The following is a continuation of Mera Peak Expedition — Namdolingomba to Ngyngso Camp. Sunday, October 16 There was a steady patter of rain on the tent as we fell asleep which we always find very reassuring somehow, perhaps because we live in dry Southern California.  At some point during the night the temperature dropped […]

The following is a continuation of Mera Peak — Adheri to Namdolingomba Saturday, October 15 Morning came at 5:30am as usual, and we were packed and ready by 6am “washing water.” followed by a delicious breakfast of rice pudding. Karlin was late for breakfast for a great reason, he agreed the night before to meet […]

The following is a continuation of Mera Peak Expedition — Spending a day in paradise Adheri, meaning “dark place” was very appropriately named. It sits high on the same steep mountainside that Basa occupies, but is situated in a way that the sun comes up very late over the mountain to the east and sets […]

The following is a continuation of Mera Peak Expedition – Getting in and out of Kathmandu. After our aborted attempt to fly to Phaplu from Kathmandu on Monday, we were able to successfully fly out at around noon on the 11th of October. The Tara Air plane was a small turbo prop that sat 19 […]

Originally submitted at REI Regain your confidence when walking on packed snow and ice with the updated, simple-to-use Yaxtrax Pro traction devices. Yaktrax Pro Let’s be fair, folks…these things work By Chris et Jeanne from Pasadena, CA on 11/13/2011 4out of 5 Pros: Versatile, Great Grip, Comfortable, Easy To Put On & Adjust Cons: Bulky […]

No arrival in Kathmandu, Nepal can beat the greeting that we’re always given by our friends from Adventure Geo Treks, known as ‘AGT’ by us, and ‘Geo Treks’ by the locals. For us, they’re much more than a commercial operation and much more like friends. Though he owns and runs one of the largest tour […]

Our life revolves around getting outdoors and hiking, trekking, and climbing. All too often, I’m the only woman in sight and often draw comments from the men in our group or people we meet, amplifying the fact that so few…too few…women are out in the mountains. I’ll admit that it isn’t the same in every […]

These are the words that self-describe Tony Yeary, our favorite resource at the Arcadia, California REI. His knowledge and stories were so extreme that the first few times we met him, we struggled to think he wasn’t making it up. As we knew more and realized it was all true, we knew we needed to […]

Mt Shuksan is often referred to as the classic Cascade Range Peak. At 2783 m (9,131 ft), it is lower than the iconic Mt Baker, but has a photogenic peak known as Summit Pyramid and is draped with the Sulphide, Price, White Salmon, Crystal, Nooksack, Curtis and Hanging Glaciers that make it a  tempting target […]

On July 19, 2010, the message was posted on the Baldy for the Blind website, “Mt. Baldy was a success!!” The dream of reaching the summit of Mt Baldy, the 3248 m (10,068 ft) peak that dominates the the horizon to the southeast of the City of Los Angeles had been realized for a group […]