Big Wall Nuts' Worst-Case Survival

Entry #1: How to get a cashier's check in under 24 hours

Here's the situation: it's 4:30 PM and you just found out that the $1300 security deposit you need to pay tomorrow morning has to be a money order or a cashier's check. You're 2000 miles away from the nearest branch of your (once) local credit union. They're on the east coast and are closed. You have $200 cash in pocket.

You quickly misread a Wikipedia page and think money orders only go up to $1000. You realize that most banks won't let you open an account without an in-state license or at least an in-state address.

Here's what to do:

1. Look online to find a nearby bank that is open until 6 PM.


2. Go to an ATM and take out $500.


3. Have your wife take out $500.


4. Take out another few hundred on a credit card (ouch).


5. Walk into the bank half an hour before they close with an inch-stack of 20's in your hand.


6. Explain that you want to open an account and get a cashier's check the next morning.


7. IMPORTANT: Try not to look like a criminal!

So far so good. Now we need to see if the property management company will stick to their word tomorrow and let us move in.

Boulder Creek Path

We went for a nice run this morning.

This is our bear detour hike from yesterday.

What Would Bear Grylls Do?

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So I promised some more exciting stories and hopefully this will suffice...



Aside from apartment hunting and being completely exhausted, we have managed to do a few fun things in Boulder. Thursday night after we got in (and saw house #1 for rent) we went to Whole Foods for dinner. They have a great salad bar! Then we went to Neptune Mountaineering for a presentation on sacred mountains and glaciers of the Himalaya. It was somewhat interesting, but the presenter had a lot of great pictures.

Friday morning I went running through town. It was awesome to see the mountains every time I turned west. Friday night was our first visit to the Pearl Street Mall (open air mall with shops, restaurants, and performers--think Quincy Market area). We also had dinner at a Himalayan restaurant--good Indian and Nepalese cuisine.

So then comes Saturday morning. We thought we would go for a morning hike before doing work and apartment hunting related things. So, we picked out a good trail that went along the base of the Flatirons and Boulder Mountain Parks. The Mesa Trail is not terribly difficult, but it does connect Chautauqua Park to Eldorado Park 6.1 miles away. We hiked for about 2 hours going south until we got a good view of Devil's Thumb. We turned around and started walking back.





As we turned the corner at Bear Canyon we were 50 feet from a 300 pound black bear. So, we started walking backwards (never run away from a bear because they'll case you!) to get out of his way. We warned some other hikers that he was in the neighborhood and waited for a while with a man and his two young sons. Another party coming up from the trail told us that the bear was drinking at the creek and it was probably safe to pass him on the trail. So, we started walking back down the trail and there he was again, lumbering up the trail going for a stroll. Again, we walked backwards and got out of his (or her?) way. Not taking any chances, we opted for a side trail to avoid the area. When we got to a more main trail we saw a pick up truck with two rangers heading towards Bear Canyon. Hopefully they were just there to direct people around the bear, and not for a EMS mission. Our re-routing got us on a different trail and so we needed to go a round-about way back to the car. We ended up at NCAR and explored their lobby/museum. Five hours from the time we started, we returned to the trail head. We did take a moment to talk to the rangers and ask about the habits of black bears. Apparently in the fall they will actually make it to the parking lot or people's homes looking for food so they need to shoot them with rubber bullets or tranquilize them.

So, the question of the day, is what would Bear Grylls do? Would he just have backed up slowly? Would he have sprayed the bear with specially formulated bear spray? What do you think?

The Apartment Scenario

So many of you reading are probably wondering if we have somewhere to live. Well, the short answer is no. We're in a hotel and more than likely we'll be here for another couple of days. For the long answer, see below.

About a week ago we found a great place 2 blocks from Pearl Street (downtown) in a stand-alone 2-bedroom house. Our realtor looked at it and gave it her approval. So, we sent in applications, fees, and deposits. The credit check went through and it looked like we were all set...until last Thursday, that is. We were talking to our contact at the property management company confirming all the details when she said the move in date was July 6th. It had been advertised the whole time as July 1st so this was a problem. We got in touch with the actual owner and he said he would see if the tenants could move out earlier, etc., etc. By Monday we hadn't heard anything so we called the owner back. This time he told us it was available August 6th. Needless to say this is not going to work for us. So, we drove out here as fast as we could so we could start looking at the small selection of apartments available for immediate occupancy.

