INTROS - New members, introduce yourself here!
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mcphersonm80
- Posts: 243
- Joined: Mon Aug 23, 2010 11:46 am
Name: Matt
Age: 31 is the new 21
Activities: Hiking, climbing, photography (nothing fancy, just point-and-shoot, but it's fun... See My Photos Here ), homebrewing, playing and watching ice hockey
Intro/bio: Not much to say... I've lurked for a lot longer than I've been posting here, but I want to start posting more. Grew up in Glendora with Mt Baldy serving as a backdrop to the first 21 years of my existence, but for some reason never thought to climb it until a few years ago, now I'm absolutely obsessed. I can often be found sitting on top of a mountain drinking beer, usually Arrogant Bastard. Highest peak I've climbed is Alta Peak in Sequoia, 11204' where I (successfully) proposed to my fiance. Hoping to climb Whitney this summer, permit permitting(?).
Hope to run into some of you on the trail in the near future... a lot of the trip reports here are downright impressive. Cheers! 8)
Hmmm...Longhorns cap on with a son at OU?DukeJH wrote: ↑See my profile pic. I still lok about like that.
My screen name is my first corporate login name. It just stuck with me. I'm used, not aboused, and nearing 40. Ihike, backpack and dabble in rock climbing but my passion is mountaineering. I move to the LA area specifically to climb. It just happens I found a good job willing to pay to relocate me.
Married with 3 kids. We left our son in Oklahoma at the university when we moved. My wife and daughters enjoy the outdoors but cannot comprehend my love of cold, snowy, windy places without oxygen.
Name: Last name Rios. First name Danny.
Age: 22
What kinda stuff you do: Hiking/Backpacking & Fly Fishing
Intro/bio: Grew up in Downey, CA. Currently living in Azusa. First generation American, raised by Dominicans.
And I love listening to Sublime =]
He got a really good scholarship and doesn't care about sports. More $ for climbing.HikeUp wrote: ↑Hmmm...Longhorns cap on with a son at OU?DukeJH wrote: ↑See my profile pic. I still lok about like that.
My screen name is my first corporate login name. It just stuck with me. I'm used, not aboused, and nearing 40. Ihike, backpack and dabble in rock climbing but my passion is mountaineering. I move to the LA area specifically to climb. It just happens I found a good job willing to pay to relocate me.
Married with 3 kids. We left our son in Oklahoma at the university when we moved. My wife and daughters enjoy the outdoors but cannot comprehend my love of cold, snowy, windy places without oxygen.
I figure I should introduce myself for those who only know me as the tyrannical forum admin that I am. Plus I love hearing the sound of my own voice.
Name: Taco. Many folks ask me what my name means. I needed a screen name for a forum way back when, and I'm not terribly creative so I just used the name of my favorite taco joint down the street from my place, in La Puente. The name is Taco Del Rio. It's really good. if you disagree, it's because you're wrong. Fix that.
Age: Relative (20 something)
What kinda stuff you do: In regards to the mountains, I enjoy hiking, climbing, canyoneering, having a few beers around a campfire, and spirited driving. Just got into mountain biking, but I don't see myself doing it. I enjoy singletrack and stuff that isn't that high speed downhill stuff... to be honest I do not want to get an injury from it, and my friends who do that stuff get hurt pretty bad. My primary pursuit is winter alpine climbing, which I enjoy doing alone as it allows me time to escape into my head. It's my version of church. Alongside that is driving, which I love doing, but cannot afford to do anymore. I hope to continue driving in the future. We have some really awesome roads here in the SG's.
Intro/bio: I'm a normal dude like everyone else. Travis and I started this forum a handful of years ago, because the SG's didn't have one. Hey, now they do.
Before this, I was in the Army as an Infantryman, training to join the 75th Ranger Regiment. I spent a lot of my free time as a kid hiking, hunting, shooting, building and sleeping in shelters, tracking, doing crap alone, and all that in preparation for the military. I have a rare heart disease which precluded me from going any further in the Army. This significantly altered the course of my life. I guess you get a certain set of cards in life. It's hard for me to talk about this because so few people understand what any of that entails. I was on my deathbed when I was a teenager, and I had to lie to join the Army at 17, but someone would call me a pussy for not having served a certain number of years, as if I had a choice. Then again, those same folks can't shoot to save their life... or anyone else's, for that matter.
If I was given the chance to go to Afghanistan, I'd drop everything and go. Such is the nature of illogical pipe dreams and lots of training. 8)
Then I got into mountaineering, and the rest as they say is history.
