2019 Autumn visit to Montana

I’ve just returned from an autumn trip to Lone Mountain Ranch in Big Sky, MT.  I had a wonderful visit trotting to the crest of scenic overlooks on horseback and chasing brown trout in the Madison River system.  Fall is a great time to visit Big Sky and Yellowstone National Park.  Despite -4 temperatures and…

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2019 Quebec City and Maritime Mountains

Andy and I just returned from Quebec after a week-long trip.  We started in Quebec City, where we enjoyed Old World charm and the opulence of Chateau Frontenac in the Old City.  We then headed to the Gaspe Peninsula, five hours east along the shore of the saline St. Lawrence River. We spent two nights…

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Skiing and climbing in Banff National Park

My eleven-year-old son Reid and I just returned from a great trip to Alberta.  We enjoyed opulence at the Banff Springs Hotel and a meter of fresh powder at Ski Big 3 (Norquay, Ski Sunshine and Lake Louise).  We managed to take a day from skiing to ice climb, which Reid did for his first…

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fly fishing for lake trout, grayling in Manitoba

I just returned from an incredible trip fishing for pike, lake trout and arctic grayling out of Manitoba, Canada’s 5-star remote lodge, The Lodge at Little Duck. The fishing was stellar, with 50 fish days, landing 39″ lakers on a 10 weight fly rod.  The lake also held northern pike and the river trophy arctic…

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Yosemite father-son mountaineering and more

Andy Irwin, 13, and I just returned from Yosemite.  We had a fabulous experience.  The valley is so congested in the summer that we limited our time there to an afternoon.  Later we explored the Sequoias in Mariposa Grove, Glacier Point, and then headed to the backcountry via Tuolumne.  We hiked 7.1 miles into the…

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Bradford Camps, Maine, 2018

My father and I just returned from the Bradford Camps in northern Maine. A turn-of-the-century sporting camp, these camps have been in constant operation since the 1890’s.  Igor Skiorsky, III (bush pilot and grandson on the inventor of the modern helicopter, among other things) and his wife Karen own the camps.  Opulent meals, tight daily…

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Canadian Rockies, 2017

My longtime climbing partner, Conrad Yager and I just returned from the Canadian Rockies.  We struck out to climb the Bugaboo Spires, but alas the park was closed due to forest fires.  So we sought out Athabasca 2 on the border of Jasper Park.  An alpine start, two glaciers and 1000 vert of scree later,…

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Squaretails and Polar Bears, Hudson Bay, Manitoba

I just returned from the subarctic shores of Hudson Bay, where I was part of a development trip to explore the many rivers in the region.  The goal is to develop a helicopter fishing opportunity, but first we needed to determine if these rivers indeed held thick populations of sea run brook trout, as we…

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The Greatest Mountain, Katahdin, Maine

July 13th, 2016.  Baxter Peak, Maine.  My son Andrew and I struck out to attempt Maine’s highest peak via the Cathedrals, a third-class mountaineering route best described by my son as “exposed.”  We took three days for this adventure, camping at the Chimney Pond Bunkhouse.  Clouds shrouded the summit on our bid day but this…

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