jfin is here…

Spent our long Labor Weekend (employer is good enough to give me the Friday off as well) driving up to Skaha - in Penticton, British Columbia.  Had a good two days of climbing with crew from Mars Hill Outdoors.  Highlights of the weekend included riding to the crags in an RV, camping in tents on gravel, crazy neighbors, and Sunday night dance music.  I would love to say this photo was me, but it’s not… Miles thought this was one of the best sport routes he’s ever climbed though.

The drive up alongside the Columbia in Eastern Washington, and then through the Oakanagen in BC was very scenic.  Green, fertile, valleys with orchards everywhere contrasted with dry brown hills as a backdrop.  I think we’ll be back up that way.

Some photos, mainly of the climbing, here.

Two weekends ago we shot up to Canada - met up with Mike and Kirsty in Vancouver, then cruised up to Whistler and Squamish for two days.

Spent the Saturday at Whistler, riding a plush full-suspension downhill rig in their mountain bike park.  Amazing how much punishment the bike can take .. and wearing all the gear (full-face helmet, elbow guards, and shin guards) definitely helps the confidence.  Took a little time to get in to the vibe, but by the end of the day I felt like I was hitting the smaller tables and step-ups at pretty good pace.  Quite a buzz, really.

Sunday was an aborted-attempt at bouldering in Squamish - raining - before a nice relaxed drive back to Seattle area.

A few photos from Mike here.

Listening to: Death Cab for Cutie - Someday You Will Be Loved

Change in hosting setup and lazy me equals blog outage.

Listening to: Josh Rouse - Italian Dry Ice