I don’t know if this is a good thing or a bad thing…many of our friends and church members seem to be as excited about our trip as we are. Things seem to be moving really fast at this point. Maddie is in full swing as a whitewater rafting guide in Asheville. When I asked her the other day how she liked her summer job, her response was, “I love everything about it.” She has been living out of her Honda Element for over a month now. She will have a head start on living out of small quarters.

The picture above was taken the day after our Middle Teton ascent that I wrote about several weeks ago. Christy and Maddie are in Huckleberry Hot Springs. This is a great place to relax and restore. Maddie and I are hoping to visit again after our attack on the Tetons.

My training has continued with climbing on plastic a couple of times a week, hitting the treadmill with the backpack in tow a few times a week, and maintaining my weight. The more I climb, the more pain I get in my shoulders. At times, they hurt like they did before I had them operated on. The more I hike, the more pain I get in my knees. Now you know why I named the website what I did. I haven’t touched the ibuprofen yet. I’m not a fan of meds, but I am stocked up for the trip just in case.

I have moved the grade on the treadmill up to 12%. The change in grade has been tough, but moving from 10% to 12% didn’t seem as bad as moving from 8% to 10%. I guess this is a good thing. Later this week, I will try 15%. I did just over an hour this morning with the 40-50 pound backpack. The workout data from the treadmill showed a vertical gain of 1935 feet. I have a hard time believing this. I did the math, and depending on which formula I used, I came up with 1400 to 1600 vertical feet. Either way, my workout was at 1000 feet above sea level. Most of our longer approaches will start a vertical mile above this.

Just to put things in perspective, in Grand Teton National Park, the route from Lupine Meadows Trailhead (elevation 6732 feet) to the Lower Saddle (between the Grand and the Middle) is about 6.75 miles with 4929 feet of vertical gain. Just above the saddle is where the technical rock climbing begins. You gain another 2100 vertical feet in the last 2 miles to the summit of the Grand.

The picture above is of Maddie on the Slickrock Trail just outside of Moab, Utah in 2016. We went for a run and caught the sunrise that morning. The rock drops quickly into the valley behind her. We decided to take a break as the light rays made their way over the rock and down into the valley. It was staggering to see the pitch-black valley light up.

Ephesians 1:18-19 NIV84 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, [19] and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength,

I thank the LORD for lighting up my pitch-black heart when He saved me. I hope that you are saved, but if not, please know that He offers salvation to you through the life, death, burial, and resurrection of His One and Only Son Jesus Christ Who is Messiah!

Because He Calls, Old Climbing Dad