Not that I’m a warrior in the combat type of sense, more of the sticking to it type of action.

First off – huge props to all the men and women who serve our country on this day. Veterans Day. You are huge in my book and I can not express the gratitude I have for your commitment and sacrifice. You are purveyors of peace and this is good. Thanks!

Since the 1st of October I have been to: SLC, UT; Boston, MA; Bozeman, MT; Los Angeles, CA; Oakland, CA; Cleveland, OH; Big Oak Flat, CA; Bozeman; Jackson, WY; Fort Collins, CO; Boulder, CO; Breckenridge, CO; Austin, TX; Santa Fe, NM; Denver; CO, Washington, DC; Seattle, WA; Banff, AB; Boston, MA; and tonight back in Seattle.

Lots of shows with The North Face speaker series, work with Nat Geo and the Young Explorer Grant program, Banff Mtn Film with Timex, Conservation Alliance work, met with the glaiciologists at the U of Washington and getting “The Wildest Dream” off to a good start. Great fun – but I do miss home! Jenni, the boys, the dogs, the birds, the fishies, the bunnies and the tarantula. I’ll be home on Friday night and look forward to a day inthe woods with the family. And special Sat night treat:

We’re gonna rent “Master and Commander” and clap on the halyards for good fun.

Wooo Hooo!

Greetings Friends,

The Bozeman Daily Chronicle is our local news paper for the Gallatin Valley and surrounding communities. This past summer I submitted a selection of Op Ed pieces to be considered as a columnist. Nice things happen and I earned the right and responsibility to be one of the three rotating Friday writers. The following is from my first column published on Friday the 23rd of October.

These articles will show up every three weeks. While not directly relating to climbing, adventure, the outdoors and nature they have a big picture view and hopefully will mean something to you. Thanks for reading.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Education, Energy and the Environment
As I look to the east, with the sun welcoming a fine Montana morning, I realize how lucky we are. The mighty Missouri river originates in the peaks surrounding the Madison, Paradise and Gallatin valleys. We hunt, fish and play in these ranges, rejuvenating us for the work that supports our communities we so dearly cherish. Seldom is the person that doesn’t see how fortunate we are to live in this corner of our planet.
Part of being a citizen of Montana and the United States is knowing how we have shaped the current state of the world. We are the beacon for democracy, opportunity and knowledge. These three attributes have created a quality of life equal to none. With this privilege and right of citizenship comes responsibility.
One of life’s aims is to leave the world we inhabit a better place than when we inherited it. The generations preceding us have lived by this axiom and given us much to be grateful for. If we are make the world a better place there are three areas that we as citizens of Montana can make a difference.
These subjects are: education, energy and environment. These three topics are tied to our well-being and will define our future.

Education: The United States has been at the forefront of technology for over a century. Aviation, communications, nuclear physics, lunar exploration are four examples of our “can do” spirit and the worlds greatest collection of research based universities. In the Academic Ranking of World Universities for 2008, 17 of the top 20 universities are in the United States. Montana State University receives research funding, which creates innovation, which in turn leads to commerce. The technology companies that support our communities with employee payroll and tax payments benefit from the university environment. To succeed as a university we need quality schools for our children. Our economic growth is dependant on having bright minds designing the future.

Energy: We are first in national coal reserves with 119 billion tons and fifth in annual production at 43 million tons. Coal is part of who we are as a state. Similarly, wind defines the Big Sky. A breeze over 5 MPH is an untapped source of energy. Our state is second in the nation with a potential 4700 terawatts of electricity. This is 3700 times what we currently consume. Yet both of these resources have their challenges. Coal is the largest source of CO2; wind is reliable only 40 % of the time and is limited by transmission capability. Hence energy circles back to education. Our children are the engineers and scientists that will find solutions to coal emissions, carbon sequestration and efficient energy use.

Environment: The mountains that we enjoy are the water towers for the Mississippi and the Columbia watersheds. Water is the lifeblood of agriculture and our communities. How the water is used is of vital importance to our well-being. Hydro electricity is a source of energy and loops back to the education equation. Our fair vale is on the verge of unacceptable levels of air pollution. If we address this before federal government mandates change we will be much better off.
These three topics are of national and regional importance. Our community is poised to be the leader by creating the next generation of scientists with our exemplary education system, addressing the needs of our national energy needs and fostering a healthy environment. By being part of the solution we will grant future generations the quality of life we cherish.

