Team Younkin

Dad's Story

2010-08-12T16:00:00.000-07:00

O’kay so I gotta say at this point that the whole scene is just a little intimidating. We are at the Whittaker Base Lodge and all the ALAWer’s (American Lung Association Washington) are congregating and laying down their equipment and conversing with one another, they all know one another, have been training and hiking together for MONTHS!!!!! Most have already been to Muir at least once, some several times. Carna is keen to ask me about my “training” and what have I been doing to get prepared. She kinda skoffs at my lame attempt to tell her “not much actually”. My job is at a shipyard supervising a crew that has been modifying a Very Large Vessel for the last 9 months and this has required me to climb many many stairs each day. I am most concerned about the altitude. I did suffer from hypoxia once so I am familiar with the consequences. This last month I have spent in Brazil on the Amazon Basin (read SEA LEVEL!). I have jogged on the beach each morning and often in the evening before a late dinner, but carrying a pack for long distances is not something I have done for some years. So the ALAWer’s are all swapping stories and showing their well worn gear and I am at the rental shop getting someone else’s “used stuff”…….butterflies.

Training day goes very well I think; I know and have used the rest step and power (pressure) breath. This is not my first 14k mountain, however my last, Gannet Peak in Wyoming Wind River Range is many many years ago. A glacier climb like Rainier so I am confident with kicking steps, using crampons, ice axe, arrests and roping techniques, just that the skills are a little rusty but they all come back. At least I am not the oldest, Richard is here as is Geoff with a G and they look pretty confident. I am Stoked to be here with Katie and Ryan who excelled at all the training exercises.

The climb to Muir is mostly uneventful except I keep thinking to myself that the steps are too damn short. I feel like we are a line of ducklings waddling up the mountain in single file, close quarters. Never did I like formation marching and it brings back bad memories of boot camp and close order drill. Not pleasant and certainly not the way I want to spend my time on this beautiful mountain looking at the derrier of the pack in front of me, sooo I stretch the line a little and try to banter with the guides as they ask me to close up ranks. I try to double step, taking two of the kicked steps at a time so that my pace is an actual rest step, which seems to work pretty well for me but the people behind comment that I am wrecking the kicked steps and that they can’t make the larger step that I am so I let it go until we get to the last 1000 ft vertical section. The last section to Muir was becoming difficult, mostly for the size and rest of the step, it just was not working Rather than continuing at a pace that I knew was wrecking me I made the conscious decision to change my pace. I asked those behind me if they wanted to pass and that I was going to change my step, none seemed interested to pass me by, perhaps they were as tired with the waddle step as I was. So I slowed the pace to a about 1-1/2 step lengths with a real rest and pressure breath every other left foot, the gap widened between me and the pack in front. Arrived at Muir about 15 minutes behind the rest of our group in front and I could see that Win (Our guide) was a little concerned for me.

After we get settled in at Muir, Win takes a moment to speak with me and wants to know if I have reached my “personal summit” I think my immediate answer is “no f'ing way”, that the duck waddle was just not a pace that I could efficiently adapt to. I also let him know that I DEFINITELY want Team Hamkin (Hammell- Younkin, nice how the youngsters have given me the lead in the name) to be on the same rope. Katie and Ryan have deferred to Win regarding who is on which rope, I did not separately tell them I specifically requested a “Team Rope”. Win is still concerned that perhaps I will be the weak link….no way I will let that happen, he simply does not know my grit.

So around 6pm, Win comes around with the list of the rope teams and the order of climb and sure enough Team Hamkin is on Win’s rope and we will be the lead team! Ryan’s and Katie’s stories about the night before have already been told, suffice to say that I sleep about maybe 1-1/2 hours total in 20 to 30 minute naps. Altitude is not a problem, tired is not a problem, the noise is, so is the sun streaming in the window and of course I am on east coast time so it is way too early to sleep, even if we worked hard today. So when 11:30 rolls around, I am already set to go. We get fed and watered and geared up with ropes, helmets, crampons and ice axe in the line and ready with the headlamps blaring. Katie, Ryan and I are all in good spirits a little trepidation at the unknown but ready for an adventure.
I asked "What time is it Katie?", Katie said, "Summertime!". A little game we play when nervous of an adventure, or tired, or, something to say to remember this is the fun stuff! We have been saying this since Katie was in her teens.

Underway at 12:45am in what I am surprised is a perfect rest step! The stride is great, the rest pace is great Life IS Good! It is all up hill, its dark, the Moon is near full and the view is subdued, but spectacular right out of the gate. There is a string of lights up the mountain of climbers who left even earlier than us. I point them out to Katie who does not want to look up or down. I can’t resist doing both with reckless abandon, sometime causing myself to trip as the crampons catch on my gaiters, I don’t care, the view is exhilarating. When we make the first stop I ask Win if we keep the same pace for the entire summit trip, I think he may be wondering if yesterday’s last hour is repeating, but he just says "Yea, that’s how it goes the whole way." I surprise him I think with; “Great, that is a perfect rest step for me and I can keep this pace for the rest of the day!” I am at at least 90%, did not mind the rocks or the scree and the view on Little Tahoma is “Jes Gran”. Even at this steady regular pace, we have passed many groups, Win does not like to follow and we have all kept up very well. Katie arrives behind me and Ryan follows, we are all in good spirits and the bulky down jacket is brilliant with food and water already in the pockets. We all confirm the summit is definitely in Team Hamkin grasp on this glorious day.

Step, rest, pressure breathe the whole way to the top one step at a time and the only real bother is some boot slap on my right shin, I have the boot outer layer as loose as possible but it is still there, ignore it. Two more rest stops and Ryan has photos of the sunrise, Katie still will not look up or down and I on the other hand have a rubber neck craning to see all and file away into the memory banks!

To put the climb of Rainier into perspective:
The Empire State Building is 1260 ft of habitable space with 1850 steps to get there, the climb from lodge to Muir is about 5000 ft, Muir to summit is another 5000ft. Day One, climb the steps to the top of Empire State in an hour and 15, take a lazy 15 minute elevator ride down while you sit on the floor snacking and drinking, get out of the elevator and climb the steps again in an hour and 15, repeat a total of 4 times on Day One. Then turn off the lights and do it again on Day Two, add in some wind, drop the temp about 50 degrees, put on some stiff boots with heavy crampons, the air gets a little thinner as you climb….you get the picture.

The Summit is anti-climatic and yet somehow completely fulfilling simultaneously. Ryan and I set off on a hurried hike to the register and it hits me that moving fast is not appropriate at this time. Ryan goes off and I think this may have had an impact on him later during the descent.

The Summit is excellent, the view spectacular, the day perfect and beautiful, my Daughter and Son In Law are on my team and all is right in the world. Descent on the other hand is brutal, a complete different muscle set and no relief a Win is in some kind of race? Perhaps he just wants to see how hard he can push us or maybe he has a mission. Whatever, we did not slow down coming down and we are back in Muir in short order something like 2 hours descent after almost 5 hours on the ascent. The trip from Muir to base lodge is actually the most grueling for me particularly as we hit the pavement. Feet were tired and hurting, Katie had blisters, fortunately I had none but my boot slap is killer and the bottom of my feet are on fire, the thigh muscles screaming for relief. We gutted it out and got to the bottom no worries!

Great day, great guide, great mountain, GREAT TEAM HAMKIN, great views and a hot shower at the end of the day! Life is good.
-Jim Hammell

Mt. Rainier is a Special Place

2010-08-03T15:55:00.000-07:00

WE MADE IT!!!

Ryan, Katie, and Jim reached the summit at 6:05am Saturday morning 7/24/2010.

12 of 18 Climb for Clean Air team members made it to the summit of Mt. Rainier! Although 6 of the team members didn't not make the final summit, they each had their own amazing personal summit. Everyone pushed themselves physically and mentally harder than they ever have before, making it a successful morning for all of us!

Now that you know the end of the adventure let me start at the beginning of our final adventure with Climb for Clean Air.

Wednesday 7/21/2010

We arrived in Ashford, Wa, to Whittaker's Bunkhouse and RMI Basecamp, which is all on the same property, at about 2:30pm. We met up with the rest of the Climb for Clean Air team for an orientation with our RMI guides and a gear check. The two lead guides assigned to us for the climb were Win Whittaker and Mike Haugan. Both Win and Mike are very experienced guides, with plenty of great advice to get us through the next three days as simply as possible.

Ryan, Katie and Jim unpacking gear for the guides to check out

Climb 2 at RMI Basecamp

Thursday 7/22/2010

The team started assembling at RMI Basecamp around 8:15am. After a brief intro of two more guides (Thomas and Eric) we boarded a shuttle to Paradise for a day of mountaineering snow school. At Paradise the team of 18 was split into two teams of 9. Gavin, Naisha, Richard, Heather, Michael, Carna, Ryan, Dad and I were put together with Win and Thomas as our guides. We hiked for about an hour up the mountain, then pulled off the trail to find some steep hills to practice our mountaineering skills-ice axe arrests, rope use, crampon use, and avalanche beacon awareness. We spent about 5 hours on the mountain throwing ourselves to the ground and getting more familiar with our gear. The 'school' day was a great boost to our excitement for the summit attempt.

Thomas is telling us about self arrests with our ice axe

Katie in the self arrest position

Dad sliding down the hill, about to self arrest

After school, Dad, Ryan, and I went back to the Bunkhouse, to pack our gear for the climb. Sadly, I did not get a picture of the packing, but I am sure you can imagine 3 packs worth of clothing, food and gear laid out all over the floor of our room. It took us over an hour to get the gear in our bags just right, but eventually we were packed and feeling prepared. All that was left was dinner, a pep talk from Lou Whittaker and a good nights rest before the start of the climb.
Lou Whittaker is basically a mountaineering legend. He has over 250 summits while leading thousands of novice and experienced climbers to the top of Mount Rainier. Not only does he know Mt. Rainier, but he has lead many international climbs, including the first successful American summit of the North Col of Mt. Everest. Lou sat with us for over an hour sharing stories with the Climb Team to ease our worries and get us excited about the climb. It was very special of Lou to share his time with us; the stories about his experiences on the mountain were very nerve settling for me, he has a way of making the climb feel so easy. Having Lou's pep talk before the big climb, further increased our excitement and made us realize how awesome this adventure was going to be, especially as a father/daughter, wife/husband, father-in-law/son-in-law team. Go Team HAMKIN!

Some of the team listening to Lou

Climb 2 with Lou and our Sponsor Sign.

The entire Climb for Clean Air Team raised over $200,000 for the American Lung Association.

Friday 7/23/2010

We woke up early, had a hearty breakfast (Dad and I had biscuits and gravy, not as good as mom's but a nice comfort food before the big climb) and then headed over to the shuttle for one more meet up with the guides. We started the hike to Camp Muir at about 10am, and arrived at Camp Muir at about 3pm. The hike to Muir was a slow and steady pace so that we weren't too tired for the climb. The hike was in perfect weather with perfect views for Dad!

