Summer Fun

I have had a busy summer of hiking, climbing, and hanging out with friends. No pics of all this fun, however, due to broken/forgotten camera.

Yesterday, Melissa & I hiked out to Tuck & Robin lakes. The book lists this as a backpack trip and it seems that most people do that, but we thought a quick in-&-out would be fun. It was totally reasonable with a light pack and an early start.

Tuck Lake was snow-free...

...which made for great swimming for Winders.

Ice floating in Lower Robin Lake.

A lot of ice & snow at Upper Robin Lake.

Just when we thought we wouldn't see the mountain goats,

they crossed the steep snowslope high above.

Happy dog, happy Melissa; Mt. Daniel in the background.

Mt. Adams

I skipped this trip b/c -you've heard it before- I'm not too excited about summer skiing. It sounds like they had a great time, however.

The trip was not without the usual adventurous hiccups but that's all a part of the fun. A log blocking the road delayed the summit ski by a day. But the guys spent a relaxing day at Heiko's girlfriend's house in Hood River, watching the funny antics of Spider, her jack russell terrier (thanks for your hospitality).

The next day, they headed out again, this time no road blockage. Heiko got altitude sickness but kept on pushing hard. He finally got too sick and had to stop. Ed & Brandon continued on and made it to the summit. A few turns in not-great snow...and then Brandon, showing off for the helmet-cam, did an awesome turn that resulted in a fall in which his ski did not come off (had his bindings locked in), thus torquing the ankle in some bad way. I can't wait to see the helmet-cam footage of the swear/stress-fest after the fall! :)

No rescue needed (thankfully...we'll tell you the story if you ask), the guys made it out on their own. Brandon's ankle turned out okay after all...just a bad sprain. As with all of these adventures, they make for good stories afterwards.

Heiko, Ed, & Brandon

Taking a break

Headed up some more...

Ed & Brandon, at the summit