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Summer Diary |
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Welcome to the OWA Summer Diary. We try to keep you informed of the day to day goings on at OWA, and the Summer Diary has become the traditional way to keep you in the loop. We make every effort to update things daily in the summer and to keep you informed of interesting events in the winter time, although we do miss from time to time and when groups are out in the field are often out of contact. For photos, visit our photo gallery, accessible with a password from our main page.
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September 06, 2007 |
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After the Camp Eagle Classic mountain bike race Labor day weekend we have headed up to Colorado for some fall groups at Base Camp. It is a great time to be in the Tarryalls with few people and spectacular weather, the nights are very cool and the days pleasant. We have a group coming to enjoy some rafting, experiential learning & team building, possibly rock climbing, and backcountry travel that includes a self navigated group peak ascent in which the guides will just tag along and allow the group to make their own routefinding and decisions. It is still a busy time for OWA with groups at Base Camp and in Texas this fall, many of our clients are seeking out OWA because of our small group and hands on approach to guiding. We are teaching many adventure lifestyle skills including how to pack for backcountry travel, orienteering with a map and compass as well as a GPS, tackling difficult mountain bike terrain, and my personal favorite climbing!
-James Faerber
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September 18, 2007 |
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The last night we were in Colorado we decided the take a break from all the work we had been doing and go CLIMBING! We only had a few hours of daylight so we headed for Valley of the Chickens (named for the Chicken head type features that protrude from the rock) it is a favorite area to take groups because of the unique and challenging nature of the rock. Joining us were OWA vet and former OWA work crew Ryan Dorsey and Matthew Mckinley both Woodland Park locals who have been helping out around Bison Peak and with OWA groups this fall. Ryan and Matt are in Peru and Bolivia climbing right now and checking out the routes on Huayna Potosi that OWA ascends during our Bolivia expeditions. The duo decided to try some hard overhanging sport routes over the right on the main wall, after a few good leads and a trip up on top rope all four of us were tired and ready for dinner, the problem was it was almost dark and we hadn't started cooking yet. So we did what any herbivore would do, we stopped at Dave Appleton's Tarryall Mountain Farm and picked fresh vegetebles and ate them DIRECTLY from the ground it was an awesome way to end the trip and an unforgettable dinner!!
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October 07, 2007 |
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Team OWA Single Speed rides again! This past weekend several familiar OWA faces were in Austin so we had to plan a mountain bike ride. We met mid morning and took a little time to tune bikes, get coordinated and ride. Right in the middle of Austin there is a fantastic green space called the Barton Creek Greenbelt or just Greenbelt for short. It is a myriad of trails, crags (vertical rock walls great for rock climbing) and of course-- water. The trail gets technical right off the bat and has a deep water crossing about 2 miles just in time to cool you off. We had a nice size group and everyone was riding well even a few folks brand new to mountain biking. Longtime OWA friends the Starkeys were excited to show us a few of the lesser known side trails that dart off from the main trails. Many of these side trails were more technical, physically demanding with longer trickier climbs, and steep drops. BMC pro-racer and OWA Guide Alumni Dave Galvin was in attendance and encouraged everyone by riding a slippery water crossing and a rarely ridden loose uphill. OWA senior guide Ryan Sullivan was preparing for a trip to Copper Canyon and rode the technical sections with ease while giving tips to the new riders. Q was out sick but showed up in the morning for a few minutes and helped with bicycle tuning. OWA founder David Appleton was there riding at the front of the group all day and encouraging Tom Music to bring his friends back to check out the Greenbelt later in the week. It was an awesome ride and great to see everyone and make a few new friends.
There is another mountain bike race on the schedule for Oct 13-14, let us know if youre going to be there and watch for the orange OWA jerseys.
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November 05, 2007 |
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This fall has been really great, with several motivated groups in the Texas Hill Country. We have been spending lots of time in the Hunt, TX area leading groups on backpacking, climbing and mountain biking trips. The variety of terrain and expansive spaces in this part of Texas make for an excellent adventure destination. This past weekend we taught some basic GPS navigation and did a small Geocaching event in the backcountry. It was cool to see people who just gained the skills to locate a GPS coordinate have such great success by finding the caches. OWA directors, guides, & team members have had a good success in personal challenges ranging from mountain bike racing & climbing competitions, to peak climbing and more&&&&check out the NEWS to learn more. Several of our Youth Adventure weekends are coming up send an email or call if you would like to sign up.