Dad at the start of the hike

On our way to Camp Muir

Panoramic View from Camp Muir

Once at Camp Muir we unloaded our packs into the bunkhouse to get settled in for a little nap before the start of the climb. Before getting any rest we had dinner and another chat with our guides. For the entire journey the guides have given just enough detail to get through the next phase of the adventure but not enough to overwhelm us or to start getting worried. So on Day 1 we just talked the overall steps of getting to the summit and the gear we would need to get there. On Day 2 we just talked about mountaineering skills, on the beginning of Day 3 we just talked about getting to Camp Muir. At the end of Day 3, we finally got to the details of the climb. Win talked us through each part of the climb. We would have three breaks, 15 minutes each, with about an hour to an hour twenty of climbing between each break. Each section of the climb will be harder than the last, but if we used all the skills we have learned the past two days we have a good chance of making it to the summit. Win also touched upon not reaching the final summit, and that a personal summit is just as awesome. He spent some time talking about always being an asset to your rope team and knowing when you are no longer a strong enough asset. Another big reminder he had was that the summit was just halfway and that going back down is hard, if not harder than summitting. I think those that did not summit are admirable for being in tune enough with their body and their head to know that they have reached their maximum for the day and were able to consciencely say I am done, and this spot right here is my summit. Way cool guys!

So after the pep talk we had some dinner and headed for some rest at 6:30pm in the bunkhouse with 17 other people. The guides said we would be woken up sometime between 11:30pm and 3am, but until then to get as much rest as possible.

Dad, Katie, and Ryan at Camp Muir, just finished dinner

The view from Camp Muir right before sunset

The climb route

At 11:30pm, the guides came in and woke everyone up and announced that weather conditions were perfect. We were given one hour to get ready. By 12:45am our rope team (Win, Dad, me, and Ryan) were heading out over Cowlitz Glacier, with our crampons and lights on, with our ice axes in the up hill hand, and the rope in our downhill hand. We were climbing!

Getting ready in the darkness

After about an hour into the climb we had gone over Cowlitz Glacier, Cathedral Gap and part of Ingraham Flats. At our first break we were coached to get our packs off, our heavy parkas on, start eating, and drink 1/3 Liter of water. Dad, Ryan, and I were all feeling great, still at 100%. We were so excited to be able to see the view from the other side of the mountain. Although it was dark the moon was nearly full, providing an awesome view of Little Tahoma (the 3rd highest peak in Washington). After 15 minutes we were stripping off our insulated parkas ready for the next section - Disappointment Cleaver.

Disappointment Cleaver was a lot more rocky than we had expected but with one crampon step in front of the other we got through it. Although the rocks were tough through Disappointment Cleaver, I loved the adreline rush I got from passing at least 6 groups. Win was our rope leader and he kept an awesomely consistent pace, which meant if people were in front of us we had to pass. Although it hurt a bit to downshift gears to pass people, it was way better than standing behind them in the cool temperatures waiting for them to go. As you can imagine moving past all the climbers and concentrating on keeping our balance on the rocks with crampons the 2nd break came upon us quickly. At this point we are stting on top of Disappointment Cleaver and Win is telling the group this is not going to get any easier! We were all feeling great at this point, a little less energy(85%), but still 150% excitement. Really nothing more inspiring than having your dad (who did zero altitude training and a minimum to no cardio training) in front of me moving like we are walking on a city street, and then having my husband behind me saying between pressure breathes "Oh Wow!", "So Cool!", "Look at the view!", "Here Comes the Sun!" etc. Really when you have those two on either side of you doing what they do best how can I not keep going! At this point we had 3 awesome people in our group choose their personal summit here, the highest point in Washington, besides the summit. Way to go guys!

Taking a break

The sun is starting to rise

Next stop, is High Break, the last break before the summit. The climb from the top of Disappointment Cleaver to High Break was awesome, this is when the sun really started to light up the sky, the view was incredible. Our pace was nice and steady, passing several more groups along the way. This section did not have any more rocks, just nice steep switchbacks. Yes, I used 'nice' twice; I liked the incline. My feet were feeling good, my pressure breathing was keeping my head clear of headaches and my tummy free of nausea. We all had our head in the game and at High Break we knew were not going to turn around, we were going to make the summit. The break at High Break was my hardest. I started feeling more nauseous, but as soon as I started pressure breathing (blowing out candles) the feeling would go away. Ryan, Dad, and I found that we were all pressure breathing a lot more from High Break to the Summit.

The upper mountain in the morning light - notice how tight the rope is - I'm skiing!

Katie has written the story up to this point, its now Ryan's turn...

This is Ryan picking up the story here...so you'll see a bit more of my perspective the rest of the way. But I'll certainly agree that while I felt as comfortable as could be expected to High Break, from High Break up I began to pant a little! The altitude definitely became a factor! To maintain Win's pace it was necessary to pressure breathe almost every single breath. The last stretch was the shortest at about 45 minutes, putting us at the crater perhaps a bit earlier than we expected. It was surreal because we felt more climb pending and yet our ascent was complete! The rope eased up, over, and down maybe 20 feet vertically into the crater where we collapsed in celebration. It looked like maybe 20 or 30 others beat us to the top. We did it!

Arriving inside the crater on the rope

Jim and I were eager to cross the crater and climb maybe another 100' higher to the official summit and sign the register. We put our packs down, picked up our axes, put on our parkas, and grabbed some summit food and drink. I led Jim literally about 20 brisk (wishful) paces before I had to stop, lower my light head, and take a quick breather. After gaining my composure I looked up at Jim and he said "you know what, on second thought I think I'm gonna stay here." I almost agreed to do the same but I would not be denied, even if it meant a much slower pace (and it surely did). My body just wouldn't operate at full speed - it was not possible. But I kept going and in only about 10 minutes I made the true summit. It was well worth the view to the NW toward the Puget Sound, the Olympic Range, Seattle, and of course home in Brier. After asking around I finally located the register, oddly enough not located at the true summit, but instead a few hundred yards away near a prominent rock. After signing it and downing some celebratory chocolate milk and a Snickers, I headed back to the group. Round trip was about 40 minutes. When I got back we got some group pictures and readied for the treacherous and now sundrenched descent.

Team Hamkin - mission accomplished!

A look toward home, see Mt Baker?

I felt good at the summit, I think we all did. But by the top of the cleaver (our first break), We were wrecked! We descended 2,000 vertical feet in 40 minutes! I am not exaggerating when I say Win got 100% of my potential during that stretch. I was a “skier” at various times (someone that gets drug by rope around the mountain). And since I am generally a quicker descender than Katie I was blown away by Katie’s performance while I was moments away from taking a spill just to get the rope to stop moving! And of course Jim was doing great too, as usual. At that break the headaches started for me. Food and water was little consolation, but getting some rest was superb. Now it was time to descend the Cleaver.

A nice view of Mt Adams (level with its summit) with Gibraltar Rock in the foreground

The scrambling class really paid off here. Though crampons were still new to us, climbing on scree in very steep terrain was no picnic. As long as I was moving I was feeling ok, but my fuel tank was largely depleted by the first portion of the descent. Aside from partially tripping Katie with the rope as we switched back and forth down the Cleaver, it was over before long and we had made it to the flats.

Now the biggest challenge, for me at least, was the sun and heat. Resting at Ingraham Flats the headache was too much for me – I was getting my butt whipped. Some cool water on my handkerchief at Katie’s recommendation had me temporarily satiated. Jim and Katie were rocking it as usual, but unfortunately as I began to feel better in the lower levels of the atmosphere, Katie at least began to suffer from blisters.

Jim's feeling great on the way down - what an inspiration!

The final stretch to Camp Muir was the easiest. We were warmly greeted by those who had turned back earlier, for which we really felt honored. We were given a bit over an hour to grab the things we had left at Camp Muir, drink, and rest. Finally my headache was gone after the long break. It was time to leave beloved Camp Muir and head for Paradise, but not before Katie had some of her blisters tended to by one of the guides – Alias.

Headed downhill in the summer snow conditions went pretty well. But by now all of our feet were really beginning to ache. Which is why when Win offered to show us how to slide down on a trash bag the proper way – we were all ears. Unfortunately, the terrain was not steep enough for prolonged sliding in most places, leading to a lot of getting up and down. What it saved in foot soreness, it made up for in energy expended crouching while getting into and out of position.

Dang! We went up most of that and down all that just TODAY! A nice look at the mountain

Then we realized how much of the bottom portion of the mountain was exposed ahead of us and thus the extent of travel on hard ground (even paved ground) we had ahead of us. As Win said, “when you hit the pavement, just smile – that’s what I do.” This works, for about 4 seconds – then the feet just scream their way back into your consciousness. So I have to admit the last 2,000 vertical feet or so took a long time and it was as if it would never end. But finally, at approximately 1:45pm Saturday, we reached Paradise Inn, where we would finally remove our shoes, remove our packs, get a shower, and even lay on a bed!

After much-needed showers, changes of clothes, and rootbeer floats, it was finally time to enjoy dinner at the head table with Lou, his wife Ingrid, and even Win joined us - along with all of Climb 2 and some of their guests of honor there to congratulate them. Before dinner was over, our guests of honor Jacob and Natasha were able to make it up even after Jacob had to work that very day! The group topped off the evening with a small award ceremony and group training slideshow. During the awards, Win reminded us of Katie’s perma-smile and her enduring attitude that she had preferred to climb the mountain than take him up on a hypothetical trip to “water-ski camp.” “Really!? – you’d rather be here than on a warm beach?” Win would say. “Heck yes” Katie always said with a big smile. This place was magical for us, why would we want to be anywhere else?

And finally, before we turned in too early in the evening - since Jacob and Natasha had really just made it up to the mountain and we had to wake early the next morning to take Jim to the airport - we had a night cap beer in the Inn with them. We recounted the challenge and put a nice bow around our life-changing experience and shared it as much as possible with our friends.

As truly awesome as this adventure was in a personal way – both mentally and physically, the enduring memory for me will be how perfect it went off and how much closer I think Jim and I are and even how much closer it brought Katie and I. If we could have ordered weather, what we had was it. If we could have picked a guide – Win was it. If we could have chosen to be put on the same rope…honestly I’m not sure we knew enough to know whether that was a good choice or not going in, but oh my goodness we will always be so thankful that we were on the same rope because it made it so very special. And in much the same way that Lou made Win the outdoor enthusiast he is, so too did Jim for Katie and for that I will always be thankful, and of course so will Katie. It was a very special family experience that none of use will ever forget. And oh yeah, we made it to the top! Together. As a Team. Team “Hamkin.”

Climb 2 at the summit

We Are Ready...

2010-07-21T09:06:00.001-07:00

Today we set out for the final leg of this big fundraising/training adventure.

We will spending 4 days in Ashford, Wa and Mt Rainier National Park, with RMI Guides. The first day we will meet our summit guides, spend a few hours checking our gear with the guides and discussing the plan for the following 3 days.

Thursday we will spend several hours in the Park learning about Rope Skills, Crevasse Rescue, Ice Ace Self Arrest, and several other tools to make sure we will be prepared for the climb past Camp Muir. Throughout the day our guides will be making sure we are physically fit enough to handle the ~9,000ft climb to the summit.