I like old cars, modest women, and fine dark ales.
I support an open forum where you can say whatever you want about whatever you want. I have only banned a couple people, because nearly everyone on here is mature and intelligent... except me, of course.
I see this forum growing very slightly, and possibly encompassing a few more things, but I do not see it becoming so large as to lose its focus. I'm going to be flat out and say I'm selfish and I want to keep control of this forum for myself, though not solely for myself. I have put a good amount of work and a ton of time and networking into this forum and I'd like to continue to reap the rewards of it. I do not make any money off of this forum.
I would like to get this forum its own URL and make it all fancy, but I'm currently in a very financially difficult situation. I've never seen much money in my life, but now I see much less, so I'll leave it at that. Once things pick up, this forum is my priority. It will become more user friendly with newer software, and maybe some user-editable pages or something (though that may become obsolete with the advent of Facebook and whatnot).
I have met a tremendous amount of new people via this forum, and I always enjoy being recognized and speaking with folks on the mountain. I've had a lot of positive feedback (and zero negative feedback) regarding this forum, and I want to say that I really appreciate that. I run this forum, but all of you ARE this forum, I just keep it oiled up and running, so to speak.
Life is fleeting, and trip reports are a great way to record what you've experienced. I always enjoy going to the old pages in the TR's and looking at everyone's adventures. Smiling faces, good times, dangerous situations, ingenuity, and all that come out on these trips, and the situation is reflected in how someone smiles or frowns.
Through all the folks I've met, I've become good friends with a lot of you. I've had to battle with debilitating depression in my life, and you guys pretty much blow it out of the water. I feel incredibly blessed to have you all in my life. Tears come to my eyes when I look through my old pictures from trips past and see your faces. I see Fritz's smile when we're doing some cool winter multiday trip up a mountain, Zach's ever-smiling face with his awesome positive attitude when we're in some sorta halfway-shitty situation that ends up being 'fun', Patrick's hilarious camera poses and the excellent life advice he's given me, Norma's face when I insult her because I love her and that's how I show it in some twisted way (lol), Tina always taking care of me and feeding me on our adventures I'd never be able to afford alone (love you too, hun!), Johnny's wacky poses when we do various technical things and end up laughing our asses off, Steve and Fern being the dynamic duo that somehow manages to pull off feats of extraordinary endurance and wackyness, Sam for thinking outside of the box that so few venture out of, and eeeeeeeeeeeeeveeryone and everything else! I'm very lucky to have walked the path in life that has me where I am.
I hope everyone enjoys this forum and feels at home on it. As always, if you have any questions or anything just send me a private message.
Thanks guys
Name: Taco. Many folks ask me what my name means. I needed a screen name for a forum way back when, and I'm not terribly creative so I just used the name of my favorite taco joint down the street from my place, in La Puente. The name is Taco Del Rio. It's really good. if you disagree, it's because you're wrong. Fix that.
Age: Relative (20 something)
What kinda stuff you do: In regards to the mountains, I enjoy hiking, climbing, canyoneering, having a few beers around a campfire, and spirited driving. Just got into mountain biking, but I don't see myself doing it. I enjoy singletrack and stuff that isn't that high speed downhill stuff... to be honest I do not want to get an injury from it, and my friends who do that stuff get hurt pretty bad. My primary pursuit is winter alpine climbing, which I enjoy doing alone as it allows me time to escape into my head. It's my version of church. Alongside that is driving, which I love doing, but cannot afford to do anymore. I hope to continue driving in the future. We have some really awesome roads here in the SG's.
Intro/bio: I'm a normal dude like everyone else. Travis and I started this forum a handful of years ago, because the SG's didn't have one. Hey, now they do.
Before this, I was in the Army as an Infantryman, training to join the 75th Ranger Regiment. I spent a lot of my free time as a kid hiking, hunting, shooting, building and sleeping in shelters, tracking, doing crap alone, and all that in preparation for the military. I have a rare heart disease which precluded me from going any further in the Army. This significantly altered the course of my life. I guess you get a certain set of cards in life. It's hard for me to talk about this because so few people understand what any of that entails. I was on my deathbed when I was a teenager, and I had to lie to join the Army at 17, but someone would call me a pussy for not having served a certain number of years, as if I had a choice. Then again, those same folks can't shoot to save their life... or anyone else's, for that matter.
If I was given the chance to go to Afghanistan, I'd drop everything and go. Such is the nature of illogical pipe dreams and lots of training. 8)
Then I got into mountaineering, and the rest as they say is history.
