Lake Aldwell

Happy Holidays, Lake Aldwell, it's your first Christmas above water in over 100 years.

live staking

At first, we sprayed a bunch of invading plants with herbicide, kind of lame but sometimes it's gotta be done. This week, on the other hand, we get to do some goodness for the Elwha River riparian belt. All the Reed Canary Grass we sprayed may come back, so we need to shade it out. Cut a branch of Willow, stick it in the ground, watch it grow. Live staking.
-
Washington Conservation Corps

Early morning snow line.

Cutting Willow on the Lower Elwha.

Load the F350.

Huck the bundles down the hill.

Haul the bundles to the staking site.

Put the stakes in the ground, three nodes deep.

Fresh cut Willow.

Victoria, BC

concrete wave

I try my best to keep bragging to a minimum, but when I learned three of my photos were printed in Concrete Wave Magazine I decided to share.

front of the photo section

photo section

feature on freeriding

Thanks to the publisher/editor, Michael Brooke, and the riders, Trevor Crump, Trevor Preston, and Max Wippermann.

WA

I've always wanted to live in a cabin, somehow it happened sooner than I expected. Now that I live where I vacation, it's easy to daydream about other places of escape that are half a tank of gas away. Washington, learn it, use it.

Hardwood floors.

The Cabin.

The View.

La Push.

Strait weather.

North Cascades.

Wenatchee.

sunset sessions

The Oregon coast is many different things to many different people. For us, it's the sport of surfing. Camping comes with the territory, cold misty mornings, spot checks along 101, failed dawn patrols. It's easy to get antsy, spend too much time in the car, just to get skunked at every spot. If the trip is long enough, good conditions are bound to roll through. Make sure you're in the water when they do, can't catch waves from the beach. At the end of the day it's always enjoyable to be on the coast, wearing your best cheeser, and soaking in the sunset.

Wright's for Camping, a nice little place in Cannon Beach.

Highway 101.

Waiting for coffee to brew before the hike.

Cape Lookout. Big sets were double overhead and a half. No one paddled out.

Concrete surfing when the waves go flat. Smooth, Oregon transitions.

Dry line at camp.

Locals only.

Ecola State Park.

Hemel fish.

Happy campers. Say cheese.

Cape Kiwanda. Big wave sunset.

High Divide

We hiked a trail in the Olympic National Park, Seven Lakes Basin and the High Divide. Made the loop in three nights, though it could have easily been done in less. As always in the backcountry, it's easy to marvel at the trail systems we have access to, many people are not quite so lucky. What a luxury to put some food and gear into a backpack and walk into the hills. There's just something about them hills.

Lake Crescent. Always a beauty.

Matt and the Blazer.

The afternoon sun filters in through the old growth.

Luke, pitting his concentration against the mosquitos.

Fauna. Flora.

The trail offers bounty for the senses, soak it in.

The High Divide. Bogachiel Peak on the left.

Matt and his mat, having an afternoon slide.

Mount Olympus.

Max, Rafaela, Matt, and Luke.

Don't look down.

Sol Duc Falls.

Sol Duc River and a small tributary.

 Small campfire on the last night. Matt ponders the trail next to this luxury.