Mt. Timpanogos with #newlywedsnotnewlyweds!

I was fortunate enough 6 years ago to photograph Devon and Kaydee's wedding in Steamboat Springs Colorado, where we all met several years prior  serving in the youth ministry together. These two are my favorite couple ever!!!

At 11,752 feet Mt. Timpanogos is the icon of the Wasatch as far as I am concerned. So when Devon asked if I wanted to hang with them on their first summit as husband and wife, I jumped on it. Naturally I turned it into a photo shoot for their 6th anniversary and what a great day it was. To add to the challenge my friends are triathletes now, in full fledged training mode AND it was my first hike/run of the season! I am not a runner by definition, but if I was it would strictly be trail running. But, I am not a runner...... perhaps a fast hiker. Anyhow, they were a joy to follow up the 5,000 vertical foot, 15 mile roundtrip heart pumper that is Timp, with a photo backpack on.

 We chose the more scenic approach from the Aspen Grove site which gives you a few hundred more vertical and is loaded with waterfalls this time of year. I liken it to an escalator in the woods, with every switch back you make the valley just drops away and the scenery only improves the higher you go.

Never a shortage of "God showers" to cool off in either.

 A stunning landscape alone, but add 2 trail runners and their dog.....................WOW! The wildflowers are just starting their magical transition too.

Emerald Lake is a proglacial beauty and a nice place to refill your water before the final 2,000 feet up to the summit (top right). Also, the snow glaciers are what counts for the highest number of accidents, resues and death with hikers, due to the practice of "glissading" with less than ample skill.

 This was the only mandatory snow crossing, and will be gone in another month.

 Kaydee in her last few strides to the summit and almost 7,000 feet above the Provo valley floor.

 In case you didn't know, both male and female goats have horns. This little one is getting first hand experience on cliff management from Mom.

The observation hut at the summit was constructed around 1959 to help with infrastructure for hikers and rescue parties. It also helps block the summit winds during snack time.

 Perfect day for a summit with this crew! Yay human skittles.............

Happy 6th anniversary guys. #newlywedsNOTnewlyweds

Heather and Kevins Wedding

What a great venue and an amazing celebration on the perfect fall day in Park City Utah. Heather and Kevin recently shared the official joining of their two lives at the Utah Olympic Park with a fun mix of family and friends. It's not everyday you get to try an Olympic sport without any prior training! Here are some highlights of their day.

I encouraged them to have a first look so we could get some of the formals done before hand, which allows more time together with family and friends at the reception. These guys ride bikes, so I asked a nearby bike shop if we could borrow their tandem for 10 minutes.

 Wouldn't be complete without a test ride.

On a day where so many things happen and nervousness abounds, it's all about the happy moments.

Fun, happy group-filled moments.

Peaceful, personal Olympic sized moments.

 Did someone say Bobsled!

Who gets to travel down a mountain at 80 mph legally on their wedding night? Yes, the bride and groom (orange helmets) and anyone else who wanted.

Cheers to a great new life together Heather and Kevin Van Loon! "Eric Rolls".

Heather and Kevin's engagement hike on Mt. Olympus

It has been a while since my last engagement session but I really like when we get to use a location that doesn't see a lot of action. If you know Utah then you know that Alta's Albion basin, Memory Grove park, Big and Little Cottonwoods can get really congested with family photo shoots in the height of wild flower and Fall foliage seasons. My friends Heather and Kevin also have two dogs, which makes shooting outdoors even trickier in the Wasatch. Today's session was more PJ (photo journalistic) then "stage and rage" which fit them just perfectly. I wanted to shoot light and fast so I kept it real simple, Sony A 6000, 16-70 F4, 10-18 F4 and 70-200 F4 all in my favorite action shooting back pack the Mindshiftgear 34L Panorama.

The trail to the summit of Mt. Olympus starts right at the edge of the valley and is an amazing place to enjoy sunset and watch the whole valley come alive.

There are several rock outcroppings that make for some great viewing spots in just the first 5 minutes of hiking.

That is Thunder mountain in the back drop, some 5000+ feet above the valley floor.

A little privacy for the happy couple.

Their two dogs were real troopers and would have kept going if it weren't for the dang photo shoot.

Not a bad spot for a break.

Happy happy.

Looking forward to a real cool Wedding in September at the Utah Olympic Park in Park City with a finale down the bob sled course!

Another week another jungle.