I like old cars, modest women, and fine dark ales.
I support an open forum where you can say whatever you want about whatever you want. I have only banned a couple people, because nearly everyone on here is mature and intelligent... except me, of course.
I see this forum growing very slightly, and possibly encompassing a few more things, but I do not see it becoming so large as to lose its focus. I'm going to be flat out and say I'm selfish and I want to keep control of this forum for myself, though not solely for myself. I have put a good amount of work and a ton of time and networking into this forum and I'd like to continue to reap the rewards of it. I do not make any money off of this forum.
I would like to get this forum its own URL and make it all fancy, but I'm currently in a very financially difficult situation. I've never seen much money in my life, but now I see much less, so I'll leave it at that. Once things pick up, this forum is my priority. It will become more user friendly with newer software, and maybe some user-editable pages or something (though that may become obsolete with the advent of Facebook and whatnot).
I have met a tremendous amount of new people via this forum, and I always enjoy being recognized and speaking with folks on the mountain. I've had a lot of positive feedback (and zero negative feedback) regarding this forum, and I want to say that I really appreciate that. I run this forum, but all of you ARE this forum, I just keep it oiled up and running, so to speak.
Life is fleeting, and trip reports are a great way to record what you've experienced. I always enjoy going to the old pages in the TR's and looking at everyone's adventures. Smiling faces, good times, dangerous situations, ingenuity, and all that come out on these trips, and the situation is reflected in how someone smiles or frowns.
Through all the folks I've met, I've become good friends with a lot of you. I've had to battle with debilitating depression in my life, and you guys pretty much blow it out of the water. I feel incredibly blessed to have you all in my life. Tears come to my eyes when I look through my old pictures from trips past and see your faces. I see Fritz's smile when we're doing some cool winter multiday trip up a mountain, Zach's ever-smiling face with his awesome positive attitude when we're in some sorta halfway-shitty situation that ends up being 'fun', Patrick's hilarious camera poses and the excellent life advice he's given me, Norma's face when I insult her because I love her and that's how I show it in some twisted way (lol), Tina always taking care of me and feeding me on our adventures I'd never be able to afford alone (love you too, hun!), Johnny's wacky poses when we do various technical things and end up laughing our asses off, Steve and Fern being the dynamic duo that somehow manages to pull off feats of extraordinary endurance and wackyness, Sam for thinking outside of the box that so few venture out of, and eeeeeeeeeeeeeveeryone and everything else! I'm very lucky to have walked the path in life that has me where I am.
I hope everyone enjoys this forum and feels at home on it. As always, if you have any questions or anything just send me a private message.
Thanks guys
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davantalus
- Posts: 203
- Joined: Mon Jun 08, 2009 9:09 am
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Layne Cantrell
- Posts: 127
- Joined: Tue Sep 01, 2009 5:20 pm
Alright, I've been lurking here long enough I figure I ought to share with the class.
My real name is Greg, my username is a combination of members from my favorite rock band growing up, Alice in Chains.
I'm 28 going on 40, played a ton of basketball throughout my youth and am starting to pay the price for it. I'm a musician by trade and some combination of long practice hours and basketball have turned my left shoulder and forearm into silly puddy. I can still play my instruments (violin and guitar, both very left-hand intensive) but nowhere near the long hours I used to and always with some amount of discomfort.
My Dad used to take me camping at Buckhorn when I was a pup in the late 80's/early 90's but I totally lost interest in the forest until 2007. That year I had surgery on my shoulder and couldn't partake in my two favorite activities for eight months, so as result I had HORRIBLE depression. That summer my brother pulled me up to Buckhorn for the first time in about 15 years, and I fell in love hardcore. I left there feeling like I had experienced some sort of 'spiritual awakening,' (not to get all flower child on ya) and from then until the !@%$#! Station Fire I was up there almost every weekend doing something or other.
I'm a total novice compared to you guys as I don't really backpack or take on overnight hikes (yet!!) but I love exploring and learning as much as I can about the Angeles.
I only showed up here when the fire broke out and I couldn't find any info on Buckhorn and how close the damn fire was getting. Since then I've sorta gotten a feel for you guys and gals and, well, gosh, I just felt I should share.
My real name is Greg, my username is a combination of members from my favorite rock band growing up, Alice in Chains.
