Ed Viesturs on Obsession, Commitment, Fear, and Risk

Having the chance to see Ed Viesturs, one of America’s greatest mountaineers, speak on the theme of risk, obsession, commitment, and fear in the mountains, was one of the most illuminating outdoors talks I’ve ever attended. Here is an idea of what Ed Viesturs had to say and my own reflections on the topic. Maurice Herzog closes his seminal book …

The lovely lenticular that prevented us from summiting Mount Hood

Climbing Mount Hood in Oregon’s Cascade Mountains

I’m out in Washington State for work right now, and a few weeks back me and a couple climbing acquaintances out of Portland penciled in Easter weekend to make an attempt climbing Mount Hood. Things were looking doubtful for awhile there with all the snow that was dumping throughout the Cascades, the avy conditions, and the general weather pattern, but …

AIARE Level I Avalanche Safety Course

Avalanche! What to Expect During an AIARE Level I Course

I headed back up to New Hampshire for the third time in the past few months, but this time it was for an AIARE Level 1 avalanche safety course. The course was organized and financially supported by the Potomac Mountain Club, our local climbing club in Washington DC. The course appealed to me because this course was to focus more …

Catskills Ice Climbing: Stoney Clove and Deep Notch

My buddy Sameer and I headed up to New York over the long weekend in search of some Catskills ice climbing opportunities. We made a brief pit stop in New York City on the drive up from Washington D.C. so we could camp out in the living room of his friend’s apartment in the Bushwick neighborhood. After a quick NYC …

Ice Climbing in Crawford Notch, New Hampshire

I made my first trip up to New Hampshire over the MLK holiday for a long weekend of ice climbing! There is an amazing amount of ice to be climbed up in the White Mountains and it was an absolute blast: we got on some multipitch water ice climbs and did a long alpine-style gully climb. It was also really, …