Life Lately

Life has been good lately. On Saturday we drove out into the Columbia Gorge for some hiking at Catherine Creek. It's on the Washington Side of the Columbia River about 10 minutes past Hood River. We went for a 3 mile hike with fantastic views of the Gorge and Mt. Hood. 

Afterwards we stopped at our favorite spot in Hood River, Solstice, for lunch. If you are in Hood River, you should definitely try it. Their pizza is especially delicious, and next door (during the warmer seasons) is the most amazing little gelato stand, Cicci.  

Saturday night we joined some of our French friends for a raclette dinner....raclette is a cow's milk cheese that you melt and eat with meat, potatoes, etc. This was my second raclette dinner, and it was just as tasty as the first. The electric grill makes it interactive and fun! 

Sunday was a wet and rainy day and after a long and very wet walk in the rain, I decided to make (and eat) banana bread. I used this recipe from Oh She Glows, and it turned out super well. It has a little more sweetener than I usually put into my bread, but that made it extra tasty.

Pushing Limits

As I shared in Yesterday's Post, I am spending part of this week in Jackson Hole, WY. My +1 and I are here to celebrate our 10th anniversary. I will be posting next week about all my favorite restaurants, shops, etc, but until then I thought I would share with you some details about yesterday's adventure.

My husband is a competitive runner. He competes in endurance trail running races and sky running races (he'll be doing one on Saturday), and is in incredible shape. I love to hike, but climbing big mountains has never been something I've done. When he said he wanted to climb the Middle Teton I was a little nervous.

Here is a photo...the base elevation is about 6,000 feet and the summit caps out at 12,804 ft. The climb is about 15 miles.

Now you know why I was a little nervous. I read some reviews that said it took hikers/climbers 12 hours. I knew that seemed long for us, but the idea of being on my feet for even half that seemed daunting, especially since the longest hike I've done was about 14 miles and 5 hours with very little elevation gain (in New Zealand).

So despite my inner skeptic we started out around 8 a.m. yesterday. The first 4 miles of the trail was easy, by our standards. The Middle Teton in the background. Notice I'm still smiling.

Here's where it started to get a bit tougher.  

This was the most technical and steepest portion of the climb. It was more rock climbing than hiking with about a 45 to 50 degree angle to the summit. 

Notice I'm still smiling, but I had my moments. This was really technical, and as I said, not something I have done a lot of, so it really pushed my comfort level. We hiked this type of terrain for about an hour.

And, after about three and a half hours we made it to the summit, and it was worth every step!

You can see the Grand Teton in the background of this picture.

The views from the summit were amazing, but we didn't stick around too long as we didn't want to get caught in a traffic jam of hikers.

I got in a little snow running on the way down.

The whole adventure start to finish took nearly 8 hours (around 6.5 real moving time) and was the longest I've ever been on my feet. Surprisingly, I felt pretty good at the end. 

This climb definitely pushed my physical and mental limits and my comfort level, but I am so glad that I did it. There were times that I wanted to turn around. I wanted to find a reason not to go to the top, but my husband kept encouraging me, and we made it. He was the best climbing (and life) partner I could ask for. 

We still have two more days left here, so I'm sure we will be bagging more peaks, assuming I can still walk. 

C&C on the Move

The second part of our European Vacation took us to Chamonix, France...a mountain lover's paradise.  Everywhere we turned there were snow capped peaks, glaciers, mountain lakes, trams, gondolas and most importantly trails to explore! I took so many incredible pictures that there are too many to share, but here are a few from our adventures.

We spent nearly everyday hiking in the mountains. My husband and I even celebrate our 9th anniversary with an incredible 5 hour 23K hike.

This was the view from our deck. That is Mt. Blanc in the snow capped distance.

This is the center of Chamonix and the race finish of the Ultra Trail Mt. Blanc, the largest trail race in the world, that took place while we were there.

We mostly "cooked-in", but we did find the local "American" hang-out that is NOT TO MISS if you are in Chamonix.

It's owned/run by a American team of a mother and her kids. The food is awesome and the entire staff was so friendly and welcoming.

If you love hiking/running in the mountains than Chamonix would be your paradise. We are already planning our next trip back. 

C&C Tips & Tricks

It has been a very long time since I posted a video on C&C. In fact, I think this is only the second video ever! The first was all the way back in 2012 when I shared my favorite way to tie a scarf (video here). It's worth watching.

Anyway, on to today's video. I do a lot of walking and hiking and more often than not I start out with a vest or long sleeve on. It's inevitable that during my walk I become too hot and want to remove my top layer, but I've never loved having to tie it around my waist.

Today's video shares my tip/trick for taking off your top layer without having to awkwardly tie it around your waist like we did (intentionally) in the 80s. I introduced this method to two of my friends recently during walks (shout out to Anne and Amanada), and both agreed it was blog worthy! I promise you will be trying it and thanking me for sharing this amazing tip.



My dog Winston makes a cameo in the video, and you might hear some Mini Fashionista giggles in the background. Hopefully neither of them plan to charge me royalties!

Products We Love

Despite being a fashionista, I am also a serious mountainista! And recently, thanks to my +1, I have found the best trail running/hiking shoe I have ever worn. Anything I call "the best I have ever worn" must be worth sharing! 

Let me introduce you to the Salomon SpeedCross 3! 

I realize they aren't the cutest shoes you have ever seen, but I promise you they are by far the best performing trail shoe I have ever worn. The traction is incredible, the Sensifit system ensures a snug, contoured fit that is perfect for my narrow foot, and they are super comfortable! 

So, if you are looking for a new pair of trail shoes, these should be at the top of your list!