I'm 28 going on 40, played a ton of basketball throughout my youth and am starting to pay the price for it. I'm a musician by trade and some combination of long practice hours and basketball have turned my left shoulder and forearm into silly puddy. I can still play my instruments (violin and guitar, both very left-hand intensive) but nowhere near the long hours I used to and always with some amount of discomfort.
My Dad used to take me camping at Buckhorn when I was a pup in the late 80's/early 90's but I totally lost interest in the forest until 2007. That year I had surgery on my shoulder and couldn't partake in my two favorite activities for eight months, so as result I had HORRIBLE depression. That summer my brother pulled me up to Buckhorn for the first time in about 15 years, and I fell in love hardcore. I left there feeling like I had experienced some sort of 'spiritual awakening,' (not to get all flower child on ya) and from then until the !@%$#! Station Fire I was up there almost every weekend doing something or other.
I'm a total novice compared to you guys as I don't really backpack or take on overnight hikes (yet!!) but I love exploring and learning as much as I can about the Angeles.
I only showed up here when the fire broke out and I couldn't find any info on Buckhorn and how close the damn fire was getting. Since then I've sorta gotten a feel for you guys and gals and, well, gosh, I just felt I should share.
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Layne Cantrell
- Posts: 127
- Joined: Tue Sep 01, 2009 5:20 pm
Hi Everyone,
New guy here. I am an Avid hiker, hunter, mountaineer and anything that is outdoors. I have been tromping around in the SGW for about 25 years. I have just done Baldy via the Hut trail and the bowl the last 2 weekends in a row because it is so damn fun. Although last weekend I had a 40lb(approx) rock go whizzing past me at about 60 miles per hour on the way up. That scared me.
Anyway looking forward to getting to know everyone.
Logan
New guy here. I am an Avid hiker, hunter, mountaineer and anything that is outdoors. I have been tromping around in the SGW for about 25 years. I have just done Baldy via the Hut trail and the bowl the last 2 weekends in a row because it is so damn fun. Although last weekend I had a 40lb(approx) rock go whizzing past me at about 60 miles per hour on the way up. That scared me.
Anyway looking forward to getting to know everyone.
Logan
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davantalus
- Posts: 203
- Joined: Mon Jun 08, 2009 9:09 am
Good to see another hunter on here. Not enough folks in the hiking/mountaineering community hunt, thus spreading misconception that we're all rednecks, and that tofu tastes better than meat.
I deny any accusations that the scars on my arms have anything to do with falling rock and/or ice.
I deny any accusations that the scars on my arms have anything to do with falling rock and/or ice.
A rare, snow-covered Rattlesnake Peak.
Name: Zach
Age: 26
Favorite Element: Tungsten
Intro: A few years back a friend introduced me to the art of mountaineering on a trip up to Mt. Sill in the dead of winter. I was in no sort of shape (post bone marrow transplant) and the limited hiking that I'd done up until then did NOT prepare me for the post-hole nightmare of the snow-covered Sierra's. Needless to say, I think we made it to just below the first lake before I finally gave up. I spent a miserable night gasping rarefied air and freezing with my crappy gear. The next day I decided I'd had enough and headed down-hill. But life is just life without these kind of epic adventures to remind you just how sweet it all is. I scaled back and began ticking off the local peaks, where I ran into Lilbitmo who told me about this online forum. It was a bitch to find, but has been such a great place to meet amazing people, find beta, and post my own adventures.
Bio: As of right now, I'm finishing my final year of nursing school at CSUSB. I'm just as passionate about helping people as I am about the outdoors. I love rock climbing, cycling, hiking, backpacking, canyoneering, running, triathlons and just about anything else that brings me adventure and the outdoors. Hit me up if you wanna get out!
Goals: I'd like to become a better climber and eventually be able to climb alpine routes around the world. As of right now, I don't get out nearly enough to even call myself a proficient climber... hopefully that will change Oh yeah, and this summer I'm going to kayak to Catalina.
Name: Zach
Age: 26
Favorite Element: Tungsten
Intro: A few years back a friend introduced me to the art of mountaineering on a trip up to Mt. Sill in the dead of winter. I was in no sort of shape (post bone marrow transplant) and the limited hiking that I'd done up until then did NOT prepare me for the post-hole nightmare of the snow-covered Sierra's. Needless to say, I think we made it to just below the first lake before I finally gave up. I spent a miserable night gasping rarefied air and freezing with my crappy gear. The next day I decided I'd had enough and headed down-hill. But life is just life without these kind of epic adventures to remind you just how sweet it all is. I scaled back and began ticking off the local peaks, where I ran into Lilbitmo who told me about this online forum. It was a bitch to find
, but has been such a great place to meet amazing people, find beta, and post my own adventures. Bio: As of right now, I'm finishing my final year of nursing school at CSUSB. I'm just as passionate about helping people as I am about the outdoors. I love rock climbing, cycling, hiking, backpacking, canyoneering, running, triathlons and just about anything else that brings me adventure and the outdoors. Hit me up if you wanna get out!
