The Cascade Mountains

The Backpacking Part of Seattle

I spent a couple days with my two friends backpacking in the Cascades. It was fantastic for the first backpacking trip of the spring season! One brought a fiddle and the other brought a guitar, and I brought my bad singing voice. We had live bluegrass music, a campfire and marshmallows. We hiked to a gorgeous frozen lake, saw an actual avalanche (way across the lake), and the weather was absolutely perfect. There was still so much snow in the upper elevations, and none lower. No mosquitoes or biting bugs. Everything about the trip was perfect!

Seattle visit

My visit to Seattle was fantastic! It was great to see my sister, brother in law, niece, nephew AND my folks flew out from Tennessee! AND I managed to squeeze in a backpacking trip with a good friend who just so happens to live in Seattle too! It was a great visit! I love Seattle! It's such a progressive, "green" city. We had beautiful weather, with a few rain showers that were to short to even notice.

SWEETS!

Here's a picture of the Balsamic Strawberries! This recipe is SOOOO tasty!
The other picture is of my two girlfriends and I in Jackson.

Boredom = Yummy

When I get bored, I cruise through recipe websites, in attempts to teach myself how to cook.
I have come to the conclusion, "If you can read, you can cook." I will only attempt easy and simple recipes.
No, 30 ingredient, 20 step recipes. I want SIMPLE and I want to eat it as soon as it is done! No marinating, no
freezing, cooling, over-night, recipes. I'm usually cooking because I am starving when I start putting it together.

This desert I happened to stumble across, won me over. Balsamic Strawberries with Marscapone Creme topping. (use cream cheese--it's cheaper and just as delicious.)
Hands down, this is the easiest best desert I have ever made.
Follow the link, or cut and paste it in your browser.
Be sure and read the review I wrote about it at the bottom of the recipe!

I'm making it again today!

Here ya go!


http://www.meals.com/Recipes/Balsamic-Strawberries-with-Almond-Mascarpone-Crme.aspx?recipeid=143820

Lovely Mud Season

Next week will be my one year anniversary for moving out west. I began the planning for this journey far longer than one year ago. I had a calling to head west to bigger and more expansive mountains to explore. Reality hits me every morning when I wake up and look out of my window at the Tetons and Big Hole mountains. I'm still in awe. I can't believe I have made a life for myself being so far away from my family and long time friends--a new start all by myself. I can officially say now, "I did it," and really believe those words when I say them.

It hasn't been easy staying here. I have been laid off from the 2 jobs I held, I've moved 4 times, spent 6 weeks being homeless--yet had the greatest road trip/backpacking trip of my life, good friends are hard to come by, and colleges (which I'm planning on finishing) are an hour or more away. I'm not complaining. I am very grateful to have experienced life the way I've been led. Being away from my family, has allowed me to really appreciate them more. We seem to be more connected on the importance of each others well being and maintaining frequent contact. I'm just saying, when living close to family, little "non issue" problems take front and center stage. The petty stuff. Now, we all seem to be focusing on keeping the "family bond" close. Being away, has allowed me to reflect on my old life back in Tennessee. I miss so much back home, and wouldn't change a thing about how I lived there. If I did, I may not be where I am today.

I've been very pro-active in finding a job. I've applied for over 40 jobs within the last 2 months. Until I get one, there is always an underlying stress. I keep active in my spare time. There is a lot of it right now! I can't go back packing yet, because there is so much snow in the back country, AND it continues to snow/rain here in the valley. This is what I've heard the locals call, "mud season." People who live here go out of town from mid April till the end of May. I always wondered why anyone would want to leave ANY time of year, this place is BEAUTIFUL year round! Well, now I am beginning to understand their point. The forecast has called for rain nearly every day over the last 2 weeks, and week to come. Yeah, yeah, rain is dreary, cold and dark, but after living in Tennessee most of my life--I'm used to it. I still love it here! The massive mountains aren't going to wash away, and I certainly won't melt! Bring on the rain! It's just water! After all, it's not like I'm made of sugar.

My Review of Osprey Xenon 85 Pack - Women's

REI

Carrying on the Osprey legacy, the customizable Xenon 85 for multi-day backpacking offers impressive load transfer, saving your back and shoulders.

Osprey Xenon 85 Pack - Women's

Fantastic and Comfy

Rangerlicious Alta, Wyoming 4/29/2009

 

5 5

Gift: No

Pros: Easy To Load, Good Padding, Lightweight, Large Capacity, Highly Adjustable, Comfortable

Best Uses: Extended Hikes, Travel, Heavy Loads

Describe Yourself: Professional Guide

What Is Your Gear Style: Comfort Driven

I work as a Back country Wilderness Ranger, so my loads are easily around 60 lbs. This pack is highly adjustable while ON my body or OFF. The padding on the waist belt is great on bony hip bones that bruise easily from heavy loads. Once adjusted to fit your body, It doesn't rub or chafe shoulders, hips, or back. Truly a comfortable pack. The pack is NOT water proof, so be sure and treat it with a "spray on" proofer to help with rainy days, dewey mornings or high river crossings. It's best to just throw on a rain cover in these conditions. This pack has plenty of compartments for smaller gear. Even though it has a sleeve on the inside for your Camelback and hose-- it would be nice to have a nalgene/etc. sleeve on the outside.

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Visiting home and then to the beach

I just made it back to Wyoming after a whirlwind trip to Tennessee and Orange Beach. The TN visit was wonderful and jam packed. It was too short! I didn't even make it to the Smokies, which I was really looking forward to hiking around my old stomping grounds. Spring in Tennessee is gorgeous when it isn't raining (which is rare, but we managed to get 2 lovely days of sunshine). The family is great, the food is good, and the traffic and road construction is still horrific! Each visit to TN, solidifies my decision to remain out West. I miss my friends and family like an appendage, but I can't remain living in a place that I don't thrive in.

Next stop was Orange Beach, Alabama for fun in the sun and outdoor live music every night! There were 6 of us in our group at the beach. The last night of the concert the weather had predicted, "heavy thunderstorms with a chance of hail." Now, for an outdoor concert, that would be rough. So the girls and I went to the store to load up on gear, and came back with what is posted in these pictures. Other concert goers loved us. It was hilarious. And the best part? It didn't even rain!

From the top!

Snowshoeing in the Big Hole Mtns

Snowboarding

The Disco Pose

Disco Party part 2

Disco Party

Livin'

In the last post, I'm in the blue jacket, for those of you who don't know which one is me! :D

Top of the mountain!

Yesterday was the first time I took the chair lift to the top of the mountain. I've been snowboarding on the beginner mountain since the beginning of the season. After many fall, spills and face plants--I finally went to the top of the mountain, with a vertical rise of 2000 ft, as opposed to the beginner slope that has a 405 ft vertical rise. It was amazing, and so beautiful. I even had my own support group!

Priscilla's Visit part duo

Priscilla's Winter visit to the Tetons!

First she had to learn out to cross country ski, the next plan was to ski into a hot spring in Yellowstone. It was a beautiful amazing day. The water temp was PERFECT! The bottom of the hot spring was silty and slimy. It was easy to get past that due to the hot bubbling water. What a great day!