I began climbing local Pacific Northwest Cascade volcanoes in 1975. These volcanoes rise far above the surrounding terrain and with each summit another one tempted me on. But by the mid 1980’s I had started exploring other ranges in Colorado, California, and Nevada. The variety and beauty of these other ranges suggested more explorations, and I decided to try to summit the high points of the Western US States. This project continued with more or less focus over many years, but recent progress left me with only one left to climb – Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaii.
Linda and I flew to Kona with our packed bicycles and some minimal hiking gear. The snow conditions in Central Oregon had been poor for skiing for many weeks and we were eager to experience warm weather bicycling. Visiting Hawaii would be a good opportunity to combine bicycling with an attempt to complete my high point project on Mauna Kea.
[Read more…] about Mauna Kea, January 2014