Apologies

I realize I haven't posted in anything in such a long time but I have been so amazingly busy this summer with trips to Denver and also 12 hour work days. I have managed to finally get my photography up on a website and am super excited for it.
JB Johnson Impressions is now running and feel free to browse. Hopefully this will get my photos out there for more people to see and buy possibly. 

Mt. Elbert

I hiked up Mt. Elbert today with a couple of new friends, and believe me, when the book says it's an easy hike, it lies. It took us 4.5 hours to get up and then 2 hours down, but only because I pulled up my reserve and practically ran down the mountain. I was DONE. The hike starts out almost immediately uphill and there are about five switchbacks in the woods before it continues straight up. There are two small straight stretches. After that it gets steep. After it gets steep, it gets steeper and then so on. There are two false summits, so once you think you are at the top you see in despair that you are not. It was definitely more along the lines of mountain climbing though, rather than a hike. We had some pretty clouds below the mountains today so the views were spectacular and once we were at the top it cleared up long enough to get some good photos. Here is the Everytrail link for the hike. Mt. Elbert  was named after a Colorado governor in the 1850's and it's the highest peak in the Rockies, and second highest in the continental US. The highest is Mt. Whitney in California and then Alaskan mountains blow both of these out of the water.

Just coming out of the treeline with clouds still below the summit. 

In other news I got my bike fixed and am back to riding to work and home, so all in all I am kicking my own ass lately.

View from the top. 

Summer

Summer is starting to become insane. Between squeezing in my friends, work, and all these fantastic things to do, I may not get much sleep. I went rafting down the Colorado on Memorial Day. It was so much amazing fun. Just a bunch of friends hanging out, boozing down the ice cold river. Believe me it's cold. I obviously didn't get many pics since it's water and well...me, booze, water and electronics are disaster. I'm surprised I made it home with no bruises. That in itself, is an accomplishment. I did get some more photos of Colorado in the summer though. Here are two of my new favorites. I will be getting some photos this weekend of Aspen itself and will try and post some early next week.

Fountains in Aspen Square

Hiking and Biking

I almost kicked my own ass today on the bike, getting in 25.5 miles going from Basalt to Aspen and then back to my house. Most of that is uphill and man it's a kicker. I am super happy with the way biking is getting my body back into shape though. Pretty soon, I'll be in bikinis every day. I have also been keeping up with the hiking. Ashley and I did a tough one, Arbaney-Kittle in Basalt that is immediately uphill and uphill the whole way. Not much of a break on this one. The view at the top was worth it though. It always is.

Top of Arbaney Kittle looking out at Mt. Sopris.

I am seriously hoping to get to all the hikes we listed and then a couple more. I discovered one hike near a lake up here that requires ropes to climb up, so now I'm DYING to go check that one out. Maybe even next week if I can find someone to go with me. For now, here is one of my new favorite photo's that was actually taken at work. I do have a rough life.

Sore

Yesterday I rode my bike 23 miles total, 11.5 into town and 11.5 back home. I also did a 4.5 mile hike with my friend Ashley up to some old cabins on the Hunter Creek Trail. Plus nine holes of golf. This is the first time I have played golf for real and I wasn't great, but I wasn't awesome either. Maybe with enough practice I could be the next golf pro. I am super sore though. I woke up this morning and from neck down to about my knees hurts to move. Nonetheless, I managed to get my place mostly cleaned, through out some old clothes, and I will be biking to Basalt as well today. We'll see how long I can keep this up. 

Ideas

Well, summertime in Aspen, CO has started. I am loving my job at the golf course. Seriously, you couldn't ask for a better job that lets you be outside all day or if I have to bartend, looking out on a beautiful course. Here is my favorite shot so far of the golf course.

Ashley and I made a list of all the hikes and various events we'd like to accomplish this summer. Obviously as far as lists go, we may not get to everything, but we strive to do our best. Right now, we have 27 hikes picked out. Two of these would be at the end of the summer with a celebratory hike to Crested Butte with a stayover and then come back the next day. I'm most excited for this hike, but will need to do the rest in  order to be in prime shape for it.
As well as hiking, I have aquired a bike and plan to ride to work and back as many days as possible. Riding from town to my house takes about 50 minutes doing 11 miles. The ride into town will be a bit a harder as it is more uphill, but I have confidence in myself and hopefully by the end of the summer, I will one toned sexy female. Thankfully, Ashley is down to do most things as well, so it's good to have backup and support. 

Wrap-Up of Australia

Well, I fell behind by a few days, but I'll sum it up as much as possible.

We checked out the Wildlife Park in Ballarat just north of Melbourne and were able to see many of Australia's native inhabitants.
There were plenty of kangaroos lounging around and free-roaming that I could just walk up to and touch. These kangaroos were quite lazy as they are used to people coming up and handing them food. A few interesting facts on kangaroos: a female kangaroo can pause a pregnancy in times of shortage of food and then proceed with the pregnancy once food is available. A female kangaroo can also have one joey outside the pouch who still comes back for milk, one joey in the pouch developing, and one more baby developing in the birth canal.
We were also able to touch some koalas in the park. They were pretty indifferent to having humans around and only cared about having eucalyptus leaves in their mouth. Some things I learned were that koalas rarely need water, since they get hydration from the leaves, and also that they sleep 14.5 hours a day and spend about 7 minutes per day traveling. Tough day for sure.

