Straight up route six. Photo courtesy of Rodney Ley.

CSU is about to have something very special! Tomorrow (Sunday, March 21) The Outdoor Program at CSU will open the climbing wall at the rec center. The climbing facilities have a bouldering wall with heights from 12 feet to 14 feet and the rope wall boasts 14 ropes with 2 routes each with the highest route reaching to 38 feet!

It sounds amazing. But I can tell you first-hand that it is. Yesterday, the nice folks at the Outdoor Program let me and Matt hang out and play on the nearly-untouched wall for 2 hours or so. We used the top ropes, did a rapell and played around on the bouldering wall.

The routes were set by the ten student staff members for the wall. For all you ladies out there, I suggest you try the orange route on the North side of the wall. Don’t worry, it’s labeled “Chicks Dig It” so it’s easy to find. I dug it! Matt will be back at the wall on the expert route on the West side. As the first to attempt it, he wasn’t able to make it to the top but he said it gives him a project to work on! Now here’s some sneak peek pics for you guys!

Logic vs. freedom is the debate here.

I found out this week that I got a job in Yellowstone for the summer which I had applied for in quite the frenzy one day when I was feeling illogical and restless. Buuuuutttt…now I have to think and think about if I should:

A) go to Yellowstone this summer and take a heavy class load next year. AKA Live free now to die later

B) Take summer classes and fit in other fun Colorado stuff and have a moderate load next year. AKA live freeish now to live freeish later!

Boo school!

Stay tuned for what I decide.

While the powder junkies get the chance to prove their mettle in the world’s greatest games, other outdoor athletes are forces to prove themselves in smaller, less prestigious contests.

Rock climbers, for example, have long been shoved to the fringe of the athletic community, occupying a space somewhere between indoor soccer and in-line skating. Climbers can find something like a global contest each summer at the Teva Mountain Games, but Daniel Woods still can’t boast Olympic Gold.

All that might change in a decade, however. The International Olympic Committee has officially recognized the International Federation of Sport Climbing, bringing climbing one step closer to the Olympic games. 

The decision to accept climbing as a new olympic sport will be made in 2013, when the sports for the 2020 games will be selected.

I say: Please leave me alone in the backcountry big brother! What do you guys think?

Related Links:

http://www.backpacker.com/arrest_pee_old_faithful_yellowstone_urine/blogs/daily_dirt/1027

A few weeks later, I got a fat envelope in the mail (fat envelopes= success!) and I was preparing for my summer in Yellowstone. Now, some people might not think of Yellowstone as being wild, untouched, unexplored, etc. But I have to tell you that it is!

We all know that about a bajillion tourists pass through every year, mostly to hang out their cars and take pictures of buffalo. But, what we all don’t know is that most of these buffalo-lovin tourists don’t go more than a mile from the road. If you dare go a mile off the road in Yellowstone, you’re all alone out there! Last summer, my roomate and I did a three day backpacking trip and didn’t see ANYONE until we were a mile from the road again.

So, you see, it is wild, untouched, and unexplored. Now, for some other things I LOVE about Yellowstone:

- The Yellowstone/Teton area has the best stars, hands down, I have ever seen.

- Yellowstone rivers are the best for swimming! I have searched and searched and haven’t found any that compare.

- Buffalo traffic jams are a legitimate reason to be late to work.

- It doesn’t get dark until almost 10 o’clock!

- You have bad cell service. You have bad internet service. NO ONE CAN BOTHER YOU!…unless you choose to be bothered and go to one of the places with good cell service!

-Shadow Mountain. If you can find it, feel accomplished!

I am sure there is more reasons why Yellowstone rocks, but those are my reasons! If you haven’t gone there, go! It’s only about an 8 hour drive from here and well worth it. And..backpacking permits are free and plentiful.

Share your favorite national park pictures, stories and reasons with Your Feat readers. Submit on our contact page!

I wanted to give you all the info you need to apply for cool jobs this summer too!

For Yellowstone, visit www.yellowstonejobs.com

For Rocky Mountain food service or retail jobs visit www.xanterra.com

For other cool jobs visit www.coolworks.com or www.backdoorjobs.com

Good luck to all you restless souls! And apply now because these jobs tend to fill up fast.

The policy change is the newest trophy above the mantle of the NRA, who argued, along with scores of gun-loving outdoorsmen, that guns were needed in the wilderness to protect travelers from wild animals and wild men alike. Opponents of the change claim that guns reduce the safety of both man and beast in the country’s national parks.

As someone who regularly makes use of our nation’s preserved areas, I find myself siding with the latter camp. While it is true that people are sometimes attacked by bears or mountain lions in America’s wilderness, these attacks are almost always preventable. Hikers are trained to make noise while hiking to avoid provoking animals, and should know some basic skills for dealing with the creatures if contact is made. In my own experience, bears are not aggressive creatures, and will run away from or simply ignore hikers if approached in the right way.

Guns create a sense of false confidence that all too often results in unnecessary deaths. Inexperienced travelers often panic at the mere sight of a bear, and considering the level of experience many visitors to our national parks have, it’s easy to imagine that dozens of bears will be needlessly shot out of little more than fear.

As for hikers defending themselves from each other, I can only assume that gun advocates have watched Deliverance one too many times.

One good thing can come from this shameless display of masculine posturing, however. If NRA members insist on playing mountain man with every visit to our nation’s wild places, the NPS can make a tidy profit selling coonskin caps and novelty belt buckles at the gift store.

-They now have 9 reservable beach spots, opposed to the 6 they had before.

- The price is now $150 on the weekends instead of $100.

Trembearch said these changes were made because A-Basin is seeing more demand for these spots. She said the reservable spots make it easier for families who want a good spot or want to hang out at the car during the day but can’t get the kiddos up and out the door in time to get a good spot without reserving. When asked if A-Basin is thinking about charging for all their parking any time soon, she said: “That’s just not how we operate. We’re called the legend for a reason. We just want to make sure more people can have that experience.”

See www.homelessgear.com for more information.

We all know the skiing and boarding was awesome just about everywhere this weekend. Send your ski stories and photos to yourfeat.webmaster@gmail.com to be shared with Your Feat readers.