Between the 1st of October and today I have been busy travelling around our fine nation. On the 1st of October I introduced James Balog in Salt Lake City for his Extreme Ice Survey. Great work about glaciers and their impact on the planet. They are disappearing! The following day I flew to Harvard for the Young Explorer Workshop with National Geographic. It is inspiring to meet students that are keen on the environment, science and the good mission of the Society. “To Inspire people to care about the planet.” Very simple and meaningful. I co-presented the Chang Tang Traverse with Tim Laman, a PhD rain forest biologist who pecializes in the Brids of Paradise and how rapidly the birds have evolved in the past 5 million years. Check out his website at www.timlaman.com > lots of wonderful images.

After Boston I zipped home to be with the family on the 5th of october, the 10th anniversary of Alex Lowe’s passing. He and David Bridges were killed on the 5th of October 1999. It is amazing that 10 years have passed since that date and how much our life has changed. Most special to be with Jenni, Max, Sam & Isaac and to keep their dream of a happy family alive and healthy.

This image is from the fall of ‘96 when the two of us tried to climb the SW Ridge of Annapurna III. Wonderful memories.

On Tuesday the team from National Geographic Entertainment convened for a meeting at the Satchi & Satchi advertising agency in Los Angeles. We are hoping to build Toyota into The Wildest Dream film. The film is a bio pic about the life of George Mallory and the pioneering English climbers. The film is due out early 2010. Stay tuned to my notes and I’ll keep ypou infrmed on how things progress. The Nat Geo Entertainment division is distributing the film – in theatres and large screen cinemas.

Wednesday was in San Francisco for a screening of the film with The North Face team. I think they enjoyed the film. Thursday was off to Cleveland, OH to meet the team at Energizer. I use their Premium Lithium Batteries (the silver units). Aside from the cute bunny they make the best cold weather lightweight battery. We met to brainstorm on energy needs for expeditions. Great people!

Over the weekend it was off to Big Oak Flat, California to spend the weekend with my parents and siblings. It was the grand opening of the Priest Station Cafe. My sister Denise and brother Steve have done an excellent job getting it up and going. After a 36 year hiatus we are getting things going at the Top of the Grade. If you are driving to Yosemite, make sure you “Stop at the Top” and say hello.
We are the 5th generation to be part of this special place.

The cute girl with the braids is my late grandmother Marge and the lady next to the horse is my great-grandmother. They lived “off the grid” as there was no grid.

Sam and Isaac joined me for this fun event. We went for a hike at Rainbow Falls – nary a soul about, fall colors and just the three of us. Getting outdoors like this is wonderful.

Lastly, props to my friends at Timex. Keeping time is part and parcel of travel. None does it better than my handy WS 4 Expedition watch.

Lastly – a bit of cross continental humor. Rad is my nickname, it also means bike in German. Anker is anchor in German. My friend Tim in Switzerland sent me this image. If I could get a Rad frame and build a fixed gear urban cross town mobility unit ~ how sweet

would

that

be

Stay tuned to the bat channel,

~conrad

It is 5:30 AM PST and I’m about to board a jet to go to Cleveland. Having never been to this fine city I am quite excited to check it out,

First off is a layover in Denver. Nothing all to newsworthy…. just a little note.

Thinking of Alex….. ten years since he passed away. Thanks for the inspiration!

Jimmy is on a ski expediton in China. Hope things are going well.

Each summer the National Snow and Ice Data Center releases information on the minimum extent of the the Polar Ice Pack before it starts building back. The good news is that the 12th of September was the turning point for the ice sheet. It is growing back, reflecting sunlight back into the atmosphere and providing habitat for polar bears. The bad news is that it is the third smallest year (smallest ice pack was the summer of 2007) and the scientists that track this are predicting a continued recession of polar ice.

The ice is shrinking and it brings to mind challenges facing our generation. Whys is the ice melting as fast as it is? What will the future be like in terms of regional climate? Is our generation going to stand around with our hands in our pockets?

Climate change is serious. As an extremely intelligent species we have been able to create a life based on our ability to manipulate the earth’s environment for our own benefit. This is quite nice as it has allowed 6.7 billion of us to live on this small planet. This same intellect that has given us the quality of life we take for granted is capable of envisioning, inventing and designing solutions to improve our predicament. Changes in our lifestyle, large scale increases in efficiency and planning in a 200 year time frame are the first steps towards leaving our offspring a world as good as we inherited.

