A Case of the Mondays

At our last writing, we were headed to Olympic National Park in the farthest northwest corner of the Lower 48. This sprawling park is renowned for the fact that it spans three unique ecosystems – lush rain forest, high alpine peaks, and rugged Pacific coast. Our focus on this visit was the craggy coast and we lined up an overnight backpacking excursion. There are few places in the temperate world where you can walk along miles and miles of undeveloped coastline, so we wanted to make the most of it. We made our hike much more interesting than it needed to be by disregarding our tide schedule and trudging out near high tide. This injected lots of exciting opportunities to duck under gigantic driftwood logs and scramble over slippery rocks in alternating time with the lapping waves. It seems the rangers really do know what they are talking about.




















Besides its rocky, unspoiled beauty, this shoreline is also famous for its smothering fog. We got to experience plenty of both. In one of our sunny interludes, as we sat by our campfire on the beach and stared out at the crashing surf, Carolyn announced that she was ready to see something swimming in the ocean. As if on cue, a sea otter munching on clams leisurely paddled past. That evening as the tide went out, we mucked around in the abundant tide pools, prodding anemones, starfish, and crabs at will. At dinner that night, Carolyn sealed her position as Ben’s favorite camping accomplice with four delectable words, “You can finish it.” The sun gave us a spectacular send-off, with an orange sky tickling the sea stacks to the endless sound of pounding breakers.

The next day we headed back towards civilization, camping in the shadow of Hurricane Ridge. Then it was back across the Puget Sound and north to Vancouver. After nearly two months on the road, we were finally going a tiny bit international, eh. All of Ben’s business trips to romantic destinations like Oklahoma City paid themselves off when we cashed in the accumulated hotel points for a few Hilton nights in the city. We enjoyed a lavish two room suite with impossibly white linens and one giant TV per guest. We spent our time walking the bustling streets and riding public transportation, usually overwhelmed by the cacophony around us. We feasted on lots of seafood and produce, including the frugal triumph of an all-you-can-eat sushi lunch for $12. We have come to love Mondays for things like that – all the part-time tourists get back to work and us full-time tourists get back to solitude and lower prices. This summer, having a “case of the Mondays” has gone from being the dreaded illness that rears its ugly head on Sunday afternoons to something to celebrate.

The Pacific Northwest is experiencing record heat this summer. We felt this firsthand on our visit to Whistler, which was baking in 35 degree Celsius heat. We couldn’t remember the conversion formula either, but trust us, it’s hot. The entire area is preparing to host the 2010 Winter Olympics and the crowds have descended early to see the venues. With no more free hotel nights, it didn’t take long for the heat and hordes to chase us back to the States.

Our next stop was North Cascades National Park in Northern Washington where we hiked and camped. Our loop trail was cut short by a fast-approaching thunderstorm that spooked us from the exposed ridgeline and soaked us to the bone before we could retreat to the car. Our campsite didn’t offer much relief. We either camped right under a waterfall with an amazing pyrotechnic accompaniment or we were treated to one incredible thunderstorm. We’re leaning towards the latter, as we found out the next morning that the road we came in was buried by a mudslide in the night. Luckily, we’re now eastbound and tore through the scorched plains of Eastern Washington yesterday. It was mind-numbing driving, so we took out the atlas and played a rousing game of “What would be worse than living in Lake Charles, LA?” Sorry to the 12,500 residents of Williston, ND, but your town is the only place in the Lower 48 deemed worse this time around.

Today we blew through the Idaho panhandle and into Montana, our home for the next week…

P.S. If any of you fine readers see a car with a Delaware license plate, please send them our way. This has been our only remaining plate for a few weeks now and it’s becoming quite vexing.

Of Mountains and Metros

Hello vicarious vacationers and welcome to the Pacific Northwest. After a few days on the Oregon coast, we turned inland to Crater Lake National Park. The aptly named lake sits in the gigantic crater of an extinct volcano and is the deepest in the US. We hiked to the top of Mt. Scott, the highest point in the park, for a bird’s eye view of the stunning blue water. Besides the view, we were rewarded with butterfly flurries along the way with a continual stream of the paper winged rascals fluttering by us in the wind. Sadly, mosquito flurries followed at our campsite later that night.
































From Crater Lake, we made for Portland, with a quick stop for a locals’ favorite day hike in the shadow of Mt. Hood (great tip, Doc!). The trail’s first destination was the shores of the glassy expanse fittingly known as Mirror Lake, which afforded us a great view of the actual and an inverted Hood. Further up the trail, we crested at a knob called Tom, Dick, & Harry. Delightedly, we found ourselves surrounded by snow-shrouded sentinels, including the volcanic peaks of Mount St. Helens, Mt. Adams, Mt. Jefferson, and of course, Mt. Hood. We even got a sneak preview of Mt. Rainier’s icy crown, which our close friend the atlas tells us is at least 75 miles away as the crow flies.






