The CragBaby

I daily read economic and industry reports for my job and must admit it is a little worrisome to continually read about the suffering American economy due to the credit crunch, the current financial sector being comparable to the Great Depression, IndyMac having a run on the bank (never expected to see that in my lifetime), Freddie and Fannie having to be supported by government infused funds, etc. Seems like an interesting time for me to take 5 months off to travel, and I must admit I sometimes worry about the job market when I decide to return to a full time position.

The above aforementioned factors plus the continually rising price of gasoline and inflated price of consumer goods have obviously resulted in many Americans decreasing their annual travel. According to the KenRadio site I watch, “The average number of trips the typical American has taken in the past 12 months has fallen 7.3% to 5.1%.”

Source: KenRadio at www.kenradio.com

Yet…. I feel like the main question is, how often do I have the time and financial resources to take off 5 months to travel? And how often can I find a job I love that will allow me to work in a virtual environment, being flexible around my climbing schedule?

I figure the combinations of these variables is rare and so I should capitalize on this opportunity to travel. It is perhaps a little nerve racking to make a move at this time, but here is hoping for the best. I figure, if anything, hopefully the market will have started to trend back up by the time I return. =)

This past week I gave my 2 weeks notice to my employing firm. I have been extremely fortunate to work for my employer and will actually continue to work with them for the next couple months, but on a part time rather than full time basis. Why? Because as of August 1st my main focus will be on climbing and traveling for the next 4 -5 months. And yes, I am super psyched. =)

The game plan (which is completely open to changing) is to stay in Utah for the month of August to hopefully work through many of the details of these books.

In September, I am thinking about heading to Kentucky to work on this book.

Then in October and November these books.

And then, depending on how I feel, in December to work on this book.

Yep. I am pretty psyched. =) If any of you readers are also going to be on the road or just want to meet up, let me know.

Last year I received the best postal package from my friend H.I.P #1 that included his own personal boomerang that had accompanied him in his travels. The Boom then accompanied me through my climbing adventures (for instance in Joes Valley ) and was of course included in my recent trip to Squamish. Here she is smiling across the Canadian border. This pic is for you H.I.P. #1.

Shaft, the Cb-gbers and I took a two and half week climbing vacation in Squamish, Canada. British Columbia receives a fair bit of rain during the month of June, but we luckily encountered cooperative weather allowing us to climb everyday.

Driving through beautiful Oregon. At this rest stop we happened to meet a trucker who also owned a chihuahua.

The coastal views on the way to Squamish. In this area, scuba divers congregate to explore two sunken ships.

View of The Chief. While taking this picture a car stopped and the driver warned us of an approaching bear.

The Pemberton landscape.

Squamish and the outlying areas house thousands of routes and boulder problems. Shaft and I alternated between bouldering, trad and sport lines, taking one rest day to hike to the top of the Chief.

Me working ‘In Your Face’ in Pemberton.  This extremely fun v3 was on the Yosemite boulder that sits adjacent the railroad tracks.  The guidebook states to hide if a train is coming due to access concerns.

Shaft warming up at the SuperFly boulder in Squamish.

Shaft sending ‘Sloppy Poppy’, known to be one of the most popular v4’s in Squamish.

Me warming up on the Warm Up Traverse.

Me working ‘Bo Jo Jones’.  This problem consisted of numerous heel hooks. =)

Shaft roping up for routes at the Smoke Bluffs.

Me on Ancient Heart. This climb alone was worth the 15 hour drive to Canada. The 9 bolt 11c showcased numerous heel hooks, a boulder-y slopey crux and a crimpy top out. Pure magic!

Shaft on the third pitch of Deidre, our final climb in Squamish.  We had wanted to run it the day prior but were rained out, ending up bouldering instead.  We thankfully waited one more day, finishing up our trip beautifully with this classic line on The Chief.

Besides numerous days of setting up ropes and throwing out bouldering pads ….

Shaft continually munched on wild raspberries.

I made a new best friend.

We happen-stanced many bear sitings, two of which included dog-bear chases. For the record, the bear surprisingly ran away on both occasions.

We spotted logger truck collision signs.

And saw the biggest, ugliest slugs!

By the time we arrived home, the sweater-clad Cb-gbers was tuckered out, a sure sign of a successful trip.

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I am on vacation with my friend Shaft and the CB-gbers in Squamish, British Columbia. It is so beautiful here, the climbing is superb, the temps have been good, and the surroundings remind me of Valdez, Alaska. Plus, we have seen MANY bears. I might post a couple posts while here, but perhaps not. It just isn’t a priority right now as I am focusing on relaxing in the sun and enjoying the view of The Chief.

In response to my previous post, thank you all for your support on the loss of my car. This past Wednesday it was found half a mile from my house with only the stereo gone and the glove box shuffled through. Can you believe that?! My good friend Mark went and identified it for me and lined up the towing (it is in drive-able condition but I took the key with me to Canada…doh! … and though I had mailed it to Mark, the car was found before the key arrived). It is now just waiting for me at his parent’s house. Thank you all for your support and for offering up your vehicles. And thank you Mark for taking car of all the details while I am away. I am truly lucky to have so many great people in my life.

Ok, I am off to go climb. =)

I recently had the chance to fly out to New York for the weekend. It was my first time to go to New York in the spring and it was substantially more enjoyable than my dead of winter and middle of summer trips. In fact, I actually loved New York and for the first time in my life thought I might enjoy living there.

I crashed up in Brooklyn at my friend Josh’s house. It was extremely kind of him to offer up his place, which was perfectly located for easy access into the city. This picture was taken when we were enjoying an excellent brunch at Miriams.

