Buying a House... wait... what??? - 12/24/09

So... Yeah... I guess we just bought a house!!!??? I know, I don't believe it either. :) I'm still waiting for someone to wake me up during the middle of the night telling me to get out of THEIR house, but since it hasn't happened yet, I guess I just need to accept the reality that it's ours and that I should start to take care of it (or at least unpack some of the boxes!!!). So, here's the lowdown: Mel and I got the keys to this sweet new (1970 vintage) rig on Christmas eve, so rather than our usual christmas of gluttony and senseless money spending, we spent the day moving in. I guess you could say that there was still a lot of money spending, although you could argue over whether or not it was "senseless" (TBD). Oh yeah, we cooked up a big feast too, so I guess the gluttony part was there too. Not that different from our regular Christmas afterall! :)

Then, my brother Chris was visiting for the weekend, so in addition to packing up a few rather heavy objects, we spent some time wandering around OSU and Corvallis, and checking out Silver Falls. I also got to hang out with Gennie's family and my neice Cora, the newest addition to the Meehan family. This was only my second time meeting the little bundle of cuteness, but it was the first time she didn't scream at me (I blame the beard, at least for the sake of my pride), and actually allowed me to hold her for a bit (BTW, why didn't anyone get photo evidence of her not screaming at me!?) Anyway, lot's of fun stuff!!!




Afternoon stroll in the woods


I'll let you guess what's going on in this picture


Talk about circus talent!


:)


Lovin' the weather!


Lovin' that tree!


Pretty managed stand.


Our sweet Velociraptor rig! :)


Our first morning in the new place! We found the tree on the side of the road! :)


Neat frost patterns in the foothills


My bro Chris from behind South Falls


Me and my Bro!


South Falls


Mel from behind North Falls


More North Falls


A very cold Bella diligently watching over our new back yard.


View from the porch


Messy Kitchen! :)

First ski trip of the season - 11/13/09

Had amazing weather and early season snow conditions up on Hood last week, so Jason, Dennis, Nick, Catherine, Aaron, and I got out for our first turns of the season. And they were epic! No captions, just pics! :)

Tam McArthur Rim - 10/25/09

Had a great little overnight w/ Mel and Bella this past weekend out scouting for ski trip ideas at Tam McArthur Rim. Because of the cold temps we had the place to ourselves, so we set our tent up right on the tip of the rim with awesome 360 degree views. Once the sun went down (early these days!) we actually built a fire to pass the time and to stay warm. The next morning we were treated with some frozen water and great views of the Cascade range. All in all a great weekend, and my suspicion is that we'll be back this winter when it's covered in snow! :)
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Looking at the Sisters from across Three Creek Lake


Relaxing around camp enjoying the last of the days warmth


We set the tent up so we'd have an early morning view, but I had to remind Mel that if we got up during the night not to walk more that 10 feet cause of the 600' cliff right out the front door...


We cranked up a fire to keep us busy and warm right as the sun was going down


The "Wonder Camera" strikes again! Here's 40 seconds of a cold(!) night at 7700' :)


Early morning light on the Oregon Cascades


Mel tells me I like taking picturs of our tent too much.


South Sister at Sunrise


Middle and North Sister


A happy although freezing cold Nate


My favorite view of the morning


Bella's favorite view of the morning


Packed up for the hike out


Mt. Bachelor and Nate on the hike out...


Looking back on our camp (right on the tip of the rock buttress) from across Three Creek Lake

10/11/2009 - Menagerie w/ CMRU

Had a great little trip up to the Menagerie on Sunday with some CMRU folks. Great to have folks get familar with the area and begin to understand the challanges that would be associated with a rescue in that location. Only managed a wee bit of climbing cause of the short days and smack-down approach. I think everyone had a good time though!
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Devil horns came out pretty early that day...


Catherine follows Matt's lead up the first tricky bit of Rooster's N. Face Route.


Team 2 waiting their turn.


The Hoy's proud send!


Aaron sticks the mandatory heel hook through the 5.6 crux (kiddin).


Mel, Aaron, and I all climbing at the same time.


Looking up at the summit frenzy.


If you look close, you can see The Hoy reflected in my glasses, that way were all in this shot! This is the summit of Rooster. :)


This is me climbing on "Rawhide" on Hen rock. Not much of a picture other than to note the lack of gear on the rope below me. Surpisingly this doesn't even earn an "R" rating for runout (felt pretty "X" to me).


Overhanging moves to the summit...


Last bouldering move to the top.


Watch right at the 22 second mark to catch Aaron slipping (not sure if his tether caught him or not, but it raised a few pulses I think!)