All day Friday we looked at places. We probably saw 8 places all over Boulder. None of the apartments really excited us. The last place we saw was in the best location (9 blocks from Pearl and in the heart of North Boulder) so we kind of jumped at it. In retrospect, that was probably not the best idea. Dan and I both woke up at 5:00 this morning thinking that we would never get our stuff to fit in a 900 square foot apartment (it is a strange layout as well). So after much debating I think we've decided to go with a bigger place further east and try to get our deposit back on the small place. Unfortunately, the management group for this place is not in the office at all on the weekend, so we will need to be at their office first thing Monday morning. And so the saga continues....

We're Here

Well, we made it to Boulder. We're homeless and exhausted, but we're here. Hopefully there will be more to write about soon.

Oh, and Iowa blows...literally.

Stuff

Overview map

According to the ABF tracking website, our stuff is in Dayton, OH.

Tornado watch in Iowa

We have about 784 cubic feet of stuff.

Tuesday morning the truck was picked up. We did the final walk-through at 12 Walnut. Made the last 3 hotdogs that were in the freezer for lunch, finished the chocolate ice cream (had to eat it with our fingers because the spoons were packed). About noon we locked up the house and started driving.

We stopped in Binghamton to see Matt and Bobbi, their son Kieran, and their new baby boy Gabe. It was good to see them again, it's been a while! We had dinner at a good Italian place called Grande. Then back on the road until about midnight, stopped in Chautauqua, NY.

Wednesday morning we were back on the road by 9am. Got out of NY, into PA for a bit, straight through OH, IN, and IL. Entered IA. Most of eastern Iowa is flooded, there was a road by UIowa that we couldn't go down because it was under water. Stopped in Iowa city for dinner at Perkin's, then back on the road.

There were some amazing storm clouds and lots of lightening. We got to hear what the Emergency Broadcast System sounds like when it isn't just a test. There were tornado warnings in two or three counties north and northwest of us, and severe thunderstorm warnings just about everywhere, the radio said quarter-sized hail was possible. We heard one quarter bounce off the roof of the Echo, will have to check out what kind of a dent we have in the morning.

We expect to be in Boulder tomorrow in time for the talk at Neptune. Then Friday and Saturday we'll start looking for a place to live, since the place we were going to stay fell through... when I talked to the owner on Monday he basically said "Oops, did I say it would be available July 6th? I meant August 6th."

It's Really Happening...

The house is empty, the truck is packed, and we're almost ready to go. Dan and I both need to go to work Monday and then it's off to Binghamton, NY Tuesday afternoon to see Matt, Bobbi, Kieran and Gabe.



We ordered an ABF truck Thursday afternoon and it was delivered to our driveway where it's been loaded up for the last three days. Doesn't Dan look like he's having fun?



Tonight we had a lot of friends over to say good bye. It was really fun to see everyone and eat pizza and drink beer. We have some many great friends here in Massachusetts that we're going to miss a lot. Hopefully they'll all come visit some day.

The next post will be from the road. Stay tuned...

Oh, I almost forgot to mention a hike we did a few weeks ago. For my birthday weekend Dan, John and I were supposed to go up to Maine to hike Mount Katahdin. Unfortunately, the weather was not cooperating so we decided to do a local hike Friday afternoon. We went to the Blue Hills Reservation and hike almost the entire Skyline Trail, for a total of about 16 miles in 6.25 hours (yes, we're crazy). John told us tonight that even his backpacking buddies think we're nuts (this is quite a compliment) so now we're really going to have to find the ultimate hike when John visits us in Boulder. Perhaps part of the Continental Divide or Longs Peak.

What's so special about Boulder?

That's the question everybody asks. To get a flavor, read this New York Times piece: Twenty-Five Square Miles Surrounded by Reality.

On June 25th we close on our house and start driving west!

The Week's End

Friday morning we decided to go on a short hike...hah! We walked to the back of the lodge's property onto the Betasso Preserve. We followed game paths up to the loop trail which as about 3 miles. It was a fun hike, but it wasn't a quick one. After three hours we finally were able to navigate our way back to the lodge. Those deer really need to mark their trails a bit better, let me tell you!

