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Little River Falls

2012-02-06T20:27:00.000-08:00

Random Photo Dump

2011-10-04T17:46:00.001-07:00

Adirondacks 2011

2011-09-14T08:11:00.000-07:00

Adirondutopia

2011-09-09T14:27:00.000-07:00

NY

2011-09-09T13:49:00.000-07:00

Nolichucky Gorge SUP

2011-07-01T08:18:00.001-07:00

Spring kayaking Chattanooga area

2011-04-19T17:37:00.000-07:00

Vortex

SUP Hells Hole

Tablesaw

Broken Nose

Northeast Tennessee Vacation

2011-03-22T13:43:00.000-07:00

Nothing like kayaking the Watauga Gorge that runs into Watauga Lake in the morning, and then trout fishing the water coming out the bottom of the lake in the evening. Perfect weather, awesome river. (All pictures of pro-kayaker Robert Taylor)

Trophy Brown- 10 pounds, 30 inches long

Day 2 on the South Fork Holston River. Five pound brown by Jon.

Safety Meeting

Not necessarily L.L. Bean, but effective none-the-less.

Caney Fork, Deep Creek Scouting

2011-02-22T18:14:00.000-08:00

Jason - consistently photogenic

Cash - Eating my oak leaf hydrangeas

Cool ice fall at Deep Creek

Awesome climbing beside awesome kayaking

Random

2010-12-25T17:17:00.000-08:00

Dec. 1st

2010-12-02T05:39:00.001-08:00

Little Rock City Session

2010-11-24T17:41:00.000-08:00

What an incredible place. Maybe the only time you'll see a golf course literally sitting next to a world class boulder field where both climbers and golfers share a clubhouse.

Fat Cat (V5)

Shotgun (V6)

Comin' down the mountain.

2010-11-18T14:14:00.000-08:00

Cash at almost 6 months

2010-09-28T14:57:00.000-07:00

My Dad took this one.

Recent Sam Pix

2010-09-23T09:09:00.001-07:00

2010 Bugaboo Spires Trip (the climbing)

2010-09-09T17:31:00.000-07:00

We had two full days to do two long climbs. Hiking from the hut to the climbs and back factored in at least a couple of hours so only one climb a day for us was feasable even though some do multiple climbs in a day. Our original plan was to do the northeast ridge of Bugaboo Spire (One of the top 50 climbs in North America), but with the ice on the route our guide said it would have been "full on mixed climbing". Instead he chose McTech Arete on the Crescent Spire which was 5.10, 6-pitch route. It was incredible granite crack climbing that was exactly the right mix of challenge and doability for our group. We were hiking up there at about 0630 and got back to the hut around 1600. Not the hardest climbing I've ever done, but the newness of that kind of continuous climbing and the big wall exposure was great and both Thomas and I agreed it was the best day of climbing we've ever had. Day 2 started out looking better weatherwise than day 1. We had planned to climg another 6-pitch climb Between the Ears, but after the first pitch a snowstorm came in and dumped a few inches really making things dangerous so we decided to hike back in. What an awesome place.

Sunrise in the Canadian Rockies

Hiking past a glacier lake on the approach to the climb

Thomas with Snowpatch Spire in the background

The Crescent Towers

The first pitch

Thomas on the 5th pitch belay area

The Summit of McTech Arete

This is a photo of the line we climbed. If you zoom in you will see two climbers on the route we climbed to give some perspective.

On Sunday we set out for the route "Between the Ears" which is what Thomas is checking out in this picture.

Right as we got started in to this climb a snowstorm came in soaking the rock and forcing us to rappell in retreat.

One of the incredible glacier lakes in the area.

2010 Bugaboo Spires Trip (The Approach)

2010-09-08T09:35:00.001-07:00

The Bugaboo Spires trip was my first multi-pitch and trad route and was an excellent way to start. Thomas and I hired a guide from Yamnuska and had an incredible short trip. This was definitely a micro mission as we spent only 3 days in British Columbia, but it was a success. With unpredictable weather we were lucky to have 2.5 days of good weather and had probably the best day of climbing I've ever had. The Bugaboos is considered one of the best alpine climbing destinations in the world and it is stunning, but the theme of the trip was intense! From the drive in, to the roughly 1.5 mile hike (over 2000 feet of elevation gain carrying an 80 pound pack), to the mixture of rock and glacier scrambling and granite rock climbing. The pictures never do places like this justice, but it's also hard to take a bad picture in the Bugaboos.

