Lone Peak from Big Willow

Earlier this summer I went with my brothers Tyler and Garrett, and sister Jenna up to Lone Peak.  Instead of the standard Jacob's Ladder route we started in Big Willow canyon and went through the "notch."  The notch is a cool break in the canyon between the cirque of Big Willow and upper Bell's Canyon.  It is visible from the valley if you look towards the top of Big Willow.  This route was really fun except for the fact that the notch has a lot of loose rocks that can come down on the person below so it wasn't very group friendly.  We saw a whole family of mountain goats once we finished scrambling up the Big Willow ridgeline and enjoyed some amazing views on the summit of Lone Peak.  We weren't too excited about coming back down the notch one at a time to avoid falling rocks and called my dad from the top to see if he could pick us up from the bottom of Jacob's Ladder.  Fortunately my dad could and fortunately Tyler remembered to always keep to the right on the way down so we didn't fall into the common trap with all the trails up there.

The Big Willow trail is a little overgrown.

"The Notch" 

Garrett and Jenna heading up the part with stable rock.

 Tyler climbing up the end of the notch.

The other side of the notch looking into Upper Bells.

Upper Bells and the Big Cottonwood ridgeline

Jenna on her way to the final ascent before the summit. 

Tyler scrambling up the Big Willow ridgeline.

A whole family of mountain goats.

Some exposure in places

Amazing views from the top.

West Slabs

After the low 5th class ridges of Devil's Castle and the south ridge of Mt. Superior, I've had my eye on the West Slabs of Mt. Olympus for the past few weeks as the next low 5th class climb to complete.  The West Slabs are around 1,000 feet of easy climbing with many good holds the whole way up if you look for them.  I knew I could do this because it has a similar rating to Devil's Castle and the south ridge of Mt. Superior, but I was still really scared.  As I said in my Devil's Castle post, I used to have severe anxiety in all areas of life and was basically always in a panic attack state.  Over the years I've overcome a lot of that by forcing myself to do the things I had fear about over and over again until my brain believed it didn't need to stay in a permanent state of fear anymore.  My wonderful family, God, and many other good things have made a huge difference as well.  Now I keep my fear and anxiety in check by continuing to do the things in everyday life that keep me moving forward in my battle against anxiety and fear.  But I also schedule strategic time in the mountains with challenges that are just beyond my comfort zone to continue to battle and conquer fear.  The mountains have definitely become a pretty spiritual place for me and make up such a huge part of the mental stability I now enjoy everyday.  I was actually very calm for the beginning of the climb because I was planning on another summit today and wasn't thinking about this as an option, but then the snow hadn't melted so I decided today was a good day for the Slabs since they are at a lower elevation.  About halfway up though it really started to hit me that I had to keep going to the top and there was no going back the way I came (at the top you go down a different way than you came up).  I had to do what I do on every hike, run, and climb and remind myself I could do it, simplify the task at hand in my mind, and pray a lot for the strength and mental peace I need.  The good thing about the Slabs is that there are so many routes you can follow on your way up.  Every time the amount/type of holds got a little too far out of my comfort zone I was able to redirect my line to an easier path.  I probably found the easiest way up for sure but that was my plan.  I had no goal of speed today, just giving the mountain the respect it deserved and very carefully enjoying the exhilarating and adrenaline filled experience.

 The way up to the Slabs

Making my way up, had to stop for a picture

Higher up

Beautiful views of the valley 

The Slabs from the neighborhood below.  I'll definitely never look at this mountain the same.

Kessler Peak

This is a short, but very steep hike! About 3,000 feet of elevation gain over only a couple miles.  I knew going into it that it would be very steep and that I wouldn't be able to run as much as usual on the way up.  I definitely limited myself going in to it with that attitude and wish I would have pushed myself more on the uphill.  All in all this peak has amazing views and will definitely make your calves feel like they are on fire!  With this morning's trip to Kessler I was able to accomplish my goal for the week with a total of 26.1 miles and 12,287 feet of vertical gain.  These panoramas say it all.

White Baldy Red Baldy Traverse

Earlier this summer I set out to do this traverse as fast as possible.  My brother and friends had hiked it in 8 hours and didn't run so I figured running as much of it as I could that I should be able to do it much quicker.  It took me 3 hours and 37 minutes!  The White Baldy ridge is a great ridge!

 The view to the west from Red Baldy

The view to the south from Red Baldy

 Fun scrambling on the White Baldy Ridge

 That little red dot near the summit is a person!

Salt Lake Twin Peaks

I started in the dark this morning up Broads Fork to summit the Salt Lake East and West Twin Peaks. I saw two moose on the trail, but it was while it was still dark so I didn't get any pictures.  I ran as much as I could up the relatively steep trail (average grade 20%).  It took me 2 hours and 10 minutes to the East Twin peak about 5,000 feet above where I started.  From there, the West Twin took no time at all and was well worth the extra effort.  

There is an app called Strava which records your tracks through GPS and then shows you how you did compared to other runners who use the popular app.  I was way excited to when I got back to my car to see that I got 6th place on the trailhead to East Twin segment!  I was even more excited when the people I saw in the first 5 spots ahead of me were people who have inspired me in the mountains and are way fast!  It feels good to see the many miles of hard work paying off.  Last month my goal was to run/hike 20 mountain miles a week.  This month my goal is to run/hike 25 mountain miles with at least 10,000 feet of elevation gain each week.  Off to a great start for this first week!

The Strava app also gives me an estimate of the calories I'm burning.  On today's journey it said I burned 2,368 calories! No wonder I'm always so hungry!

 The sunrise on Sunrise Peak

 Mountains as far as you can see on the East Twin

 The view down Deaf Smith canyon into the valley

 The Little Cottonwood Ridge from Pfeifferhorn to Lone Peak

 The south fork of Deaf Smith

8.8 miles and 5,469 feet of elevation gain

South Ridge Superior and Devil's Castle

About a month ago I decided I wanted to bridge the gap between some of the 3rd and 4th class ridge hikes I had done earlier this year and go on a few 5th class ridges.  On the YDS scale 5th class is where actual rock climbing starts and the ratings start at 5.0 all the way to 5.15.  Low 5th class climbs are relatively "easy" climbs for those who have some climbing experience.  I was pretty scared about both of these hike/run/climbs simply because when I pulled up YouTube videos they looked way worse than they really were.  I used to have a pretty severe anxiety disorder when I was younger.  My mountain adventures have played a large role in overcoming a lot of that.  But I have to stay on top of it by overcoming my fears, within reason of course.  As always God helped me overcome my fears and it turned out to be way easier than it looked on YouTube.  I really do believe that God cares about what we care about and will provide enabling strength for anyone who sincerely asks. That being said, these two adventures would definitely not be recommended for anyone without some climbing experience and skill and also anyone who isn't very comfortable on some of the easier ridges in the Wasatch.

Devil's Castle:

Now for Mount Superior:

This picture shows the ridge profile.  3,000 feet of elevation gain over only like a mile and a half I think.  It was incredible!