summer so far...

I kept thinking to myself that I still have plenty of summer to still write, but I realized that today is already the beginning of August.

Where did it go???

I suppose that I should keep up on my writing because this is the closest thing I have to a journal at the moment. Needless to say it's been a busy summer. Right after school ended I packed up and headed to CA to fulfill my lifelong desire to sell pest control door-to-door. . . . . . . . . . . .

Just kidding.

That lasted a few weeks (enough to see a few friends from my mission and visit Lake Tahoe with a great friend) and I realized that I left my heart in Moab and that's where I needed to be. So I woke up one morning, called and quit, threw my stuff in the back of my truck and dead-headed it back to the homeland. I was lucky enough to get my riverguiding job back that I had before my mission, and I've been working nights at Sunset Grill as a server.

So between whitewater trips and serving delish steak and seafood I've been climbing and camping when I can. It's been so good to be with my family (especially my brother Joseph who leaves on his mission to Brazil at the end of this month), hang out with old friends, and find new ones.

Anyways, the summer's not over yet, but here are a few of the highlights so far. One of the best trips this summer was a Desolation Canyon trip I did with Dani and Kayla (can you tell that Deso is my favorite?).

Lasal Mountains

Camp at Jack Creek, Desolation

Kerri on Nervous in Suburbia, Wall St.

Rocky Rapid, Fisher Towers section of the Colorado

corona arch rope swingin'

"So I just go???"
- the last few words out of my mouth before yelling at the top of my lungs as I took the 100 foot drop below Corona Arch.

This was possibly the craziest thing I've done in a long time, second to skydiving when I was 18. My roommate and I hiked to the top of Corona Arch while a group of people were swinging, inspected the gear and riggings, and jumped. If Clint hadn't jumped first I probably wouldn't have tried it. He jumped without hesitation! I barely had time to start recording with my camera. After watching a couple people swing from the arch it seemed pretty safe, but somehow that hike back down to the canyon floor didn't seem so bad! But I just had to try it and I'm glad I did. Try everything at least once, right?

You'll love my facial expressions mid-flight.



Spring break has come and gone too fast! Braden and I originally went to Moab to volunteer for and run the Canyonlands Half Marathon and Clint came down to have fun and see some family. Saturday after the race we all decided to hike Corona Arch and ended up jumping off of it. I don't think I woke up race morning and said to myself, "I want to jump off a cliff today," but it was definitely one of the highlights of the trip.

Would I do it again? YES. 100%. It would be a lot easier the second time anyways. Sometimes I wonder if it ever gets old for some people, but I guess not, otherwise why are they still doing it? Whatever, call me an adrenaline junkie.

amasa back

A couple weekends ago I went down to Moab with a roommate who was running the Moab Red Hot trail run. It was awesome to spend time with family and friends and the outdoor temperatures couldn't have been better! The morning before I headed back north for Logan my brother Joseph and friend Kerri and I rode the Amasa Back trail. The last time I attempted that one was about four years ago when I got sick! I was ascending the long uphill at the beginning when I was coughing and spitting out bloody mucus, and then my derailleur broke. So.... I figured it was a good idea to turn around and coast back to the trailhead. Little did I know at the time that a broken bike part was the least of my worries, but alls well that ends well right?

I've been experimenting with different angles and techniques with this little camera. This is a fun two minute video that I put together from the ride, and ends with a wreck and a broken GoPro mount.

a moab christmas

Annual Andrew Christmas Day hike to Cowboy Hottubs

Christmas morning excitement (including a thoughtful gift from Santa to Olivia)!

Logan and Brooke

It's been hard to sit down and write about Christmas break because so much happened and I really haven't wanted to say that it's over, but in a nutshell, I...

...went duck hunting (I just need my duck stamp right? HEY DUCKS!! I hear I'm the best bird dog out there, so if you need a hound to flush out them ducks I'm your man), hiking, was the best man for my best friend's wedding, climbing on Wall Street, bearding (what happens when Olivia strokes your beard excessively), hiked, ate good food, snowshoed with Kerri, watched the Hobbit II and hung out in downtown SLC with my best aunt Naomi, more hiking....

Of course Christmas day wouldn't be complete without the traditional Andrew family hike. We went up the right fork of Mill Creek, and the stream was completely frozen over. I love ice hikes in the desert during the winter. Not very many people get to see Moab like this with thirty-foot icicles hanging from slowly dripping springs in the canyons and cliffs. As enjoyable as it is to cool off at Left Hand in the summer, I love it just as much in the winter.

And most importantly it was great to be with my family again after two years in California. This will probably be one of the last that we're all together, because Joseph will leave on his mission this summer, and then Anna will get married...

