Artsy Climber
The blog of a Seattle-based designer with a touch of dirtbag.
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Japan - February 2024
Recent trips
Check out the Trip Reports page to view all past trip reports!
Vesper vias True Grit
Mountain Loop Highway | September 17th, 2023
Alpine Climb | 7.5 miles | 4,347 feet elevation gain
I remember attempting Vesper Peak for the first time. My friend, Lizzy was in town and I wanted to scramble this peak I heard so much about. Unfortunately that day was riddled with rain and a fall into a stream that resulted in a puncture wound on my right thigh. We gave up after sitting under a tree pretty drenched from the rain and I felt bummed. Little did I know that I'd end up summiting Vesper in 2019 and then again in 2021 via the Ragged Edge route.
My friends, Rob and Jessica were hosting a Mountaineers climb for one of their students this past weekend and invited me to join them for a romp up True Grit. They're pretty awesome to climb with and I had nothing better to do so I figure let's give it a go. We left the trailhead at 5AM with headlamps and stoke. There was a wasp nest about a mile in that was marked with some small home made signs. The nest was a hole in the ground which was pretty freaky, but we passed it with no issues.
We reached the base of True Grit around 8:30AM. Our morning started off foggy but it cleared off after doing the first pitch. I paired up with Jessica and we swapped leads. The fourth pitch was definitely the crux which was fun to lead. The climb itself overall was pretty chill and we topped out around 11:30AM. We were back at the trailhead by 3PM. Happy to see Vesper's summit for a third time. It really was a lovely day overall!
McClellan's Butte
Central Cascades | September 16, 2023
Hike | 10.5 miles | 3,783 feet elevation gain
I always wanted to climb this iconic looking peak. You can see it clearly when driving on the i-90 close to North Bend. I was excited to have my friend, Shannyn join me for this close-to-home adventure.
We left the trailhead around 8AM. A majority of the trail is in the forest which was nice for this warm day. The steepness was pretty wild but thankfully the trail was well maintained. We took short breaks as we cruised up the 3,600 feet of elevation gain and kept a nice pace overall.
We reached the final summit block around 10:40AM and took in the open views and steep scramble to the summit. The scramble itself is not bad; there were plenty of solid holds to rely on. The exposure was wild though and should not be taken lightly. Luckily the exposed scramble was pretty short and before we knew it, we were at the summit. The views were fantastic and we enjoyed a nice half hour lunch at the top. We were back at the car by 1:30PM. What a sweet hike close to home!
Climbing at Squamish
British Columbia,| September 1st - September 8th, 2023
Got to focus on trad climbing this trip! It was a super fun week with around 40 pitches of climbing total. Here are some highlight climbs from that week:
Slot Machine (5.9), Trad • 2 pitches
Mosquito (5.8), Trad
Phlegmish Dance (5.8), Trad
Neat and Cool (5.10A) , Trad
Octopus Garden in the Shade (5.8) , Trad
First Class (5.9), Trad
Quarryman (5.8), Trad
The Zip (5.10A), Trad
First Squamish 5.10 lead!
Popeye and the Raven (5.10C), Mixed
Spirit of Squamish (5.8), Trad • 8 pitches
Second time climbing this fun multi-pitch!
Climbing the Zip (5.10A)
Climbing Slot Machine (5.9)
Throwback: The John Muir Trail 2021
The Sierras | July 21st - August 4th, 2021
Backpacking | 200+ miles | 41k ft elevation gain
An oldie but a goodie. I finally finished typing up my journal entries from that trip. What a wonderful year 2021 was. Check it out here.
Hello 2023
Been lazy about updating this blog, but I've done some cool stuff! Here are a few highlights:
April 2023: Spent three days in Red Rocks and climbed Geronimo, Johnny Vegas and Purblind Pillar.
May 29th, 2023: Climb Mt. Baker in a day and ski from the summit via the Squak Glacier.
June 25th, 2023: Skied the Interglacier on Mt. Rainier.
June 29th - July 4th, 2023: Six days in the Enchantments. Summited the following peaks:
Prusik Peak via the West Ridge
Cannon Peak
Enchantment Peak
Mt. Temple
McClellan Peak
July 30th - August 1st, 2023: Summited Mt. Forbidden via the West Ridge
What a wild year.
Summit of Mt. Forbidden - July 29th, 2023
Camp below Mt. Forbidden - July 28th, 2023
Climbing the crux pitch on Prussik Peak - June 30th, 2023
Bushwacking to Mt. Temple - July 2nd, 2023
The West Ridge of Prussik - June 30th, 2023
Last pitch to the summit of the Temple - July 2nd, 2023
Skiing down Mt. Baker - May 29th, 2023
Skiing down Mt. Baker - May 29th, 2023
Climbing Johnny Vegas (5.7) - April 21st, 2023
Climbing Purblind Pillar (5.8) - April 22nd, 2023