Goals: I'd like to become a better climber and eventually be able to climb alpine routes around the world. As of right now, I don't get out nearly enough to even call myself a proficient climber... hopefully that will change
Oh yeah, and this summer I'm going to kayak to Catalina.-
cougarmagic
- Posts: 1409
- Joined: Wed May 07, 2008 5:21 pm
Real name: Johanna
Stuff I do: hiking, canyoneering, tracking, some easy mountain biking, some easy rock climbing.
Misc: I grew up in Buffalo, NY and after 15 years in the west, I still don't like snow. In college, I majored in classical piano performance. Made friends with the cool kids in the film/tv department though, and ended up working as a sound effects editor. I lived in Phoenix, AZ for three years after college, and the beautiful desert and canyons there are what got me into the outdoors in a serious way. (camping with my family as a kid was a big part of it too, though)
In the northeast, there are no big open spaces like we have here. And the spaces there are, are strictly controlled. You can't step off the path, can't go in the water, don't go near the edge, etc. So when I got to Arizona, I noticed there is no railing keeping people from falling off the edge of Grand Canyon. Because that would be ridiculous....and I liked that a lot.
Still, I am not a thrill seeker really. I like to see new places - that's my main motivation. You won't find me skydiving or base jumping or any of that. But I will safely, and maybe slowly compared to others, push my own boundaries.
I love all animals. Currently have a rhodesian ridgeback who loves to hike too. And of course the camera trapping thing...
Also, in putting this together, I realized I hardly have any photos of myself in normal clothing - it's all muddy nylon or mismatched neoprene...
Real name: Mitch
Stuff I do: I make shotgun parts and stickers, hike and backpack and climb mountains.
Misc: I grew up in OC and even though I moved away a couple times I kept coming back.
Nunc est bibendum
OK, I've lurked here for a VERY long time, so I'll put a foot forward and introduce myself. If I put 2 feet forward, I'm so clumsy that I'll likely fall on my face.
REAL NAME: Patrick
Hobbies: hiking, backpacking, a tiny little bit of mountaineering
Miscellaneous: I'm a restless intellect. I've been trained as a classical singer, but to pay the bills, I've been a technical recruiter (i.e. headhunter) and am now a land surveyor. I hope that I'll stay in my present career field for a few years, as it is intellectually stimulating and also allows me to work outdoors 100% of the time. Sure, there are bad weather days, but having formerly hailed from Kansas, I'll take the worst weather that SoCal can dish out any day of the week. I'm trying to recover from 2 herniated discs in my back (my body paying me back for the weightlifting I did in my 20s and 30s), but I still manage to get out there and stumble around in the mountains on an infrequent basis. If anyone is ever interested in a Saturday gentle-to-moderate hike, feel free to contact me!
Click to see full size image
REAL NAME: Patrick
Hobbies: hiking, backpacking, a tiny little bit of mountaineering
Miscellaneous: I'm a restless intellect. I've been trained as a classical singer, but to pay the bills, I've been a technical recruiter (i.e. headhunter) and am now a land surveyor. I hope that I'll stay in my present career field for a few years, as it is intellectually stimulating and also allows me to work outdoors 100% of the time. Sure, there are bad weather days, but having formerly hailed from Kansas, I'll take the worst weather that SoCal can dish out any day of the week. I'm trying to recover from 2 herniated discs in my back (my body paying me back for the weightlifting I did in my 20s and 30s), but I still manage to get out there and stumble around in the mountains on an infrequent basis. If anyone is ever interested in a Saturday gentle-to-moderate hike, feel free to contact me!
Click to see full size image
Name: Tim
I was named by an INS agent. During my naturalization interview, the agent asked if I wanted to change my name. I didn't plan to change it, but he was right, it was a pain having a name that no one could pronounce. He suggested Tim and I said ok. Seems simple enough, how can anyone mess that up? But then I found out when I introduce myself to people, they usually assume I'm saying "Kim." Damn it!
