For real.

It's official. I graduated. High school is past tense! It's such a relief, knowing that my adventure is really ramping up. This last week, I took an alpine ice climbing class through AAI. It was incredible! We climbed Pencil Thin, a variation of the Moustache route, up through the ice gully system just left of the Roman Wall, on Mt. Baker. It was incredible and life changing. My guide, Mike, was incredible, a human alpine encyclopedia. The climb itself was cool, but on the way up, we bivied at high camp along the black buttes. Mike and I watched as the ridges overlapping through the horizion faded from pink to gray, and the summit fade from a glowing peach lantern to a silouette. Then the stars came out. After a few hours of sleep, we got up around 3 to make the summit before conditions got too soft. I had been using the rope as a pillow, but it had stuck to the ground, and my boot shell laces had froze all cadie wampus. Even my sleeping bag was coated in a thick layer of frost. That night was truly one of the greatest experiences of my entire life. I got a new perspective on the joy of climbing, and now I've got the bug bad! Plus, we climbed around on overhanging seracs. I loved it. I couldn't get enough! It was a crash course on technique and a pump fest all rolled into one. Most awesome. I can't wait for the next chance to get back out there. Looks like it won't be until next weekend, at least. I'll be setting routes tomorrow, and then teaching rock climbing mon-fri. The weekend's all mine, though, so at least I can start scheming! The weather looks like it might be sort of drizzly, so I'll plan on staying mostly off the rocks for sat/sun. Good thing I've got a fat tick list!!! I'm super excited for the summer to really get underway. I've got so much fun stuff planned! Now it's just a matter of cramming every last day with climbing, and trying to find people to climb with. Pictures of Baker will be up soon!

Takeoff!!!!!!!!

So guess what? I graduate on Tuesday! That's the beginning of the 15 month adventure! I'm going ice climbing the 14-19th, and then teaching rock climbing the week after. The week after that... I haven't decided... maybe an alpine climbing class... maybe climbing in Darrington. Then, I'll be teaching another week of rock climbing. The week after that, I'll be out rock climbing, and the week after that, I'll be climbing Shuksan and Ranier. August makes the beginning of my internship with Passages, and then in September, I'll be headed to the Bugaboos. October-November, I'm taking my W-EMT. That's what I've got so far. Suggestions?