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Mounts Jefferson and Hollowtop As we reached the top of the peak the cloud mass that had already built to the north closed in on us: there would be no views. It was late summer 1984, Terry and I were out with Cindy and Peter, another couple of Bozemanite buddies. We had made it to Hollowtop Lake in the Tobacco Root Range the evening before. I remember the weather as having been stormy, so we never got a good view of peaks in the area; now that we were on top, we didn’t have a

Sperry Chalet with Lincoln Peak (center) “Look they stuffed another mountain in over there,” was a common refrain in the years I spent...

Outside Bozeman, Fall 2025. They changed the name--I prefer "Chasing John Colter," but they left the rest of the story pretty much as I...

Leaving Landmannalaugar As was often the case, Oolav was angry. He was the high priest of the elves living around Landmannalaugar in the...

Runners heading south down the shoulder of Naya-Nuki Early morning, August 9, 2025. Runners are making final preparations for the 40th...

West ridge of Hyalite Canyon in early morning light The peak of summer is slow in coming and doesn’t last long in the Montana high...

I first ran the Devil’s Backbone Relay, an event put on by the Big Sky Wind Drinkers, in July 2021. I ran it north to south, from Hyalite...

Pre-race instructions In a race like Old Gabe, put on by the Big Sky Wind Drinkers in mid-June each year, I have to believe that our...

Atop Baldy with Forest This is more introspective and melancholier than what I usually write; just mixing it up a bit. I never wanted to...

Mount Baldy looms left of center in the background The Baldy Blitz, has a 30ish-year history.  The Blitz is a race up and back down Mount...

February, in Bozeman, is my favorite time of winter.  It is cold; the chill is inescapable.  The world is white; the land is buried;...

Gallatin Peak from Summit Lake October 12, 2024: We grunted our way up to the high ridge on Gallatin Peak.  It was me, my son-in-law,...

The current was strong; I held onto the clothesline that had been strung across the river to aid our crossings.  The river got deeper...

Mt Brown lookout Ed and I stepped off the trail to let the mountain goat pass by.  We were high up on Mount Brown in Glacier National...

Is it for the long ride in pre-dawn darkness on a chill August morn?  Is it the anticipation as we wait for the start?  Is it the...

There are three approaches to Granite Peak, none of them are short, none of them are easy.  At 12,799 feet, Granite is Montana’s highest...

Every distance running race is intense in its own way.  I used to race half-marathons on city streets.  In those races I ran hard on...

Those who line up at one of the many trail races around here will notice the crowd of 20, 30, 40, and even 50-year-olds milling about at...

View looking down Hyalite Canyon The Hyalites have always been one of my favorite outdoor venues around Bozeman. I have long considered...

The Ridge Run is now behind me. The intensive training is over. It’s time to use all this fitness I’ve earned and play. I’ve gotten...