Special preparation must be implemented to keep away the porcupines which will eat your brake lines and tires. Chicken wire, logs, and rocks are provided.

Our guide Pat Delaney starting the approach hike first through a dense evergreen forest, and then up through the meadows cleared by past avalanches.

Thomas, pondering.

Finally starting to get close.

The Conrad Kain hut. An incredible base camp hut with fully stocked kitchen, gas stove, bathrooms, running water (powered by a generator producing electricity from glacier melt flow), and mattresses to sleep on. This place was awesome.

The waterfall pouring over the edge is the source of your water which you can either boil or drink right from the stream (which is what we did).

Down time was spent rock hopping, exploring the boulders and peering down into the valley and the glaciers.

It had been a while since Thomas or I had repelled, so our guide helped us learn on this massive granite boulder right outside the hut. We also went over some basic multi-pitch principles preparing for the next day's climb.

Waterfalls

2010-09-07T20:08:00.001-07:00

Just a few shots of local waterfalls from some hikes in Tennessee and North Carolina

Foster Falls
Rock Island
Ozone Falls & Virgin Falls

Savage Falls

Looking Glass Falls

Burgess Falls

Don't know the name, but it looks runnable

Kick Yer Dog Falls

2010-09-04T15:33:00.000-07:00

2010-08-24T15:41:00.000-07:00

Sam 17

2010-08-22T13:03:00.000-07:00

Hanging Rock Park

2010-08-20T17:40:00.001-07:00

O.J.

2010-08-17T11:57:00.000-07:00

On any Sunday

2010-08-15T17:36:00.001-07:00

Cash - 18 weeks

2010-08-14T18:18:00.000-07:00

Lula Lake day hike

2010-08-01T10:53:00.001-07:00

Samantha

2010-08-01T07:26:00.000-07:00

SUP Roanoke/McCoys

2010-07-22T14:42:00.000-07:00

Chattanooga Waterfront Triathlon/Cash Update

2010-07-12T18:31:00.000-07:00

At about 8 or 9 weeks

At about 14 weeks

Here are some shots of the triathlon. Becky got 2nd overall in the beginner division and beat me by 2 minutes (impressive considering 1400 competitors). She could be good if she put in the time required. Overall a satisfying race, but pretty exhausting.

Rodgers Ridge/ Misride

2010-07-12T17:43:00.001-07:00

Man sized reach/ Punx visit Jay's place

2010-07-12T17:16:00.000-07:00

The Next Generation

2010-06-11T14:29:00.000-07:00

Introducing Cash "Money". Although he's got a long way to go to meet the standards set by Thorn, I figured since I'm known for always having the latest up to date gear in my truck I needed another protector to keep the thieves out.

My two boys

Mountain Biking...(and some randoms)

2010-05-27T18:59:00.000-07:00

Miles Evans, mountain biker extraordinaire

Hiwassee Lake on a recent vacation with Becky

Osprey at Racoon Mountain

Youngins on the Noli

2010-05-25T10:08:00.001-07:00

Photo Dump

2010-05-24T18:38:00.000-07:00

This is a photo dump of pictures I found on my camera. The first two are my friend Miles last week on the Ocoee. The flume is broken and we have water pretty much at all times currently and we were about the only people out there after work one weekday. The rest are from the Bear.

2010-05-17T16:39:00.001-07:00

Colorado Roadtrip Spring 2010

2010-04-27T06:30:00.000-07:00

Natch boys, max security

2010-03-20T17:26:00.000-07:00

Wenatchee Washington Surf Wave

2010-02-18T19:26:00.001-08:00

Southeastern Snowfall

2010-02-18T11:14:00.001-08:00

Rt. 817

2010-01-24T10:10:00.001-08:00

North Chick 2010

2010-01-22T16:55:00.000-08:00

All his moves he learned from his father

Getting ready to hike in

Mystery Falls

Incredible cascades

Coming up on waterfall rapid

Bald Eagle #1

Chimney formation on previous scouting trip for Pocket Creek

Growing up fast

Sorry, didn't mean to post it twice

An excellent Thursday run of North Chick at about 3'2". At this level it is non-stop quality class 4-4+ whitewater for the entire run. A truly scenic day with waterfalls cascading in from both banks intermitantly and a close-up view of an owl and 2 bald eagles deep in the gorge.

