The team is arriving in Anchorage May 10, then hoping to fly onto the mountain May 13 (obviously weather-dependent). I’ve always joked Justin’s training regimen for anything is less than stellar (he trained for a triathlon in 2010…
Highpoints #41, 42 and 43: Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota
This post is way overdue and out of chronological order, but I never blogged about the state high points we knocked off this summer! Besides my successful summit of Oregon’s Mt. Hood paired with Justin’s not-so-sucessful second attempt to summit Hood, we checked off 3 more high points, bringing us to a grand total of 43/50!…
Exploring Oregon: Mt. Hood and Beyond
Be warned: long post! Justin has a nemesis of a mountain. Its name is Mt. Hood (11,249 feet) in Oregon. In late May 2014, he and his climbing partner Bobby (Bolt) attempted to climb Mt. Hood. They were essentially climbing inside a ping pong ball, with all the snow causing whiteout conditions. It was dangerous…
High Point #40: Wheeler Peak, New Mexico
We bagged our 40th state high point this past weekend: New Mexico’s Wheeler Peak at 13,161 feet. We had planned to do this one last spring when we were living and working here, but the trail was snow-covered through May. With that in mind, we didn’t want to wait too long this fall, as winter…
High Point #39 For My 38th Birthday
I celebrated my 38th birthday this weekend. Typically I am not a “birthday” celebration kind of gal. To me, it’s just another day. But J and his sisters love celebrating birthdays and making a big deal, so since we have so much family in Denver, it was par for the course. J asked me what…
High Point #38: White Butte, North Dakota
We hit another high point, this one 10,000 feet lower than our last on King’s Peak: White Butte, North Dakota at 3,506 feet. North Dakota marks our 38th high point. We’ve been pretty impressed with ourselves for having such a “high” number. However, this past weekend, we attended the annual “Highpointer Convention” (yes, it is…
High Point #37: King’s Peak, Utah
J & I hit our 37th high point, King’s Peak in Utah, at 13,528 feet!! I’m ecstatic for 2 reasons. Number one, this is the highest I’ve been since my pulmonary embolism in 2013. I have always struggled at altitude, but ever since my PE, my lungs struggle just a little bit more, sadly. We…
Denali Top Ten List
Another guest post from Justin (edited by Patrice of course)! My previous mountaineering experiences helped me predict what to expect on Denali, but as with anything, you really don’t know how it’s really going to be until you are wearing the boots yourself. And since I received lots of questions about life on the mountain,…
Justin’s Reflection on Denali
This is a guest post written by Justin (okay, it was edited by Patrice)! It’s been about two weeks since my 23-day adventure on North America’s highest peak concluded. I think Patrice did a wonderful job piecing together bits of information to keep you all informed on my team’s progress on the mountain, but I…
Denali Update: Days 19-23 And The Almost Summit!
So here’s the scoop. Justin did not summit, choosing to turn around about 400 feet from the top. But that is okay by him and me (of course!). It’s really a summit in my mind being so darn close, but whatevs. And, so freakin admirable that he survived 23 days (pretty much a record for…
Denali Update: Days 10-18
Justin and his RMI team have been facing some not-so-ideal weather up on Denali (65 MPH winds, -35 degree temps). So they are on day ELEVEN being stuck (but safe) at Camp 3 (14,200 feet). I know those conditions sound extremely harsh, but I did get to speak to Justin and he is in great…
Denali Update: Days 3-9
I’m happy to report that Justin and his RMI team are plugging along up the mountain!! Weather has been really decent (in Denali terms) and they have made it up to Camp 3 (14,000 feet). Read below to get a sense of the hard, back-breaking work they endure day after day on the mountain. I’m tired…