Friday we leave Ashford mid morning and head to the mountain for the beginning of the actual climb. One last trip to Camp Muir for Ryan and I, and a first trip for Dad. We should take about 6 hours to get to Camp. We will be going slow and steady so that we are not too tuckered out when we get to camp. We will need to reserve as much energy for the actual summit attempt. We head to bed in a tiny bunkhouse with the rest of our team for a short nap.

Saturday we will wake up around 1am to being the ascent. We will don our harnesses, ropes, crampons, helmets and take hold of our ice axes. The serious business begins! All the training, mental preparation, family/friend support and adrenaline is what we will be relying on to take ourselves to the summit.

We will pause the story here, take a moment to once again say thank you for the support and prayers.

Stay tuned for the finale of this story.

-Katie, Ryan and Jim

We have met our Fundraising Goal!

2010-07-15T12:26:00.001-07:00

A VERY Special thank you to everyone that has donated to the American Lung Association Climb for Clean Air - Team Younkin. We feel so supported, loved and inspired! Eight months ago we sat in a small little room with a fabulous group of people from the American Lung Association Seattle, "selling" us the experience of fundraising, training and ultimately attempting a summit of Mt. Rainier. Ryan and I just sat there grinning from ear to ear, squeezing each others' legs as Lou Whittaker spoke of this great cause and why he supports ALA. Several of last years' climbers shared their views of the fundraising and the climb, all of them saying the experience could not be put in words, it was so amazing. We sat and listened, trying to determine if we could be one of the 2010 climbers. After leaving the information meeting we knew we wanted to try this adventure out, but the risks were adding up quickly. After sleeping on the idea, we decided the summer of 2010 was not going to be lost again to working overtime and a myriad of other excuses preventing us from getting outdoors. After we agreed to sign up for this amazing cause and the unknowns of the adventure, I called dad to see if he wanted to join us. Without saying more than "This summer" and "Mountain", dad said "Sign me up!" Part of signing up for the adventure was agreeing with American Lung Association that our minimum amount to fundraise would be $10,500 between the 3 of us. While we had the task of fundraising we also were expected to start getting physically fit and mentally prepared to climb Mt Rainer at the end of July. In December we started fundraising and hiking. We hit the ground running with both tasks. Our emails and phone calls to family/friends was working better than we had anticipated; so many people were happy to support our team and the American Lung Association. While the fundraising was going well, the physical training was going even better; we were getting out to a trailhead at least once a weekend. At the end of March we thought we were doing so well with our fundraising that we changed our goal to $13,500. $3000 more! Whew, what were we thinking?! Once we reached the minimum goal of $10,500 in April we had two months of no donations, no website hits, and no response to emails. I have no idea what got our friends and family interested again, [maybe it was my umpteenth email and facebook post on the topic ;)] but in June and the first half of July we managed to raise our last $3000. It was such a blessing to open email and see another friend support us and our cause. I must say that for me the last month of donations have really touched my heart because as the day of the summit attempt gets closer, I am really getting nervous. Having our friends and family show their support is a great reminder that we can do this; I can do this, and it makes my nerves settle. So we have reached our fundraising goal, the accomplishment feels unbelievable. Neither Dad, Ryan or I, would have guessed that combined we could raise $13,500; especially in hard economic times, with all three of us in the same social/family circles. We are fully supported, physically fit and now working on being completely mentally prepared...

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

Last Hike Before We Head to Ashford

2010-07-13T21:00:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was very full, with helping a friend move, having to work and supporting a friend's fundraiser, that getting to Camp Muir this weekend was not in the cards. Although we couldn't find the time to drive down to Mt. Rainier, we still managed to fit in one more training hike with 40 pound packs before the summit attempt July 24th.
On Sunday, Ryan, Natasha and I hit Bandera Mountain trailhead at 7am! We had an early start to get back into Seattle to support the Ericksons' Fundraiser and to stay out of the heat. This trail is mostly in the sun after 11am. Thank goodness we did not have to worry about the sun until about 15 minutes to the summit of Bandera Mountain because that last mile was steep! Although the elevation of the mountain is only 5200ft we managed an elevation change of 3000ft, in just over 3 miles, in about 2.5 hours. We held a great pace up the mountain to keep within our time constraint and in thanks to Natasha setting the pace with a lighter pack. She looked like a gazelle compared to us,which kept us motivated to keep going.
Not only was this hike a great workout, we had some of the best views for a hike only 75 minutes away from the house.

Sitting on the top of Bandera Mountain, Mt. Rainier behind us

Mason Lake, camped there last year with Natasha and Jacob

We even had a glimpse of the Craggy North Cascade Mountains

Less than one and a half weeks away we will hopefully be on the top!

Final Camp Muir Prep hike on Mt Rainier

2010-06-30T10:07:00.000-07:00

Ryan here. Katie's in Washington DC on business this week - so I'm resuming my blogging duties. Last weekend we made our final trek to Mt Rainier in preparations for the real deal summit attempt now only 3 weeks away! As usual we lucked out in terms of weather - it was gorgeous.

The Mountain through misty clouds on Sunday

This trip was was more than just hiking to Camp Muir. Saturday night we met inside the Paradise Inn at 7PM to talk gear before an evening stroll. Everyone was to have brought all the gear that is necessary for the summit attempt - helmet, harness, ice axe, and crampons. Lucky for us we already had the axe and helmet from the Alpine Scrambling course, also Katie had two harnesses and two pairs of crampons (that we've never used). We were set! So after the briefing the group ventured only a short distance up the slope - still in sight of Paradise - where we geared up. Harness first, then crampons, then threw the helmet on and grabbed the ice axe.

Katie all geared up (and looking hot)

Our fearless leader Mark had set up a series of wands for us to navigate like downhill skiing gates while roped up in teams of 6. For most of us this was a new concept, but it wasn't rocket science. You keep the rope on the downhill side of you, that is until you turn around a gate. Right before turning you step over the slack in front of you, putting the rope on your uphill side, then you turn - putting the rope back where it belongs on the downhill side. That's the process we'll be using above Camp Muir when we're roped up in teams. This was an early look at how things would run up high.

Snaking our way up the mountain at dusk

And for Katie and I it went swimmingly, but for a few people it took a little getting used to. The part that was new to us - the crampons - also went swimmingly. They fit the boots perfectly and weren't as awkward to walk in as we suspected. All in all we slowly snaked our way up the roughly 200' slope, and then back down, and called it a night. Along the way it finally got pretty dusky, allowing us to briefly use our headlamps. And to top it off we spotted a couple of foxes scurrying about in the snow too (no pics, sorry)!

Beautiful sunset view back toward Paradise

After a good night's sleep at the Paradise Inn, we geared up the next morning for basically a carbon copy of our last trip up Mt Rainier to Camp Muir. We did a few things differently this time, some personal, some as a group. Personally, I made sure to rest a few minutes, allowing the sweat to evaporate and then also blot any remaining sweat off before re-applying sunscreen. And this worked, because I didn't show any signs of sun after the trip (unlike last time). Also, both Katie and I were fully loaded with all the gear I previously mentioned plus all the regular stuff. So we did this hike with the same weight we'll carry to Camp Muir on the big day. Above Camp Muir, however, we will be a little lighter, leaving our hydration reservoirs, iPods, and sleeping bags behind. Full of food and water, our packs were a tad beyond 40 lbs. Above Muir it'll be more like 30-35.

This is a sweet shot I got from the back of the line - somewhere around 9,000'

The going in plan was to keep the entire group intact all the way to Camp Muir and for all intents and purposes we did! Everyone in the group made it to Camp Muir (that didn't happen last time). I stayed near the back of the pack, and in the last 1,000' especially, I walked with two of our teammates from our specific climb date cheering them on and making sure they didn't give up. The group made it to Camp Muir in a little over 5 hours, a little longer than last time, but the slowest in the group (3 people behind me) made it in only 5 minutes behind, much faster than the slowest group last time. So great progress!

Reaching Camp Muir (10,200')

Also of note was running into two co-workers of mine on the mountain. While sitting around during our first rest stop lo and behold I saw a familiar figure approaching through the mist with long flowing red locks. "Russ Lecompte?" I shouted. "Younko!" he responded. It was Russ allright. Russ and I actually talk a lot about outdoor activities but we've never done any together for no reason in particular. Russ was using his skins to ski up while his friend Billy carried his downhill skis. We met again at Camp Muir for some lunch.

Russ rocking some uphill skiing (he's smiling in this picture he said)

The way down was a little slower than last time, taking a little over 2.5 hours vs only 2.0 hours last time. Still pretty fast and we were able to keep the whole group together. To top off an awesome day was a stop at Sonic in Puyallup on the way home for dinner! I love Sonic, and that is the closest one to where we live - over an hour and a half away. Now that's a good way replenshish those burned calories!

Camp Muir with Climb For Clean Air Team

2010-06-15T20:31:00.000-07:00

June 13th we made or first ascent to Camp Muir. The day was just about perfect. The morning started out so leisurely since we stayed at Paradise Inn with our new friends Naisha and Gavin, the night before the hike. When you don't have to get up early, rush around getting your stuff ready and drive 3 hours to get to the trailhead, a smile is a lot easier to wear. In fact, the start of the day was just one blessing of many for the day. I am still smiling about the sun, the company of the team, and how awesome I felt when we reached Camp Muir. The following pictures will help you to understand how much we enjoyed our day.

The CFCA team in line at the start. We saw a few Marmots at the beginning of the hike.

Mt Adams behind the Tatoosh Range

The team taking in the view of Mt. St Helens behind them and re-applying sunscreen

The team climbing up the first steep ascent - The Chute

Happiness = On Mt. Rainier, Sunshine, Together, Hiking, The Views

Branca in the red tights (Oldest woman to Climb Rainier and did it in 19 hours!) She is an amazing woman, a true inspiration to have with us on the mountain today. This was her first hike on the mountain since her husband's passing the week before. Like I said a true inspiration!

Clouds coming in as we climb. This is the last push before reaching Camp Muir.

We made it Camp Muir, 10,600ft! We both felt great, the climb was tough but all the training is paying off. The day was beautiful, the company was great and we will be back in two weeks to do it again!

Naisha - See you there!

Final Alpine Scrambling Field Trip - Bean Peak

2010-06-11T19:31:00.000-07:00

It's Ryan. I'm almost carrying my weight with the blogging now...almost. This installation features our final alpine scrambling field trip with the Mountaineers. But don't let the "field trip" nomenclature fool you, this was pretty much just a normal scramble. As our instructors told us "we're just here to check your skills and criticize you as necessary..." Brad did really say that, but he was joking. Brad accompanied his wife Gay as a leader this time - Gay was our leader on the snow field trip and we really enjoyed her. It was on Gay's demonstration that Katie made the trash compacter glissading pants! We also had the pleasure of grouping up with some new friends Cynthia and Will, who we have met and hiked with throughout the course.

The hike was up the Teanaway River north of Cle Elum, bracketing to the south "The Enchantments" area, which we had previously bracketed to the north during our rock field trip off Icicle Creek near Leavenworth. This was the first trip up the Teanaway for both Katie and I, and it was about time. After about a 2.5 hour drive we reached the trailhead, chock-full of eager Mountaineers. Our destination as we would only discover a moment before leaving was "Bean Peak." Interestingly enough, Bean Peak is unnamed on both Green Trails and USGS maps, but luckily our instructors filled us in on the summit altitude, so we were off at 8:45AM.