Day 2

2010-01-12T14:25:00.000-08:00

Mt. Rogers, Briar Ridge 2010

2010-01-09T12:31:00.000-08:00

Grayson Highlands Creekin mid 90's

2010-01-09T11:29:00.001-08:00

Buckin' T

2010-01-09T11:15:00.000-08:00

Recent Trips (Bear, Suck Creek Christmas)

2009-12-26T17:16:00.000-08:00

Cloudland Canyon

Nervously Scouting

Me in the first tier of Stairway

Jason portaging Knucklehead

Jason explaining something

Corey Hall - Big Bang

So far this kayaking season is shaping up to be one of the best I can remember. We are about 8 inches over average for rain currently in Chattanooga (and probably everywhere in the SE). In kayaking I have set a couple of goals for the next couple of years and was able to tick one off last week with a run of Bear Creek running off Lookout Mountain. Although it was a minimum level (10"), it was still incredible quality and by far the best run I have done in the southeast and possibly anywhere. I was with a great guide and am looking forward to trying to get the lines down considering it is very close to my house. Christmas day I was able to go kayaking with Jason one of my best kayaking friends. This was a rare treat as it is hard to keep the man away from the Tellico. We had good run down Suck Creek and although pressed for time, I had a great time. I have this new Olympus Stylus waterproof camera and am trying to figure out how to use it so my pictures are not the best, but it sure is convenient.

Bouldering LRC

2009-12-26T17:10:00.000-08:00

My brother-in-law's brother Seth was able to get over to Little Rock City for a bouldering session recently. Although we had damp conditions we were able to salvage some quality problems, most of which we hadn't been on before. The bouldering at LRC is exceptional and it is incredible how many countless high quality sandstone boulders are packed into one place. Here are a couple of sub-par images of Seth.

Oliver

2009-12-05T16:23:00.001-08:00

421 Tennessee

2009-12-05T15:52:00.000-08:00

Baker Gap

Roan Creek

Tennessee roads are high quality.

Shady Valley

South Holston Valley

Powell Mtn: Stony Creek below Chimney Rock Fork.

2009-12-02T14:14:00.000-08:00

This is a section of streambed that has quite a bit of bedrock. Probably pretty interesting class 3+ with a few hundred cfs. This is about a half mile below the confluence of Stony Creek and Chimney Rock Fork. The section between Glady Fork and Chimney Rock Fork has similar gradient but alot of wood and an uninteresting features. The section of Stony Creek from Marsh Fork to Glady Fork has the most potential, but is the most remote as well as being prohibitivly narrow. Because the previous pic is wide angle, the gradient is a bit steeper than it appears.

South Fork Powell

2009-11-25T11:03:00.000-08:00

A super-tight, super sweet gorge locked up with deadfall. Big Cherry Lake is the water resevoir for Big Stone Gap. A few years ago the resevoir size was increased significantly by the construction of a new dam, Big Cherry Dam. The gorge below it is the steepest and most rugged of all Powell Mountain drainages. Unfortunately the ridiculous gradient is coupled with excessive lumber. The need for a permit and epic rainfall put this gorge in the "lets just go do Little Stony and high water Guest" category.

Week off in Chattanooga

2009-11-16T19:10:00.000-08:00

Pinball

Suck Creek

North Chick

This past week I had a vacation week and (thanks to my understanding wife) got to get outside more than usual. A good friend from school came down from Nashville for a climbing day at Sunset Rock and we got to toprope a couple of cool routes. We spent a lot of time just trying to identify routes since neither one of us had climbed there before, but it was a fun day on an awesome crag. Throughout the week I was also able to get on some whitewater. The following shots are from North Chickamauga creek, Suck Creek, and Little River Canyon, all of which are within an hour of downtown. Excellent weather for November I must say.

Vail Pass/Camp Posthole 2004

2009-11-16T11:16:00.000-08:00

Brumley

2009-11-15T14:11:00.001-08:00

Nolichucky

2009-11-15T13:57:00.000-08:00

Always beautiful, always fun.

Navy SEAL off road challenge (Halloween)

2009-11-01T17:33:00.000-08:00

This Halloween I drove over to Cosby, TN to participate in a trail race. I was on a team with 3 other guys that I work with and despite some nasty trail conditions, it was a lot of fun. The course is brutal with steep rutted out climbs into steep downhills the entire 3.5 miles and obstacles in between. The obstacles consisted of ropes courses, hurdles, walls, etc. We maintained a fairly consistent pace and were able to take 2nd in the team competition. I think I'll definitely do it again in the spring. Whereas running on the road is quite boring, this course was dynamic and kept your attention throughout. Oh yeah, the other picture is of my son as Chucky for Halloween later that evening.

