Tag Archives: Mt St Helens

Summer in the Cascades

Summer in the Cascade Mountains is like a second spring. When phlox and trillium start to wither under the heat of summer at lower elevations in the Pacific Northwest, the wildflowers of the Cascades are just getting started. As neighborhood lawns turn August brown, high alpine meadows are lush with lupine and Indian paintbrush. When our regional scarcity of air …

Read More »

An Eye for Alpenglow: The Photography of Don Geyer

I’ve been fortunate to live in the Pacific Northwest nearly all my life.  I started enjoying our spectacular outdoors as an avid hiker, backpacker, and eventually climber.  I was introduced to photography during this time, and there was no looking back.  My camera went everywhere with me, and soon dictated my destinations more so than any climbing objectives.  I’ve enjoyed …

Read More »

Five Tips for Better Alpine Climbing Endurance

Ed Viesturs, the first American to climb all fourteen of the world’s eight-thousand foot mountains without using supplemental oxygen, once said, “The only extras you can afford at altitude are willpower and stamina.”  He also famously said, “Getting to the top is optional.  Getting down is mandatory.” Often your success going up or trying to come back down depends on …

Read More »