The last stop on my End of Summer East Coast Highpointing Tour is Georgia’s Brasstown Bald. I chose to summit this state’s highpoint using the Arkaquah Trail from Track Rock Gap, not far off US 76 between Blairsville and Young Harris. The parking area on the west side of the road is really for the…
No Sunglasses nor Sunscreen Needed on Sassafras
South Carolina was the next state to get on this year’s End Of Summer East Coast Highpointing Tour. We remained in Asheville for both Carolina’s since Sassafras Mountain is close enough to Mt. Mitchell that it didn’t make sense to relocate between these two states. We also liked the idea of Asheville as our “basecamp”…
Mt. Mitchell Trail to the Top of North Carolina
It’s time to hit the east now that I’m done with all the state high points west of the 100th meridian! After a fun Labor Day weekend in Charlotte, we drove west to Asheville and began my End Of Summer East Coast Highpointing Tour with North Carolina’s Mt. Mitchell. This summit is accessible by car…
Mahalo Mauna Kea
Hiking to the top of Hawaii is definitely one of the more unique states to summit a 13er! I had a hard time seeing how you can go from sea level to almost 14,000 ft on this island when both Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa are nothing more than two little bumps on the horizon….
Walking the Planks of Rainier
Trying to get any sleep the night before a big summit day is always a challenge. Am I ready for this? Did I bring the right boots? Should I have brought that jacket instead of this one? It turns out to be a long restless night of going through all the “what ifs” since a…
The Stars Aligned for Rainier
Rainier was the only peak I didn’t have pre-arranged plans for as we rolled into this season of mountaineering. I knew I really needed to get it done this summer if I were to be more prepared for a run at Denali next summer. I just wasn’t exactly sure how that was going to happen….
The Snow Bridge on Borah Peak
I’ve done Borah Peak 4 times now and always asked the same questions about this state’s highpoint: 1) How was the snow bridge? 2) Did you carry spikes? 3) What time did you start? Before I share my perspective, I’m not even sure why people call it a snow “bridge”. It’s not bridging any kind…
Consider Always Roping Up on Glaciers
I was talking to a guy that broke through a snow bridge on Glacier Peak the week after we did Baker. The story and pictures he shared makes me take glacier travel way more seriously. “I fell into a crevasse on Glacier Peak last weekend. Had I not been roped up, I would have broken…
Coleman-Deming Route to Mt. Baker
DAY 3 – Roped up for the Summit The night before a big adventure is always a restless one. You go to bed shortly after dinner in preparation for an alpine start. Unfortunately, you just end up laying there thinking about the day to come. Today’s plan was to get up at midnight and start heading…
Heliotrope Ridge Trail to Hogsback Camp
My summer mountaineering tour of the Pacific Northwest continues in Washington with Mt. Baker. We planned for 5 days to bag Baker from the Coleman-Deming Route with a schedule that went like this: DAY 1 – Fly in to Seattle, drive up to Bellingham Most of us chose to fly in for this one because…