Wildfire

There was a wildfire in the wetlands on Monday. It came really close to the west side of town, where I live at the World Wide warehouse and the Hazlett's house. It was about 5pm when I noticed ash falling into the warehouse yard and was about to jump on top of the roof to see if I could see any flames. Ken Bishoff from the county Search & Rescue walked into the yard and told us that they're encouraging evacuation. A few of the guides and I walked down the Hazlett's house and prepared to help spray trees down if it got any closer. There were 50mph gusts spreading the flames, and it got really close to a few houses before the winds died down and the firefighters got it under control.

A view from the Hazlett's yard. Click to see a report on KSL.

If I told you

where this place is, I'd have to kill you. I'll give you a hint though, it's in Arches. It was cool to hike to something not well-known in such a high-traffic national park. I love discovering the wild and weird; the esoteric places of Moab.

Lost in Lost Canyon

I just got home from an overnight backpacking trip in The Needles district of Canyonlands! Ivy got an internship for the SCA and is a park ranger there. River guide buddies Mike, Joe, Stephen and Amber joined Ivy and I hiking in Lost Canyon, Peekaboo, and Squaw Canyon. The trails were amazing! We hiked on solid slickrock for miles, where the trail is only discernible by numerous rock cairns until we descended through slots into canyons filled with meandering streams and newly-leaved Cottonwood trees. We explored several Indian archeological sites. I am always amazed at how well-preserved the wilderness is in the Needles. There are mountains of untouched cryptobiotic soil! The trails are followed and the campsites are well cared for. I love that place.

Camp broken and ready to go this morning at our campsite, LC3

Several animals visited us last night: hungry mice, Rodents of Unusual Size, and squawking birds at 4am. But after 10 miles, that pad has never been so comfortable!

We hiked to Peekaboo and found these incredible pictographs. I've never seen hand-prints like these.

Claret Cup Cactus

Ivy and I. She only has 5 more weeks here!

This post goes out to Moab

Eco-friendly, tourist-friendly, local-friendlier, adventure-friendly... I live in a happy place. These are the places I frequent.


View Local Moab in a larger map

Castleton Tower

Today I climbed Castleton Tower! Brian Hays and I climbed the Kor-Ingalls route, the route that made the first ascent of the tower in 1961. It was incredible! The climbing was fun and fairly easy, but the wind was terrible.

Behind me is the Colorado River, the towers Jah Man, the Priest and the Nuns, and the Rectory.

There are four pitches. The first, second, and fourth were easy. The third pitch was pretty hard, and slick hardened calcite didn't make it any easier. This is Brian at the anchors of the last pitch, about to rappel.

Where is this?

The view of our route before the approach. The tower stands 400 ft above the ground, and it's elevation is 6,656 ft. What a beautiful tower!

Gemini to Baby Lion's

Here's a few pictures from the weekend. We rode Gemini Bridges in the morning with snow at the trailhead, and rappelled in the afternoon with bitter winds. Never a bad day for adventure!

The crew at the bridges - Mick, Tyler, Arlee, Sterling, Jed, Mike, Chris, Chris.

Where are we? 

Jed was our shuttle driver, and at the trailhead he just decided to follow us. We had truck support on Gemini Bridges! At the end I suggested we ride with Jed through the flat and uphill. He dropped us off at the top and we bombed down to the parking. Sweet!

Chris just got a new static rope so we can go canyoneering. So Mick took us to the top of Baby Lion's Back in his Jeep to test out the new rope on the rappel up there.

Crotch shot

That night we were too tired to do anything, so we let Dumb and Dumber play while we napped on the couches.

Banff Mountain Film Festival

Monday night I took Ivy to the Banff Film Fest here in Moab. After picking up the free posters and stickers from Petzl, we entered the auditorium and joined the crowds of adrenaline junkies waiting for the show. It started off with two sweaty-palm-inducing, on-the-edge films where you feared for the athelete's life. I got an rush just watching the incredible feats these people accomplish. Dean Potter was featured in the flim "Fly or Die," where he free BASED (climbing with no safety equipment besides a parachute) the north face of the Eiger, a 1,000 ft peak in Switzerland that more than 60 climbers have died on. After successfully topping-out, he leaped from a ledge and flew to safety.

Luckily for my adrenal glands not all the films were this intense. This was one of my favorite films they showed:

I hope someday I can grow a beard like that. After the show I felt like BASE jumping, or treking across a large desert, or something crazy like that. Sponsorships, anybody? Hmm, maybe I can get a camera crew and helicopter to document my float down the daily...

Ice Fishing

Today some friends and I went fishing in the LaSals. We rode Josh's four-wheeler with tracks, so that made the three miles to Oowah real quick! (faster than snowshoeing at least)

The fishing was great - the company was better.

Merry Christmas



Shorts and Chacos, baby.

