RYANNE THE BIRTHDAY GIRL

Ryanne just turned another year.  And to celebrate, we loaded up Eagan up for his first bike ride.  He was super excited.  We rode downtown and played in the grass at Wheeler Park.

Here is the proud mama on her birthday.  After a bit of park fun, we walked over to Criollo and met some friends for dinner.  Flagstaff is such a great place to live. 

HAVIN' FUN ON THE HERMIT

I just finished up with a super fun backpacking trip out on the Hermit trail.  This picture shows the trail from the Cathedral Staircase, looking down upon the confluence of Hermit Creek and the Inner Gorge.

Stopping for a snack break on the saddle between Hermit and Monument, I snapped this shot looking back on Hermit rapid.

The wildflower are popping out like crazy now.  I thought this shot scene with the beavertail in the foreground was stunning.

The young couple on the trip were really excited about getting down to the river.  So, at our Salt Creek camp, four of us made the adventurous route down to the might Colorado, while two stayed back at camp. 

 

It was an eye popping sunset for our dinner at Plateau Point -or as I like to call it, Chateau Plateau.

Leaving Indian Gardens, we had a nice cool start to the morning.

We made some new friends.  Here is long time Flagstaff resident, Sue, sporting the Coconino Cycles tee shirt.  It is good to hear Steve Garro is still putting together the best hand built bikes around.

We also saw some more familiar faces.  No, this grainy photo isn't of Bigfoot, it's our good friend Gary.  He must have made a wrong turn at Albuquerque and got on the train to the Grand Canyon.  I can't even count how many trips this guy has done with us.  He is so much fun to have around.

Four Season Guides is looking  forward to seeing you this summer in Yosemite, Gary.

TEACH A MAN TO SAVE A LIFE.....

The other day, I went out to Window Rock, Az to help my good friend Jason teach a CPR/first aid class.  For those of you who don't know where Window Rock is, it's way out in the middle of the Navajo Nation, almost on the New Mexico Border. 

We went there to teach the school bus drivers how to save lives with CPR and first aid.  I found the Navajo cultural view of the dead (a big taboo) to be an interesting consideration when teaching CPR.  The class was alot of fun and the students were awesome.  I am getting pretty excited to teach my next class, coming up this week, at the Flagstaff hospital.

EASTER HIKE WITH THE FAMILY

Easter morning and what a beautiful day it is.  Wanting to get out and enjoy some trail time, Ryanne and I chose  Mt. Elden.                                                                        Here Ryanne and Solo are making their way up the stout incline of Lost Burrito Trail.

Eagan and I taking in the scenery of theUpper Dry Lakes.

 If anyone can ID this flower please let me know.  The closest thing I could find in all my flower books is the wallflower.

    Looking down on the town of Flagstaff, from the top of Dry Lakes.

HAVASU FALLS JUST KEEPS GETTING BETTER

 I just got done with another incredible trip to Supai.  This time, with a really nice family from Virginia.  It always makes me smile to see kids (siblings) get along so well.  It must have something to do with their parents being awesome.  They were both engineering types -one of them with NASA.  So, needless to say, they had lots of interesting stories to share.

Here is a picture of the greeting committee -the two stone towers that watch over the village. 














On our way down the steeeep trail to Mooney Falls, we saw this family of deaf people working their way down the chains.  If you look close, you will see that there is a toddler in that guys arms.  It was interesting to see how they communicated with each other in order to make it through the more difficult sections.

The redbuds are in full bloom.  Theses showy clouds of purple are a sure sign that spring has sprung.

HAMMERIN' ON THE SOUTH KAIBAB

I took a couple of Chicago marathoners on a day hike, yesterday.  We made it all the way to Skeleton Point, had lunch, and back up to the rim in three and a half hours.  Here you can see Phantom Ranch and a little bit of the "mighty Colorado River."  It felt good to hold the quicker pace, but these guys really put the screws to me.  Thank you guys for the good speed work-out.  See you next time.

HOW I SPENT MY WINTER BREAK

 My brother-in-law and father-in-law have been wanting to see how my remodeling project has been going.  Well, the bathroom is pretty much finished.  I built it this room from the ground up.  It measures three-feet by seven-feet. 

This has been a big project for me and I learned alot:  plumbing, electrical, tiling, install windows, everything.  I still have quite a bit to do until I finish the whole master bedroom, but hopefully I will be able to piece it together in between my hiking trips.