Living the good life in warm and sunny California

Summer is long gone in Oregon and we had a great time paddling everyday and doing some fun mtn bike rides and a hike or 2. I wanted to show Nikki and Nui Punch Bowl Falls on Eagle creek so we made the 5 mile hike roundtrip to check it out. It was a bit too far for little Nui dog so she spent some time in the backpack where she likes to kick it while we do all the hard work. We got back after dark and it was chilly with fall in the air and the light growing dim early and earlier everyday. Oregon is beautiful and we love hanging out in Hood River during the summer, but the fall is another story so we set our sites on Southern Cali and loaded the van for a fall of waves, work and warm weather. Above is a shot from the Punch Bowl Falls of Eagle Creek near Hood River and the Columbia Gorge. The falls are about 30 feet tall.

Now its been 8 weeks of hanging out down here in Southern California. I must say its very nice. Sunny and 70 virtually everyday. The water is still in the mid 60's so surfing in a spring suit and even just surf trunks is totally doable. Looking forward to getting back up North and into some snow soon and then off to HI for the month of December. Nikki and I are working on a lot of different projects but all of which involve stand up paddling in some way. I am putting the final touches on a dvd I am producing with a friend of mine called "The Ultimate Guide to Standup Paddling". We are stoked to get this project finished and then start brainstroming on the next one. Nikki will be working on a film project as well while in we are in HI and she is excited to get that started as well as getting out in the warm waters of Hi for some well deserved surfing sessions. Both us recently got some exciting new sponsors including Starboard, IO Bioware, and more to come:) Nui the little dog is doing great after her little operation to remove her juevos making our lives a little easier by not always having to worry about her getting knocked up. I just want to say thanks to the friends and family that have helped us this fall to live our dreams.

So Fork of the Yuba at 650cfs fun stuff

Got to paddle one of my favorite runs yesterday. Its been over 5 years since I have had the opportunity to get back on this California classic. Taylor and I paddled with 3 other guys Salazar, David, Derrin if I remember right? The run started out extremely exciting and not in a good way. I was not stoked to be riding in the back of Dave's pickup truck. Actually riding in the back wasn't too bad. It was his DRIVING that sucked. I had to put my helmet on I was so nervous! Tay even said he told him to slow down on the narrow winding road. He was in a big hurry I guess? Once we hit the river my nerves actually relaxed a bit and it was great to be back on this stretch of river. We didn't get any pics so i dont have anything to share besides this little paragraph. Overall just being on the river was a treat. I am fortunate to be able to see places like the South Fork of the Yuba from the 49 bridge down. Beautiful 6 mile long canyon with easy class clean class 5 kayaking. The surrounding hills were so green and terraced it looked like the vegetation was glowing green like it was plugged in-Electric.

3.15.09 Butte Creek Stand Up Paddling Session

Paddling Butte Creek today turned out being way more fun and warmer than I thought after waking up this morning to a cloudy and brisky day. There is nothing like being on the river and today was just nice way to get out and enjoy it with some friends. Standing and paddling the 5 miles we did gave me some great visuals and we got to see saw hawks, turkeys, and even a few little fish. Stand up paddling also let me see down the river much easier and I could scout the rapids earlier. I paddled the board backwards when the water got shallow so the fins wouldn't hit the bottom. I fell a lot and learned a lot. I'm stoked. Thanks to Taylor and Jen for letting me crash their pad and taking me down the rio.

All photos Taylor Robertson Photography www.trphoto1.com
Thanks for shooting Tay.

Mt St Helens Snowkite Sledneck P-Wowder Mission

Powder Mission on St Helens Proves Fruitful
Finally what seemed to be the day of the season materialized. Aaron Sales alerted me and said I will be by to get you at 7:30 am. I didn't have a choice. Ok I said. I was pumped even though I couldn't help but think about feeling guilty for skipping out on work.

Aaron picked me up and we tried to make the best decision we could at the moment which was to bag it or go for it and see what we get. We went for it. Driving the 2 hrs from Hood there was no snow until just as we started ascending into the Mt St Helens foothills. Soon we would find ourselves in some nice deep pow even on the rd. We were stoked to be joined by a few friends. Erik Ekman from www.outsidevans.com, and his buddy McKenzie. We were fired up to at least burn some gas but also to scope it out for a snowkite session. Aaron and I loaded our sleds up with kites, boards, cameras, and extra clothes and hit the trail. Approx 8 miles later and only about 30 minutes we arrived at Lone Fir Kite Meadows just below the East butress of Mt St Helens. The sky was clearing there was some wind in the air and we were in heaven. Stoked

Don't be a slacker in 2009

Well my belated New Years resolution is to do just that, and not be a slacker so I intend to keep this blog updated more often with better content.  Even if its only my girlfirend who is reading it:)

Pinned on coffee

If you have known me for very long you know or will find out very quickly that I have my own vocabulary and I love coffee. This morning I am fired up on some serious shots and this has me pinned (aka-full throttle, needled buried into the red zone, etc)out of my dome(head), like a puppy drinking Red Bull. Too bad I have to sit still for the next 5 hrs on a plane. No worries I will probably fall right to sleep.

Change up your activity

Since the rain has come here in the great NW you are forced to find other activities outside that are not weather dependent. So lately I have been riding my Moto and Mtn Bikes virtually everyday and only paddling every other day. This last weekend was no exception as I rode my moto hard on Friday and Sat which was awesome. On Sunday I did a very fun 5 mile SUP paddle at full speed covering 5 miles in one hr. Today looks like cloudy and NO Rain so I will get out and play on my MX bike again. Stoked. The moral of the story here for me is that it feels good to change up activities often and keep the interest/awareness level high but also to keep different muscle groups firing. Try getting out and doing 3 different activities this week. You'll be stoked.