Two apostles on the left of the walkway

I also did a Great Ocean Road day tour through Wildlife Tours, and it was well worth the money. Lunch included. The driver was amazing and I learned a ton about Australian history as well as the animals and coastal sites. I highly recommend using them if you ever visit. The tour was literally all day and took me to Bell's Beach which is were the surfing competitions started, along with the Ripcurl and Billabong companies. We stopped to see koalas in the wild and at the 12 Apostles, Loch Ard Gorge and London Bridge. These amazing limestone formations were fascinating to see and I managed to get some superb photographs. The 12 Apostles were originally called the six piglets but since that doesn't sound too appealing, they were renamed to the Apostles. Since there are 12 Apostles in the Bible, the name stuck even though at the most there have only been nine of the rock stacks. Currently there are eight, since the ninth one fell in 2005.
The most beautiful  area in my opinion was the Loch Ard Gorge. If you walk down the steps you can stand right on the beach and look out into the gorge and watch the waves come in. There is also a cave, but I didn't have time to explore this, although I would have even though ropes are up. This beach is where the sole two survivors of a shipwreck washed up after the ship and 50 other passengers were destroyed.

Panorama of Loch Ard Gorge, a cave is behind me just beyond the beach. 

Australia has thousands of acres of farmland and even more sheep farms. The countryside is breathtaking and butts up right to the edge of cliffs overlooking the ocean. I would love to live out of the city in this area and found it much more pleasant than Melbourne itself. If I can get a visa there, I will be checking out living somewhere along the coast away from all the noise and dirty streets. We hit up London Bridge just as the sun was setting. I miss the sunsets in Hawaii so it was almost like being home seeing the water and cliffs bathed in yellow glory.

Opposite side of London Arch at sunset

My last day in Melbourne, Marie and I got up while it was still dark to experience the Eureka Skydeck at sunrise. While it was very foggy and we didn't get to see much of a sunrise, the experience itself was worth getting up so early. I don't particularly like cities, excluding Denver, but I do like seeing them all lit up at night.

Looking out over the harbor from the Skydeck

Overall I enjoyed my visit, and next time will be checking out Perth, Brisbane, Sydney and more towns along the coast. Also I would like to travel the interior to Ayers Rock. I think Germany might be next in line though.

Melbourne at Night

Melbourne along the Yarra River at night.

Footy Game!!!!

Australian football is much easier to understand than American football. I've been watching American football for years and I still don't understand most of the rules. One footy game and I was hooked and able to follow the action. My friend Geoff was kind enough to show Marie and I to an amazing game between two rival teams from the city. It's the first time I've been to a game where half the stadium is for one team and the other half for the other. Very exciting and fun to watch. Geoff is part of the members club at the stadium so we were treated to a delicious meal ( both Marie and I agreed the steak was superb and we could have eaten another one each) and the drinks flowed constantly.

Melbourne Cricket Ground

AFL players, contrary to NFL players, aren't allowed to drink during the football season and also have curfews. They also don't use padding but are only allowed to tackle between the hips and the neck. I also have a new crush, in my opinion he's the best on the Hawks team, and number 23 and I will be married in approximately two years. I am a new fan though and expect to see more games in the future.
Today I checked out the St. Kilda area beach and the Docklands. It's been pretty cold and windy here and there was a storm rolling in, so no swimming right now, but I love the smell of the ocean and being by the water. First time seeing the Indian Ocean as well.

Out and About

Today we walked through the Southern Cross Station, which is the newest train station in Melbourne and is also one of the top ten recognized stations in the world for its architecture. The building is massive with a very unique ceiling similar to an upside down skateboarding park.

We did some shopping for an outfit for later that night. Malls are very similar here but the quality of clothing appears to be much lower and any sense of style from the common Australian is severely lacking. Marie said it's very relaxed and anything goes. Personally, I like to look a little put together before appearing in public in what looks like half pajamas and half workout clothes. The term for it out here is "bogan" meaning trashy. It just looks like a lot of homeless walking around.
Australians know nothing about what Mexican food should taste like or how to make a margarita. Last night we went out for Marie's flatmate's birthday to Mexicali Rose, a wanna be mexican restaurant. I wasn't impressed. The nachos had a horribly small amount of cheese, and the quesadilla wasn't good either. All the cheese and chicken was in the middle of the quesadilla and spilling out the top and the rest of the quesadilla was empty. I asked for a margarita with salt and I got a tequila martini that was amazingly sour and strong. We ended up dumping it into the frozen margaritas. After the restaurant we headed to The Richmond Club which has three levels. A footy game (Australian football which is a cross between rugby and American football, not soccer, to be honest I haven't figured it out quite yet) was on so there were lots of guys there but they paid no attention to our wolfpack of about ten girls. Marie and I had guys come up and talk to us, including one very drunk Frenchie who knew all the words to De La Soul's Ring Ring Ring and sang it to Marie from the across the bar. We hung out there most of the night and at about 1 am were headed to another bar but couldnät get in, so we got some kebabs of lamb and chicken from a small diner. The kebabs here are basically what a gyo is in the states. The Greek/Lebanese/Isreali food here is pretty darn good and much more satisfying than the sad attempt at Mexican from earlier.
Today we are having a movie marathon here at Marie's flat, since a movie here costs $18. We opted for the cheap lazy route today and it's kinda nice to just sit around and do nothing for once.
 

