The Saga Continues...

Talk about a great group of friends I have! We got this letter supposidly from the YMCA where we always stay. Signed and everything. However the tone of the letter sounds a lot like my friend Marc. I even asked him if he got a letter, he said that his must be in the mail...but I wonder...hmmm. I think this is just part of our fish tale! Take a read...if you click on it, it should take you to a new web page and make it super sized! Cheers! :)

What began as 4...

Eagle Cliff Part 1
There was a story of a lovely lady who was bringing up 3 very lovely girls...but that is not how my story here begins. This is a story of 4 friends who tempted fate and defied all odds to climb the highest cliffs and mountains. Our story begins in lovely Estes Park Colorado where for friends; Mark, Steve, Matt and Kevin met up for a celebratory stay in a couple of cabins to bring in the new year of 2005. We ate, drank and were of course merry! As we celebrated we began the discussion of a gentle afternoon hike the afternoon after celebrating. What we didn't know was that our little gentle hike was going to require oxygen bottles to reach the top and the near death experience we all felt. Pictured here at right is the emphasis 'Eagle Cliff'. This was the challenge that lay before us that first year. We met up with an experience woodsman who looked us over and informed us that we looked to be a group of guys who could handle just about anything, so he told us that it was strait to the top, no path, no trail, just us the rocks, trees and wind. We began on a calm afternoon the trail or non-existent path as we took started off smooth and level and then shot straight up. We strapped on our packs, opened the valves on our O2 bottles and began to climb the climb of all climbs. One after the other we climbed we defied all odds. Rocks were coming loose beneath our feet and before we knew it we left the trees behind and found ourselves climbing amidst the clouds. The view was great when I got far enough behind that I no longer was looking at the rear of the person in front of me. After what seemed like hours we reached the summit of Eagle Cliff. The views are documented below...We made sure to take plenty of pictures to prove our families at home that yes, we almost did peril, but it was worth every step that we took.

Grew to 5...

Eagle Cliff Part 2

After descending from Eagle Cliff we took it easy for about 12 months before taking another ceremonial trip to Estes Park Colorado for another year of ringing in the New Year. This year just like last we discussed again facing another mountain! Although this time; Steve, Matt, Mark and Kevin grew with our new addition John. We had conquered Eagle Cliff last year, so this year we decided that it was time to go bigger and better so we chose to climb Emerald Mountain. Even with the 100mph winds we knew that we were up for it. John had hear about the turmoil last year and felt up for the challenge, himself being an experienced mountaineer as well fit in well with our group of friends and we all welcomed him to the team! So, once again, we packed up, strapped on our boots and took our first steps into the unknown of Emerald Mountain. Not too far up the mountain though, we ran into a little trouble. It appeared that the trail was closed, but a closed trail in January does not stop this team! We took it on with full force! Through waist deep snow, exposed rock faces and the wind whipping right through our protective mountaineering clothing it was no easy task but we did it. Because last year we were not as prepared as we thought and had to use oxygen...This year proved to be another story, we prepared ate a lot and watched a lot of football to prepare so this year we did not require oxygen. This was just the start of the snow as you can see at the base it was up to Marc's knees. We had to trudge for miles with the snow only getting deeper, and unsure of what lay beneath the snow with each step that we took.

Here we are atop the infamous Eagle Cliff. We did it! We defied all odds, without the O2 we would not be alive today to share with you our story!

The view into Morraine Park which is just inside Rocky Mountain National Park was beautiful and a sight which I will never forget!

Upon descent we decided that it was time to take a few months off from trekking. The hikes, the oxygen and for Marc facing death was never on his itenerary so we decided to take a break and re-think our little adventures. With Eagle Cliff in the background and our memories still fresh in our minds it is time for some much needed R&R.

We did it! After miles and miles of snow we summited Emerald Mountain. The wind was so bad at the summit that without our safety line (not shown in picture) and harnesses we would have been blown right off the face of Emerald Mountain. John was a trooper, his footwear was not ideal, but he managed to make it to the stop. Matt had his doubts at times but he had Steve, Mark, Kevin and John poking him with sticks to make it to the top! We could only stop for a minute for pictures because the air started to get thin, and without oxygen this year we had a hard time getting to the top but we made it.!

The view from the top was incredible! I felt like I could see for miles! Somehow these were the only trees strong enough to survive this high up!

Upon descent we came across this house, how it got to the side of this mountain I will never know, but we became desperate to get out of the wind and we tried getting in, but unfortunately our keys did not work in the door!! :(

How could I forget this years patch! We feel that each time we conquer something that we should start wearing the patches to show the world what we were able to accomplish! This is a hike that I will never forget, the steps we took, the conversations we had and the friendships that will never die! Till next year, add comments to the posts, we would love to hear others share their stories of turmoil and adventure!