Every time we venture up American Fork, I can't believe it is this close to the city. The trails are rugged and the views always impress. I see why it doesn't get the mountain bike traffic when I'm sitting atop my dirt mover (KTM 200) and that's ok. It's all about Timp, Mt. Timpanogos and the sweeping valley below.

Most people that make it up here are on dirt bikes or horses and even that crowd is pretty low in numbers. The trails are maintained by the good folks at www.uintatrailcouncil.org/ and allow you to work for some pretty amazing lunch spots.

If you have been in the high country this week then you know it is good, real good.

My wife enjoying the views of where we are headed next.

At last, Mt. Timpanogos and the waist to chest high wild flowers.

The ride back down was pretty nice too.

Another 2 wheeled addition to the family, say hello to "Cavita".

We recently discovered a unique old vintage (43 years old) style of two wheeled pull behind camper, aptly named the "Campster". After some research and a few classified ads we pulled the trigger on this little gem "Cavita". My wife coined this name after its cave like feel and rounded shape. It is a blend of mostly fiberglass on a steel frame with a center pop-up roof for the stand up cooking area which adds to the venting process. The weather was perfect for her maiden voyage to Mt. Timpanogos park.

Not even 10 feet long on the inside but compared to the back of my 98 Taco very comfortable and easy towing.

Not a bad view for her first trip under new management, and she can hold 2 bikes inside. Battery operated Christmas lights..........not included.

Room to stand, cook, eat, sleep and enjoy coffee out your back door.
The 2 bikes weren't just for looks we actually heard that Sundance Mountain has some really fun singletrack so after breakfast we drove down the road to the base of Sundance ski area.

Turns out they also have lift-served biking with a Swiss Apls feel to it!

Like most ski areas in Utah and surrounding mountain states, it is as lush as can be.

Wouldn't be complete without a little pedaling, just don't forget to look at the scenery.

Archies basin is a fun little loop around the southern boundary of Sundance Mountain Resort complete with the Timpanogos range in your rear view mirror.

Let's  see, lush singletrack, big mountain snow capped views and street tacos with your favorite honey. Yum!

Moab, cause everybodies doin it Memorial day weekend!

Never traveled to the bustling area of Moab over Memorial day weekend and I probably won't do it again either. The friends were great (they saved us a spot) the weather was awesome (sun, clouds, a little rain) and the trails (Gemini Bridges, Gold Bar Rim, Poison Spider) were grippy and uncrowded, but the crowds..............................WOW......................and traffic........................ (I'll show you later).
It wouldn't be Moab without a shelf road to somewhere beautiful. This was our morning commute to the Gemini Bridges, Gold Bar Rim loop and it never disappoints. We are headed up to the cliff line, upper right hand corner just below the clouds.

 If you look just above my wifes head you can see the ridgeline where we started in the previous photo.

Yes, that's a pretty big drop over the edge and you can see all the way to Green River 30 miles north.

It is hard to get the feeling with just one view so here is a look back from a pretty safe spot.

 This is looking towards the Colorado river, the La Sal mountains (fresh snow) and the edge of Moab.

That is a fracture in the rock and the yellow paint spots mark the Gold Bar rim to Portal trail mountain bike segment.

This new play area was off the Poison Spider named "where eagles dare", all slick rock.

Another one I would not want to pedal.

My wife working on her 1/4 pipe skills.

Found this ole-brown swimmin hole at the end of Poison Spider.

Same hole-different angle: It wouldn't be complete if I was'nt in one photo.

Thanks to our new dirtbike friend Lou for getting the camp spot mid-week so we could all spread our dirt bikes over the desert floor. Yes, I see at least 13 tents here.

That's my wife wrenching on her rear tire (foam insert) only to end up stuffing an old t-shirt in the space to fill the void. It's a tech-thing.

Monday was our easier ride/travel day so we opted for the Sovereign trails and once again.......uncrowded.

The traffic from the pass at Soldier summit really hit us 8 miles from the mouth of Spanish fork where this photo was taken at an average speed of 3 MPH. 

We couldn't bear the violation of our carbon footprint so we made a rest area on a side road.

Then suddenly we decided to explore the rest of the road to Diamond campground, up and over Hobble creek into Springville.

This is the Red Ledges day use area, a highly recommended stop and how about the Snoopy cloud! We also found a new way back to Salt Lake, should we ever need to avoid another Holiday weekend traffic jam.