Check out 350.org. Lots of good information!

Climate action day is 24 October. I’ll be in Breckenridge, CO for a slide show and am hoping for a day of nice climate awareness.

Life is nice here in the Gallatin Valley. Here Nancy and Jenni are celebrating laughter at the lake

The kids hiking…..

More on this in the next post…..

From a scientific standpoint summer officially ends on the 21st of
September. In the mind set of school age boys, summer ends when the first
day of school arrived. For Sam and Isaac this day arrived on Wednesday the 26th of August.

Regardless of my ministrations extolling the virtues of academia, the boys
find it to be the ultimate insult from grown ups. “You’re asking me to do
what?”

To which we reply, “It isn’t that bad and education is the best use of your time.”

Before school started we had some fine time together as a family. The dogs,
Happy and Leroy got a bath. The boys enjoy this, for the dogs it is about
the same as going to school. See expressions on the dogs and see the kids
outlook towards school. Same?

The annual summer event for Gallatin County is the Sweet Pea Festival. The first weekend in August is just about the ideal window for the fragrant flowers. Part of the event is the parade. Lots of good stuff going on.

Children driving farm equipment.

Nancy riding Hijo in old west attire. (I think the gun she is brandishing is a toy.) edit: It is a real gun! It is an antique.

Nikki Kimball and my dear wife Jenni. Nikki is a world class ultra runner. The next weekend she won the Bridger Ridge Run, took ten minutes off of her previous course record. She is very fast. Go Nikki!

Of course no parade would be complete with out a fire truck. Goes along with mom, apple pie and splitter hand cracks. No wait? What was that? Is there nothing more American than splitter hand cracks?

Terry Cunningham is a friend who helps out with community projects. From changing the name of Peak 10,030 to Alex Lowe Peak and his endless work on the community boulders Terry gets after it. We are starting on boulder # 3 and have shared our knowledge with Jackson, Wyoming.

Our eldest son Max has been in the Bay Area working for The North Face on a summer internship. He has enjoyed being in a real office with real responsibilities and a real water cooler. Sam is entering the food chain for employment as many of us have – washing dishes.

It is a great way to learn the value of time and money. Isaac likes his Timex watches. He wears two of them – his signature as a 13 year old.

He’ll spend time synchronizing the two watches. He is quite familiar with the functions.

Perhaps the biggest news in Gallatin County was President Obama’s visit for a town hall meeting on health care. Health care is a pretty big “mountain to climb” and Obama has been working with his team to bring reform to the insurance industry and health care providers. On a personal level I achieved two firsts:

1. Camping out for tickets &
2. Sleeping in an alley.

We pitched our tent and dozed through the night to be rewarded for tickets to this monumental event.

Senator Max Baucus of Montana is the Chair of the Finance Committee. He has huge order to bring consensus with in the Senate and keep as many people happy in the process. We’re thankful to have a person of his caliber representing our state.

This shot was taken at Belgrade meeting. Max speaking.

I thought President Obama did a fine job answering questions and presenting his plan for health care reform. After the meeting he went fishing (in the rain) on the Gallatin River. Our President is a hard working fellow. Quite an inspiration.

On a personal level I am returning to academia after a 23 year hiatus. My part time studies wil be focusing on glaciers, geomorphology and climate change. My goal is to add to the body of scientific knowledge in this area.

Mugs Stump :: Alaska :: 1989 ~ The spirit of the wind horse.

be good
be kind
be happy

It is the 5th of August, a nice day that occurs once a year. It doesn’t have huge social, cultural or personal significance. Perhaps it is a day like every other day. And if I can have every other day like today I’d be most happy.

Morning arrived with sunrise and a short run in the local park. The dogs were well into it, bounding through the tall grass and cooling off in the creek on the way back. I’m now in my office, which I enjoy. For lunch I rode home to visit the boys and cook up some scrumptious grilled cheese sandwiches. A quick reminder for the boys to “get after” the recycling and then back to the desk.