I think mountains have always been part of my DNA, although I don't really know why. My family never went camping, hiking or even to the national parks. We were refugees--we don't do that stuff. So I was never exposed to any of this, except where I lived I did have a nice view of the Ontario-Cucamonga Ridge every day. But there are three things I have loved all my life: airplanes, cameras and mountains. I remember as a kid all I ever drew were pictures of mountains and airplanes.
I'm mainly into hiking and mountaineering. Most of my hikes are solo but some of my most memorable hikes have been where a group of us were on a mission to find something or to blaze a route through that sweet, lovable San Gabriel brush.
Looking back at my accomplishments, my proudest one is actually this little video I made for the forum after our first year in business. I've probably seen it a thousand times on the editing screen but it still makes me smile.
I was named by an INS agent. During my naturalization interview, the agent asked if I wanted to change my name. I didn't plan to change it, but he was right, it was a pain having a name that no one could pronounce. He suggested Tim and I said ok. Seems simple enough, how can anyone mess that up? But then I found out when I introduce myself to people, they usually assume I'm saying "Kim." Damn it!
I think mountains have always been part of my DNA, although I don't really know why. My family never went camping, hiking or even to the national parks. We were refugees--we don't do that stuff. So I was never exposed to any of this, except where I lived I did have a nice view of the Ontario-Cucamonga Ridge every day. But there are three things I have loved all my life: airplanes, cameras and mountains. I remember as a kid all I ever drew were pictures of mountains and airplanes.
I'm mainly into hiking and mountaineering. Most of my hikes are solo but some of my most memorable hikes have been where a group of us were on a mission to find something or to blaze a route through that sweet, lovable San Gabriel brush.
Looking back at my accomplishments, my proudest one is actually this little video I made for the forum after our first year in business. I've probably seen it a thousand times on the editing screen but it still makes me smile.
Real name: Ira
Real age: North of 50
Stuff I do: Hike solo over long distances, hike with other people, easy climbing and canyoneering, take pictures of the landscape, interesting creatures, structures and humans. I'm also very passionate about my work, which involves all things electrical, electronic, video, audio, computer, radio... you get the idea.
I was born, raised and schooled in New York City. Consequently there are not enough mountains, canyons, wild animals, and other beautiful natural things to counterpoise a lifetime's urbanism. My Grandfather, Father and Uncle were all professional photographers and I like to think that I've inherited a little of their skill. I'm very active in local amateur radio, in support of civilian emergency communications, never passing up an opportunity to work high on a tower or help service hilltop communications equipment. I have a true flake's obsession with the fortifying energy of the mountains. More pragmatically, I do what I can to encourage the new generation of socially responsible young engineers. I also find humor in all things.
Tim, that really is a great video.
Nunc est bibendum
Name: Jason
Forum handle comes from a very long history of online gaming. Specifically from the original Everquest around 2002 which was a very fun quad kiting wizard. The name is usually my first choice for all forum handles.
Age: 30
What kinda stuff you do: Hiking, Backpacking, Running, Drag racing, Gaming.
Intro/bio:
I got my outdoor feet wet with mother nature as a young boy being sent off to summer camp(s) so my Mother could have 2-3 weeks of peaceful bliss. I loved the pine smells, wildlife, campfire stories, archery, rifle shooting, exploring, hiking....ect.
Fastforward to Highschool, I joined a youth group called Pat's Champ's. Founded by the Olimpic gold medal diver Pat McCormick. I met Felix Grossman who was connected at the time to her organization who was a Scoutmaster and took a few of us from the youth group hiking. We did several training hikes, including hiking up San Jacinto from the tramway before doing a very fun 3 day hike in the Sierra's up to a lake that froze over each night. There was also a full moon with clear skies and it was my first time I got to experience just how bright a full moon really is. It was a great trip and had me hooked for life.
Fastforward 1.2 years ago. I was out of shape, overweight and desperately needed a release from the burdens of the work grind. My old job had me sitting at a desk all day and my diet had me eating unhealthy. I made a commitment to start hiking every week each week, one which my g/f shared with me. I started the Journey at 250lbs. To give you an Idea of our fitness level hiking to Eaton Canyon waterfall was considered a moderate hike to us at the time. Hiking up to Echo Mtn was exhausting.
Another leap forward to today, I've lost over 75lbs. I now consider a hike up to Echo as easy as it gets, and Eaton canyon to the waterfall is where I take friends/family who haven't hiked before looking to get their feet wet.
I've seen so many beautiful peaks and sights in my local mountains and have some wonderful memories of epic hikes that will always stay close to my heart. I hope to continue them for as long as I'm in California.