My Seattle-based friend Warren suggested I catch up with his friend and avid NYC tour guide, JP. JP was seriously hilarious and gladly showed me around the most interesting sites of Union Square: the man selling the carrot slicer, the sock shop with a very diverse sock offering, the gym where JP enjoyed running on the sidewalk racing the folks on the treadmills, a comfortable couch outside of a furniture shop, but mostly the fantastic Japanese restaurant with a cotton candy machine. Good times!

I was able to meet up with my good friend Robb for drinks at Floyds, catching up on life while watching endless games of Bacci ball. He then joined me on Saturday for my walk across the Brooklyn bridge and strolling through Soho.

The busy, busy street in Soho.

After meeting up with my business friend Sam, I caught up with Justin for a quick drink

Later on Saturday night I hung out with a bunch of friends from SXSW including Alex and his wife, Orian, Charlie and his girl Meredith, and a couple of Charlie’s other friends I didn’t get the time to really get to know. A handful of us then headed to Yuri’s for a party, but I am not used to the late night lifestyle of New York and so didn’t stay very long. The next day I gathered all my stuff together and flew home in the early afternoon.

Wow, who would have known?! I love NYC!

Camping at The Burren

In 2006 I traveled to Ireland for a two week trip and was amazed at the hospitality of the Irish. People would freely give me rides, offer me drinks, talk for hours in pubs, inquire about my travels, etc. Then to top it off I met the most fantastic crew of climbers who picked me up in Northern Ireland to let me join in their climbing trip at the Burren. The hospitality of these people was over the top.

While there I made two real good friends, H.I.P #1 and H.I.P #2. (H.I.P is an acronym for Hardcore Irish Person as it they were psyched to climb even when the rock was wet, plus would sip tea in the freezing rain prior to crashing in the tent for the night .) This week has been a little funky as I am striving to get back into the groove of work and midterms after a long awesome weekend. Between work and homework I took a break to flip through the Google reader and saw that H.I.P #2 had posted up the nicest blog about my new site and how his friends should check it out. The Irish kindness never ceases to amaze me.

Both H.I.P #1 and H.I.P #2 blog. Check out their sites here and here.

For the past five years I have done either a solo international trip or moved to a new destination in the U.S. for the summer. The line up so far has been:

• 2002 - Lived in Denali Park, Alaska
• 2003 - Backpacked through Europe for 6 weeks
• 2004 - Lived in Chicago, Illinois and worked on the Chicago Board of Options Exchange
• 2005 - Backpacked through China for a month
• 2006 - Backpacked through Ireland for two weeks

This year I was hoping to find a travel friend (and ideally a climbing friend) who was jazzed about joining me on an adventure. And somehow I was lucky enough to find one! My good friend HIP #1 from Ireland is currently living in New Zealand but making a move back to Australia around mid-September. In between the move we are catching up for approximately two and half weeks in Thailand. Sometimes I feel so lucky!

For the past five years I have traveled to a new destination, either as a move within the U.S. or as an international trip. I have always traveled solo because travel partners can be a little tricky to find as traveling can be quite taxing: everything you own is in a backpack, optimizing your time usually results in a lack of sleep, the new culture and language can be frustrating, there is always a possibility of illness from the food and water, etc. I believe the key is to find a travel partner with a similar demeanor and outlook for the trip. Surprisingly enough, I actually might be so fortunate this year as the details are in the works.

When I was in China in 2005, I met a couple British guys who became dear friends of mine and one night we wrote up The Ultimate Backpacking list as it is extremely easy to overpack (and then shipping items home). It seems that whatever items are needed for a weekend trip are the same items that will be needed for a year long trip and nothing more. We found that the goal should be to leave home with the backpack only half full as to ensure there is room for any presents or items picked up along the adventure. Here is the list:

Clothes
1 pair of pants
2 pairs of shorts
3 shirts - one a little dressy for going out
1 light sweater
1 pair of flip flops / Chacos
1 pair of running shoes (I enjoy running in the new cities I visit)
3 pairs of socks
4 pairs of underwear
1 baseball cap or bandana (Even if you don’t wear one at home, I swear you will want it while traveling)
1 belt (This is needed even if you don’t use one at home. In China the humidity made all my pants fit too loosely so I bought a string at a market place and tied it around my waist. I looked like I had just gotten off a ship wreck.)

Bathroom Supplies
toothbrush / toothpaste
face wash
deodorant
chapstick
sunscreen
small bottle of shampoo / condition
razor
insect repellant (depends on where you are going)
wet wipes (not completely necessary, but very nice)
saline for contacts
extra pair of contacts / glasses (I pack two extra pairs of contacts now due to a problem I had in China)

Misc.
umbrella
travel guide
1 book (I took audiobooks on my Ipod when I went to Ireland and it worked extremely well)
journal
electrical converter
first aid kit (did not take this last trip. I think it depends on where you go. I took a very complete kit to China and it was unbelievably handy.)
alarm clock (I used my watch)
camera
small bag for day trips (I have seriously needed this every trip. Perhaps something small that can be rolled to not take up very much room)
swiss army knife that has scissors, corkscrew and nail clippers
towel - I would suggest the small terry cloth ones
rain slicker / poncho (depending on where you travel)

I followed this list exactly when I traveled to Ireland and felt like the list was impeccable, that is after I added on the rain poncho (an item I forgot and was in dire need of in Ireland). =) I am open to any suggestions though from all you fellow travelers. Yet note that this list is for city traveling only as a climbing trip would be entirely different.