on giving, purchasing, and snow

Tonight I did two things that I thought I would share here.

1.
I watched 20/20. I normally don't do that, but this particular episode was about charitable giving. They started off pointing out the fact that Salvation Army collected more in front of a Wal-Mart in a small North Dakota town (a more conservative blue-collar town with less money) than in front of Macy's in San Fransisco (a liberal city with a lot of money). Apparently it was a surprise to report that wealthy liberals (aka San Fransisco at large) might, based on their political stance, hope for a better dispersement of wealth but fail to actually step up and help disperse their funds. [Note that this is a gross stereotyping and does not cover 100% of those who might define themselves as either liberal or conservative. Also note that Wal-Mart and Macy's are two different buying environments, and it might have had something to do with the fact that people walking in to Wal-Mart are psychologically "in a different place" than those preparing for Macy's... or something like that. At any rate, it could be cited as not very scientific, but made a point nonetheless. p.s. I was in San Fransisco last August, and there are homeless people there too.] I think this may stem from the fact that a liberal perspective inherently assumes placing the responsibility on the government rather than the citizen. I'm not going to get into liberal vs conservative here (or try not to, since I don't vote based on whether someone's proclaimed mascot is an elephant or jackass, and encourage against voting down party lines when nobody truly subscribes entirely to one party or another...) but this segues nicely into another important point I thought worth re-emphasizing: you cannot count on the government to do anything other than govern. The example cited was New York's Central Park. Apparently there's a non-profit which has raised Central Park from a scar to a highlight of the city. I applaud them and wish others would realize you can't just sit around on your leather couch and hope mighty Uncle Sam will kiss the boo-boo and make it feel better. Organizations protecting wilderness areas that should be Wilderness Areas also highlight this. So do Katrina volunteers. Both hippies and Jesus also prove this point, and I aspire to be like both. [I've thought recently about posting something on here about the similarity between "real" hippies and Jesus but have yet to actually do so... maybe this will force the issue and produce a defense of how I can possibly pray to God in thanks for my organic vegan lunch without some kind of vortex melting my frontal lobe.] I thought this was fairly pertinent since this month's focus at church has been "making an impact" and how to effectively do so. I could share more about that if anybody reading would like to hear more. Enough on this; closing comments -

• Ted Turner is a freaking idiot.
  
• There was one moron billionaire who claimed he "couldn't find enough good charities to invest in... otherwise [he'd] invest more." What hypocrisy! You're an ass. Bill Gates obviously has not had this problem. Hey buddy, give it to me and I'll write a check right now to Vital Ground to buy up what's for sale in Montana for PERMANENT wildlife habitat. (They happen to be holding a matching gift challenge right now, so your money would go twice as far!) ... or Compassion International to sponsor children throughout the Third World. If you don't want to let me spend it for you, why not hold a contest for all your employees. Americans love a good "reality" contest. You could take your favorite employee suggestions and "invest" in those charities as you say. While you're at it, you should also give a reward to the winner. Jerk.
• Apparently there is scientific proof that your brain likes giving more than receiving. I think that's pretty accurate. It feels like Christmas morning every time I get a translated letter in the mail from Ketha in southeast India making me realize what $30 means to him compared to what it means to me.

The only other thing I'd like to point out about giving which was not related to 20/20 is that C.S. Lewis states in Mere Christianity, "I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare."

2.
Secondly (and yes I do appreciate the juxtaposition here...) I bought a new bike this week. I ended up with a 2008 Trek Fuel EX 8. I took it up to the Switzerland Trail for a pre-Vail ride tonight. I'm still getting used to my clipless pedals, which I've never ridden before, but all in all feel ready for the ski lift. Here's hoping I can get myself unclipped if I need to bail prior to smashing my face into a tree tomorrow. Tonight it was just before dusk, and although I didn't get to ride for long, the setting was perfect. Seriously, I don't know what it is, but I feel at home on a bike. That statement goes back to before I went to Woodward (who now have a camp at Copper Mtn) for BMX or rode trails in Hueston Woods at Miami U. I haven't ridden in a while. For some reason I didn't ride much in Austin. That might be because I have yet to get into road riding (will I if I didn't in the kingdom of Lance?). Anyways, it's good to have a full suspension bike now that I'm surrounded by more technical (not to mention containing-black-bears-and-mountain-lions) terrain. Tonight I had to stop to admire the silence, Longs Peak, and the bright pink clouds above a purple Continental Divide backdrop with the moon coming up before the sun is completely down... next time I'll take my camera. Happy times in the Boulder hills! By the way, I'll still ride my oldie-but-goldie Trek to work every day... I don't plan on letting the newbie gather moss though.

