Finally...

The snow has melted, I wasn't on call for work, and we didn't have any plans already made. Finally, we were able to hike a 14er. If you would've told me last year that it was going to take me until the first week of August to hike a 14er I would've said you're crazy. But between an insanely high snowpack, traveling, and Drew's new addiction to climbing, it did take that long.

Today we hiked Mt Huron in the Sawatch range. Not only was it a great hike with awesome views and beautiful weather, we were lucky enough to hike it with some old friends. My friends from college, Steve and Caroline, just moved to Denver from Gainesville. When Drew and I arrived in CO last year the first thing our friends did was haul our butts up a 14er and it was an incredible introduction into what this state has to offer. We figured it was only fair to do the same to Steve and Caroline. They did awesome, especially given their lack of time to acclimatize (they only got to CO four days ago). We also hiked with another friend from college, Josh, who is staying in Colorado Springs for a few weeks doing some training before he moves to Uganda in the fall. Josh is always fun to have around, especially because he freely gives back rubs. Rounding out the group was Brett, my friend since preschool, who is the closest thing I know to a Colorado native because she's lived here for two years. Here's a picture of Brett experiencing Josh's generosity on the summit:

And let's not forget Bogey, the best hiker of them all. He probably hiked the equivalent of three 14ers today for all the running up and down the trail he does. I couldn't even get a good picture of him because he wouldn't stop moving long enough.

Here are a couple pictures of the view from the summit at 14,003 ft, and a group shot at the end of the hike.

Mt Huron was definitely my favorite 14er that I've done so far. It was #4 for me and #6 for Drew and Bogey. I hope to fit in at least a couple more before the summer is over...

Drew's fun fact: Hippo milk is pink.

Family Fun

I've heard "If you build it, they will come." But I say "If you brag enough, they will come." All my ranting and raving about how fun Colorado is convinced my parents to spend the first month-long leg of their summer RV trip in CO. It also convinced my aunt and uncle to come for the weekend (though to be honest my uncle was already in CO on business). They all stayed in Longmont last weekend and we had the best time. We suckered Drew into making us shrimp tacos on Friday night, which is always a treat. Then on Saturday we all went to Lily Lake for some hiking, climbing, and amazing mountain views.

That day we finally had the chance to get my parents to try climbing. Ever since I started climbing this spring I've been thinking how much my parents would like to try it. Drew led a moderate slab route and even though it wasn't the best climb for beginners, my parents did great.

We didn't get to climb much that day because the typical afternoon storm rolled in (lightning is much scarier at 9,000+ ft than at sea-level). So instead we napped, walked around the neighborhood, and went to Oskar Blues.

My aunt and uncle left early Sunday morning so Drew and I took Mom and Dad climbing again in St. Vrain Canyon where Drew and I usually climb after work. Drew set up an easier slab route and Mom and Dad were both able to top out. They also both tried a tougher crack climb and really impressed us with their beginner-50+-aged abilities. Now I know where I get my eagerness to try new things and my tendency to climb with my knees instead of my feet. It's so fun to have parents that like to do fun, adventurous things!

That day we also met up with a friend from college, Josh. He is spending the next 6 weeks in Colorado Springs training for his upcoming move to Uganda. He was staying the weekend in Boulder with friends so they came and found us at our climbing spot. It was so great to catch up with an old friend and meet new friends to climb with.

Last night Drew and I and a couple of friends from Drew's work went back to St. Vrain Canyon (instead of staying home and packing for our Alaska trip like we were supposed to). Drew and I bought a new camera this week for our Alaska trip and I was so excited to take it out and take some climbing pictures, but of course we were half there when I realized I left it at home. Crap! Then, I ended up leading my first climb (clipping into bolts on the rock rather than top-roping, more scary and risky) and had no camera to document. I am going to make up for it though by taking a thousand pictures on our Alaska trip that we leave for tomorrow! Speaking of which, maybe I should go pack...

Drew's fun fact: Your feet can produce a pint of sweat per day.

Two Celebrations

Last week Drew and I celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary. The past two years we had gone on a trip to the Keys to celebrate. But this year our anniversary fell on a Tuesday, and since we've been taking so many weekend trips together lately, we decided to keep it low-key. We went to dinner at Oskar Blues and saw Transformers 3-D. We don't usually give each other gifts for our anniversary (or birthdays or Christmas), but this year we used it as an excuse to get something we've each been wanting. I got new Chacos and Drew got an altimeter watch.

Drew also surprised me with some beautiful Sunflowers when I got home from work. Sunflowers are actually the traditional flower given for the third anniversary. I'd like to give Drew credit for following the tradition, but let's be honest, we all know it was coincidence :)

To celebrate 4th of July weekend we met up with my parents who were camping on Lake Granby on the northwest side of RMNP. We drove up Friday night after work and had the most beautiful sunset drive through the park. We saw Elk, Moose, lots of tourists, and tons and tons of snow. Here's a picture of me standing next to the snowdrift on the side of the road... I'm beginning to think all this snow will never melt.

Saturday we woke up at the crack of dawn to hike Mt. Watanga in the Indian Peaks Wilderness. It was supposed to be a 10 mile round trip hike with a summit at 12,375 ft. We only made it a couple miles up the trail because the 'creeks' that are usually easy to cross had turned into raging rivers from all the snowmelt. We also lost track of the trail because it was buried in snow. We were all pretty disappointed, but we still enjoyed our shortened hike.

