With calendar winter quickly approaching, I find it helpful to reflect on what worked for me last snowflake season and what definitely didn’t. Although we might not get as much snow this upcoming season with it being a la niña year here in Colorado, it's always important to consider the essentials when evaluating backcountry winter travel. The fol...
In the fall of 2020, The Year of the Pandemic, I was let go from my role as a software engineer. With a sudden onslaught of free time and raging burnout, I made the choice to start pursuing high peaks in the winter. December was rough as I got familiar with my snowshoes and the brutal conditions that winter summits demanded. I bought my first pair...
I'm incredibly embarrassed to admit it, but I used to think you could get away with little to no gear on a hike in Colorado. On my first hike after moving here in the summer of 2016, I carried a heavy insulated bottle and _nothing else_ up to Saint Mary's Glacier as my first hike at altitude, ever. Things have definitely changed in the 5+ years si...