Finally, and totally unrelated, last night it snowed in Summit County. In August. Pardon me while I take a minute to enjoy that thought. ... Ok, so what am I going to do tomorrow? Take my new bike up to Vail (a few minutes west of Summit County) and ride down the ski resort mountains before it really snows hard.

Longs Peak

14,255 ft Longs Peak was the 6th and final 14er of the summer for Ryan and I (note I said "summer" and not "year"). Back in May when I first looked at Longs this year I honestly would never have guessed I would summit it in 2007. It's an intimidating giant among giants that you can easily see from DIA (Denver airport), almost anywhere within RMNP, and other 14ers two hours away such as Mt. Bierstadt. It attracts (or creates) most of the bad weather within sight of RMNP, and is the only 14er in the Rockies north of I-70 until you get to Alaska and the Yukon (Mt. Rainier in the Cascades is the only 14er north of Longs in the lower 48). What all that means is I'm pretty happy that I made it up and back on the first try, and am surprised I was able to do so within 4 months of moving to Colorado.

Our adventure began with the alarm going off at 2:15am Saturday morning. After a bit of disbelief, we headed out and made it to the Longs Peak Ranger Station trailhead (9,405 ft) at 4:00 am. There were already at least 75 cars parked when we got there. We hiked the first two hours in the dark with our headlamps. While we were below the treeline the air was extremely warm, and I wouldn't have been surprised if you told me it was 75 degrees. Once above the treeline it was probably below 50 with the windchill. We could see clouds around Mt Lady Washington, and I thought for sure we'd end up turning back due to weather. The sunrise was a beautiful sight. Just after the sun came up we hiked around Mt Lady Washington (13,281') and Storm Peak (13,326'). Despite pulling my quasi-frequent "heave whatever you got" 15 minutes into the hike, I found the first 6 miles of the 7.5 mile journey the easiest/most gradual of all the 14er ascents so far. [I was really pissed at my body for the el-puke-o but have since discovered this is a side effect of Rolaids, which I had taken to help with the Mexican pizza from a few hours earlier, so now I don't feel so lame.] After those first 6 miles, however, fate turned and presented the most challenging mile and a half I have ever climb/hike/crawled. To be specific, the first 3500 ft over 6 miles took us 3 hours and the last 1255 ft over 1.5 mi took us 2.5 hours.

The first obstacle in the Keyhole route is getting across The Boulder field (at 13,000 ft) to the Keyhole. The boulder field looks like this (from above, in the Keyhole itself):
Once across the boulder field and through the Keyhole, you're faced with "the Ledges" then "the Trough" to "the Narrows" and finally "the Homestretch" to the summit. The names are all very appropriate. Here's the Trough from above, for example:
In the above photo you can see Glacier Gorge (a view just shy of the Maroon Bells and Tetons in my opinion) with Mills and Black lakes below. This is he inverted view of the hike Alissa and I made to Mills lake where we saw elk. Here's the backside of the "Colorado quarter" picture, with 13,497 ft Pagoda Mtn, 13,579 Chiefs Head Pk and 13,310 Mt. Alice in view (viewed best by clicking on the image, then All Sizes > Original on flickr):
I thought for sure I was at the summit when I came around the final corner and saw the Homestretch. It looks really technical, but actually isn't that bad as long as you put a bit of thought into hand and feet placement.
We made it to the summit in 5.5 hours, which is apparently average.
We spent 30 minutes on the summit (until 10am), bringing our duration above 13,000 ft to 3 hours before we even started down. The hike up was definitely only half the battle. This came into play for Ryan more than me, but suffice it to say 5 hours above 13,000 feet starts to affect your mental capacity, lung capacity, and just about any other capacity you may have. Examples:

• My breathing got to the point where when I took a deep breath I sounded like an asthmatic whether I breathed through nose or mouth... it was kind of like an empty wheezing, like you can almost hear the air you're breathing in is thin. [update 2009-07-05: apparently this is called Rales, and was just a minor case]
• I kept talking about how we were going to take 150,000 steps over the 15 miles round trip because we were averaging 10,000 steps / mile. Apparently I thought "2 feet per step" for 5,280 ft meant ~10,000 steps / mi instead of ~2500 steps / mi.
  