After only about a mile up Bean Creek Trail we were forced to perform a stream crossing. For both Katie and I, this was (surprisingly, I think) the first time either of us had been forced to remove our boots to cross a stream. Nobody was particularly psyched about this, and as we found out, appropriately so - because man it was cold!!!

But once on the other side after some clean up, the boots were back on and we were on our way. The weather was crystal clear, at least to start the day, and temps were just perfect - crisp in the sunshine about 50 degrees. About two miles in we had to finally break trail and actually begin "scrambling" towards Bean Peak.

It was largely a group effort in route-finding, but we also did a good job of rotating folks through the leader role. At about 11AM we finally hit the snow, and it was time to show off our snow skills.

The terrain continued to to its steepest pitch just before gaining the ridge where we caught our first glimpse of the Stuart Range (The Enchantments).

From this point all that was left was about 500 feet elevation of real-deal rock scrambling to the top. This is the stuff that really truly requires all 4 appendages and an honest answer to the self-addressed question "can I get down this safely?" For me I was in my element, this is the type of "hiking" I've done repeatedly in Colorado while hiking "14ers". I took what I thought was a bit more of a sketchy route but I slipped right up to the summit in no time and got right to business - eating, and taking in the incredible view! A few minutes later Katie joined me at the top and we got a great picture with Mt Stuart in the background.

It was about 1:15PM now, and still a gorgeous mostly sunny day. You could even see Rainier - but only partially cloaked in fair-weather cumulous clouds.

The way down the peak's rocky top was very slow going and I tried my best to stay right with Katie and help her down over those big gaps. But of course she had no trouble, and before you knew it we had reached the snow field. Time for self arrests! I love self arrests, but alas most folks - like Katie - aren't thrilled with it. To get it over with we started with the craziest fall situation - head first on your back! A total of 6 trips down and back up - and it was finally time for something everyone could agree was a good time - glissading! We probably got in a good 500' of solid glissading before it was back to a bit of bushwacking, and finally back on trail, and then back at the creek. With no hesitation Katie deftly slipped across the creek without removing her boots, as planned, while I had second thoughts about rolling the last mile of the trail in soaked boots. Ultimately I said to heck with it and followed in Katie's footsteps.

Back to the parking lot it was about 5PM.

Round Trip: 8 miles

Vertical Climb: 3,300'

Best part of the trip was the amazing views of The Enchantments.

Mountaineers Alpine Scrambling Field Trips: Complete!

This Sunday we'll be heading to Camp Muir (10,060ft) on Mt. Rainier with The Climb for Clean Air team, then the following weekend we'll make an attempt at Mt Adams. The weekend after that, we'll do our night hike on Mt. Rainier followed up by another hike to Camp Muir the next day. That'll take us through the end of June. Stay tuned for the stories and the pictures.

Mt Ellinor

2010-05-31T20:00:00.000-07:00

We hope everyone had a lovely Memorial Day weekend, despite the crummy weather in the Northwest. This past weekend we got in a little bit of training, some family time and even gear shopping.

The weekend started for us on Saturday with a hike to Mt. Ellinor. We woke up pretty early to catch the 5:45am ferry from Edmonds to Kingston, and then had about an hour and a half drive to Hoodsport. The weather was dismal when we woke up, very rainy and gray. We packed all of our rain gear and lots of layers prepared for the worst. As we got closer to the trail head the clouds were starting to part for glimpses of blue sky and sunshine. We met up with several other Mountaineers, representing both the Seattle and Olympia branch, at the Hoodsport Ranger station and then caravan to the trailhead. By the time we hit the trail (~9:15am) the clouds were back, and as we climbed the clouds just got thicker, so much for the chance of sun. It never really rained, but the air felt quite moist. Once at the top we had a little snack, which included a gourmet treat from our trip leader, Curt. He made pumpkin scone like cookies with lemon frosting, delicious! We hung out awhile hoping for the clouds to break but without much luck and the wind picking up, the best choice was to head back to the cars. The climb up was steep and in several feet of snow, a lot of work, but also a perfect setting for being able to glissade down. We glissaded down about 1500ft of our descent, what a ride, and it only took us about 20 minutes! The hike overall was great! We have plans to return in nicer weather to see the acclaimed views.

Mt Ellinor Stats: Highest point - 5944ft, Elevation gain ~ 2300ft, Time to hike up was ~ 2 hours and the descent took ~ 1 hr.

Close up of me, with a good angle of how steep the climb was behind me.

Heading up the last part of the climb, in soupy weather.

The entire group standing at the very top of Mt. Ellinor.

Ryan and I at the top of Mt. Ellinor. Apparently behind us is an awesome view of the Olympic Mtns(we will have to return to verify the rumors). Also check out those cornices, can you believe this is the end of May! Lastly, lets address the diaper like outfit I am wearing, the "shorts" are made of a trash compactor bag and duct tape intended to save my pants from being shredded on the glissade intent. Not only did my pants stay intact but I did not get any snow down my pants (due to the high-nerdy waist line) and it made me a little faster. Although dorky they worked perfectly, a special thanks to Amy and Tash for helping me make them.

The rest of the weekend we had a great time with my dad and my brother Troy. Sunday we did some work on my brother's house which is going through quite the remodel. Ryan got to knock down his first wall with a sledgehammer and crow bar! We took out three walls and a set of stairs, and had to put it all into a dumpster that had an opening about a foot over my head. Quite the unintended upper body workout! After helping out a little bit at my brother's place we took dad shopping in preparation for the climb. He is now loving First Ascent gear as much as us and got just as giddy in REI as we do!

Overall a great weekend, I just wish we had more time with dad and Troy, to take them in the woods for a training hike.

Rock Scramble Field Trip

2010-05-17T17:11:00.000-07:00

Hey, its Katie, back from Spain and already hitting the trails again!

This past weekend (5/16) we drove out to Leavenworth for a fun day planned in the woods!
Sunday was our rock field trip for the Scrambling class we are taking with the Mountaineers. The field trip was designed to get everyone in the class comfortable with all things related to going off trail: bushwhacking, slanted rock face walking, rock climbing "easier" paths that would not require ropes, basically choosing the best path to reach your final destination safely and with a thrill or two!

We arrived to the trailhead (just past the snow creek trailhead off of icicle creek road) at about 8:30am and joined up with one of the more challenging groups headed out for the day at about 9am. We were hoping to go moderate but all those groups filled up quickly, so we joined the strenous group with reservation. At the start I was really nervous I wouldn't be able to keep up and in a few places even Ryan was like "wow that was a harry crossing!" but overall we were well suited for the group, no one waited on us. Although the group was strenous and pushed us out of our comfort zone a little bit we learned a ton, and most importantly we learned that we are more capable than we have given ourselves credit for. At the end of the day our leaders were impressed with our group and the ease everyone had getting up the steep climbs our leaders chose. It was a pretty day but unfortunately Ryan and I only captured a few action shots and none of the view, we were pretty focused on our skills and weren't really enjoying the sight. Hopefully next time we make sure to stop smell the roses and enjoy the great views we are working so hard to reach.

Here is a picture of me practicing a descent with a rope in case of a situation where one wouldn't feel comfortable just climbing down on their own.

Here is Ryan attempting the same maneuver but from the side. The rope burns your arms and back a little bit this way instead of the way I attempted, but he sure looks cool doing it.

Here I am practicing downclimb techniques. A leader stood at the top and bottom to provide guidance and I just had to figure out my way down the rock wall.

This trip, just like our other Moutaineer experiences, has provided us with a few more skills to make us feel even more comfortable out in the woods. The sunny day and great company wrapped up this great trip nicely.

I have been on The Mountain!

2010-05-08T18:46:00.000-07:00

Ryan here to report on the latest training adventure.
To me at least it is really surprising that I've yet to set foot on Mount Rainier until today! Katie has been at least once - all the way to Camp Muir above 10,000', but I had only driven around it. So while it was really sad for me not to have Katie at my side today (she is in Spain on business and about to enjoy Mother's Day there with her mom!) I also felt like it was a free chance to catch up to her a bit! Here is a recap of my adventure.

Mount Rainier, due to it's size, seems a lot closer than it is! After 3 hours of driving and about 20 minutes at the Whittaker/RMI rental facility in Ashford (they call it base camp), I ascended a mile high to Paradise, where the road (at least this time of year) ends - at this point one is officially on the mountain. My stop in Ashford was to rent special boots - "plastics" they call them. If you're thinking "ski boots?" - yup, pretty much, which is funny because the gal helping me out mentioned how they are "way different." We'll see about that. Although not really necessary for today's purposes, the idea was to get comfortable in them, because one will really need them up higher (above Muir). They insulate better, they allow one to kick step into ice a bit better, and they also are specially compatible with crampons.
The parking lot was packed, no surprise, because the weather today was absolutely gorgeous. And it's about time - after a lovely winter this spring in Seattle has been awfully cold and wet. With my shiny new rental boots donned and ready, and all slathered up with sunscreen, and carrying about 30 lbs, we gathered and launched up the mountain destined for Pebble Creek. By the way we never saw a creek, which came as no surprise as the entire trip was on feet deep snow.
Starting out it was pretty shallow, and still pretty hard packed icy snow. Ever walk in ski boots on overall level but locally uneven hard packed snow? Same thing. Seriously, trekking/ski poles were necessary to stay upright. As the pitch increases we become single file (which by the way is a bummer because conversations become more difficult), and now we're trying to "kick-step" into partially forged foot holds from those ahead of us. Still a little awkward but not relying on the poles now. Now the pitch increases a lot - maybe to 35-40 degrees. After a quick lesson about "rest steps" and "pressure breathing" we head up. Ahah! This is what these boots are made for! They work perfectly, no awkwardness - now I can just fully focus on making progress upward. And of course my feet are super cozy - and no signs of blistering. Once we level out and stop our leader tells us that's the steepest portion of the entire climb to the summit! Wow - what a confidence builder that was for everyone. Nobody in the group really had any trouble with it, technically or physically - so the group is really kicking butt. On and up we go and the only bummer about this whole thing (because this is a near perfect day so far) is that we all end up looking down so much, carefully planning each step. We really had to stop to enjoy the view, but we did that a lot, and it was beautiful! After only about 2.5 hours our leader just kind of stopped and said - "ok we're there - you made it, this is 7,200' and we're somewhere near Pebble Creek!" It went by super fast, and it was really effortless for me, and I think most of us. The training has really paid off! So we spent about 20 minutes enjoying the sun, having lunch, conversing and so on, and then headed down. A lot of us really wanted to keep going to Camp Muir because it was such an awesome day and we felt so good, but alas we will save that for another day.
On the way down we worked on "plunge stepping" - another skill we've learned already through the Scrambling course we're simultaneously taking. And I think we got down in about an hour was all! And just like that the day was already over.
A few of us followed a recommendation and we met up at the Copper Creek restaurant back towards Ashford for a late lunch/beer - and Jeff swore they had the best blackberry pie ever. You know I had to take that challenge!
PS - he was right.
The 3 hour drive home finished off the day and the only thing that would have made it better was having Katie with me, oh and also Lily dog. No dogs allowed in the park so she had to stay at home today. I've got a lot of outdoor time to make up with her tomorrow in the yard. In total I think only 4 miles, but about 2,000' vertically (on icy snow).

