Written last weekend, from Switzerland’s Zurich airport:
Ice climbing in Iceland (to prep for my Mont
Blanc climb in France this June with Aaron, Fleur, and Manu and my Mount Hood
climbs in March) got pushed back a bit.
The reason: It turns out Delta’s
inaugural New York-Reykjavik flight wasn’t scheduled to launch until last
Thursday… Not enough time to make it home for my work shift tomorrow. Another family visit to South Africa was ruled
out, as well.
Zurich: Me and Bo, after climbing the stairs up to the south steeple of Grossmunster cathedral
Rather than hang around the house for 6 ½ days, my dad and I flew to Switzerland for a few days. Apologies to my buddies in Italy and Switzerland who have been asking about getting together while I’m in the region. Next time!
Bo and I flew standby and got Delta's Business Elite cabin seats on
the overseas flight from New York to Switzerland, hiked and toured the snowy
Zurich area, and are now about to fly back home to the U.S. in Business Elite
seats again!
A photo posted by Garth Hamilton (@garth_hamilton) on
I’ll Instagram some Switzerland photos and share some
stories on Garth’s Blog when we get back to the States. I also penned a few upcoming adventure blog
posts while we‘ve been overseas, with pics to be added.
Next time we’re in the region, little Lena and Levi are
gonna love feasting on the Alps!
Up next…
“Just Read” book reviews of:
“Pride and Prejudice and Zombies,”
“Star Wars: Aftermath,” and other new canon Star Wars novels!
Photo: Goofing around on my birthday Mount Shasta climb last month-- Story and photos from our climb, and other recent outdoor expeditions, are coming soon!
A photo posted by Garth Hamilton (@garth_hamilton) on
Baby Levi's U.S. passport should arrive any week now. Now that the spring/summer hiking and climbing season is slowing down, it's time once again to get the Hamiltons out and about. And of course, that includes our occasional quick trips overseas!
Studying for my "Big Church" sermons has kept me too occupied to update this blog recently (or participate in the annual Triple D hiking event with NW Wilderness last weekend!). I'll be back after my preaching to blog about some about some of the recent outdoor events that I've lead.
But for now... not in any chronological order, here are just a few upcoming trips on the horizon for us in early fall:
1. Destination unknown: Europe, South America, or Asia
Lena's very first overseas trip, to Spain
Whenever Levi's passport gets here, his first international journey will be ready for him. And lil' Lena is way past due for her next overseas jaunt. Her 4th birthday is next week!
2. Waterfall rappelling, Take 2 (Undisclosed location)
A photo posted by Garth Hamilton (@garth_hamilton) on
Both caution and a tight timeline got the best of Katya and me when we trekked out and geared up for this last month. Once again, we'll need to commit to the entire canyoneering route after rappelling the first of the waterfalls... With no escape options until we complete the circuit, the first rappel will mark a point of no return.
If I can finish enough of my sermon prep this week, we may head out into the wilderness again on Friday for a second shot at this canyoneering thrill ride. Rope and harnesses ready!
3. Australia
Several years have passed since we last went Down Under for hiking, caving, and surfing. And it just so happens that my parents will soon be exploring Australia for a few weeks. Hmm, I wonder if I'll run into them?
4. Banks Lake, WA- camping/boating
Was there any doubt we'd be making an appearance at our family's annual Banks Lake camping trip this month? Wakeboarding, waterskiing, and tubing are much more enjoyable in those warmer waters.
5. Salt Lake City- Delta Airline's Velvet 360 event
It was an honor to be asked to represent PDX at Delta's upcoming two-day event in Utah. According to previous Velvet 360 guests, it looks to be quite a unique opportunity.
6. Italy-France-- Mont Blanc climb
My recent daytrip to Italy was only long enough to visit a couple of friends. I'm hoping to string together a few days soon for another, more extended weekend. But like fall, Mont Blanc's weather conditions are a wild card so late in the climbing season.
If not a climb, then we'll just throw one of our usual Italian get-togethers. This overseas trip will be another quickie, but those are always worth it!
7. Middle Sister climb [New! Added 9-15]
Some of our mountaineering crew from last month's Mount Shasta climb are headed south again, this time to the relatively local Central Oregon. The date is set. We're still working out the details, but it's looking like a drive-camp-climb-summit-descent... all squeezed into two days. Only Sam.