When we made it back to the Keyhole we could see rain and lightning within reasonable distance. We tried our best to get down as fast as possible, but that still included a couple of extended stops to catch breath and rest sore legs. We made it back to the parking lot at 3:15pm, no more than 5 minutes before a significant downpour. It took us 5:15 to get back to the Jeep, bringing our total to 11:15 including the summit. I was glad to see the hike below the treeline in the day. It's a beautiful mature pine forest with a creek (called Alpine Brook) running along the path for most of it. The camp sight named "Goblin's forest" seemed very fitting, and the screeching elk was also a bit eerie.

I don't take back what I said in May about Huron being hard, but this is now easily the most challenging day I have ever done. Not to be over-dramatic, but whatever used to be #1 on the "most physically and mentally draining day of my life" list is now #2. Two days later my thighs are still sore and my calves are flexed. I felt Pikes Peak in my bones with the jarring descent, but I feel Longs in my totally drained muscles. [I have no desire to ever run a marathon, but imagine I have a bit of an idea of what that feels like after this 15 mile day, and am pretty confident I could walk a full marathon in decent time.] When I got home, I ate a large dinner and fell asleep unintentionally on the couch watching a strange movie about an endurance runner named Forrest Gump. After waking up tired and confused, I cleaned up dinner and proceeded to sleep for another 10 hours before getting up for church on Sunday.

Unlike the other 14ers I've done so far, Longs seemed to be more about the route than the view from the top. It's very strange seeing so much land above treeline - it really doesn't look like other peaks. All in all, I feel lucky for the good weather, am very proud yet humbled, and would like to thank Longs Peak for giving up its prize before the weather finally broke. As usual, the pictures don't do justice, but you can see all photos from this hike at http://flickr.com/photos/brett_burch/sets/72157601541063519/.

For some extra information about Longs, visit the RMNP "climbing Longs" page or Roger Wendell's 14ers page, where he adds this bit of color to the conversation:

According to the July 31, 2005 Denver Post (Sunday, front page story by Steve Lipsher) Longs Peak is Colorado's second deadliest 14er (right after Maroon Bells) with 55 documented fatalities since Carrie Welton died of exposure near the Keyhole in 1884. Longs Peak was named after Army Major Stephen Long who made the first recorded American sighting of the peak in the 1820s. Colorado River explorer John Wesley Powell, in 1868, was the first to climb the peak. Over 25,000 people attempt the 15 mile round-trip climb each summer with about 10,000 reaching the summit. Average time for the round-trip ascent is about 12 hours with Chris Reveley having completed it in two hours and four minutes in 1979!

Two 14ers, ski resorts, and Miami alum

On August 4th, Ryan and I left his apartment at 6:15 to pick up Joe (one of Ryan's co-workers) and head to 14,267' ft Torrey's Peak. Torrey's was our 5th 14er of the summer, and is just a half mile north of Grays Peak, which we were already familiar with. We started from the same trailhead we used for Grays Peak, so there were no surprises except the weather. I decided to wear shorts this time since I figured it was August and late enough in the year to at least be 60 degrees on the summit. I was wrong. This was probably the worst weather we have hiked a 14er in so far, which I believe helped keep the crowd to 'tolerable', but I knew I was going to pay for deciding on shorts.

The hike past the Grays/Torreys saddle is probably the steepest finish we've done so far, and the actual summit is extremely small (like Huron was) with some significant exposure not far from it. Despite the constant shivering while we sat and admired the view, it was one of the more rewarding for me. Here is Joe, Ryan and I (right to left) on Torrey's Peak.