The best blackberry pie of all time (Copper Creek Restaurant near Ashford, WA)

The view to the SE from somewhere near Pebble Creek (Mt Adams lurking out there - see if you can spot it)

The view up from somewhere near Pebble Creek (7,200')

Through Hiking Tiger Mountain with Lily

2010-05-02T19:26:00.000-07:00

Howdy folks - Ryan here again! Katie is in Mallorca, Spain on business so it was up to me (and Lily) to represent Team Younkin on Seattle's famous Tiger Mountain today. If Tiger Mountain sounds familiar, it should, because we climbed the west summit just a few weeks ago. But this time was quite different. Today we had two goals 1) to wear the pack for a long time (longer than we will during the Rainier climb) and 2) to enjoy a luxurious picnic midway through. Mission accomplished on both accounts.
Well the Climb for Clean Air folks are not dog friendly. But it's the weekend, and I wasn't about to leave Lily at home for 10 hours while I'm out frolicking in the woods and Katie is out of town. But this presented a challenge beyond just simply keeping her out of everyone's hair. Since the plan was to through hike we had to shuttle vehicles. So we all met at "Tiger Mountain Pass" on the east side (where I've historically mountain biked a great deal), then shuttled to the west side where we hiked last time. But I could either shuttle Lily in someone else's ride while she was still clean or wait and see if someone would shuttle us later after getting filthy (obvious choice). So I asked the group and despite frowns and comments from the "trip leader" (who didn't actually go on the hike) who said everything except "she can't go on the hike," one of our hikers - AJ - graciously offered to haul Lily and I at the beginning so that we could just load up in our own car at the end of the hike.

The day was a wet one, beginning with intermittent light drizzle. The ground we had previously covered is pretty steep, but the remainder of the voyage was a series of small ups and downs. By the midpoint when we stopped to have lunch the rain was becoming constant and often moderate. When we stopped we combined our food resources to build quite a pile of opulent foods (well you know, for being on the trail). It was pretty diverse for there having been no pre-coordination, but there was certainly no shortage of strawberries, cheese, and chocolate. And I brought all of those! One of our leaders brought a stove and boiled a ton of hot dogs. But I missed out! Everyone (21 people) crowded around a picnic table so there was very little room and also I had to control Lily, so I ended up setting up shop with my pack against a tree and my sit-upon pad a short distance away. So I was a tad anti-social (there were others near me doing the same) and unfortunately this led to missing out on a hot dog! Dang it all! I did eventually attack the picnic table and take part in a little of everything while splitting time between controlling Lily and accepting my friend Naisha's offer to hold Lily for me. And may I say Mint Oreo's are oh so good! Someone even brought one of those gallon cartons of Starbucks coffee!

Lily was pretty darn good all day. I kept her on the leash all day and she didn't pull at all! She got pretty wet but she was happy and never got cold.

I ended up having some good pretty lengthy talks with a bunch of new acquantances! Of course Boeing comes up a lot but I really enjoy discussing it with people. But I was really interested to talk to Bill who works at Senior Service, John who runs a wholesale greenhouse, and Eric who used to be lawyer at Boeing. And that's really been the best part of the journey - making friends with these fantastic people! It just so happened John (and his wife Lynn) also brought a dog. They were considering not through hiking because they didn't think they'd have a ride for the dog at the other side. But I quickly assured them there Dalmation "Balder" was welcome to hitch a ride with us - and they graciously accepted.

We left the west trailhead at 9AM and reached Tiger Summit and the east parking lot where we began the day at about 4:30. I'd say we were on the move for all but 2 hours of that. And we travelled something like 13-16 miles. I'm guessing we covered about 2,500 vertical feet. Not too shabby for a day's work.

This photo is from beyond the west summit - part of the mountain I've never visited. We were in and out of the fog here. Oh, by the way, I was rocking the trekking poles and holding Lily and taking the photo, while walking at this point. The spread at lunch somewhere on Tiger Mountain

Mt Si and Ice Axe Arrests

2010-04-30T17:06:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we had great outdoor fun! Sadly its taken me 5 days for me to post to the blog with pictures.
Saturday we hiked Mt. Si with the fabulous Climb for Clean Air hiking team. We all made it to the top in just over 2 hours with 25-30 pound packs. We started at the beginning of the trail with a downpour, at the top of the mountain it was snowing!

Katie in the snow, soaking the last bit of the cold and snow before spring comes full swing.

Here is the gang at the top. Not much a view but a great workout for sure.

After the hike we had a delicious lunch with some of the team at North Bend Bar and Grill. The best part of this experience is making new friends!

On Sunday we went to Mt Stevens Pass Ski Mountain. The ski resort is closed for the season but not for the Mountaineers! We got to play on the mountain all day practicing glissading and ice axe arrests. We did ice axe arrests from glissading. We practiced ice axe arrests from the position of sliding down the hill head first on our stomachs. Just when we got comfortable with all that we slid down the hill head first stomach up, with an ice axe arrest before we got to the bottom of the hill. The day was awesome, super sunny, nice and warm, wet snow but we never got cold, fabulous. The absolutely best part of the day was that we are now confident with our ice axe, we know what to do with it, we know why we carry it!

Proof of the sunny day. So much better than 24 hours ago!

All smiles! How can we not be. We are using our gear, we know what do with an ice axe and its sunny!

A Very Productive Past Two Weeks with Pictures! (Ryan Post #2!)

2010-04-19T21:09:00.000-07:00

Ryan here again, can you believe it? Katie's busy working next to me so it's my turn to post about the last two weekends, and I'm thrilled to do so because they were great!
The weekend before last (Saturday I think) the Climb For Clean Air gang gathered at the base of Seattle's famed Tiger Mountain for training climb #3 (our 2nd - having missed the first). Filtered sunshine ultimately led to a warm and dry day following a crisp early morning start. Group members really started to get familiar with each other on this climb, and Katie and I both found ourselves having really nice conversations with a wide variety of our teammates as we ascended the trail. Next hike we'll be able to greet them by name when we arrive and maybe bond a little further during the hike. As for the hike, we were told to carry 20 lbs, which we did, and we had no trouble. In total I think the hike was around 6 miles and maybe 1,800 vertical feet. As a group we moved a little slower than we had on the shorter Little Si trail (the previous hike), but nice and steady. Based on experience with "MicroSpikes" (baby crampons for your boots) loaned to us from our reliable hiking buddies Jacob and Natasha, we had just spent our 20% REI coupons on some for ourselves and I got to put them through their paces near the summit when we encountered icy conditions left over from our recent spring snows. Unfortunately Katie's order hadn't arrived yet (separately ordered) so she braved the slippery conditions with only hiking poles. At the top we got a great shot of us with Tacoma in the background.

Tiger Summit (#3) - Tacoma in background

Last Friday night we had our favorite hiking duo (Jacob and Natasha) over for dinner where we discovered their plans to car camp on the San Juan Islands soured a bit due to the rainy Saturday forecast. So we asked to them to accompany us on a rainy hike instead. With all the spring snow we've been having and opting to remain out of the avalanche danger we chose a lower yet still challenging trail off Highway 2 this side of Steven's Pass. Actually, Katie and I had partially completed the hike after work back when we just started dating, but we really wanted to complete the route and see Lake Serene, after Bridal Veil Falls, where we had turned around the first time. In total the route was about 8.5 miles and about 2,500 vertical feet. Light rain for the entire drive was surprisingly replaced by humid but dry conditions on the trail initially. On the way up we actually had (as she called it) a "Boeing siting" of a gal I work with in Flight Test. She asked us why we weren't at work implying in jest 787 flight testing couldn't very well continue while we were all gone:) Truth be told one of the enablers of the trip was that all 4 flying airplanes have grown roots on the ground and aren't flying at present due to planned "layups." We crossed the multitude of falls that make up the Bridal Veil, stopping only for more than a pause at the largest fall for some photos and some cooling mist.

Bridal Veil Falls - revisited

You have to actually backtrack about a half mile from the fall to rejoin the trail and continue onward and upward to Lake Serene. On the way up we found a whimsical tree trunk precariously hanging over the trail - an excellent photo op.

I eventually had let it go

Continuing on, just as the trail steepened we encountered a trio that looked pretty wrecked. Strange given their descending, comfortable temps, no rain, seemingly no injuries, and obvious fitness. Weird. They half-heartedly warned us of impending snow but indicated we'd make the lake no problem. Onward. After some steep climbing interrupted once in a while by dramatic views across the Skykomish valley, we hit the snow.

Skykomish Valley - town of Gold Bar in the distance

And then we hit the rain! It's amazing how fast an enjoyable hike becomes "not all that enjoyable." After gearing up we continued with only a rare post-holing or slipping. The slushy snow didn't lend itself to the MicroSpikes so we went for it rocking only naked boots. Finally though, as with most mountain lakes, we leveled off just as we caught glimpses of the lake slightly below and through the trees. Wow! Lake Serene sits beneath a 3,000' vertical rock wall comprising famed Mt Index's NE face.

Lake Serene & Mt Index NE face

By the way, Mt Index is where the first American to summit Everest (Jim Whittaker) claims he came the closest to using his 9th life! Just as we sat down at the frozen lake's edge for lunch we were jolted by the thunderous crashes of ice and rock colliding as narrow avalanches whipped down the shoots between the cliff faces. Nature's fireworks, it was truly awesome! Not to be outdone by nature two gentlemen emerged from behind us breaking open a six-pack and firing up cigarettes! Ok, I enjoy a beer, so we've got something in common there, but these two were just wearing jeans and t-shirts, no sign of a pack with more gear in sight - literally just the beer! They sure were friendly guys though, I felt bad when I we had responded to their inquiry that we had no booze of our own. Heading down we encountered more folks who seemed pretty ill-prepared for the rough weather. And it turned out they would need better gear than sweat pants and tennis shoes as the sky finally opened and unleashed its deluge for the the last hour of our hike to the car. Our two beer loving friends made it just fine though, happy as clams as they emerged from the trail as we saddled up to head home.
After a shower and change of clothes we finished off the night with an additional $400 toward our cause thanks to a fun-filled night of poker with Katie's colleagues. Plus, Katie contributed an extra $40 as she came in 3rd pulling in 5 points toward the 2010 Flight Deck Poker Series championship!

Katie joins the poker elite alongside the tourney points leaders Steven and Martin

As of today, with a few more donations trickling in today, I think we have only about $200 to go to secure our spot in the climb!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!

Technical Difficulties and a lot of Exclamation Marks (sorry I am excited)

2010-04-15T19:00:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts...
We have gotten ourselves a new camera to document our trips but the camera did not come with a cord in which to download the pictures to the computer. Sad I know. So we have been out hiking and enjoying this nice weather, but as of right now we have no new pictures and posts are boring without pictures so you will have to stay tuned on that front. Hopefully it won't be much longer for us to resolve this situtation.

