Author Archives: John

When I heard there may be several inches of snow up high on Easter Eve, I reminisced about the epic “Easter Freeze” trip from 12 years ago.  So I am re-posting that trip since I  obviously am not out this … Continued

It was  one year ago when Laurel and I packed up and headed to Nepal for the grand Everest adventure. As we speak, teams are snaking their way up the Khumbu valley for their own shot at earth’s highest peak.  … Continued

Spring break. And I desperately needed some snow time. Work was killing me, I’ve been pulling 12 hour days.  So, off I went. Tahoe has had 40 feet of snow this year. It’s a record snowpack in all my many … Continued

 It was a another in a string of quick hit backcountry trips and Friday afternoon saw me hitting the trail from top of the world down into Cane Creek.  I went at the invitation of Curt and Brian who were … Continued

It was a quick hit Saturday morning run up a newly-opened trail. The results of the fire are still visible. But the weather was ideal for this kind of exercise. There’s been a lot in the news lately about the … Continued

JD had been organizing this big event for a while. But the pending weather sort of changed our plan to go to Bob’s bald with a large group. Instead we decided to do a quick hit Backcountry trip to Davenport … Continued

So I started getting that chest crud my last few days in Val Thorens. It was so bad I didn’t even ski that last day and waited on Laurel while she did. (Yesterday three chest x-rays confirmed my first official … Continued

Les Trois Vallees- France I travel cheaply. By now most of you are fully aware. How else could a lowly drug counselor traverse this planet? I’ve always believed that a penny saved….. Anyway, this trip’s genesis was borne from $650 … Continued

Leaving Maryville at 3.30 pm, we arrived at the trailhead aroun 4 pm.  How about that?  And the reservation system was showing half full for good ole Little Bottoms. However, that was false. And it has been false since the … Continued

The Highlanders have migrated upstream again to  spawn a new year of adventures in one of the most remote spots in the Smokies. Friday, post Thanksgiving, has been a tradition for the Highlander crew since early 2000s. This year, AJ, … Continued