For lunch it was off to one of Boulder's main tourist attractions: The Dashanbe Tea House. Not only was it absolutely gorgeous, but we got to sit at a cool table where we needed to take off our shoes and sit cross-legged and the food was outstanding! This is definitely one of our new Boulder favorites. After dessert it was off to the movies to see In Bruges. We loved it!

Before heading back to the lodge for a quiet evening, we browsed the shops of Pearl Street and stopped in the chocolate and wine bar for some goodies.

On Saturday Laurel started the morning off with a run while Dan adjusted our flight and car rental plans. Before heading to the Denver Airport we hit Chatauqua Park for a quick hike at the base of the Flatirons. They were still awe-inspiring even after tackling one this summer. Our flight was uneventful and we arrived in Boston to lots of snow on the ground (and the car).

Hiking in Eldorado State Park

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We tried hiking the Rattlesnake Gulch Trail but it was too icy. We stayed on the Fowler Trail instead and kept going when it ended. Check out our path. We saw a train and an aqueduct on Eldorado Mountain. Saw some deer along the way too.



Dinner tonight was at Tandoori Grill, then we walked over to Neptune to hear Evan Ravitz talk about a gigante canyon in Mexico.

Monarch

Thankfully, Dan was feeling better today so we got to ski in true alpine country. After a morning swim and a dip in the outdoor hot tub (What is it with outdoor hot tubs? I just don't get it.) we headed back up to Monarch Pass to ski. Now, the Pass is at nearly 11,000ft and can be treacherous to drive through. The mountain goes up from the Pass to 12,000ft. Fortunately, the weather was good this morning and actually quite warm--perfect for skiing.



Typically Monarch sees 350" of snow annually. We were told by several locals that they've already seen twice as much as normal for this time of year. There are no snow making machines and packed powder everywhere. Dan was skiing through the trees and making his own trails. However, the coolest part about this mountain was that the top of it, reached by the Panorama Lift, was on the Continental Divide. The views were breathtaking. We skied for almost 5 hours before we decided to call it quits.

Then we were back on the road, headed for Boulder. The drive took over three hours through more beautiful terrain. We checked into the Boulder Mountain Lodge and were assigned to the same room we stayed in this summer! Quelle coincidence! For dinner we went into town and tried Cafe Gondolier for homemade spaghetti and thin crust pizza. Tomorrow is Dan's pick for grub...

Hip, hip, Ouray!

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Day two of our ice climbing adventure started a little later this morning. We met Melanie and Ryan for a leisurely breakfast and then headed out for the ice park. Today we stuck to moderate, but long, climbs at the School House section and then below the lower bridge. The climbs were all a good 100 feet, my guess would be WI4 or so. We climbed until we couldn't climb any more and returned the gear around 3:30.



This picture shows the last two climbs we did (where the rope is and the climb to the left):



Back on the road we saw some amazing landscapes with the sun setting on the snow and the full moon lighting the white mountainsides. We finally got into Monarch at around 7:00. The Monarch Pass is the highest point on highway 50 at over 11,000ft. On the way out Sunday there was a veritable snow storm as we drove through. Tonight, though, it was clear and much easier to drive. We're saying at the Monarch Mountain Lodge and hope to get some swimming and skiing (downhill) in tomorrow based on how Dan feels. Poor guy is still fighting bronchitis and a wicked head cold.

We will post more pictures when we get a better wireless connection!

Ice climbing in Ouray!

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Yeah. Laurel talked me into it :)

So here's the story (for those who care to read it....)
So, we’re back! Colorado sure looks different in the snow (the parts that have snow, that is.) We flew into the Springs late Saturday night and stayed with Melanie and Ryan. Laurel went running in Pinon Park Sunday morning with Pike’s Peak in the background. Dan was sick when we left Saturday, so he spent Sunday morning in bed.