As for the fundraising part of this big adventure we are doing AWESOME!
Team Younkin/Hammell have raised $9795!! We are just $705 from our minimum goal of $10,500! It is not even the end of April, this is just an amazing blessing that I think only our friends and family are so easily capable of! Ryan, Dad, and I are totally impressed by the giving to such a worthy cause and with such grace.
So once again many thanks, we will continue to thank you because stopping kids from smoking, curing lung diseases and keeping our air clean is something to be excited and thankful for.

We are hiking this weekend, anyone want to join us this Saturday?

Two days in a row!

2010-03-28T21:39:00.000-07:00

We did make it out to hike two days in a row, didn't have to work either of the weekend days!
Sorry its been 7 days until you got to hear the trail reports, when I take off for a weekend of fun, there is a lot of catching up required the following week!
On Saturday 3/20 We(Ryan, Jacob, Natasha and I) headed over to the Olympic Peninsula via Edmonds Ferry and Hood Canal Bridge, in search of some good views and less snowy trails. We found great views, but also a lot more snow then we were expecting, at Mt. Townsend Trail. The weather on Saturday was unbelievable, super sunny nearly 70 degrees, just a great day. The first two miles of the trail were icy in places but passable. When we reached about 4800ft , we hit snow and lots of it. The snow was on a steep grade and it was very soft. Snowshoes are not workable when you have to put one foot in front of the other to stay on the narrow trail.. We made it through the snow for about an hour. After an hour of post-holing and a super steep ascent we took in the views while we devoured our lunch. After replenshing the calories we had just burned so rapidly, we discussed and decided climbing more wouldn't get us very far and put us at risk for injury so we turned around at about 5600ft.
On Sunday Ryan and I joined the American Lung Association Climb for Clean Air Team for a training hike. We hiked Little Si just outside of North Bend. For as sunny and warm as Saturday was, Sunday was the complete opposite. The entire hike was in the rain. Although it was raining and a bit chilly we got the chance to meet up with some great people. We look forward to more chances to get to know them and to hike Mt. Rainier with them.
the weekend in pictures:

The Olympics from the Edmonds Ferry

Getting Ready at the Trailhead

Ryan, Natasha, and Jacob at the start of the snow

The view from lunch, of the Cascades and Seattle

The only picture we took at Little Si, because as you can tell it was very wet. My face is supposed to look happy(because I was), just squinting to not get rain in my eyes!

Ready for the Woods!

2010-03-18T18:00:00.000-07:00

Its been two weekends without any hikes, we are craving some trail time. For the physical training of this adventure, the gym is a great substitute for the trail when you have to get in some cardio and can't make time for the trails. As you may recall there are 3 parts to this adventure: fundraise, physical fitness and mental confidence/strength. Unfortunately the mental training for all of this has been put on the backburner. We know that we will be most mentally prepared if our heads are clear of stress and worry about: the climb, work, house stuff, condo sale, proximity to family, etc. Wow those things not only fill the mind they fill our time! Without complaining you can imagine that the busy-ness of it all has kept us from the trail. Well we have finally found some time and hope to keep it for the trails and not get sidetracked with work, yard stuff, etc.
For Ryan and I, being outside in the woods, hitting the trails, keeps the clarity in our minds of what is important. I know it may sound silly but after a hike we emerge from the woods feeling more patient and happy. So this weekend we head for the hills. Saturday morning we will be doing Mt. Si. We would prefer a bit more solitude, but I have to go to work in the afternoon so this is the closest hike we can do and get back in time. Sunday Ryan has to work but I get to join the Climb for Clean Air team for a training hike to Little Si. The hike shouldn't be hard but it will be great for meeting other people on this great adventure. Stay tune for pictures and hike reviews.

Fundraising and Training Update

2010-03-09T10:34:00.000-08:00

Lets start with the fact that Ryan and I are $532 from reaching our $7000 goal! Even more good news is that my dad is $1500 from his goals of $3500.(donate to dad) How awesome are our friends and family? I will tell you simply that our friends and family are inspiring. We laid out our hopes and you are all exceeded expectations! We are helping those with lung disease with such ease, awesome!

Ok so now to the training. We are fundraising prepared but what are we doing to prepare for a 14,000ft climb?
With our work schedule it makes it tough to get to the gym or outside regularly, but on average we make it to the gym in the morning 3 times a week. I am really looking forward to warmer and brighter mornings to run outside and breathe the fresh air. The gym is great to get in some sort of cardio, which is better than nothing, but we all know preparing for a big climb means hiking and climbing outside in the real mountains; which our hearts want to do every evening after work and every weekend. Work sure gets in the way of the heart! We have had the pleasure of a few hikes and snowshoes trips as reported earlier in this blog, but recently all we have time for are a few urban hikes. I would just say a nice walk but we have committed to wear our amazing new daypacks on evey walk we go on, which makes it feel more "hike" like. Yep thats right, can you picture it? We are walking around Brier, a lovely neighborhood of sidewalks and cute homes with our bags filled to the brim, helmet , ice axe, and trekking poles attached to the outside. Yep, we look a little silly but wow it sure helps the heart when work won't let us head to the woods. So we hope as it gets warmer we get more time in the woods, but we are staying active.
In other news, last weekend and one day next weekend we have been working to completie a MOFA class. MOFA is a 26 hour outdoor first aid course designed by the Moutaineers. The class is a requirement for any alpine scrambling (which we are taking) and basic climbing courses offered by the Mountaineers. We are 2/3 complete and feel pretty prepared for most accidents in the outdoors. The last day of the class is going to be practice of all the things we learned to really set up our confidence with the new found knowledge.
Hopefully the following weekend (3/20-21)we finally get a chance to go hiking! Any recommendations?

Fundraising Update

2010-02-28T20:45:00.000-08:00

Wow! Thank you Friends and Family we are getting closer to our $7000.00 goal for the American Lung Association. They say climbing Mt. Rainier takes about 80% heart and head, and only 20% physical. With all the generous support we are getting its going to be pretty easy to have the right head and heart on this adventure.
Ryan and I sent out an email on February 18th to all of our friends and family; prior to the email we had raised $2015.00. In the past 10 days we have had our amazing friends and family double the donations! We are currently at $4098.00, 58.5% of our goal! We are more than halfway there!
There are 31 days left until the deadline in which we gave ourselves -March 31st. By March 31st we hope to have reached our goal and raised $7000, that means we have to figure out how to raise $100 a day for the next 31 days. We know that the American Lung Association is an awesome cause, there is no one else to thank as much as this organization for making living with Asthma easier, no smoking in our bars and restaurants, awesome education for kids to prevent them from smoking, and all the money raised goes to reasrch of serious lung diseases. Just awesome!
At our kick-off meeting a week ago, a past climber and fundraiser spoke about the experience and what we should be prepared for fundraising and climbing. The one thing she said that really gets me excited and terrifies me at the same time is that when you are standing at the top of Mt. Rainier your breathing gets tough, the air is thin and you get a glimpse at the feeling that people feel daily because of a lung disease. Knowing I will get to feel the thin air excites me because I am headed to the top, but also because with Ryan's asthma I do not understand at all what it feels like and how it can be so much trouble to him at times. I look forward to being in his shoes, even if its briefly.
Again all your support is going to make 80% of this climb so easy.

Lake Valhalla Snowshoe

2010-02-28T08:33:00.000-08:00

Saturday we had a lazy start to the day, slept in until about 8am! May not sound early but man work has been requiring early starts and late nights. On our way out of town we picked up Natasha, sadly Jacob had to work, but having Natasha's company was great! We hadn't seen Natasha in over three weeks, much too long. We drove about 6 miles east of Steven's Pass(1hr 45 min drive), parked near the start of Smith Brook Road and headed out into the woods to try and find Lake Valhalla. I say try to find because the directions in our book were not clear and we were not bent on having a destination so we didn't bring a map. We did use Natasha's GPS a few times to make sure we were heading in the right direction, which we were, but never actually made it to the lake. We snowshoed for about 3.5 hours, covered at least 6 miles, and thoroughly exhausted Lily, a perfect day!
Washington Trail Association Website, - provided the details of the hike and directions on how to get to the trailhead.

Katie, Ryan and Lily halfway up the trail

New backpacks in action!

Natasha, Katie and Ryan taking a lunch break, The snow makes some great seats.

Navigation Engineer and Pilot learn to navigate

2010-02-14T17:15:00.000-08:00

Post from Ryan!!! This is a long post - but I think I have some making up to do don't I?

Saturday we spent the entire day at Heybrook Ridge just off US 2 near Index, WA this side of Steven's Pass learning real world wilderness navigation skills with The Mountaineers! Unfortunately we could not test out of the class, and in the end I think we must admit that was a good thing. Although we already understood taking a bearing, triangulation, declination, using topo maps, etc, neither of us had ever practiced "leap-frog," "landfall," or "obstacle" navigation methods. Not only that, but we got in probably 2000' vertical feet and 6 miles or so of hiking. At the end of the day we were surprised at how quick the day went and how spent we were! For a great story on where we spent Saturday, take this link.

Activities began with a 4:30AM wake-up!!! We were out the door at 5AM and on to the Mountlake Terrace P&R to meet up with our carpooling buddies Dave and Dennis. We arrived a tad early to a surprising reception of signage and volunteers, an oasis of activity in the still-dark morning! After milling around and waiting for the group of approximately 100 mountaineers to arrive and get situated, we teamed up in small group of 9 (7 students and 2 instructors). Following brief introductions we began en-mass our hike to the ridge where the navigation fun would begin.

The hike up went fast, despite the large group. We spent some time getting to know our small group members and the time just flew by. After about an hour we had reached the powerline clear-cut where we would start by taking bearings between a series of stumps identified by signs. First we worked alone, then we teamed up in two's (Katie and I were separated) and accomplished some word problems. Next Katie and I teamed up again and practiced the leap-frog and landfall methods across the clear-cut, then through the woods a few hundred yards and on to our group lunch spot. In case you (like us) don't know these methods - leap-frogging is where you direct your parter to walk the desired bearing from you, have your partner stop, then you pass your partner and get directed by your partner to travel the desired bearing from your partner's position. So it's just like it sounds, you leap frog eachother. This is helpful in low-viz conditions. Once we hit the woods we transitioned to the landfall method, which is extremely simple and is effectively the same method I already teach flight students when visually navigating, but had never known it by that name. In this case we navigated independently as we took the desired bearing to the nearest easily identifiable landmark (usually a tree, a stump, a rock, and usually within only about 50 feet). Then, just walk to it, break out the compass, and start over. Simple of course, and as we discovered, with an accurate compass can be extremely accurate too! Over a range of 700 feet we found we could navigate to a point within +/- 20'!

Next we sat and had a "working lunch" as we enjoyed our pb&j's, bars, carrots, etc while also taking bearings on prominent distant landmarks to triangulate our position on the topo map. By carefully taking the bearings and carefully drawing the bearings on the map from the major landmarks (Mt Index, Philadelphia Mountain, Baring Peak, etc) you are in theory located where the lines intersect. We were thankful to discover we new where we were!

