Mike's first flying video

In April I started learning to paraglide at the Point of the Mountain Flight Park, a long ridge extending off the larger Traverse Mountain, about 20 miles south of downtown Salt Lake. This footage was shot on the South side of the ridge, which usually has good flying conditions early in the morning. This is the first video of me flying, so I'm keeping it simple. This is about a 30 minute flight, edited down to a couple minutes just to give everyone an idea of what it feels like!

Dexter

Here are some photos of our puppy!


Buckskin Gulch Story in the Utah Adventure Journal



Check out my latest feature story about Buckskin Gulch in the fall issue of the quarterly magazine, Utah Adventure Journal. The magazine is new this year, it's free, and can be found at many of the outdoor shops in Salt Lake City like REI, IME, Black Diamond, Christy Sports, Canyon Bicycles, etc. They go fast, so pick one up soon! If you're a Salt Lake local, it's definitely worth checking out. You can also read the story and see the photos on-line at their new website www.outdoorutah.com/adventurejournal.

New House Photos

Hi Everybody,

There's been some interest in seeing some photos of our new house.

The specs are as follows:
0.25 Acre lot
3 Bedrooms - yeah, it's about time you came for a visit
1.75 Baths - you get your own bathroom
1,300 Square feet + 400 square feet of partially finished basement - lots of beer on tap in the basement for visitors!

Here's the front of our house:


Here's the living room:

Living room:

The kitchen:


The master bedroom: (someday we'll get our bed off the floor)

The spare bedroom:

The office:


The 3/4 bathroom:
The full bathroom:


The garden:
The patio:


The back of the house:

Headed back to Stanley, Idaho

Sonja and I will be headed up to Stanley, Idaho for the 4th of July weekend. I'll be working some, guiding on the Salmon River for the Sawtooth Adventure Company, but mostly we'll just be getting re-acquainted with one of our favorite places in the Rockies! I'll be in Stanley for much of July and parts of August, so if you're interested in dropping in for a visit - it's an incredible place!

Here's what Stanley looks like in early morning when the fog has settled in the valley below the Sawtooths and there's frost on the sagebrush. (Above)

Here's a shot of SAC guide Colin cruising buffed single track on the famous Fisher Creek Trail just last week. After weeks of rain, the trail was so tacky...and fast!

And here's a couple more shots showing off all the fun stuff there is to do in and around Stanley.

This shot is of Sonja rappelling off the Finger of Fate, a rock spire above Hell Roaring Lake in the Sawtooths. The Finger of Fate is (Right)


This is me absolutely dwarfed by the scale and the mountains. (Below)

Stormy Skies in Salt Lake City


Its been very Seattle-like in Salt Lake lately. I haven't looked at the figures, but I'd be willing to bet we've received way more precip here than Seattle has this month. Which is kinda cool, 'cause it feels like home, but at the same time, we moved down here to get away from all that. But regardless, we've been having these dramatic clouds moving through so I thought we'd have a little fun and try to make some punchy, dramatic photos. Here's a portrait of Sonja, done-up Strobist style.

Park City Lightning Show

Check out this lightning show we experienced at Deer Mountain on Tuesday night. One of the most spectacular electrical storms I've ever watched roll by. Came over the Wasatch and then right over our heads. Great fun!

Belize

Highlights of our Belize trip:

- Snorkeling the Hol Chan Marine Reserve (part of the second longest Barrier Reef in the world) and seeing nurse sharks
- Our family's safe return from their Blue Hole Near Death Adventure
- Fly byes from huge gray and yellow pelicans
- Swimming and snorkeling in an idealistic setting all by ourselves at Geoff's Caye
- Buying Lobster and Grouper from Local Fisherman near Caye Caulker for only $3.50 per tail
- Eating conch and drinking Belikin Beer, Panty Rippers and Panty Removers at Lloyd's Bar on Caye Caulker
- Barbeques on the deck of the Cataraman "Tropi-Cat"
- Paddling in a glass bottomed sea kayak with Blue Herons, Green Herons, Egrets and Dolphins
- Eating a lobster omelette with local habanero pepper sauce while sailing North on our last day
- Spending time with the Duenwald family!