PDX to GOVY Bike Trip....

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An overnight on Mt. Hood with Chris Gibson

Chris Gibson wanted to get in the mountains and give mountaineering a try. Well, that is exactly what Gibson and I did on May 19th and 20th. We headed up to Illumination Saddle on Thursday and camped out before heading up the Pearly Gates on Hood's south side in the dark hours on Friday....

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Sauntering Amongst Hunchback Mountain

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Snowy Wonderland on Ghost Ridge

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Cougar Rock Saunter from 2010

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Trillium Lake Wander

Spending a Tuesday, during a snow storm, on Mt. Hood, with the people you love most is hard to describe with photographs or words. Those are the moments you stop and breath in the entire experience and realize how amazing life can be.
I often prefer going out to wild places in adverse weather situations. Most people stay home firstly, but also because you form a more intimate bond with the landscape, yourself, and whomever you travel with. There is nothing like feeling the wind blow the snow against your face. It is an experience that you would be crazy to dismiss as uncomfortable. Embracing life to its fullest means embrace all of it.
Hope you enjoy the photographs. Click on any of them to see more!

Cape Horn in the Gorge.....

Wow! The Pacific Northwest is an amazing place. The rainy season can be difficult to manage. However with a little bit of effort and being okay with getting soaked to the core, the rain brings much beauty to explore. Gina, Duke, and I headed out to explore one of these wet and beautiful sanctuaries in the Columbia River Gorge known as Cape Horn.
Many times on these small saunters, I like to leave the camera behind as a way to look at these wonderfully wild places without the eye of a photographer. I strongly feel that the camera helps me connect with the natural world in a much more intimate way, but I also notice that my other senses sometimes take a backseat allowing my eyes to dominate. This domination does not always occur when I have a camera, but it definitely does when my mind is overloaded with other thoughts. During these times, my photography suffers. Making a deeply meaningful and emotional image requires focusing all of your senses on the desired topic.

Life has been busy and my mind has been full. Busy in a fantastic way, but busy nevertheless. However, against my better judgement, I decided to grab a small, easily manageable camera just before we headed to Cape Horn. I left it mostly untouched until my mind completely cleared in the mist of the raging and unnamed falls the 3 of us had to dance through before ending our journey around Cape Horn.
I made the few images here while standing under the falls and thus in the middle of a raging wind tunnel with the exception of the first image. In that image, Gina is back hugging one of the largest Douglas Firs I have seen in this area. In the other photographs, Gina is fighting through the powerful fall while maintaining a healthy smile. We capped off this adventurous day with a visit to Walking Man Brewery in Stevenson, WA. Mmmmmm..... good food and exceptional beer always tastes better when you are hungry, happy, and soaked.

Visiting With Mom & Dad, 2010

2010 is coming to a close. And yet again I feel behind in culling through the piles of photographs I have snapped. I love making pictures, and I love sharing them with others, but I do not love sitting in front of the computer for the hours and hours it takes to cull through thousands of images to find the right balance of light, composition, and most important, emotional information that will make a potential viewer interested in an image somebody else has made.

My largest accomplishment this year, in terms of my photographic growth, has been that I have gained a level of confidence in my abilities I have never had before and know that I can make an emotionally charged photograph that will make a connection with somebody else, not everybody else, but somebody. That knowledge is incredibly rewarding to gain. Purpose is starting to develop, and with purpose comes more growth in all areas of my life. I have much further to go, but feel that I am on the correct fork in the river to take me there.
Soon, I will share a collection of photographs I have created in 2010 that will still connect with me in 50 years. But for now, I am catching up on sharing a few smaller groupings of images. I visited my home in Michigan twice earlier this year and my wonderful parents made a journey out to Oregon in August. Here is a few of those images that stir good smiles and memories....

http://www.treadinglight.com/lifeblog/parents_2010/

Caught a plane to Boundary Waters....

And another fortunate journey amongst beauty and wilderness begins. The Boundary Waters in Minnesota's North is the freedom I seek. Many weeks ago my good friends who were raised by Minnesota's wild lands suggested taking canoes deep into the BW. A plane ticket was purchased shortly after and thoughts of photographing Northern Minnesota's autumn filled my senses although I have never set foot or paddle in this immense place. I will soon be landing and gaining my bearings today and tomorrow before we head for water. I feel like a boy about to embark up the largest pine in the forest of my youth...

The Second 'C' Ridge I Have Been Fortunate To Climb...Cathedral Ridge

The first 'C' ridge I explored earlier this year was Casaval Ridge on Mt. Shasta with a great crew. This 'C' ridge came as a last minute plan after the weather in the North Cascades and particularly on Icy Peak went far far South. Brian Anderson and I got on the phone and started talking about plan B's. We came up with Cathedral Ridge on Mt. Hood. Because it looks like an amazing and challenging route, and because it is close to home if weather decides to turn us around.
Weather was looking good, packs were already to go, and a great group of people all had Hood on the brain. Our team comprised of Brian Andeson, Brian Eubanks, Nick Wagner, and myself. I have a difficult time describing in words a trip such as this. Something I have heard Kari and Brian Eubanks say a few times comes to mind "Pura Vida!"

Have a look at the entire set of photographs here. Enjoy......