Sincerly, James
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December 10, 2007 |
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For those of you in the San Antonio area you may have noticed an interesting article in the travel section today. The piece Vertical Pilgrims was written by Jamie McNally, friend and OWA parent for many years. Jamie is currently the main climbing partner of OWA director James Faerber whose photo appeared on the front page of the article. By following the link you should be able to read the full text of the article, although after the San Antonio Express changes its content the link may chang-- so you may have to search the site to find the article.
Enjoy
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December 31, 2007 |
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Approaching the New Year is always exciting! OWA has many New Years resolutions as I am sure many of you do. We hope to find some adventures as we travel this spring guiding in Mexico, Texas, Colorado and Bolivia. We will also be on the road visiting some of you and presenting slideshows about the OWA adventure programs. See You Out There!!!
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January 22, 2008 |
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OWA guide Matt McKinley is in Argentina making an attempt on the Polish Glacier route on Aconcagua the highest peak in the Western Hemisphere. They plan to spend nearly 3 weeks in Argentina acclimatizing and preparing for the climb which they hope to do alpine style going up and over coming down another route. We wish him the best of luck!
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March 03, 2008 |
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There is plenty of snow in the Tarryalls this year, having just returned from Colorado and visiting the basecamp area I was recently reminded of all the fun to be had in the mountains during the winter. With a brief break from a busy travel schedule on the Camp trail I was able to enjoy a half-day of ice climbing with Colorado locals and OWA guides Matt Mckinley and Ryan Dorsey. We travelled to an area outside Fairplay, Co often visited by OWA during alpine climbing trips near Mount Lincoln. We climbed the now frozen Lincoln Falls in 2 long pitches going around WI 3+ it was an excellent lead by Matt placing several screws as protection while climbing the ice. I found a short vertical route to the right of the main falls that wasn't nearly as long for a lead, it was my first time on ice in 2 years (due to avalanche conditions on a Utah trip last year I didn't climb any ice last winter). We had a great day and got really excited for alpine climbing again! I am now back in Texas warming up despite the rain and planning to be at Enchanted Rock this weekend with the great folks from American Leadership Forum. OWA Climbing guide and University of Texas student Will McDonald is planning on heading south this weekend for some climbing on the amazing limestone spires of El Potrero Chico.
Until next time, James
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March 25, 2008 |
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We have had a really great spring! We have seen many of you out on the Camp trail, at slideshow or and out on enjoying something adventurous. I have had the opportunity to climb in Colorado and New Hampshire as well as several great days at Enchanted Rock, TX this last month. There was plenty of snow and ice both in Colorado and New Hampshire which helped me get really excited for our first program of the summer The Colorado Mountaineering trip. We have several team members already signed up with a few more spots available on this limited trip. Climbing peaks and mountains in the Colorado rockies is an truly a climbing experience like no other. The conditions will ultimately dictate our objectives but we plan to climb both Bald Mountain and Mt. Guyot both peaks are over thirteen thousand feet. April is sure to be a busy month with a trip to Copper Canyon followed by some days at Enchanted Rock before beginning to pack for the move to the summer OWA office in Colorado for the summer and open the Bison Peak Lodge in preparation to see all of you.
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April 07, 2008 |
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We are currently in Copper Canyon Mexico enjoying some of the finest mountain biking on the planet, the trails here are truly world class and have provided us with the opportunity to visit several different climates and ecosystems as we ride in Creel, La Bufa, and Batopilas. The trip intinerary includes a short section of the Silver Trail that we are looking forward to riding today. If you have had difficulty with our online registration system it was down for a day or two but is working fine again, Chelsea is checking and responding to emails for OWA and I am checking in by internet when I can from Creel.
From Mexico, James OWA Director
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April 29, 2008 |
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The last few weeks have been a blur as we travel to various locals in Texas and Mexico guiding rock climbing groups and meeting new people (as well as some OWA team members and friends). We had several groups at Enchanted Rock and were able to hang out with the Silverman family and do a bit of rock climbing with them. We have also visited West Texas and climbed on the awesome volcanic tuft that surrounds the infamous town of Marfa, TX. The West Texas trip led to a rare day off for OWA directors James and Chelsea Faerber as well as OWA guide Ryan Dorsey who made the most of the day to do a couple of First Ascents and then some bolted routes on the formation known by climbers as Point of Rocks just outside Fort Davis, TX. We are excited for the yearly pilramage north to Colorado and look forward to climbing some rock and ice as soon as we arrive. May is bound to be busy as we prepare for the summer camp programs and guide a group from a school in the Denver area. Viva Chihuahua!
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