In the past two weeks I’ve had the pleasure of visiting the Outdoor Retailer Trade Show in Salt Lake City. The bi-annual convention is like a massive toy store. I imagine this is what the North Pole must be like. All the elves scurrying about with the best in toys. From climbing gear (my fav), to boats (bright colors), to rocking Timex goodies (a reminder I should train more) to the collection of friends. This is the best. Catching up with the tribe.

My friend Doug hosted a dinner, a welcome respite from the trade parties. It was great. Apa Sherpa from Thame, Nepal bro ught his family up to the bar-b-que. Apa is a totally humble fellow. He has climbed Everest 19 times and is looking send # 20 this coming spring. He works at a machine shop in Salt Lake City – his three children attend school in SLC. He is a great guy.

Apa and Yangjee watching the kids play air hockey! The tow headed blond is Owen, Lynn Hill’s little guy. He liked air hockey.

Lynn Hill – one of our generation’s best climbers and the first person to free climb the Nose on El Capitan came by. Here the three of us are hamming it up for the camera. I felt quite unworthy as I am a far cry from Lynn when it comes to free climbing and a mere mouse when compared to Apa. Fun none-the-less!

After the trade show I headed north to the Tetons in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Jimmy Chin, David Breashers and I guide a climb each summer for the Rowel Fund for Tibet, part of the International Campaign for Tibet. Our goal is to support Tibetan arts and culture in hope of preserving Tibetan culture. We had a splendid time. The day before our summit attempt we were treated to a nice mountain storm. Beginning at lunch the clouds descended upon us and pelted us with hail, snow, lightening and thunder. Nothing quite like mountain weather to make you feel alive.

At sunrise one can see the shadow of the Grand Teton reaching out into Idaho. Are these not reasons enough to get outdoors?

Once back in Bozeman we rallied the kids for a day of hiking, climbing and huckleberry picking. Here are the kids laughing at the base of the Gallatin Tower.

The best part of getting outdoors with the kids is the parental units get a chance to play. Here is Scott, Andie and Bridgette’s dad, pulling down on Bowling for Buicks. A thin and pumpy .12a.

Rick Ridgeway came by for a visit and we hauled out the carts we walked across Tibet with in 2002. Memories came flooding back!

Rick is working on the Freedom to Roam program. The goal is to preserve wildlife habitat & corridors so animals will be able to migrate. Well worth a look:.

Till we visit again,

Onward, Upward and Outward

So here it is the 14th of July and I am at the dining room table as Sam and Isaac cook up some tortellini carbonara. My right wrist is a bit sore I just did a full end over end on my fixed gear urban assault bike. Much as I wish I was chasing Lance Armstong through the Pyrennes I was simply riding home from the Farmer’s Market when the canvas shopping bag full of garlic got caught in the front wheel.

Over I went and I landed on my hands and cut my foot. No big deal. I just imagine what the mega pile ups in the Tour de France are like. Spokes, de railers, handle bars akimbo amongst a stack of finely honed athletes. Hats off to those guys.

And go Lance. You are the man. As we say in climbing, “Send it!”

Back to the more pedestrian reality of my day to day existence. On Father’s Day our family got together with the Pope family. Ben is a nascent senior in Bozeman High School, as is our son Sam. Maddy is Jenni’s best friend and Chris is my friend. Chris is one of those unsung heros we have in every community across the world. A champion for the just and fair. He is also involved with the local parking garage and public transit. You take these things for granted ~ yet there is stacks of work that goes into making these things happen. Much of it volunteer.

Here we are hiking up the lower slopes of Baldy Mountain with the verdant Gallatin Valley in the background.

Hiking is just about perfect. It provides us a chance to breathe fresh air, exercise our bodies, walk (which is what humans have spent 100s of thousands of years perfecting and some how we are loosing this to the automobile) and most importantly a chance to process the never ending stream of information and data that our minds are bombarded with. Hopefully these words and pictures are a welcome relief and in some way relaxing.

The previous post was from London. I had a part of a day to explore the city and I choose to visit the British Museum http://www.britishmuseum.org/ Founded in 1753, it is home to artefacts and art from around the world. “The Marbles” are one of many fascinating windows into history on display. The Marbles, in the classic sense, are the friezes that adorned the top of the Parthenon in ancient Greece. In the early 1800s they were rescued or stolen (depending on how you interpret history) from the majestic building and brought to the United Kingdom. The Marbles have been in the press recently as the newly opened Acropolis museum is asking for their return. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthenon_Marbles

Far be it from me to decide on this matter for I merely a mountain climber. What I did notice at the British Museum were the people from all around the world enjoying the art and history under one roof.