Notice the clouds in the background. When this picture was taken it was probably 40 degrees and windy with low visibility. Here are some other examples of looking across or down on the cloud cover:

(Looking towards Grays)
When we got back down to the saddle between Grays and Torreys we decided to go ahead to Grays since it would only add about 30 minutes to our adventure. Ryan and I had already hiked Grays earlier this summer, but it was fun to do both in one day! We didn't even take a picture on Grays since we were still fogged in... but it was at least 10 degrees warmer on Grays with the wind slowing down.

All in all, I started out somewhat poorly, but kept pace with Ryan (he hikes at 11000 ft faster than I walk normally at 6000 ft) about as well as can be expected and feel that I put forth a pretty solid effort. My lungs and heart certainly appreciated the workout.

After we made it down to the Jeep we took Loveland Pass past A-Basin to Keystone for the Bluegrass and Beer festival. I had never been over Loveland Pass or seen either A-Basin or Keystone, so the ride there was fun enough for me. The festival was also really fun (and easily 40 degrees warmer than the summit of Torreys). I think next year we'll try to get a campsight and make a 2 day effort out of the festival! We ate dinner in the Salt Creek restaurant in Breckenridge. Note to ex-Texans: this is without a doubt the closest to Central Texas BBQ you'll get without being within Austin city limits. I will be going back after a long day of skiing! Salt Creek also has a huge wine selection, so it's a perfect date dinner location (assuming you have a significant other... I suppose I need to work on that one).

The next afternoon Ryan and I joined the Colorado chapter of the Miami Alumni Association for lunch to send off Denver area freshman to Oxford, Ohio for the fall. I have to say this made me quite sentimental. I have great memories from Miami and definitely want to get back to see the ol' Alma Mater soon. It was nice to swap stories with others who, even if the experience was quite different, at least recognized the draw of Miami, could talk about locations and had a solid context around Miami conversations. I'm looking forward to the CU vs Miami football game in a few weeks! [I can't believe college football is just around the corner, and I'm drooling right now just thinking about it. I'll have a new Ohio State watching bar to attend, and have season tickets to the CU Buffaloes home games, so this should be an interesting year. I sure don't want to wish away the rest of the summer, but LETS GO BUCKS!!!]

CUBS WIN! fly fishing & Perseid sky show in RMNP

This was quite a weekend (which ones aren't?).

Friday night I caught the Rockies host the Cubs in Coors Field... which almost felt the other way around given the crowd. I had no idea there were so many Chicago transplants in Denver, and would have believed you if you clubbed me over the head and told me I was in Wrigley instead. The home team actually was out-rooted for. To put this into perspective, in the 7th inning stretch, the phrase "Root, root, root for the CUBBIES" ala 3+ sheets-to-the-wind Harry Caray (... we miss you Harry!) was much more clearly heard than either "Root, root, root for the Rockies" or "Root, root, root for the home team" - a feat that I have never observe at any other professional sporting event (but would love to in Ann Arbor one glorious November Saturday... I'm not holding my breath though).

Saturday afternoon was split between bike shopping (more on this later when the good news finally comes in and I pick one...) and fly fishing in Estes Park. We didn't catch anything, but Ryan made a capable and patient guide. We waded in this time, which cooled us off and presented a new approach to me. After fishing we ate at The Wapiti Pub & Restaurant which I will be going back to. The food and atmosphere were great, and the bar has more than 50 beers to choose from. If there is any advice to give, it is simply DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE "Big Daddy Fire Burger!" The jalapeños are fine but those Habaneros aren't messing around. I recommend getting the salsa on the side. A little known secret is that the salsa is actually Dave's Insanity.

After dinner we headed up Trail Ridge Road to get a first class view of the Perseid Meteor Shower. According to a NASA article, this was going to be a great year for viewing. NASA was right. Ryan and I drove to above 12000 ft and then hiked up to 12300 for the show. We stayed there for just over 2 hours (in the windy 47 degrees...) and saw 66 meteors between 9:30 and 11:30. My camera ran out of batteries halfway through my first 15 second exposure, but this should suffice:

Some were faint but others lit up the sky with a huge smoke tail. Perhaps this was the most fitting hour all summer to use the phrase, "Far Out!" which I'm reminded of because it was a John Denver favorite, and the Perseids were John's inspiration to write Rocky Mountain High. [It's the summer of my 26th year, not 27th, but I have no doubt the lasting impression is comparable]

