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Hoh River Trail to Blue Glacier, Olympic National Park by Ray Phung

“I think we’ll do 15 miles the first day,” I announced looking up from the wilderness map.  “But the first 13 miles are REALLY flat,” I continue in hopes of quelling the looks of skepticism that Hanna gives me from the adjacent couch, “Don’t let the mileage scare you:  we’re reasonably fit people, we’ll be fine.”  I think I also said this to reassure myself that the trail I picked would be doable in a three day weekend.  I will admit – 15 miles in a day seemed like a lot.  But with the time constraint, I couldn’t figure out how else to spread out the mileage.   Surprisingly Hanna doesn’t seem phased by the proposed expedition. “It’ll be fun!” I exclaim.  All summer, we’ve been talking about doing a backpacking trip.  I hadn’t been out in the backcountry since the Enchantments and was itching for some adventure time before winter sets in.  And Hanna, just moving to the Northwest, was ready to explore her new home.  

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Labor Day in Leavenworth by Ray Phung

A short post this time! Over the long Labor Day holiday this year, Leavenworth was experiencing some relatively cool weather for September, so I grabbed my friend Jenn and drove up.  We met up Kevin, who you may recognize from other adventure posts, as well as some other Portland folk who also made the trek up to utilize the nice weather window.  

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Weekend Bouldering - Squamish! by Ray Phung

A few weekends ago, I grabbed my passport and headed up to Squamish for a long weekend of bouldering.  Squamish is located an hour north (or 41 miles... or 60 something kilometers) of Vancouver, BC just off of the Sea-to-Sky highway on the way to Whistler.  The city itself is located on the banks of the Howe Sound, and is a climbing mecca.  It's prominent feature is the Chief - a large granite monolith.  There are a plethora of routes (trad) up the Chief, as well a dozens of boulders strewn along its base.  Nearby are a lot of other quality granite sport and trad routes.  Pretty much everything you can ask for!

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4th of July in the Enchantments by Ray Phung

My prior experience in the Enchantments was several years ago, when me and Temo "tried" to climb Dragontail Peak via Serpentine Ridge.  Little did I know that Dragontail Peak was only the start of a whole chain of alpine lakes and towering granite peaks, known collectively as the Enchantments.  I have long desired to backpack up to the Enchantments to both climb some of the famous routes there and to photograph the beautiful scenery.  But for the longest time, the permit system in place to protect this fragile landscape kept this desire from becoming reality.   Early this winter, I circled on my calendar the day the lottery opened for permits, and signed up as soon I could.  I was miraculously awarded a pass for the 4th of July weekend to the Core Enchantment Zone, which is the most coveted permit as it allows camping in all of the other zones.  

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Gear Upgrade! Rolleiflex 2.8E - Test Roll by Ray Phung

Sometimes I have to stop and say to myself, "Ray, don't you think you have enough old crusty cameras?"  Short answer is Yes, I do probably have too many.  But at least I shoot with most of them in my rotation.  With replacing carpet, refurnishing my house, and other miscellaneous expenses that have come up over the last few months, I have indeed been really good lately about not buying unnecessary stuff.  But I came across a deal I couldn't refuse.  

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