 Another great family hike this year! The ugly weather opened a perfect sunny window for Christmas weekend, so we took advantage of it. We hiked the Moab Rim in almost-60 degree weather.

Highlining

Thanksgiving Highline Fest in Moab! There were six lines set up with two short practice lines nearby. Ryan Matson took me out there, and I leashed up to a short 35 ft "practice" line. Just to get myself used to the height I scooted across on my butt and kinda played around a bit. Safely on the other side, I tried to convince myself to start walking. I could step on the line, almost get two steps, and then freak myself out. It's hard to step off a cliff and hold balance! I practiced falling and catching the webbing a couple times, and was finally able to step out and balance for a while. My inability to do better was all in my head! If a slackline like that had been set up 3 ft off the ground, it would have been no problem. I need more practice and control of my fears, and next time, I will walk the line.

Challenges, stress, confidence, and success.

From the title of this post, you're probably thinking that I've had a rough spot in my life and I'm blogging about it, but this is about a less solemn subject: climbing. Climbing is like no other sport. It is physically demanding, mentally straining, and dangerous. It focuses your mind and sharpens your senses. It offers a challenge that if defeated, brings an incredible sensation of achievement.

"This one seems pretty doable." Kerri, Sterling, and I stood at the base of a route on Wall Street, a beautiful red slickrock wall with many climbs. It might've been the last good-weather day of the year, and we wanted to make the most of it. We looked up with our necks craned, assessing the rock and the difficulty of it. "The book says it's only a 5.8? Let's try it - I'll lead."

"Leading" is to climb a route first, place anchors as you go along, and clip your rope at the top. On most climbs there is a bolt in the rock every 5-10 feet, and if you are about to clip into one and you slip, you will fall twice the distance since your last anchor before your belayer can catch you. So if you climb 10 feet, almost reach the next bolt and slip!, then you're going to fall at least 20 feet. There's a lot of stress and motivation to not fall while you're lead climbing.

And leading was exactly what I was attempting to do. I tied a figure-eight to my harness, squeezed my feet into my shoes, and took off. A little scramble to the first bolt, and I felt sure I could top out. I kicked my brain into hyper speed, focusing on the rock so I could move smoothly and save energy. One... two... three bolts behind me... and then I stopped. I was on an exposed rock fin with the ground a mile away. There were no holds to my right, drop-off on my left, and a small hold above my head about 6 inches too high. I thought, "If I dyno (jump) to that hold, I'm probably going to fall. But I'll try it--it's all in my head, right?" I ran through my plan. Focus, energy to my legs, and... "doh-AH!" I made an involuntary sound with my throat as I fell and swung down on the rope. "I'm going to try again - be ready to catch me!" It took too many tries, and I got tired of gaining all that distance just to fall again. Kerri, my belayer, yelled up that she'd try it, so I came down.

On the ground and trading places, I described the tough spot to Kerri while I took off my shoes and pulled out my belay device. She climbed past the crux and finished, and seeing that it was possible, I tried again. After I had made the difficult move and finished, I realized why I couldn't do it before. I didn't have the confidence in myself to stick that move; I was sure I'd fall--and I did.

Climbing is not only about skill of movement on the rock; it requires concentration to solve difficult problems, determination, and confidence to overcome fear. The process is stressful, but the rewards are sweet: an incredible sense of accomplishment and a good dose of adrenaline. Climbing is something I can't quit, but I think it's a lot healthier than other addicting substances. Climbing is a passion.

Perfect weather... perfect weekend

It's been in the 70's all week! Perfectly beautiful fall weather. On Friday Ammon and I went sport climbing on Wall Street. After a couple disappointing attempts, we finally completed a route. Good practice, but I really need to work on forearm strength. In the afternoon Emily and Karen joined us to set up a slackline at the park. I hadn't slacklined since last year, but I worked and worked at it until I could walk it! It's amazing how much balance and technique it takes. Pretty soon I was jumping on the line and walking! I love it... and it's a cool social tool; so many people walking down the road came over and asked, "Hey, can I try your line?" It's great to learn from different people. I'm getting enough webbing to make my own line, and I'm planning on setting up some posts in my backyard so I can practice anytime.

Later that night, a few of us had a bonfire in rememberance of Guy Fawkes. We also blew up cans of gasoline and aerosol instead of fireworks. Enough said.

Ivy and the Whitewater Kayaking Club from BYU came Friday night, so Saturday morning we floated the daily. It was crazy to be on the river the beginning of November, so late in the year! It was really cool to be floating past yellow cottonwoods and see the fall wildlife. The water was so cold, but the outside air was great. I couldn't go in a whitewater kayak because I've never rolled, but I wanted to try something new besides a duckie. So I rented a sit-on-top kayak... dumb idea. It was huge and heavy, and basically the same as an inflatable duckie, which are easy to roll up and stow in a car. Oh well, I tried something new, and now I know I won't try it again.

