The Year in Photos

2009 was a very good year for me.  My eyes have seen some spectacular places this planet has to offer.  By April, I had made seven visits to different areas of the Mojave Desert. In May, I had a crazy idea to hike 100 times before the year was out, setting me on a path of hiking once every three days, on average.  In May, I camped among giants in Sequoia National Park.  A weekend trip in June allowed me to visit my sister in the Bay Area on her birthday.  Along with her family (and my only niece and nephew), we explored the golden hills of Fremont, California.  In July, I headed even further north to spend a week with my parents in Bend, Oregon.  We would hike nine times in nine days, visiting the best of what Central Oregon has to offer.

August brought devastation to the mountains I called home.  An arsonist lit a fire in the Angeles National Forest.  Before the fire was finally extinguished almost two months later, it would consume 160,577 acres of land and kill two firefighters. The Station Fire, as it was called since it started near the Angeles Crest Ranger Station, was the 10th largest fire in California’s recorded history.

In September, I got my mind off the fire by taking a road trip through the Southwest. The 2,200-mile adventure brought me through some of the greatest natural wonders in the US. During the nine-day trip, I hiked over 50 miles in Bryce Canyon National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Escalante Petrified Forest State Park, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Arches National Park, Zion National Park, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, and the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness. Whew! Quite a few of my favorite photos were taken on this trip.

In October, my friend Chris and I took a 3-day camping trip to the Eastern Sierras. This was only my second time to the Eastern Sierras, the first being earlier in the year. Chris and I spent a great deal of our waking hours exploring the June Lakes region by foot, mountain bike, and car.

In late November and early December, I traveled to Chile and Bolivia for a backpacking trip. I saw things down there that I have trouble putting into words. The land is uniquely beautiful.

According to my photo editing software, I took a whopping 20,628 photos in 2009.  I’d love to share every one of them with you, but instead I’ve selected fifty of my favorites.  These images represent the best (and worst) moments of my year.

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