Today brought a poignant church message, lunch with folks I discovered I live close to and attend church with, and finally more bike shopping (I'm currently comparing / choosing between the 2007 Specialized Enduro SL Comp, the 2007 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Elite, and the 2008 Trek Fuel EX 8). I have to admit it was a bit hard (but necessary) to take in the message of preventing the good things (college football, music, my new mountain bike...) from taking the place of the ultimate things (the eternal things or that which we will take with us after death) as a "selfish-with-my-resources-because-I-don't-have-to-provide-for-anyone-else single 20-something" in a mountain playground. It's good to remember the simple and probably overused or misconstrued "In the world but not of it, and in it to redeem it" phrase. May my Bible be/become/remain my most prized possession, no matter which bike I buy this week.

Alissa's 6 day Coloradaganza

My first visitor always seems to be Alissa in my new home towns (...well, at least she's 2 for 2 with Austin and Boulder, if you can call that "always"). Here's a recap of her visit.

1. Martes 24th Julio - Flew in late and went to bed early. It rained.
   
2. Mittwoch 25th Juli - I went to work for my last day. Afterwards we went to an Italian place in the Pearl Street mall that left a bit to be desired. We did, however, catch some kind of weird Celtic dancing during our meal from some very Boulder Boulderites. I think it was very appropriate she saw them. Dinner was followed up by a smashing Harry Potter film. It rained.
   
3. Jeudi 26th Juillet - Spent the day in Boulder, including a driving tour, lunch on the West End Tavern rooftop, a walk along the Pearl Street mall, a hike in the Flatirons, and a visit to REI. We also met Ryan for a late dinner/happy hour (seriously, the Highlands Ranch C.B Potts does happy hour from 9 - 12!). It rained.
4. Friday 28th July - Vail! Oh, how I love thee Vail. (Too bad condos are $1300 a square foot... unbe-freaking-lievable but not a joke. Here's proof.) My front yard (year-round) if I win the lottery: We got rained on, but she bought a rain jacket and I replaced my lost sunglasses. We had lunch at Vendetta's Italian Restaurant. The strawberry-chicken-currant-raspberry and habanero dressing-etc salad was really great (yet unexpected at an Italian restaurant) but gave me incredible heartburn (did not see that coming even with the habanero in the dressing... thank you Vail Sports for carrying Tums... I didn't see that coming either). I also learned that downhill season (bikes, not skis) in Vail lasts until September 3rd. Here I come before Labor Day! It rained a lot.
5. Zaterdag 29th Juli - Rafting with AVA on Clear Creek outside of Idaho Springs! (Pictures coming soon.) Steve-O from West Virginia was our guide. The creek was running really high and fast from all the rain. Ryan get ejected into the water during Beaver II but took it like a pro. One guy in the boat behind us also got tossed. A girl in a third raft fell out and allegedly shattered her kneecap. (I hope she's ok. The ambulance came fairly quick so I assume she was taken care of pretty well.) We then had lunch at the Tommyknocker Brewery. I almost forgot my brand new sunglasses. (The busboy was nice enough not to take them.) After lunch we went up Mt. Evans. Visibility was about 9 feet, so that was a bit of a buzzkill, but we didn't drive off a cliff so we called it a half-success. It rained.
   
6. Domingo 30th Julio - Went to church then headed up to Rocky Mountain National Park. The clouds were pretty cool as we descended into Estes Park. We hiked up Glacier Gorge to Mills Lake and saw elk enjoying the lake (fresh bear scat too). Here's a view like the Colorado quarter photo with Longs Peak on the left. We camped at Glacier Basin and the view of the Continental Divide was great. Peaks right to left below are Flattop, Hallett, Otis, Taylor, and Storm (tallest because closest but not on divide). It was pretty hard to start the campfire. It rained a bit.
   
7. Montag 31st Juli - Drove up Trail Ridge Road but saw no elk. On our way down we saw a coyote hunting prairie dogs near Sheep Lakes. We also stopped by the Lawn Lake flood alluvial fan. It didn't rain.

All in all it was a great (yet wet) adventure. Who else is up for a visit?