Since Adam and I have both started working we haven't had much time off together. We've been putting up with opposing schedules and, as a result, have had to find other friends to adventure with. In the past couple of weeks Adam has summited the Grand twice - first soloing Complete Exum and then climbing the OS with Matt (his co-worker/friend). They also took a run up Disappointment Peak before work one day. As for me - I've been doing a fair amount of hiking.

Last Saturday I hiked the Paintbrush Divide (in Paintbrush Canyon and out Cascade Canyon) with a couple of friends. I woke up to a beautiful web of clouds hovering at the base of the mountains. We hit the trail at about 8:00 AM, making our way back toward the canyon. As we hiked higher through the trees, we saw a fleeting moose pushing it's way through the thick vegetation. The canyon was exploding with red, pink, white, and purple - Indian's Paintbrush, Sticky Geranium, Columbine, and Showy Fleabane scattered the sides of the trail. Most of the snow had melted out, except for a few patches here and there and one steep slope along the divide. I brought an ice axe just incase, but didn't end up using it since we could scramble easily up the right side of the divide. Once we made it to the top of the divide (10,720 ft) we had amazing panoramic views of the surrounding mountains.

At the top of Paintbrush Divide. (Photo by: Jake)

From the divide, the trail switchbacks past glowing bundles of glacier lilies, until it descends to Lake Solitude, the perfect spot to stop for a quick nap and a snack, which is exactly what we did. However, as time passed, the clouds started to thicken and we decided it was best to start making our way out of Cascade Canyon. We stumbled upon two more moose on our way out - one was happily munching on some vegetation alongside the trail and the other was running fiercely down river from some pesky flies. At 4:00 PM we made it back to our cars, and just in time too - as we pulled out of the parking lot the skies opened up and we were bombarded with hail and pouring rain.  

Lake Solitude

Last night, Em and I decided we wanted to hike Granite Canyon to Teton Canyon, so we packed up and set our alarms for 4:00 AM. The skies were clear when we began the hike at 5:00 AM - and Adam decided to come along for a little while before he had to be at work. It was a gorgeous walk, and we made steady progress, but as we approached Marion Lake we noticed dark, ominous clouds spilling over the sides of the rock cliffs. The first rumble of thunder was soon followed by a second and third. Just as we skirted the edge of the lake, large raindrops began to fall and we started to consider our options: pushing on up the Death Canyon Shelf into exposed territory or turning back. Adam started his run back to the parking lot so he could make it to work on time. Em and I crouched under some large trees for shelter as it began to hail and as lightening lit up the sky. We decided it didn't make sense to continue on with the storm, so we made our very soggy descent back to the parking lot. 

Adam and I at Marion Lake, just as the rain started to fall. (Photo by: Em Meier)