First Day In The Land Of OZ

After the longest flight of my life on I think the largest plane I have ever been on, (747) I have finally reached Melbourne. Marie picked me up at the airport and we took the tram to her house. Not only does the toilet water not flow in the opposite direction, but the toilet is also in a seperate room from the shower. She also has possums living on her porch. It is hot as balls here today as well. We decided to hit the city as soon as I was unpacked to get some sights in.
First up was lunch and we ate at a quaint greek bistro on packed back ally next to various other tiny cafes and bistros. The food was pretty good but a little dry. (Interesting tidbit, Burger King is called Hungry Jacks here because some other franchise here had already licensed the name Burger King). 

Marie showed me some of the more popular sights in downtown Melbourne, such as Federation Square which holds what is considered the ugliest building in the city, Flinders Street Station, the Yarra River, and her hotel, Intercontinental Melbourne: The Rialto. Flinders Street Station is the old train station in the city which was basically deserted when Southern Cross Station was built. The building itself was supposedly meant to have been built in Panama, but somehow the blueprints were switched around and the building was constructed here.

Flinders Street Station

The Yarra River flows throughout most of Victoria and takes up a prominent path through the city with various pubs, bars, and elegant restaurants along its banks.

The Yarra River with the Eureka Skydeck towering to the left.

The Rialto where Marie works is one of the oldest building in the city and survived several

renovations. The building has been around since the early days of the Australian Gold Rush and used to be an important distribution center for goods such as wheat, wool, etc. Now it's a very posh hotel with much of the original brick work still in place. The photo below is of the Bluestone Bar inside the hotel which used to be open to the outside. This is where the horses and wagons would line up to be loaded up with products.

We wandered around a bit more and are now camped out in her living room watching Australian sports. Which I don't understand, but the guys are hot, so I'm okay with watching. Also Australian money looks like Monopoly money, so I'm headed out to buy Park Place.

Falling Behind

My sister informed me I need to update on here and she is correct. i realized I have barely posted anything this year. It's been a super busy winter in Snowmass. I have been working 7 days a week and if I'm not working I'm sleeping. Or trying to.
Cool things I have done this season. Made it to 50 days of riding. Which is the most I have ever gotten in any year of snowboarding. I also went riding off the groomed trails into out of bounds territory which was so much fun, but also hard work. I did a moonlight hike up Buttermilk and hung out with a bunch of co-workers til 3 in the morning and then snowboarded down in the moonlight. That was pretty amazing. I took some pictures but they didn't turn out too well since the digital camera wouldn't let me adjust how long the shutter stayed open. I need an even better camera now I think.
I went to a Nuggets game and sadly watched the Pistons lose by one point. While this is not epic, I do love my sports games and to me, going to any game, is pretty exciting.
I can't think of too much else I have done. I did check out two other new resorts in CO that I have never been too. Winter Park and Loveland. I have to say, Loveland has the greatest amount of gapers and beginners I have ever seen in my life.
I have been using a new app this season called Alpine Replay. It allows you to track the runs you make while also recording the amount of vertical you drop, how long you're on the slopes, how many miles you did that day, etc. I have become quite addicted to it and got my friend to also start using it.
In one week I will be in the land down under and plan to have lots of things to blog about then. After that, I'm headed back to Hawaii for a visit. I have lots of plans for the summer as well, so hopefully I will have more to write about. I don't really have any photos relevant to this post, but here is a recent one from a days on the slopes.

Hot air balloon taking off in the early morning. 

Bragging

I'm posting these photos from the fall trip to Aspen, mainly just cause I like them and think they are shareable. I forgot to post them before.

Maroon Bells

Fall colors outside of Ashcroft

Outdoor patio at the Jerome

Yellow aspens on Cooper Street

Chicka, Chicka, Yea-ah!!

11 days into my 100 days of riding this season. I have to be honest though, the conditions on the mountain are making it hard for me to force myself to get even just one run in. Since we have had no snow and there appears to be none in sight, I don't see it improving either. There are still some amazing views though. 

Top of Elk Camp just after noon.

  I am trying my best to get some more photos as well, and hopefully this coming week with the full moon I'm going to shoot some night photos. Gotta find a partner to keep me company. Here are some more recent shots.





This first one is of the sunrise in Snowmass Village and the second is from the top of Elk Camp looking out toward Maroon Bells. The photo below is taken from the middle of Bull Run looking down on the village.