Author: woifjmao
-
Tempe With The Boys
Bounced back to Arizona last week to meet up with friends from college to hang out for the weekend and go to the Arizona State – Kansas State game (we won!). It was a solid trip though I truly felt like the “old alumni cruising the college bars”. At one point I had a twenty-something…
-
Going Ultralight
Four years ago on a warm June morning, I had just finished volunteering as a paddle boarder keeping swimmers in check during the Couer d’Alene Ironman, a race I had completed a couple of times myself. Skirting along the shore heading towards where my car was parked, my fit caught a rock and I was…
-
Pistils and Decay
-
Monte Has Entered the Chat
February was a wild month. Within the first week we had our water heater fail–rather catastrophically–and flooded the downstairs (which includes ou r bedroom). That’s ongoing, Also had a bit of a vehicular hiccup with the SOTA rig, a 20-year-old Honda Element, that cost a pretty penny. But thankfully it’s running great with 230k miles.…
-
New Year Thoughts (Doing Hard Things)
It’s about 30 degrees outside and I’m currently in my sleeping bag in a cabin at Field Springs State Park in SE Washington. Earlier today we celebrated the end of 2025 with a hike, some snacks at altitude, and a summit activation (for me, at least). When the year officially rolls over (00:00UTC) all of…
-
Mount Saint Helens
The summit that started it all. When 2024 began I had no knowledge of SOTA and only a vague familiarity (but zero interest in) ham radio. For whatever reason, YouTube began to feed me some video about ham radio and a volcano. I vehemently ignored it, perhaps even clicking the “not interested” option, but the…
-
Traverse Ridge, Wallowas, OR
A tough week resulted in the hasty decision to head into the Wallowas of Eastern Oregon. We arrived at the Hurricane Creek Campground just before sunset on a Thursday evening to set up camp and crawl into the tent. Up early Friday we made our way to the “trailhead” along Lime Quarry Rd 45.37808, -117.35148…
-
A Week in Switzerland
In July made a quick escape to see some mountains of a different variety. Much time was spent hiking, train hopping, walking the streets and looking up, mouth agape. Just incredible beauty in this land. A little bit of time was spent in Zurich and Lucerne but most of my days were on the trails…
-
Test Roll: Leica M4
It’s 3AM and I’m wide awake. In an hour I have a ride to catch to the airport where the long travel day to Zurich begins (more on that later). This is simply an exploratory trip, hopefully with some good photo opportunities. I’m bringing along my Bronica 6×6 and was planning on toting one of…
-
Making It Difficult in N. Idaho
A couple of Northern Idaho’s smallish summits that, in an earlier spring attempt were blocked by snow, are a bit of a long forest road drive to access. As you start to climb above 5300ft, FR301 becomes more rough than a standard SUV can handle. I parked my Honda at 47.01588, -116.06868 and walked the…