Cohutta Springs Triathlon

2009-11-01T17:25:00.000-08:00

My wife Becky did this sprint triathlon recently in Cohutta Georgia. It was a 1/2 mile swim, 18 mile bike ride and 4 mile run. This was her first triathlon and she trained very hard for it, putting up impressive times and taking 2nd in her age group. She is now seemingly addicted and is searching the calender for her next potential event.

Amanita Muscaria Var. Guessowii and Friends

2009-10-18T13:32:00.000-07:00

King College Cyclocross

2009-10-17T17:54:00.001-07:00

Green Race 2006

2009-10-10T17:45:00.000-07:00

The 2009 Green Race is just around the corner. These pictures were taken by my wife at the 2006 race.

Lost Cove

2009-10-06T14:04:00.000-07:00

Lost Cove is an abandoned community hidden behind a ridge half way down the southern side of the Nolichucky Gorge. Many reasons have been given for its dessertion. Some say a Tuberculosis epidemic hit the camp, while others maintain the remote location made educating the children an impossibility. Its location in a remote spot on the Tennessee/North Carolina border made it an ideal spot for early moonshiners.

Today, old building remnants and a grave yard still exist their. Long linear rockpiles run down the ridge in a few places, possibly from previous logging operations.

One thing is certain, there is a mysterious and haunting feel to the area. It has been used more recently by hunters and others and has been somewhat degraded.

We took a Sunday and hiked up the RR tracks and up the ridge to see for ourselves. The pics are amateur and don't do this place justice. Information regarding the truths of Lost Cove is still elusive.

Mount Ranier, Washington

2009-10-02T18:43:00.000-07:00

This was a trip I recently took with my family to (in my opinion) one of the greatest places on earth, Mount Ranier National Park. The pictures include those from a hike to the alpine lakes around the mountain, the lodge itself, my brother in law Josh performing feats of strength and agility, and a hike to camp Muir that his brother Seth and I did one morning. I must add that the best pictures are those taken by my father which are obvious due to his photography skill and his Nikon 300. Robby, the waterfall and creek are the Ohanapecosh river which I ran with Paul and Jason. We didn't run the waterfall, but you can see video of it being run on the Demshitz blog.

The Russell Fork and Towers Hike

2009-10-02T18:09:00.001-07:00

Breaks Interstate Park in Haysi Virginia is the home of the Russell Fork river and this awesome rock feature called the Towers that Robby and I had seen in past trips. We both agreed that it looked like an awesome spot to try to reach. After paddling the river the day before we decided to paddle down to a landmark on the river and bushwhack it up to the kniferidge and out to the peak. It was well worth the effort, but you can tell by the pictures that the briars were not friendly and at certain points you just had to trudge forward and take the pain. The Russell Fork is an awesome place right smack dab in the middle of the Appalachian Mountains.

Oliver's First Ocoee Trip

2009-09-25T19:04:00.001-07:00

This was Robby's son Oliver's first trip to the Ocoee. Oliver is the type of kid that has to be protected from himself because of his fearlessness as he demonstrated this day. Even with no roll he insisted on running all of the rapids (that we would let him) and shows a lot of promise to be a good kayaker in the future. Needless to say, Robby and I watched him closely and he had a fun safe trip down the lower section of the Ocoee.

Watauga Gorge

2009-09-17T10:52:00.001-07:00

These are some random Watauga pictures from a couple of trips in the past. The Watuaga is one of the staple runs in our region and has runnable levels many days throughout the year. It continues to be one of my favorite class IV runs due to the scenery and the multitude of fun rapids from start to finish. Some of the pictures are taken with my old Cannon A20 and are lower quality.

Cheoah/Tallulah Gorge Trip

2009-09-17T10:31:00.000-07:00

These pictures are from the aforementioned creeks which are both dam released on the same weekend in the fall. That makes it convenient for kayakers who actually have responsibilities (job, children, spouse, etc.) in that the water can usually be counted on. Both are in picturesque settings and particularly the Tallulah has excellent whitewater. We found a great campsite which is where the landscape shots are from. The dog is Thorn, my best friend whom I lost after 11 years together earlier this year. She protected the vehicle and gear of Rob and I on many trips and is missed every day.

Catching Up

2009-09-17T05:41:00.000-07:00

Sporting the "Dr. Strange"

Family time

This blog was created as a way for a few friends to trade pictures from various outdoor trips. Because there is a backlog of these pictures, the first few posts will most likely be from the past. This particular trip was a low water run of Big Creek in the Smokies. Rob's brothers came along and it was basically a day trip in a beautiful micro rainforest with clear water, evergreens and moss.