That afternoon we went over to our family friends' house on Shadow Mountain Lake. We played games, kayaked on the lake, and enjoyed the beautiful mountain views. Later that night we grilled burgers at our campsite, and Mom and I shared our traditional bottle of anniversary champagne. When Drew and I got engaged my parents had gotten us a bottle of champagne to celebrate. But Drew doesn't really like champagne so my mom drank it with me. Since then it's become a tradition for my mom and I to share a bottle to celebrate my wedding anniversary; she is so kind to make sure I never have to drink champagne alone.

The next day my Dad inflated his Bubba tub so that Drew and I could float the headwaters of the Colorado river. I only agreed to do this because my Mom had a wetsuit for me to wear. We only floated for about a mile, but it was very beautiful and very relaxing. I reclined on the bow while Drew paddled and serenaded me in fake Italian.

After that Drew and Mom spent some time practicing their Mother/Son-in-Law act.

We left later that afternoon because Drew had to work on the 4th of July (I think his boss is a Commie). On the drive home back through the park we saw Mountain goats, and again, lots and lots of tourists. Next weekend we will hopefully be meeting up with my parents again on the Cache La Poudre river where there are less crowds and more fun to be had.

Drew's fun fact: The world’s biggest hot dog was 1,996 feet long.

P.S. My parents gave Drew and I matching T-shirts for our anniversary. Luckily now I can celebrate our anniversary and the 4th of July simultaneously with one outfit. Now if I could only get Drew to wear his at the same as me...

Sweet Surprise

This spring and summer my yard has given me several sweet surprises.

It started with Daffodils in March...

then came Tulips and Irises in April...

Roses in May...

and, saving the best for last, Peonies in June.

I wish I could take credit for these lovely creations, but it was nice to receive the reward without having to put in the work.

Drew's fun fact: The sixth sick sheik's sixth sheep's sick is the toughest tongue twister in the English language.

Hooked on crack

Drew and I just got back from a weekend of camping and climbing in Estes Park. And since my bruised, scraped, exhausted body has fallen onto the sofa and can't get up, I figured I'd go ahead and blog about it.

Friday night we met up with some people from Drew's work at a campground just outside of Estes. It was great to finally meet some of the people Drew works with. One girl I met told me that when she moved to Colorado from Michigan she sold all of her designer high heels and purses on E-bay to buy a mountain bike. My kind of girl.

Saturday we went climbing at a spot called Lily Lake. The area had amazing views of Long's Peak and was full of great sport routes. A group of people showed up and set up a slack line above the top of the routes we were climbing. When it got windy the slack line started vibrating and sounded like a helicopter was landing. Needless to say, it was an amazing thing to witness these guys traverse the high-altitude slack-line.

One of the coolest routes of the day was called "Edge of Time." It's a classic climb for this area (a picture of it is on the cover of the climbing guidebook for Estes Park Valley). Here's a picture of Drew on it with Long's Peak in the background:

After a full day of climbing we went back to camp for an evening of frisbee, hacky sak, Apples to Apples, campfire singalong, and smores. Today we woke up early, broke down camp, and headed back to Estes to a spot called Lumpy Ridge. This area mostly has longer multi-pitch climbs but our friends took us to do a couple of shorter crack routes. I had never climbed real cracks before and had no idea what I was getting myself into. With crack routes, instead of grabbing/stepping onto holds on the face of a rockwall, you jam your feet and hands inside of the crack and then try to go up. I wasn't very good at it. Drew did much better than me, which I attribute to the fact that his hands make bigger fists and he has a much higher threshold for pain. Regardless, we had a great time trying a new type of climbing. Now I see why crack can be so addictive.

We headed back home this afternoon, gorging ourselves on Twizzlers and Pringles, thankful for a weekend of amazing weather, cool people, and incredible new climbing spots.

Drew's fun fact: In the year 2000, Pope John Paul II was named an "Honorary Harlem Globetrotter."

Weekend Update

Not much blogging lately because there hasn't been a whole lot to write about. In May it rained for almost three weeks in a row. And if you can't say anything nice don't say anything at all... I decided not to blog in May.

But now it's June and for the past four days the weather has been beautiful. It's strange how weather can dictate so much of your life. We've been itching to start hiking 14ers again but the mountains are still covered in feet upon feet of snow; looks like it will be another month before enough snow melts to be able to hike up to 14,000 ft without having to post-hole to the summit.

We've still been spending most of our weekends climbing. Drew recently started dabbling in trad climbing where you place gear into the rock as you climb to catch you if you fall (rather than relying on bolts that have been permanently placed in the rock). He also did his first multi-pitch on the 1st Flatiron- 8 'legs' of climbing up about 1,000 vertical feet. Yes, he has a life insurance policy.

Both of our parents are planning trips to Colorado this summer, and we are going to Alaska the last week in July. And at the end of this month we celebrate our 3rd wedding anniversary. Lots to look forward to this summer. Now if only that snow would melt...

Drew's fun fact: March 2011 snow surveys show the snowpack in the Colorado River basin is still above average, at 128 percent of average and 164 percent of last year's figures.

Date Night

Since the weather turned warm (relatively) Drew and I have had a standing weekly date night to go climbing in St. Vrain Canyon. As soon as I get home from work Drew hands me a granola bar, shoves me in the car, and drives me 20 minutes west to the canyon. We're able to climb for about 2 1/2 hours before the sun sets, which is just enough time for us each to try a route that's too hard and fail, and then try another that's too easy and succeed.

Even though it's not your standard dating activity, climbing is actually a great way to spend time together. We get to be outside, which we both love. We get to try things that are new and scary, and encourage each other along the way. But most of all we get to be together and not talk about work or money or plans or the future or anything important.

The couple that belays together stays together.

Drew's fun fact: The only continent with no desert is Europe.