Moments of Education in Trail Work

I meet tons of volunteers as part of the Adopt a Peak crew with CFI. I often must introduce them to the importance of practicing Leave No Trace principles while hiking and camping away from human-built areas. Many times I hear “Oh! I never knew that. Now it...

My Job as a Trail Builder

I consider trail building an art.  I have spent eight seasons constructing trails all over the country, and I have had the pleasure of working with amazing artists and builders. The amount of dedication and work that goes into planning, designing, and construction of...

Fourteener Climbing 101: Intro to Wilderness

A few years ago I spent the summer working on San Luis peak, Colorado’s least visited Fourteener. In total we spent two years working on San Luis, rerouting the trail and hardening areas of high erosion potential. But if you went to San Luis today you’d...

A Game of Cat and Mouse

Thunderstorms approach Head down under tree cover Sky Crackles with Light Part of working in these mountains is accepting the constant cycle of storms that roll through the Rockies on a day-to-day basis.  In order to be safe, you have to learn to read the signs that...

The Challenge Continues

So here we are, already at the beginning of August! The summer goes by quickly in the Colorado high country, probably because it only lasts for about 10 weeks. We are about half of the way through our project, considering the time we are given with our SCC (Southwest...