Our final adventure in the northwest was to go visit Leon at Mt. Rainier. Leon, a friend from Virginia Tech, has been working summers as a climbing guide (you can see his bio here). Ever since an unfortunate failed climb multiple years ago, Ryan has been itching to get back for another summit attempt. The first night we spent with Leon in Ashford involved some great Nepalize eats and our second growler. It also involved crazy screeching and "yipping" outside of our tent in the woods... thus leading to us moving inside and crashing on the couches. For the second night, we took Leon to Seattle and got another Priceline hotel, the Doubletree this time. We had an amazing dinner and carafe of house red at an open-air Italian restaurant in the city, followed by flamboyant drinks at the nearby gay bar (really, what more could you ask for?).
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Washington & Leon
Our final adventure in the northwest was to go visit Leon at Mt. Rainier. Leon, a friend from Virginia Tech, has been working summers as a climbing guide (you can see his bio here). Ever since an unfortunate failed climb multiple years ago, Ryan has been itching to get back for another summit attempt. The first night we spent with Leon in Ashford involved some great Nepalize eats and our second growler. It also involved crazy screeching and "yipping" outside of our tent in the woods... thus leading to us moving inside and crashing on the couches. For the second night, we took Leon to Seattle and got another Priceline hotel, the Doubletree this time. We had an amazing dinner and carafe of house red at an open-air Italian restaurant in the city, followed by flamboyant drinks at the nearby gay bar (really, what more could you ask for?).
More Random Portland Photos
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Portland Life
1. Japanese Gardens.
I have wanted to visit the gardens for a while, and while they were really pretty, the overwhelming amount of rhododendron almost kind of ruined it for us... but we still had fun running around, regardless of the lack of tiny trees.
2. Voo-doo Doughnuts.
After seeing this establishment on numerous Food Network and Travel Channel specials, I had to try it out! We waited in line for 20 minutes or so, in the tiny building, sans air conditioning (or air flow at all, for that matter). Finally, we made it to the counter and had to choose a half dozen among a variety of flavors that ranged from the "Triple Chocolate Orgasm" to "Cock and Balls". Decisions, decisions. We picked a few each, and ran like hell with our pink box to the nearest safe sitting locale (I say safe, because there are herds of homeless in the area... and not the helpless vet type, but the crazy meth type). Anyways, the doughnuts were delicious! Of course, Ryan had one of the more colorful ones offered, with crazy blue and pink sprinkles. I opted for the aforementioned TCO, which was a devils food cake doughnut with fudge frosting and topped with Cocoa Puffs. YES.
There were also a couple of staples that need to be mentioned. Mostly, beer related. We always go to the Rogue restaurant. The food is pretty good, but it's the beer that brings us back. The variety is excellent. I couldn't decide if I wanted a Chocolate Stout or a Hazelnut Brown (I love them both), so the server suggested a Snickers, which is half and half! It was awesome and we even left with two growlers (the Nut Brown and Double Mocha Porter). Also, the nearby Deschutes Brewery produces Black Butte Porter, and you can get it at pretty much any bar in Portland... yet another reason to fall in love with this city!
We stumbled upon a couple new spots worth mentioning. Mother's Bistro downtown was a great find. The beers weren't overpriced and the food was way good. They have a Mac-n-Cheese of the day, which I admit I opted for twice. The first time it had artichokes, gruyere, and pancetta. The second visit it was Southwest Mac, with chicken, jalapenos, and monterey. Ryan's Salmon Cobb salad was pretty awesome looking, with so many toppings you literally couldn't see the lettuce below. Cassidy's is right near the Crystal Ballroom and has a stellar happy hour. We waited until 10pm and then they have an extensive gourmet menu where every option is full size and only $5.75! The mussels and clams were perfect, as were the battered calamari and japs, but the highlight was the pork belly with mashed potatoes drowned in a wild mushroom gravy (chanterelles and morels if you were wondering). Totally worth the trip across town! Finally, the Tin Shed in northeast Portland. The food was great, but the atmosphere is what is worth returning for. Every Wednesday night is movie night, so they set up a projector in the garden and feature such classics as "Revenge of the Nerds" and "Grandma's Boy". Check it out!
We ventured outside of Portland to visit Mt. Hood and use a spa gift certificate in Silverton. Unfortunately, our spa visit fell the day right after our Mt. Adams adventure. Ryan was extremely sunburned on his face and neck, while my arms caught the brunt of the sun (I remembered to put sunblock on my face though). We had booked him for a creek side deep tissue massage, but the burn guaranteed no relief for his neck muscles. I opted for an exfoliation, because I knew I would probably scream if someone tried to massage my calves.
Another great thing about this trip is the opportunity to catch up with old friends. On Friday morning we drove to Multnomah Village to meet up with Jamie, my coworker from my ODOT days. When it comes to great conversation, Jamie is definitely at the top of my list. To say I got super lucky with the ODOT job is an understatement. As we spent hundreds of hours driving to sites across Oregon, it could have been miserable if I was stuck with someone who wasn't enjoyable to talk to! I also think Ryan really enjoys meeting up with Jamie because he is a down-to-earth geologist who worked in industry (albeit mining) before he started with ODOT. He is a lot like us in that sense, where we prefer sustainable living and generally try to keep a small carbon footprint (for lack of a better word), but yet we are honest with ourselves about our resource needs as a society. That evening, we were able to meet up with another friend, Justin. We know him from Virginia Tech, another geologist, and as he has been working on geomorphology issues around Mt. Rainier, it was really cool to catch up!
So, that's pretty much what we've been up to this past week... and thus I seem to find myself scouring job ads in northwest Oregon....
