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Hiking Mount Elbert | Colorado’s Tallest Mountain

Zachary Kenney0 Comments

Summiting a 14er, the coveted goal of most hikers in the USA and around the world. Similar to hiking a 4,000 footer in New England, a 14er is any mountain whose summit stands over 14,000 feet in elevation. But don’t let that staggering elevation discourage anyone from trying. Most 14ers have trailhead that start at 10,000 feet or higher, making the elevation gain only around 4,000 feet, similar to the hikes in New England. Well, Courtney and I are just like the rest of the ambitious hikers in Colorado with a goal of summiting Colorado’s tallest mountain, Mount Elbert! On …

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Capitol Peak | My Experience On One of Colorado’s Most Dangerous Mountains

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The most shocking part about climbing this mountain is how different the experience can be for each climber in the same party. For my 3 friends, it was an incredible time, totally fun, no big deal. For me, this mountain almost killed me, and has changed my feeling towards mountains for the rest of my life. I will never climb on any rock this sketchy ever again, and will reconsider my climbing trips to mountains and routes that overtly warn against unstable rock combined with high exposure in 100% no-fall zones. This is the story of that trip. The genesis …

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Failing to Summit The Grand Teton

Zachary Kenney2 Comments

The Grand Teton as a special place in my heart. Ever since my buddies and I did it back in 2019, I’ve always thought about taking Courtney up it. Sure it’s massive and an excruciatingly long day, but she’s strong I and I knew she could do it. Fast forward to the end of August 2020, when nearly out of the blue, she says to me, “Let’s go climb the Grand in September!”Needless to say, I couldn’t have been more stoked. We had about e weeks to prepare, get it more specific climbing shape, and get the best beta we …

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Crested Butte, Colorado

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This was not our first time in Crested Butte, or CB. We actually had just rung in the New Year of 2020 here with a group of friends, but visiting in the summer was 100% different. Even though the town was still just as busy and filled with tourists, the vib had completely changed. People were outside, walking around in shorts and t-shirts, which was much different than the -15F weather we were lucky to experience over New Years Eve. Luckily, after two sites were no good to camp in, we were able to find a campsite on Kebler Pass, …

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First Bikepacking Trip | Video

Zachary Kenney0 Comments

First Bikepacking trip was a success! It’s like bike touring, but on a mountain bike, and over some gnarly terrain. You strap everything you need for a night of camping onto your bike and go have an adventure. A quick, overnight trip up to the Wasatch Crest from Park City after work. My buddy Tyler joined me for this sufferfest of a climb, but was all worth it the next morning for a 10mile descent back home. The Route we took started in Kimball Junction, then headed up the UOP, up BLT, followed by a very steep climb on Moose …

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Silverton, Colorado

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Our first stop was by far the most out-of-this world. Heading into the massive, towering San Juan mountains for the first time blew my expectations out of the water. The transition in the landscape from the desert plateau of Montrose into the tight canyon where Ouray is nestled, then up the Million Dollar Highway over Red Mountain Pass. That alone makes the trip worth it! A highway that cuts up a narrow canyon riddled with avalanche paths, it’s amazing this highway is ever open during the winter. After, what felt like, hours of searching up and down the dirt road, …

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Enduro & XC Mountain Bike Racing | Lessons Learned from my 2020 Season

Zachary Kenney0 Comments

They say, no matter what fitness or skill level you’re at, racing will always make you a better rider. To that, I can completely agree. This 2020 season has been filled with many ups and downs, in both XC and Enduro. Even though these Midweek Mountain BIke races are just local, they are still highly competitive and filled with some of the best riders in the state. And this year, after riding pretty well in the Sport Category in 2019, I decided to jump up to the Expert Category (right below Pro). And boy was I in for a rude …

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Colorado Road Trip

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This trip was something Courtney and I have been dreaming about since moving out to the West. Yet, it’s been something we’ve been putting off for years because it was almost too feasible. Unlike a vacation that requires plane tickets and months of planning, this trip was comparatively easy. Our plan was to drive around to a bunch of mountain and ski towns of Colorado during the summer months, camping just outside of each town. That way, there was no reservations, not deadlines, just get in the truck and go. For this reason, we’ve just put it off year after …

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Vanlife Trip In Oregon

Zachary Kenney0 Comments

Like many of us, who have scrolled endlessly through social media seeing those incredible sprinter van builds, perched high over some scenic overlook, we too shared that jealous. Which is why, we’ve twice now rented camper vans from Outdoorsy.com. The first time, we rented a van for a trip to San Diego in November. But now with Covid canceling all our plans for spring and summer trips, we had to switch up our destination and decided to stay local and explore Oregon via a road trip! To make it even more exciting, we rented a built-out Ram ProMaster Van to …

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Climbing Owen Spalding Route on The Grand Teton | Technical Pitches Beta

Zachary Kenney0 Comments

If I had known it was going to take us 20 hours to complete, I’m not sure if I would have left the trailhead. But after taking those final steps onto the summit, it would make the entire effort worth it. Everything from the 1:30AM start, the trek in the dark, the struggle with the altitude, the ice all over the climb, the broken crampon and subsequent fall, and even the encounter with a huge black bear. It was all worth it. We climbed the Grand Teton.

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