After lunch we all gathered again for a hike even further up for our "final problem." From the ready area where we received our general instructions we were told to find a stranger and work with him or her. Once we randomly selected our partners we began to travel further uphill, and in both our cases we chose the "most difficult" route instead of the "moderate" or "easy" routes. This effectively just meant we would cover more distance using the landfall method and therefore that we must climb quite a bit before starting. After a healthy climb we reached our launch gate and were given our bearings. My partner and I left first on a 189 degree bearing. We were to navigate independently but to stay in eye shot and within voice contact and if we were to separate laterally to check each other's bearings and perhaps split the difference before continuing.

All in all the course was about a kilometer long downhill through wet and brushy forest filled with deadfall. My partner and I remained within about 25 feet and reached our final destination within 0.5 and 0.75 degrees, respectively, which is pretty darn good. When Katie came down I found out she had bested me by reaching her target within 0.5 degrees, big surprise right? Unfortunately though, we had to assemble the entire group now before heading back to the parking lot, and we were one of the first few groups down to the target area. So for the next hour, we stood around as it finally began to rain. We had some obligatory gear talk with strangers for a bit, then chatted it up with an acquaintance of ours from Boeing who turned out was taking the class with us! He is about to take The Mountaineers kayaking class we took last year and so we discussed that quite a bit, and it was good to catch up with him.

Finally we were all found and it was time to hike out about 1,000 vertical feet and about 2 miles to get back to the car, turn in our grade cards (spoiler alert - we passed), get in the car, and get home.

The drive home was thankfully uneventful with no ski traffic back-ups near Monroe, WA and we were back to the house with plenty of time to spare to get cleaned up for our romantic Valentine's day trip for a couple's cooking class and winery tour at Efeste Winery in Woodinville, WA about 15 minutes east of our house! We made potato croquettes and had a lovely evening together, and I should point out had no marital difficulties while navigating together (not even during leap-frogging!). And this morning our smoked legs let us know how many miles we had put on and how much standing around we had done.

Next up - Mountain Oriented First-Aid (MOFA) with The Mountaineers, a prerequisite for our Scrambling class. Oh, and by the way the new packs were sweeeeeet!

Quick Post-Good Day

2010-02-02T17:00:00.000-08:00

Drove into work today just about the same time as sunrise, what a beautiful drive!
Captured this quick picture with my phone, not the best detail but you can see the awesome colors and "The Mountain". Yep, any day you get to see her; its bound to be a good day. Especially when its February 2nd - Groundhog's day where Pux. Phil saw his shadow and predicted 6 more weeks of winter. Also its winter in the lovely Pacific Northwest and its not raining. So far its been a great day, still sunny!

New Gear and lots of Lessons Learned! * Warning long post but worth the read if you want to learn about gear

2010-01-31T14:49:00.000-08:00

This weekend was not an outdoor weekend. I was assigned to work this weekend, supporting 787 airplane 2 in flight test. We wound up doing house errands on Saturday and I worked all day on Sunday. The best part of the weekend was Friday night, which was spurred by Monday evening. So let me go briefly to Monday evening.
Monday Evening 1/25/2010
Ryan and I attended the first of three lectures for a Mountaineers' class called Alpine Scrambling. At the end of the class we will feel more comfortable fording our own path to high peaks with ice and loose rocks. The lecture covered required gear, physical conditioning, and what the class will be like. The lecture was overall nothing new for us but it remind us of gear we may have to buy $$$. For Mt. Rainier's climb we had planned to rent boots, helmets, ice axes and perhaps even borrow some gear too. By the end of the evening we were rethinking the "plan". This leads to our fun urban adventure on Friday.
Friday Evening 1/29/2010
We got home from work beat but wanting to get our errands done Friday night, (Outdoor stores, Ikea, World Market and Pier1 to look at house decorations for our newly painted walls), so that just in case I didn't have to work Sat. or Sun., we would be able to go play outside. Well we only got to the outdoor stores because we spent over 3 hours gear shopping!
First stop was Second Ascent in Ballard. Fabulous customer service, and great selection of gear. We only walked out with a used ice axe for me but we tried on everything! First thing to learn more about -Moutaineering boots. We tried on really stiff boots, lighter boots with full shank soles, and thick, stiff warm boots too. All were different and good in their own way but for the cost (>$250) we decided that the plan to rent for Mt. Rainer would be best and that our current boots will be great for scrambling. In fact the guy helping us out goes scrambling in the same boots Ry owns. Score, huge savings!
LESSON 1 -The boots we have will work just as well if not better because they are already broken in. I have Asolo TPS 520 GV Hiking Boots and Ry has Vasque Wasatch GTX Hiking Boots
After trying on all the boots we could and exhausting all our questions/concerns we briefly looked at ice axes. We determined that the one dad bought years ago for me will be long enough for Ry and that I needed one, so first purchase of the evening was a great priced used ice axe.
LESSON 2 - For the Alpine Scrambling we are doing the best length is to hold the head of the axe in your hand, pointy end towards the floor, with arms at your side and have it be no longer than to your ankle. This is so that you can walk with it in your hand and not scrape it against the ground or loose rocks, preventing exhaustion in your arm.
LESSON 3 - The shorter the ice axe the more bad ass you are in the mountaineering world. Don't believe the wild stories of a guy that looks rookie and is carrying a long ice axe. (There are a few exceptions to this rule, so don't get to judgemental)
Next area of the store - DAYPACKS! The last daypack Ryan used was a school bag that I nixed shortly after we started dating. The daypack I was using that we now share is very small and really only better because it has comfortable shoulder straps. Although a real sturdy bag just too small. For the past 4 years we have made it work and, pp until now we really didn't need anything more, especially one for each of us. The Mountaineers require that all hikers/climbers carry our their own first aid, their own water, and their own gear. Ok, ok, ok twist our arms we will get new packs. Talk about kids in a candy store! We must have tried on, tugged at, stuffed, and analyzed over 20 bags. The changes since we bought our backpacking bags in (1997/1998) are just unbelievable. I would still agree with anyone that we didn't have to get new bags but after serious examination we decided it would make trips much more enjoyable and we would be best prepared with better bags. Also this allows for both of us to train for Mt. Rainier since we can each load up our own packs, and not worry about borrowing the weekend of the big trip. Unfortunately Second Ascent didn't have exactly what we were looking for, but after a quick Google on the trusty iPhone we saw that REI does have what we are looking for. Off to REI we went after profusely thanking the staff for all their help.
Now take these two gear adrenaline pumping goons already excited and put them in the Flagship REI store! Yeah we had to remind ourselves when we were going in why we were there, and yet we still wind up buying more than daypacks! Don't worry the extras were on the list and now we are both much safer with helmets and a 3 liter camelpack to go in my new daypack!
LESSON 4 - Decide what you are looking for, what is most important to you. This daypack is going to be carried for several hundred miles (hopefully) and will be something you only have to purchase once. (i.e.our backpacking bags circa 97/98)
LESSON 5 - Make sure you do not change your mind about what is important to you in a pack because of something superficial like the color, brand, model name, etc.
LESSON 6 - Do not go to REI without a list, thank goodness for dividends!
OK so now what bags did we get and why?
Our requirements were:
1. Side pocket on each side of the pack for water bottles
2. Camelbak bladder holder
3. Ice Axe loops
4. Easy access to the inside of the bag from two angles, not just the top.
5. Want ability to hold trekking poles and/or snowshoes, maybe even skis for later down the road.
6. Side straps for making the pack smaller when needed.
7. Comfortable hipbelts.
With these requirements the only brand that matched was Osprey. All the other brands while great packs in their own right only covered 6 of our 7 requirements.
I got an Osprey Kestral 38 Pack-S/M, pretty bag, super useful, great match for me, Even comes with its own rain cover!

Ryan found that the Osprey Talon 44 pack was more to his liking, his favorite color is orange so I had to be sure he wasn't just drawn to the color. it does make sense that he go up a size since his gear is a little larger and volumous than mine. Besides the size, the bag is very similar to mine.

To end this very long post just in case all you do is look at the pictures I post here is a picture of Ryan leaving the store. His quote of the evening is "I do not plan on taking my new pack off, I am going to wear it everywhere", including out of the store, yes we were those goobers, but we were happy goobers.

Tonga Ridge...Well the Fire Road to Tonga Ridge

2010-01-24T22:00:00.000-08:00

After quite a busy week at work, and evenings spent painting our home indoors, we were ready to get outside and away from town.
Sunday morning, our good friends Jacob and Natasha met up at our place, loaded up the Skybox (car top storage) and we headed off for adventure.
Side Note-This was our first trip using the newly acquired Skybox for all our gear, Lily had the entire back of the Tribute to herself, and all 4 people rode with plenty of space. Thanks Mom and Dad!
The best thing about traveling with J&N is that they are up for just about anything and will push to see around the next turn just in case there is a perfect vista!
Today's hike after starting to drive north; we decided on doing Tonga Ridge. The snowshoe book does mention that this trailhead may be hard to reach after the early season because of too much snow. We decided although we are in the middle of winter that the chance was worth it because the book also mentions superb vista views. After about a hour and a half of driving we reached Tonga Ridge Rd. Unfortunately we only made it about 4 miles down the road before we were stopped by a lot of snow on the road. We parked the car and decided to just walk along the road. The first half of our walk was without snowshoes, because although our car could go no further there were tire tracks that had flattened the snow making it quite walkable. Since we knew at some point we would need the snowshoes, I got a little pack training in too. I hauled both Ryan and my snowshoes along with all our clothing (because Ry can sure sweat when he is going up) in my pack.
Side note- I think that we learned a little lesson on this hike. If we want to really condition for Mt. Rainier we are going to need to both carry our own packs and make them heavy with a gourmet lunch or something else fun like that.
About 2 miles or so on the main road we took a right as the book says to do and tried to find the actual Tonga Ridge trailhead. We did have the option to go on a more leavel trail or head up towards the trailhead. Without even really thinking Natasha says lets go up. I love Natasha's attitude! This is one of many reasons I love hiking with J&N. We have a mountain to climb in July and we are going to be prepared. This side road (we think it was #310) required our snowshoes, so we strapped them on and up we went. A little over 3.5 miles we came to the trailhead for Tonga Ridge. Well at least we know where it is and perhaps we will visit again on a sunnier day for another chance at some good vista views. Today we got a glimpse at a few jagged mountains for a moment, but mostly we enjoyed the solitude of just us out in the snow with pretty evergreens looking even greener in the grayish background. The hike back to the car was just about all downhill and sure seemed A LOT easier then the way up, we made it back in just over an hour.
To end a great hike we stopped for some burgers, fries and shakes, and still had time to make it to church. Great day!

No pictures from our trip, in our excitement to go we completely forgot the camera.
Here is a picture from Washington Trail Association of what we should have seen had the weather not been so socked in and we had actually started at the trailhead. Definitely a reason to go back, who wants to go?

"ALL IN for CHARITY" - Our First Fundraiser!

2010-01-24T08:00:00.000-08:00

Saturday evening, our friend Joel hosted a poker party at his house in honor of our fundraiser. All entry fees went towards the American Lung Association and our climb.
The night was a great success with some great poker players, $300 was raised by the end of the night! A fun night overall, we even had a little pie contest to celebrate National Pie Day. With 4 entries, 2 berry pies and three apple pies, the obvious winner was Jon K with his perfectly soft apples, just the right amount of juice and the tastiest crumb topping. The prize for the pie contest was that we all got to eat pie! Mmmmm.

