When I first met him, I was pretty sure he was just a random drunk wandering around the Garden of the Gods. We were climbing a small route in the Garden, teaching friends to climb on what was supposed to be a 5.8, but felt more like 5.10. That’s when he approached, crooked teeth – […]

"It was not exactly difficult going, but it was a dangerous place for a single unroped climber, as one slip would have sent me in all probability to the bottom of the mountain." – Colonel Edward “Teddy” Norton Many volumes have been written about the 1924 Mount Everest Expedition, most of which have focused, understandably, on […]

On May 14, 2014, my godmother, Helen Ann Rhea, passed out of this world, ending a protracted, 7-year battle with the aftermath of a massive stroke. For 72 years, Helen was a rock in our family, always there with a smile, a hug, and endless love, tending to the needs of everyone – often at […]

The image [of a coyote lifting a leg] should be struck on a new coin, with Charles Darwin on the other side, not negotiable, but a good-luck coin to remind us of change and evolution, and of creatures that will be happy to adapt if we ourselves cannot…The land has been hurt. Misuse is not to be excused, and its ill effects will long be felt. But nature will not be eliminated…Rain, moss, and time apply their healing bandage, and the injured land at last recovers. Nature is evergreen, after all.