Portland rolled out the red carpet that afternoon, bathing itself in sun, offering up cold beer to thirsty throats, and providing an endless array of endearing streets to entice the carefree pedestrian. We did not last long in this pressure cooker of urban relaxation, hastily declaring a “city day” and enjoying everything the town has to offer. This included an expertly Pricelined hotel and the gluttony of two pillows apiece and hot showers that did not run on quarters!





Our next leg was a few days in Mt. Rainier National Park, which quickly snagged the honor of dark horse destination thus far on our trip. We had minimal expectations of the park, assuming that it was merely a tall mountain and a visitors’ center. Instead we found miles and miles of hiking trails, verdant mountains on all sides, and a landscape smothered in vibrant wildflowers. All of this was in addition to the glaciated specter of Rainier lurking around every turn and over every pass. In the evenings, after long days of summer sun, we could hear the thunderous rumblings of the glaciers shifting and groaning on the mountain. We loved our time here and added it to the ever-growing list of places that deserve another trip and further exploration.






After Rainier, civilization beckoned once again and we pointed our two-door mobile home towards Seattle. Here we were lucky enough to stay with a friend and her charming family near the University of Washington (thanks again, Sarah and Michael!). A few of the many luxuries at our B&B included a washing machine, home cooking, and free Pokeman lessons from 6 year old Nigel. By day, we donned the white Reeboks and fanny packs and did a stint as tourists, walking through the Pike Place Market, checking out the Fremont Troll, and gorging ourselves on blackberries at Gas Works Park. On our way out of town we were thrilled to intersect more Austin friends, who rose to the mighty challenge of finding a non-chain restaurant in Bellevue (thanks Eric and Cynthia!).







Last night, we left Seattle in our rear view mirrors, hopping a ferry to the Olympic Peninsula and to our next exploit…









P.S. As always, thanks for your positive feedback. The traveling part is easy for us, but the documentation can feel like work. We’re glad that we can provide you a weekly break from reality to trek with us!

The Generosity of Strangers and a Hard Right Turn

The Opps Odyssey rolled back into motion with a trip to Yosemite National Park in Central California. As expected, the park was crawling with visitors, so we made it brief and memorable. We spent our one full day in the park hiking up the iconic Half Dome in Yosemite Valley. The bulk of the ~16 mile hike was easy going, with reasonable climbs and gorgeous waterfalls. The dicey part comes when you make the last stab at the summit and ascend a “ladder” made of steel cables, rickety 2x4s, and metal rods drilled into the huge slab of rock. Heaving yourself up and down would not be too onerous by itself, but because of the intimidating nature of this portion of the climb it tends to get congested. On both our ascent and descent, we spent a lot of time just clinging to the cables and waiting for the tangle of bodies to clear. At least we were treated to some stunning views while we waited. (It appears that video is not pulling through for FaceBook users, so go to www.oppsodyssey.blogspot.com to see the video).











The next morning, we took a hike through the Mariposa Grove of giant sequoias. These behemoths are the planet’s largest living things, which was easy to believe as we stared up at them slack jawed. This grove was the first parcel of land in the U.S. set aside as a national park. The fact that President Lincoln saw the value in protecting these trees made them all the more impressive.






From Yosemite, we headed to Lake Tahoe, where we found beauty and lots of hospitality. Tahoe was merely a curiosity to us, since we hadn’t been there before. The lake itself was a startling blue and wreathed by mountains on all sides. We took a great hike on Mt. Tallac in the Desolation Wilderness (thanks for the recommendation Charlie and Stephanie!) to stretch out our tired legs. This was all well and good, but the real gems of Tahoe were our neighbors. Over the course of our two nights there, we met three great families who entertained us and plied us with luxuries like steak and corn on the cob from the grill, salad with fresh veggies, and campfire s’mores. Thanks to Mike, Don, Brian, Heather and your families for the generosity – Ben can’t remember ever being full two nights in a row while camping!



















































Our next destination was the little visited Lassen Volcanic National Park. The park is an active volcanic area, which is evident in the numerous steaming fumaroles and gurgling mudpots heated by underground magma. We also had our first opportunity to climb an active volcano, hiking to the highest point in the park, Lassen Peak. This delivered stunning views of the surrounding wilderness, including Mt. Shasta in the distance.