The night started with 21 players at 3 tables, and ended with just one winner. The final table was as follows, with the first place trophy going to Martin.
1st Martin P
2nd Joel P
3rd Penn P
4th John W
5th TJ W
6th Katie Y
7th Jon K
8th Sue P
9th Jill M
10th Diane F
Thank you to all for giving up any winnings for such a great cause!

Here is a picture of the top 3 poker players of the night (L to R, Martin, Penn and Joel) and the real winners (Ryan and I) for getting the cash to put towards The Climb.

Snoqualmie Pass Snowshoeing

2010-01-17T20:00:00.000-08:00

We made it out for our first trip of the year! Our friend Amy and her pup Sammy joined Ryan, Lily and I for a snowshoe adventure. We had a nice start to the day with bagels from Noah's Bagels in Kirkland. Any day that starts with delicious carbs is destined to be a good day. The weather was very warm and even slightly rainy the entire drive to the pass. We were definitely wondering if there would be any need for all the layers we were wearing and if snowshoes would be wanted. By the time we got to Gold Creek Sno-Park (exit 54 off I-90) the rain had subsided, snow looked deep and slightly soft from teh warm weather making it nearly perfect snowshoe conditions. Not only were the conditions looking good but there were almost no cars in the parking lot, the day just got better! We strapped on our snowshoes with the pups hurrying us along, and headed off to the trail. The route selected for the day was to start on Fire Service Rd 9090 and then venture off the main trail at some point. We walked for about 45 minutes before heading off the main trail to a side trail that was not marked in my snowshoe book but looked safe to travel, and the best part was no snowshoe tracks! We ventured for another 45 minutes in fresh snow enjoying the serenity, new tracks and watching the pups bounce through the deep snow. The weather started to get more gray than at the start of the hike, so we opted to turn around. On our way back after returning to the main trail we saw tons of people some were snowshoeing but most were looking for the perfect sled hill. Good thing we started so early, about halfway back we had to leash up the dogs because it was so crowded.
Overall a nice easy start to the hiking season of 2010 with great company.

Amy and Sammy having a good time

Ryan, Katie and Lily taking a break

Christmas Break

2010-01-11T13:28:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas break. My parents joined us for the celebrations all the way from New Jersey. We spent December 24th to 28th at Mt Hood, Oregon. My parents, my brother-Troy, his fiance-Samantha, Ryan and I along with 3 pups (Lily, Oliver, and Joey) shared a cabin in the woods and enjoyed the mountain's outdoor splendor.
We went hiking near the house, snowshoeing at two different sno-parks and skiing at Ski Meadows. It was an amazing time to be at Mt. Hood, nearly everyday was sunny, with one day where it snowed. The free time with family and playing with them outdoors was the perfect end to 2009. It was so relaxing that we felt prepared for quite a busy first week back to work in 2010.
It looks like our next training hike/snowshoe trip will be this weekend, January 16th and 17th. Until then the gym stairclimber and treadmill will have to do for cardio.

Here is some of our great vacation in pictures:

Dad and his new climbing helmet, one step closer to the big climb!

The family went for a walk in the snow, not sure it counts for training but it was a great photo ops. Here we with Mt Hood in the background. (From L-R, Katie, Jim, Celeste, Troy)

Sunset Christmas Day from Mt Hood. Lets hope we have weather like this when we climb Mt. Rainier.

Now this hike/snowshoe counted as a training hike. Dad was in the lead most of the day so it looks like we won't have to worry about his cardio ability too much.

Ryan's Birthday Today!

2009-12-12T06:00:00.000-08:00

Ryan turns 29 today! Sadly he is in Wichita, working and not celebrating the start of his last year in his 20s. Not much to do for him when he is not here and he has no birthday requests, so perhaps you all can shower him with some love via phone call, text, email, facebook, blog comment, and/or by sending a donation for our big climb.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Long time, No post

2009-12-11T10:18:00.000-08:00

Typical I know, we just started a blog and already we are tardy on postings. Things have been really busy at work and with family; we haven't had much time to fundraise or do anything fun for training.
Here's a little update:
Ryan has been in Wichita, Kansas for all of November minus Thanksgiving and he is now there until the 17th of December. Kansas is very flat and very cold, so Ryan has not done much more than run on a treadmill for training. He has seen some high altitudes but only as a test director on the 767 tanker. I have not had much luck in getting out either. I have been making it to the gym pretty regularly, but work is taking up most of the short daylight hours.
For Ryan's short trip home we got to celebrate Thanksgiving with my brother and his fiance! Yes I said fiance, Troy is engaged and it happened over Thanksgiving weekend.
The Wednesday before Thanksgiving we headed down to Medford, Oregon. Thansgiving day we showed up at Samanthas' parents home, where Troy rang the doorbell, got on one knee and when Samantha answered the door she was quite surprised but managed to get out a "yes, of course." Troy wasn't supposed to be off the tugboat, let alone in Medford, at Sams' parents house with a ring, so the surprise was huge. It was all quite exciting. We spent the rest of the weekend hanging in Medford relaxing and celebrating the fun changes to the family!
On Friday we did get in a little hike at Table Rock.

The hike was short but it was great to get outside and run the pups. The top of the hike was one very large rocky field, with lots of muddy puddles, the pups were in their glory. Troy's camera battery was dead so all we got were two pictures on the top with our cell phones.

Here is the newly engaged couple!

Here is Ry and I

Once Ryan returns from Wichita there should be some snowshoeing and other fun winter adventure stories to post.

Why Climb Mt. Rainier?

2009-11-16T07:00:00.000-08:00

Why Climb?
Ryan and I LOVE the outdoors. We love hiking, backpacking, kayaking, just being outside. We are totally in love with the Pacific Northwest and all it has to offer. Each trip we take results in amazing pictures we get to send to our family, all taken within a short drive from our home. Climbing a mountain is just another way to get higher and get a better view of the area we love so much. Not only are we in it for the views, but for the challenge. We have read several adventure stories like Touching the Void, A Life on the Edge, 3 Cups of Tea, Backpacker Magazine's monthly stories, and many more. Each of these stories aren't just about the climb, but about life. They are about about perservering, taking the challenge head on and succeeding. We know there is a possibilty we may not summit, but we are going to try our hardest and we are going to enjoy every step in preparation to that summit.
Why Mt. Rainier?
Since first seeing Mt. Rainier we each had separate goals to be on top of Mt. Rainier. When we committed to join as a team (in marriage), we put it on our dream to-do list. Living in Seattle and loving the outdoors, equates to climbing Mt. Rainier as a must. People come from all over to climb Mt. Rainier in preparation for other amazing peaks like Everest and Kilamanjaro. Mt. Rainier is just a two and a half hour drive south from our house, we need to take advantage of that luxury.
Why Now?
Why not?! If we keep waiting for free time, an unscheduled summer, a more convenient work schedule for training, etc., we will just never do anything on our dream list. My Dad (living in NJ) is going to do the climb with us and he didn't even think twice about signing up when I told him about the adventure. What an awesome attitude!
We have been inspired...
-My Dad is awesome and has been truly inspirational this last year and half. He is my hero, and with his refreshed outlook on life its going to be awesome doing this next adventure with him.
-We are big fans of the Ron and Don Show-KIRO FM 97.3. Don climbed Mt. Rainier July '09 for the American Lung Association. We heard all about his preparations, Ron kept the listeners up to date while Don was climbing, and then we heard all about the climb afterwards. We hung onto every word mentioned about the experience. Overall it sounded life changing and we want to be a part of that.
-Lou Whittaker is a legend along with his brother Jim; they are a huge part of what Mountaineering is today. They are from the Pacific Northwest and are advocates for being outside and enjoying what nature has to offer. Lou has been supporting Climb for Clean Air since its start 23 years ago. He and his brother had asthma as children and they found being outside in fresh air cured a lot of their ailments. The outdoors for them means the same to us - Freedom and endless possibilities for fun.

So Ryan, Dad and I are going to fundraise and train for the next 8 months together(via long distance in some cases), and then put forth our best effort plus some to summit Mt. Rainier together.
So cool!
-Katie

Why Fundraise for American Lung Association (ALA) Climb for Clean Air?

2009-11-15T18:07:00.000-08:00

The American Lung Association fights lung disease in all its forms, with special emphasis on asthma, tobacco control and air quality. They can only continue their amazing work if the public continues to donate.

5 awesome reasons we are fundraising for the American Lung Association

1. Ryan has asthma. As an adult the disease is not as severe as it was during childhood, although he does still have occasional flair ups. Currently he is using a mild inhaler before any extended physical activity. As a child he remembers the panic feeling of not being able to breathe and hopes that a cure can be found to prevent more children from feeling this fear. The American Lung Association provides an education and support system of how to treat asthma, how to live with asthma, they advocate for people with asthma and they are searching for a cure.
2. Not only is asthma a disease that makes it tough for people to breathe but air pollution can make it worse. Supporting the American Lung Association takes action against air pollution. We love the outdoors and we want fresh air and clear skies to be around for our kids, our kids's kids, and their kids.

3. American Lung Association is the number one reason I do not smoke. The day I saw the picture of a smoker's black lung in 4th grade health class, I vowed to never get involved with that. The picture was provided by the American Lung Association. It was in our generation that the ALA really started pushing the education in schools of lung diseases and asthma, as well as the health risks of second hand smoke. The tools they use to educate kids are effective and we are going to have healthier generations to come if we continue this education.
4. American Lung Association of Washington is a huge reason we have smoke free workplaces, bars, and restaurants in Washington State. Through their presence on Capitol Hill and the Lung Action Network, they have been instrumental in creating laws that meet the ALA's Smokefree Air Challenge. Stopping second hand smoke is a mission we can get behind.
5. Supporting the American Lung Association is supporting our own community. 60% of the money raised for this event stays in Washington state and helps people in our own backyard.
-Katie

What Are We Doing?

2009-11-03T16:00:00.000-08:00

Welcome to our blog! We have never had a blog before, but with our friends and family all over the country this seems like the best way to keep our supporters involved.
You may ask what supporters, why do you need supporters?
Well....
Ryan and I are going to climb Mt. Rainier, and while training and climbing the mountain is a big adventure we have also decided to do it for a great cause by raising $7000 for American Lung Association. My Dad is also going to be raising money and training on the east coast to join us this July. While this sounds like a huge undertaking, we are very excited and know that with the love of our friends and family we can do this!
If you have had the chance to visit us or already live here you know about "The Mountain". People here refer to Mt. Rainier as "The Mountain". People gauge the day being a good day if you can see "Her". By the way, today was a great day because it is November and you could see Her. Mt. Rainier is an icon of the northwest and a beauty that still continues to awe us after 5 years of living here. We consider it to be a treat everytime you come around a turn on the highway or on the hiking trail and you get to see Mt. Rainier. The mountain is so amazing we have it on our state quarter, we have it on our license plate, there is a national park surrounding it, we even have a local beer with its namesake.
So visit this blog often for fundraising updates, the trials of training, and doing all of this as a team.
-Katie