Mountaineering

Backyard Expeditions

My roots originated in Oregon but mountaineering/alpinism hadn’t been an aspect of my life until early college. Every moment after I had returned over summer and winter breaks I sought out opportunities to explore the backyard I had initially taken for granted. With some added weight of the camera gear, the mountains always provided a new challenge that I was eager to tackle. The image above was from a technical climb in Oregon. As a climbing partner and I briefly caught a glimpse of sunrise as we pushed on for the Mount Jefferson summit.

Chasing Alpenglow

One of my first experiences in the mountains stemmed from time in the Teton Range and Montana’s mountains. Intrigued by the intricacies that are involved in ones team’s safety opened my eyes to leadership. Every moment in the mountain taught me that the success of the day is not judged based on an individual ascent but a team’s summit ascent. The image above was from a glorious morning in the East Rosebud, Beartooth Range in Montana. Early 2:00 AM alpine starts allowed for conditions to hold and a view of the beautiful glow over the range.

New Heights

The expedition planning and organization couldn’t have prepared the team of five novice mountaineers for this summit ascent. Our objective was Pico de Orizaba or as the locals call the mountain ‘Citlaltépetl’ that stands tall at 18, 491’ in elevation. With this height, the mountain is marked as the third tallest in North America, and we were up for the challenge. Logistical preparation and effective communication allowed each individual to summit on the day even when each person had suffered from slight acute mountain sickness (AMS).