After Lassen, we bolted for the coast and turned a literal and figurative corner. We cheered when we reached the Pacific. At that point, we took a hard right turn and the overriding direction of our trip changed from westbound to northbound. We camped near the beach for the next three nights and were treated to the West Coast’s renowned picture-perfect sunsets and notorious morning fog. With sand in every crevasse, we strayed from the coast long enough for a hike through the towering trees in Redwoods National Park. Walking under the tallest living things on the planet challenges any conception that you have perspective, as it takes three different neck cranes to take in the full height of the mature trees. This must be what trekking on the forest moon of Endor is like, though we didn’t see any ewoks.






















Yesterday, we reached Oregon and jumped up and down on its celebrated craggy coastline. Carolyn has never been here before and lots of adventures beckon!

Out of the Frying Pan….and into the Sky

Sorry for the slow pace of updates over the last two weeks. We just took a vacation from our vacation, consisting of ten days in God’s Country (you know…Wisconsin) with family and friends. We had the pleasure of spending time with the extended Bruner and Opps clans, as well as our immediate families. All those hours spent tossing nieces and nephews around, gorging on unhealthy food, and throttling our families in various competitive pursuits left little time for blogging. Now we’re back on the road and aiming to return to our previous posting cadence.



Our last update came as we fled the scorching deserts of Southern Utah. Perhaps counter intuitively, we found refuge in the arid state of Nevada. We spent a few days cooling off in a wonderful oasis of mountains floating in a sea of desert called Great Basin National Park. This park is so named because none of the precipitation falling in a massive area between the Sierras and the Rockies ever makes it to an ocean. The water in this giant bowl collects in ~200 different low places and eventually evaporates. The park’s snow-capped peaks and cool weather were a welcome change. We hiked to a bristlecone pine forest and marveled at these gnarled beings, some of whom live past 4000 years old. Staring at these ancient organisms, some of whom predate the mighty Pyramids of Giza, was a humbling experience and another reminder of our place in the universe’s pecking order. Our hike took us through high alpine areas where spring is just arriving, with snowpack still melting away and the aspens beginning to bud.























The next leg of our journey took us across the barren width of the Silver State. This is the Nevada that you picture, with scrub and low mountains as far as the eye can see in every direction. It often felt like living a Wiley Coyote cartoon, where the backdrop just keeps repeating itself. We crested many passes, looked out at the moonscape before us, and asked each other “Didn’t we just drive through this?” The monotony set us up to appreciate the Sierra Range all the more when we reached California. Our first night in CA was spent next to a roaring river a short hike from an amazing igneous rock formation called the Devil’s Postpile.
















Our last big hurdle before the promise of heading to Wisco to sleep in a bed was our Mt. Whitney summit attempt. We spent a few nights camping near the trailhead, with the highest point in the Lower 48 ceaselessly lurking in our sights and our thoughts. While we acclimated to the altitude, we gathered intelligence on the state of the mountain. When we applied for our permit in February, we hoped the peak would be clear of snow by the end of June, granting us relatively simple passage. Unfortunately, the various reports we cobbled together held that snow and ice were still ubiquitous on the trail and that crampons and ice axes were necessary. Since these items were not in the budget (not to mention our lack of experience with them), we resigned ourselves to advancing as far as the mountain would let safely proceed and quelled our hopes of reaching the apex.

Our secondary goal for the day was to have a safe and fun hike. Our primary goal was to avoid carrying a bag of excrement. Because Mt. Whitney concentrates all of its visitors on a narrow band of trails, regulations require hikers to pack out all human waste. Upon permit pick-up, we were given portable toilet bags and a gut-wrenching explanation on how to use them. Time to get good at holding it....










We left camp at 3am on summit day, after six hours of tossing, turning, and feigning sleep. As we hiked through the dark with our headlamps, we were treated to a gorgeous sunrise over a thunderstorm in the valley below. The first rays of sun hitting Whitney’s jagged fangs were spectacular and we felt that even without reaching the top, the hike itself would justify the trip. We encountered our first significant snow and ice fields at 12000’, five miles from the top. To our delight, we found that with hiking poles and Yak Tracks on our boots, we were able to navigate the slick slopes safely. We powered on to the summit, our heads feeling cloudier with every step over the last three miles. The excitement of cresting the peak was short-lived, as the thin air at 14500’ gave Ben a wicked headache. After a few pics, we beat a hasty retreat to lower elevations and the oxygen-rich air that beckoned. We completed the 22-mile roundtrip hike in 15 hours, gaining (and then losing) 6000’ of elevation along the way. Most importantly, we didn't have to carry a backpack full of poop! The mountain was a fun mental and physical challenge and we felt justified in going out for greasy cheeseburgers in celebration.


































After our time of luxury surrounded by family, friends, beds, and plumbing, we are excited to return to the road and the simplicity of life it brings. Tomorrow we drive through the orchards and vineyards of Central CA and on to our next adventure! As always, thanks for reading, for your supportive comments, and your suggestions on destinations to add to the list.