12 Months of Table Mountain

The project began three days after Thanksgiving on the last Sunday in November, 2009. I continued to reach the summit at least once in each of the next 11 months.

I started the hike from the summer trailhead in three of the months, November, December, and October. The rest of the months, I began at the winter trailhead and ran the four miles upcanyon to the summer TH and the base of the climb.

I used the Face Route to ascend in all 12 months and used various routes down.

I used snowshoes in eight of the months from November through June. The other four were snow-free.

Here are the photos from the top from each month:


NOVEMBER - The best sunset









































DECEMBER - The coldest (it was -13 when I began and I'm pretty sure it just got colder from there)






































JANUARY - The most powder! And also the slowest.





































FEBRUARY - The worst summit photo

















MARCH - Most bluebird

APRIL - First time in shorts

MAY - The windiest

JUNE - Best use of all four seasons

JULY - Best hailstorm

AUGUST - The warmest

SEPTEMBER - The slushiest, sloppiest, slipperiest. And most crowded.

OCTOBER - The most unique colors (grey and yellow) and the best company (Jon and MikeE)

Late October - Into Storm Season

Towards the end of October, the climate began to display the shifting of the seasons in earnest as the temperatures had become consistently lower and the high country grew whiter. The lower elevations still hadn't been affected and we were still taking advantage of the dirt that remained under foot as much as we possibly could. That meant an afternoon outing up the Roaring Fork of Teton Canyon all the way to the windswept alpine expanse of Hurricane Pass on Saturday and a gentle meander through the remote southwest corner of Yellowstone Nat'l Park on Sunday amidst a relentless chilling rain. This is what it's all about right here.

2nd weekend in October

On Saturday, MikeE and Jon and I moseyed up Table amongst typical fall colors: Yellow leaves and grey skies.

This marked my 12th consecutive month summiting Table and the completion of my goal. But maybe I'll just keep going...

Then, on Sunday, MikeE and I drove over to JHole for an ascent of Buck Mtn. Finally! After ten years of living here, I finally got to the top!

Alabama and Tennessee

After a week in Oregon, I flew to Birmingham, AL on a work assignment. For whatever reason, I do not have a single picture of Birmingham. I attribute this mostly due to the fact that I was under a pretty heavy amount of stress, every day seemed to be a whirlwind, and taking pictures just never crossed my mind when all I desired was my sanity. Thursday morning after I flew in, I had some time to kill so I drove south of town to Oak Mountain State Park and suffered through a painful, slow, hot 'n humid run along one of the park's many trails. I could only muster 45 minutes. Four days after the 100 miler and I was not ready to run yet.

That weekend, however, things got better and I had a chance to head up north to Nashville, TN for an afternoon on Sunday (my only free day) and yes, I finally got the camera in action.
















What's going on here, you might ask? Only 1,000 yoga-ers ready to get their yoga on in downtown Nashville.

















When would there ever to be a better time to try yoga for the first time?

















Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh................................




























Later that afternoon, I found an REI (My people!) just down the road and got a sweet tip about a nature park nearby that had trails. Percy Warner Nature Park holds over 2,600 acres of preserved woodlands with a variety of roads and trails that crisscross the park. I found the 4.5 mile rolling loop trail that follows the park's perimeter and ran it once counter-clockwise, then turned around and ran it clockwise. Including the 1 mile approach from where I parked, I managed an 11 mile run the week after a 100 miler and by then, I could just barely feel the twinge in my left foot. I got to chat along the way with a few different local runners which was cool. Nice people out there.

























And I almost stepped on this owl who was sitting in the middle of the trail! I just about gave me a heart attack when it burst off the ground five feet in front of me and swooped up onto a tree branch. Who does it think it is? Who would pull such a stunt like that? Whoooooooo?























And then, after finishing the run at dusk, I drove back into town, changed into something a little fresher, and set off to enjoy what the nightlife in Nashville had to offer. This city has one of the best downtown scenes. I loved every minute of it and after enjoying a couple of hours in BB King's blues club listening to one of the best blues bands I've ever heard and enjoying a tradional southern fried catfish dinner, I certainly didn't want to leave and was not looking forward to the 2 1/2 hour drive back down to Birmingham. But alas... My short time there was worth it. I only spent an afternoon in Nashville, but I loved every minute of it and would love to go back.

Pine to Palm Photos

Ok, I know, this is two months late. Sorry. But just in case you were wondering what things in Oregon looked like when I was there running the Pine to Palm 100 way back in September, here's a few looks:





















I stopped at Multnomah Falls on my way through the Gorge on may way to Portland and ran a popular loop up to the top of the falls, over to Wahkeena Creek and back down to the bottom of Multnomah. It was warm and very humid.

Wahkeena Creek

The start of the Pine to Palm 100. Williams, OR. Saturday, September 18th. 6:00am. 60 degrees, cloudy, and humid.

Getting weighed at mile 25. 70 degrees with a light rain.

Trevor H and I coming into the aid station at mile 40. The temp had dropped slightly and it was still raining. From here, at one of the course's low points, we had a long gradual climb that took us up roughly 4,000ft over 20+ miles to the course's high point which we reached together around 8:00pm, just as it got dark, and in the midst of a raging cold windstorm. Other than light windbreakers and an impromptu garbage bag apeice, this is about what we had with us when we arrived there. After gathering some warm food, warmer clothing, and our night gear, we set off into the dark.

I had a great stretch of running from this point (mile 65) all the way down to the next big aid station at mile 78. Felt surprisingly good other than a slight twinge on the outside of the bottom of my left foot. At that point, after descending back down to another one of the course's low points, we had another 4,000ft+ climb up to the next (and last) high point at mile 90. I fast-walked almost all of the climb, caught up to a few guys, and managed as far as fourth place at about mile 88 which I maintained (in the windiest, darkest, rain-pelting storm) up and over the final climb, but then lost on the long drag to the finish getting passed by one, two, then three other runners who were hot on my heals. I was limping, hobbling, and walking much of this stretch as the bottom outside of my left foot was hurting pretty badly. I finished in Ashland under cloudy skies just before 5:00am on Sunday.

My aching swollen left foot on Monday following the race