After some TheraFlu, we hit the road west for Ouray. Though it snowed in the Springs Sunday morning, the first half of the drive was dry and the evergreen-spotted hills and valleys looked the same as they did in August. However, once we got up to Monarch Pass (11,000 feet) the scenery changed drastically. Everything leading up to the pass and just about everything (150 miles) past the pass were drenched in white, fluffy snow. The draw to snowshoe or ski or even sled was unbelievable. For hours it looked as though we were driving through a postcard.

We stopped in Gunnison for some lunch at “The Bean.” A fun café that we visited in August en route to Leadville and Mount Elbert. We arrived in Ouray at about 5:00 and walked around the very cute, old West-type Main Street. Ouray has a population of 600 people and is surrounded by mountains. Apparently, it is very popular in the summer with tourists and the winter it is a haven to ice climbers. The best place in town is a chocolate shop called Mouse’s. We’ve sampled a number of their tasty items! Dinner was at a bakery with Ryan and Melanie and some open-mic performers.

Monday

Ice climbing, here we come!



After a quick breakfast we met our guide, Kevin, at the San Juan Mountain Guides office on Main Street. Dan was complaining about how early 7:30 was. We got fit for boots, crampons, and ice axes and headed to the ice park. Ouray Ice Park is a not-for-profit outdoor ice climbing gym. Almost all the routes are bolted for top ropes and the ice is farmed every day. That’s right, ice farmers. There are people who have re-routed part of the river that goes through town and are able to open valves above each climb to create the ice. The ice is farmed almost every afternoon around 4:00 to create optimal conditions.



Kevin showed us the basics of ice climbing and set up a number of climbs. We started on what’s called WI3 (water ice 3, or say a 5.6 in rock climbing terms—beginner stuff). It was cold in the canyon in the morning but when the sun hit us, the temperature easily rose 15-20 degrees and warm us right up. We progressed to WI4s and moved into another part of the South Park region of the park. Laurel got to climb a mixed climb which means ice and rock in one route. The ice axe fits in rock crevices and offers amazing leverage, even with crampons attached to one’s boots.



At the end of the afternoon Kevin put us on a WI4+ and then Laurel successfully, but not cleanly, ascended a WI5 (5.10 equivalent) that had a number of overhanging sections. On the way out, we ran into Malcolm Daly (owner of Trango) before hitting the road. When we got back to the hotel we were brave enough to venture to the outdoor hot tubs for a dip. Crazy Dan ran barefoot back to the room when we were done.



Dinner with Melanie and Ryan was at an Irish Pub and then Mouse’s, of course! On the way back to the Vic we saw two deer on the sidewalk right in town. Then, they actually followed the cross walk signs and crossed the road at the crosswalk! What smart deer! It was an early night for all four of us.

What's new? White Mountains!

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Laurel has been running and biking a lot in the past months. Dan hasn't been doing much of anything. We haven't climbed in weeks. So it was about time for a big hiking/climbing weekend.

On Saturday we hiked in the White Mountains with John. The plan was to climb Sunday at Rumney but the rain sent us home early. We still had a fantastic hike though!



We parked at the Flume Visitor Center and around 9:15 started our hike. We headed up to the Flume Slide Trail. The trail was fairly flat but then got super steep -- 1500' elevation gain in half a mile. That's steeper than Gunnison in CO! After 3-4 miles of hiking we summited Mt. Flume and could see the peaks of Lincoln and Lafayette in the distance, 5 miles away. Had lunch and checked out the topo.





Next stop was Liberty where we had great views back of Flume:



and views across the valley to the great cliffs of Cannon Mountain:



From Liberty it was a few miles to Little Haystack and then Lincoln. It was neat hiking along the ridge, the views and exposure were spectacular. We started to see some rain in the west but it looked pretty light so we decided to continue on towards Lafayette.

Lafayette was the high point of the day (literally) at 5260'. From the top we could see most of the peaks we had traversed. In the other direction the Cannon ski slopes were visible.



3:20 PM was earlier than we expected to summit but there was still a long way to go so we continued down the shoulder of the mountain towards the Greenleaf hut. You can see it in the picture below, with the massive Cannon cliff behind.



Pretty soon on our descent it started to rain so we put away the camera and pulled out the rain gear. It wasn't that bad except we got stuck behind a line of 50 people all being held up by some oblivious people in front. Clearly the kind of people that drive really slow in the ultrafast lane. Finally we got to pass and could make some progress. We made it to the campground by dusk but at that point still had 3 miles to go. Luckily the trail was a paved bike trail that was fairly flat. Around 7:15 we were back at the car. 15 miles in 10 hours, not too bad!

