It’s hard to believe we have been here a month already. Between new jobs, old friends and all the hustle and bustle that comes with moving, time has flown by. We are fairly well settled in at this point aside from a definite place to call home for the winter. Our gracious friends JP and Michele have been amazing in letting us share their space while we figure things out – even with a new puppy! Our hope is to pull the trigger on home ownership sooner than later. Although the idea seems daunting at times, it’s the best option for us financially in the long run. The LONG run… Imagine that! We will be here more than a year and a half! That is a great feeling, and man what an incredible place to call home.
BAM!
Added a new sticker to the bunch!
The sign above our new office.
The Executive Director of the Friends of the Sawtooth Avalanche Center and myself at the Ski Swap.
The Boulder Mountains from near Titus Lake.
Titus Lake
A beautiful snag on a snowy work day.
The Titus Lake trail.
Since pulling into the valley we have revisited some of our old favorite crags like The Fins and Dierkes. While at The Fins I was able to dispatch Make it a Double (5.13a) in 3 goes after a couple years of thinking about it from Colorado. This airy and technical climb will likely be the icing on the cake for what I believe to be my best climbing season to date. Robyn and I will both put out a bit of a recap of the climbing season here soon. Our move has kept us from keeping up with training, so this seems like as good a time as ever to transition into ski season shape, give our tendons a rest and look forward to starting a new training cycle in January.
The Fins in all its crimpy glory!
Turns out.. this view never gets old.
After a slow start to a day at Dierkes (detour to PetSmart for Chossy treats) we arrived just in time to see Leroy crush his project BurlyGirl (5.12c/d) GO TEAM! We also met another strong local Twin climber that recently moved to the area from Utah. Although our season is winding down there is a lot of psych in the climbing community here at the moment. Just a couple weeks ago we sunk the first two anchors into what will be a new local Sun Valley area crag!
Robyn and Chossy at our favorite choss pile. Her first crag visit!
Chossy in her element.
We got there just in time to see Leroy CRUSH Burlygirl (5.12c/d).
It’s time to start developing!
The first anchors at the Wilson Creek Crag!
After our day in T-shirts at Dierkes we bundled up, packed our bags and headed to the mountains north of Hailey to stay at the Boulder Yurt. Each year Sun Valley Trekking and a crew of friends has a bonfire to kick off the winter season. This year we were lucky enough to tag along to meet some great folks, share our psych for the winter and fly down the hill on a snowskate!
It’s snowy here now and it doesn’t look to be turning back anytime soon. There is a big ski season kickoff party November 21st that benefits the Friends of the Sawtooth Avalanche Center followed shortly by opening day at Baldy. That means I get to try out my new alpine skis I picked up at the ski swap! Custom made here in Ketchum, I figured what better way to support the community and up my game than on a pair of these, which I purchased used, for much less! We are so thrilled to call this place home.
New skis! Made locally here in Ketchum.
Nice morning light.
Chossy getting the hang of the snowy environment. She still gets cold fast, but she likes to run!
Maybe our first weak layer for the season. Surface hoar in a couple different forms.
Packing up after a great night. Boulder Mountains in the background.
A lazy morning of coffee as the fire roared in the Boulder Yurt.
We had a great crew of wonderful folks to share the evening and following morning with as we all anticipated the coming winter!
A starry night above the Boulder Yurt.
Love that pic of R and Chossy! Two cutie pies!!!