After the daily the club ate at Fiesta Mexicana and left town (Ivy hitched a ride back to campus on Sunday with a visiting riverguide).We finished up the night with hot chocolate and "River Wild." Perfect weekend!

Klondike Bluffs

Sterling and I wanted an afternoon ride the other day, so we threw on the bikes and sped off to Klondike Bluffs. After saying goodbye to the trailhead, we began the 4.5 mile ascent to the lookout on the top, which views Arches Nat'l Park. Uphill wasn't too bad; just pop your bike into granny gear and cruise up. We stopped to check out the dinosaur tracks on the left of the trail and then helped out a couple who had bent a derailleur (helping others = good trail karma). After a nice hike at the overlook, we jumped back on and just bombed downhill. It made all that up really worth it! Klondike Bluffs is an awesome trail, and I'll definitely ride it again.

One Big Mexican Serving

Last weekend my buddy Chris Allen and two of his friends came to ride The Whole Enchilada from the LaSals down to the Colorado River. Not just a part, not a couple bites, but The WHOLE Enchilada. It's a big strenuous ride. With this ride you get everything: the cool air (in between cow pies) in the green mountains while you duck around aspens to big air over scrub oak to dodging cliff sides on the red rock. Not to mention the breathtaking view the entire trail! (or maybe I was just out of shape and breath)

We started out at 10:30 am after driving to the trailhead and began an ascent of 800 ft in one mile to get to Burro Pass, the first section of our ride. That was a lot of hike-a-biking. As soon as we got to the top, it was just crazy fast downhill singletrack through the trees and streams and over rocks and roots. Every time we stopped we had to move off the trail because there were so many riders! We cruised down to Warner Lake and were surprised by a wedding facing the lake. Oops.

The trail crossed through the creek several times. It was pretty, but the water made my feet smell like wet dog at the end of the day.

Chris, Clint, Matt, and Chris at the top of Hazard County.

After Warner came Hazard County. This trail starts out with half a mile uphill but it's worth the view up top. Overlooking the Moab Valley, we began the descent into the sage and scrub oak and then hit some big man-made jumps and dusty burms along the trail. We crossed the LaSal road and began the Kokopelli section of the trail, which was my favorite. Wide open DT with big whoop-de-dos and it was easy to ride.



Changing the first of three flat tires.



The Kokopelli blended right into the next part of the trail - The Porcupine Rim. The first part of this ST was fun; it flirted with the cliff edge overlooking Castle Valley and Castleton Rock and had some fun drop-offs. The lower section of Porcupine was killer, we had several flat tires and we had run out of water (I drank all 3 liters of my Camelbak and hadn't peed once!) and we were just exhausted. It was all I could do to stay on the bike. When we finally got down to the truck at the Colorado River, it was 7:15 and we had ridden 28 miles. We threw the bikes in and sped to Matrimony Springs, the first water source we could find. After we had satiated our thirst, we went to City Market to get some Gatorades and energy foods.

The Whole Enchilada was definitely the hardest and most technical ride I've ever done. It was also by far the funnest too. I want to do it again, except maybe next time I'll take a smaller bite of this Mexican delight.

Goblin Valley

Karen, Kerri, Lauren, Ivy and I took a road trip to Goblin Valley and the surrounding canyons. We drove out to Crack Canyon and had delicious tin-foil dinners and set up camp. In the morning we hiked Little Wildhorse Canyon and explored the hoodoos in the park. I really want to discover more in the San Rafael Swell. I love slot canyons!

 

Little Wildhorse Slot Canyon



Ivy, Lauren, Kerri, Karen.

Company Cat

This year we got to do a company Cataract Canyon trip! It was just a bunch of guides, friends, and one of Nicki's friends with her family. It was so much fun, and the rapids were awesome.

The crew: John, Mark, Mike, Stephen, Joe, Ivy, Karen, Chris, Jordan, Lexy, Erica, Scott, Jane, Dale, Suzy, Clinton, Morgan, and Sheena.

Like always, Suzy just can't seem to keep her hands off me, and of course Clinton has to help her out. Some passengers on other trips have even asked if Suzy and I are dating because she horses around a lot more than Ivy does :P

Holly wanted to "go on the boats" instead of driving back with Steve.

 We left the put-in at about 9:30, so it was dark as we motored to our first campsite. It was cool, I've never rafted in the dark! People read, slept, and ate leftover cheesecake from some wedding reception.

The fun boat with Mark, Joe, Suzy, Me, Ivy, Morgan, Steven, and Scott.

For dress-up night all three of us unintentionally wore Hawaiian-themed clothing.

I love Cataract Canyon