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Mt. Adams: She Said
Monday, July 26, 2010
I Love You, William Shatner
After paying far too much for hotel rooms in Canada, we knew something had to give for the nights that camping just wasn't an option. Don't get me wrong, I actually love sleeping in our tents. My sleeping bag walls have multiple inches of downy-awesomeness and the thermarest-ridgerest double whammy is better than most hotel beds. Our travel schedule results in single night camping at dozens of different campgrounds and parks. Eventually, you just don't want to set up a tent for the millionth time, stuff a gigantic sleeping bag in a very small sack, or scrounge up quarters for a tepid shower full of mosquitos. Additionally, many of these campgrounds charge upwards of thirty dollars!
So, we decided to exercise our right to hotel bidding. Well, naming our price actually, and praying for a sweet room. Priceline.com works by allowing you to select an area or region, a star level, and entering a price. They work with numerous hotel chains and independents, so if one of these hotels is interested in your offer, they give you the room. Sure, you don't know exactly where you will be staying that night (and yes, you get better deals if you wait until the day of to book), but that's part of the fun, especially in a new town or city!
Our first big score was outside of Seattle. We bid $38 a night on a 2 and a half star room, and got the Guesthouse Inn and Suites. We had a kitchen, hot tub, they sold bottles of wine at reasonable prices at the front desk, and there was an REI less than a mile away! It was so awesome, we added an extra night at the same price (they give you the option if you like your hotel). Since then, we have been alternating camping and Priceline-ing. We have gotten a 3-star (The Radisson, which, by the way had a Sleep Number bed) for $48, a 2.5 star Courtyard Marriott for $41, and following our climb up Mt. Adams are rewarding ourselves in the Marriott Fairfield Inn for 3 nights at a whopping $45 a night.
To think, we were paying $80+ a night for a crappy room in the local Super 8 or Motel 6 across Montana and Canada! This is just one of the many reasons we are loving our no-strings-attached lifestyle. The room prices and layout are set for 2 people, and definitely require flexibility... so this wouldn't be possible if we had kids, pets, or any other issues. By the time you add the price of camping, breakfast, showers, it really doesn't save us that much money if we can keep our hotel cost under $50 a night (and this generally includes breakfast and coffee).
In conclusion, embrace The Shatner and take control of your comfort and your wallet! : )
The Joys of Self-Destruction
So, for those of you that have been to the Pacific Northwest for climbing, or anything in the backcountry for that matter, you know that perfect weather windows open rarely and even more rarely do they stay open for long (Carson, Nichols, and Dave, this is directed at you; BTW – Mt. Hood has been cloud free the last three days). This rings even more true on the Olympic Peninsula, where Summer and I watched the sea fog roll in, even on days that promised clear blue skies. This is also the only place in the contiguous United States that can claim a true rain forest, as the western Olympic region receives upwards of 120 inches of rain and 30 inches of mist each year. As we pondered what kind of atmospheric moisture would lead to 30 inches of mist accumulating in a year, we realized that perhaps only our friends James and Carol in the NW Highlands of Scotland could truly appreciate this. That being said, our visit coincided with a great wave of high pressure that leads to clear, blue skies.
This fortunate weather, coupled with my love of the mountains and my rapidly impending move to the flattest place in the world makes me to want to climb every topographic bump in sight. Thus, the tallest peak in the Olympic range, Mt. Olympus, was an obvious choice.
Problem #1: Despite what most mountaineers would consider to be a relatively low altitude (summit 7969 ft.), Mt. Olympus is glaciated to an extent comparable to peaks further inland that top 12,000 feet in elevation. This leads to complicated and dangerous glacier travel, which can be severely hazardous due to opening crevasses and weakening/collapsing snow bridges. In order to cross these safely, we often work in rope teams of at least two but ideally three or more, which becomes a problem when you are a solo climber.
Problem #2: The base camp for Mt. Olympus, dubbed Glacier Meadows, is 17.5 miles from the trailhead. This means that in order to set up basecamp in GM, you have to carry overnight gear plus all your climbing gear (= 50 to 60 pound pack) this not insignificant distance, which includes ~4000 ft. of elevation gain. Not easy when you are a climber of ~100 pounds in total body weight that does not have the knees, back, or feet for this load over this distance (hopefully everyone now understands why I was left as a solo climber; ps – I still love you Summer). Due to problem #2, a solo ascent was my only option, so I needed to determine route conditions.
Problem #3: Apparently, very little info can be found about this summit through the climbing community internet pages. Well, maybe this is not a problem. I could just go ask the rangers at the park offices. That is essentially their main job right? Not so fast. First, very few rangers have actually climbed to the summit of Mt. Olympus, but all are willing to offer their expertise. So, first ranger discussion, not helpful. As I was reminded during this ordeal, more than a few backcountry climbers in the national parks are unexperienced, make bad decisions, and end up needing rescues. This became abundantly clear as I was talked down to like a 5 year old while probing for simple info about route conditions, which seemed to be quite elusive. Fair enough, but surely they had climbing rangers on staff (See problem #4).
Problem #4: Sam is the only alpine ranger in the Olympic Range and was surely the best source of info in the area. I was told I could find Sam at the Hoh Rainforest Ranger station or up on the mountain via radio, and he could answer all my questions. This led to Problem 4a and 4b. Problem #4a: The day I arrived at Hoh Rainforest, Sam was on day one of his four day off stretch of the three week period. Perfect timing. Problem #4b: Sam apparently does not write route condition reports. So, the only person whose expertise I would trust has no info to report. Time for Plan B.
At the 9 mile mark, I stopped in front of a ranger post, where I was ridiculed by a park volunteer who thought I had no chance of achieving my objective. She also thought that I was lying about coming in 9 miles from the trailhead that morning and accused me of camping without a permit. I exercised diplomacy and patience and simply kept moving.