John took us to this great local restaurant for dinner and then we headed home. It was raining heavily as we drove by Rumney, so camping and climbing would not have been any fun.

One week later...

Not on vacation anymore but we're making do. Laurel ran last Sunday, Dan joined her for some running on Monday, Friday, and Saturday mornings. Rode bikes and got ice cream on Saturday morning too.

On Saturday Donna and JJ got married!! Happy day.

---

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On Sunday we hiked Mt. Greylock, the highest peak in MA (3491'). We got a late start in the morning, so we intended to go straight to the Cheshire Harbor trailhead but got a little lost and ended up at the visitors' center instead. So finally at 3:40 we started our hike... we were a little concerned about daylight but luckily it only took an hour and a half to reach the summit. We checked out the lighthouse and looked out at neighboring mountains and New England states before starting the hour long hike back. It was a fun hike.

Still not sure why there is a lighthouse on the top of a mountain that is 100s of miles from the ocean.



This Thoreau quote carved in rock is quite apropos to our previous months' adventures:

Map of Return Trip

For those of you who are interested, here is a map of our return trip. We left Salt Lake City for Moab, UT; then Gunnison, CO; Leadville, CO; Colorado Springs, CO. Then is was off to Hayes, KS; Oklahoma City, OK; Little Rock, AR; Memphis, TN; St. Louis, MO; Indianapolis, IN; Columbus, OH; Washington, D.C.; New Jersey; and then home.

Day 44, walstib

This is Really The End, because tomorrow Dan goes back to work. Weird.

Dan's parents came up today to say happy birthday. Dan and his dad fixed the leaky toilet, Laurel and his mom picked blueberries and made a delicious dinner.

We finally got to see the Simpson's movie and got some ice cream afterward.

Here's a short trip tally (yes, I'm ripping off Brian's idea):

• Miles driven: 8677
  
• Gallons of gas guzzled: 420
  
• Average MPG: 20.6
  
• States visited: 28 (+ DC and Ontario)
  
• License plates seen: all 50 states, DC, 5 Indian nations, 7 Canadian provinces, 1 Mexican, 1 European, Diplomat, US Gov
  
• Devil's things found: Overlook, Lake, Tower, Garden, Kitchen, Thumb
  
• Photos taken: 2900+
  
• Photos put up on photo album: 650+
  
• Escape top speed: 100 MPH (on a big downhill in UT)
  
• Escape top elevation: 13185'
  
• Big Wall Nuts top elevation: 14433'
  
• Gear left/lost on the rock: 2 nuts, 1 quickdraw, 1 quicklink

Thanks for tuning in and commenting, it made the trip even more fun. Probably won't be posting anymore, but maybe when we do some local climbing.

Day 43, The End.

Had a great pancake breakfast and then headed out to see Laurel's grandmother in NJ. We had a nice visit and lunch and then took off for home.



We've "lived" out west for long enough now that when we saw the "Welcome to Massachusetts" sign we felt homesick for Colorado.

Finally got home and checked out the water damage. It's a little confusing... the spot is nowhere near the supply or drain lines in the bathroom upstairs. My best guess is that the flashing around the chimney leaked, but that doesn't explain how water got into the bathroom or why there's no evidence of water damage in the bathroom.





Update
Here's the problem:

Day 42, This Old House

Went out to breakfast with Ben, then headed over to his house. It's like a This Old House jobsite. The whole house is torn down to the studs -- no walls or ceilings and there are places were the floors have been torn up too. Ben's got a ton of work to do and the ambition to match. We checked it out for about an hour then drove up to Jersey.

Laurel's cousin Christy just had a baby girl! We spent some time with them then headed further up 295 to Laurel's aunt and uncle's house. Had a good dinner and wine with Janice and Butch and talked to Butch for a while about his adventures.

Heard from a neighbor that our upstairs bathroom leaked and our dining room ceiling is slightly water damaged, so looks like we'll be heading home. Nice that it happened at the end of our trip instead of the beginning.