Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Done with the car....for now

After about a week touring around the great Pacific Northwest I'm back in Montana and so excited to be out of the car, at least for a little bit.

This photo is from the top of Big Mountain. Despite the fact that there's snow in the forcast for the next week the lifts still aren't running, so Nathan and I strapped on snowshoes to hike up to the top. Yeah, my legs are reminding me that I've been sitting on my butt for the last week. It hurts so good....

If you're really observant, you might be able to tell that my hair is no longer long. I chopped off about 9 inches yesterday: first major haircut in 2 years, first professional cut in 6. Simple pleasures, that really make life exciting. I promise I'll start travelling soon and this whole blog thing will get a whole lot more interesting.

Oh, by the way, I did manage to pass my Level II snowboarding exam...barely. My riding was not quite up to snuff the first day, and but after the second day the examiners were kind enough to scribble out the "fail" on my evaluation and write "pass". Hooray for my incredible adaptability.

After all that drama was over Nathan and I were able to have some fun on the road. I even got to see the ocean again, which makes me turn into a small excited child, stuffing my pockets with sea glass and agates, making funny trails in the sand. Here's Nathan and me at Deception Pass, Whidby Island, WA. 20 knot winds + 3 foot wind-chop = weather call, but hey, the sun was out.

Monday, April 7, 2008

To start things off...


Today was the day after the last day of the season, and the finality hasn't quite sunk in yet. The past few months have flown by, as they tend to do, and people are dispersing to the next season even though there are still more than 100" of snow left on the mountain. Well, I guess it's just time to start hiking.

I'm going to give this blog thing a try, elusive as I tend to be. The next leg of the journey involves driving to Mt. Hood, OR to take my Level II snowboard exam and visit my dear friend Mego. Then on to Portland, Seattle, and Spokane to see family before winding up back in Whitefish to tie up loose ends and hike up the mountain a couple more times.

As of May 12th, I'm fleeing the country. Flying the coop, taking wing, what have you. Hopefully I'll be able to keep this thing updated so my mother will know where to send the search parties. Enjoy!