My view is to have museums of this caliber around the world displaying a similar range of history. Imagine the great museums around the world that would share their prized collections so that all could see the variety of humanity. That being said, I do feel a portion of the Parthenon Marbles should be returned to Athens, Greece and their new museum.

Also on display were a variety of time pieces. Being a bit of a watch and clock aficionado it was fascinating to look at time. Reliable time pieces were very key in the quest to discover longitude, the east west position on our planet. The transition from big clocks to multi functional time pieces like the Timex Expedition WS 4 is rather amazing. I wonder what the motivation was to create a fairly quotidian scene of farm life out of gold with a integral clock. Then again I climb and I have no sensible explanation why I do that silly and dangerous activity.

Climbing is dangerous and this brutal reality reared it’s head this past 5th of July when the sport lost John Bachar to a solo fall. John was one of the driving forces in climbing – a steadfast traditionalist he eschewed the practice of rappel bolting climbs preferring to tackle a section of rock from the ground up. He also took the art of ropeless climbing to another level. John will be missed and I extend heartfelt sympathies and condolences to his son, family and friends. The following link is a tribute to John on the climber’s forum.

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=896012&tn=0&mr=0

Thanks John for the inspiration.

somnambulism :: noun :: sleepwalking
ORIGIN late 18th cent.: from French somnambulisme, from Latin somnus ‘sleep’ + ambulare ‘to walk.’

I am not a sleepwalker, an afflicition that must be a bear to tackle. It is a fairly accurate description of what my body goes through when I travel continent to continent. Mid day I feel like I am asleep so I am a sleep talker. In the middle of the night i wake up and not one for the telly I walk around. Walking when I should be sleeping.

The flight across the Atlantic Ocean never ceases to amaze me. Just 100 year ago the concept of 8 hours in the air at 32,000 feet would never have entered into the minds of humans. When my mother came over post world war II it was in a steel ship with a trunk full of possessions. Not in a jet that flies at an altitude no life exists. We temporarily leave the tender world of blue and green below us and sail in a modern way on the jet streams of existence.

I’m here in London to introduce the WS 4 to the UK market. Cotswold’s, the retailer is hosting two slide shows, – one in Preston and the other in Covent Garden. Compared to the bucolic landscape of SW Montana London is a busy busy place. The weather has been warm and unseasonably different than what most people recall. The nce hotel I’m in is 100 years old – big massive thick wall, old school windows and no central AC. Which I like as I windows are a fine way to adjust the temperatures. Except that it is so warm it is as if I am sleeping in the tropics. Just lay out on the bed and sweat all night.

Here are some images from the El Cap climb ~ El Corazon.

I climbed with Alex Honnold. He is 23 and way strong. Sends 13 like easy street.

These guys were on Flight of the Albatross. Friends from the tribe of climbers.

Looking down the crag! This is soo much fun!

Strong Youth!

Cool Perspective….

Happy Camper…..

It was clear most of the way up. It started raining on the last afternoon. We were very wet by the time we made it to the summit.

Speaking of rain… this is Jenni in her garden. The plants love the rain…. as does Jenni.

Hope all is well……

Well not that you might find it here on the Return to the Outdoors blog, rather the internal question that most of us think about once a day.

Or maybe even more than that.

What gives my life meaning? Family – be it my parents, siblings, wife and children, they most meaningful part of my life. To be with them, to laugh with them, to comfort them and to accept them is what being human really means. As the boys gain knowledge about our planet and their existence and my parents adjust to bodies that have seen eight decades I realize that I am somewhere in the middle. To be this link bewteen three generations is pretty darn cool. It seems at times there is a bunch of responsibility. How not to let this responsibility eat away at life energy? Get outside. Breath the freah air, rolls around on my bike, stop and check out the wild flowers. Yup, these things bring meaning.

Last week I climbed El Capitan with Alex Honnold. At 23 he is half my age and twice the climber. Getting stronger each day he is. Where as the health & fitness tables say I’m loosing 15 % of my strength each year. Just say no! Do more pull ups, push ups and sit ups. They are called ups because they bring you up.
This is a good thing.

Sam & max in the Dolomites

The family on the porch.