Merry Christmas to all! As the year is wrapping up, I’ve spent some time flipping back through my photos from 2018 and reflecting on what a great year I’ve had - lucky to visit some amazing places with some wonderful people, and to start graduate school at UW and usher in the next chapter of my life. Here’s my 2018, in photos.
The year started off with a trip to Bishop, California, for some bouldering, over New Years. I tagged along with Becca, for whom this trip has been a New Years tradition since she was 12.
After this, we hopped on a plane for a week in Galapagos with my family. Although I’m not normally a wildlife photographer, I had a great time shooting the incredible diversity of animals that inhabit the archipelago.
Next up, I had a brief road trip through the Columbia River Gorge and the Palouse, one of my favorite areas in the state, before heading back to Ithaca for my last semester at Cornell.
In May, I graduated from Cornell, and had to say a bittersweet goodbye to the beautiful gorges and waterfalls that I had gotten to know during my 4 years in Ithaca.
After graduation, Becca and I embarked on a 2 week long road trip from New York back to Seattle, by way of California. I brought along my new 6x17 panoramic film camera, and had a great time photographing the landscapes along the way.
After a few days backpacking in the Olympics to catch our breath, Becca and I set off for a month of travel around Spain, France, Iceland, and Scotland.
Happy to be back in the Cascades, we spent much of July visiting some classic mountain spots in Mount Rainier National Park and the North Cascades.
Temporarily satisfied with Washington’s scenery, I drove east to the Tetons and spent a few days hiking with Becca and her family in this world-class mountain range which I had never visited before. On the way back, Becca and I drove through Yellowstone, where, in addition to the standard sights, we were lucky to watch a Golden Eagle spend several hours devouring an elk carcass.
On our way back across Washington, Becca and I met up with some friends to explore a series of sand dunes in the central part of the state - atypical scenery for this part of the country!
Becca and I headed up to Mount Rainier to watch the Perseid Meteor shower on a smoky August night. For the first time, I tried taking a composite photograph to capture the entire night’s worth of shooting stars in a single image.
With the lower river flows of late summer, Becca, Dan, and I tried our hand at some canyoneering, as well.
At the end of the month, we all headed back to the Adirondack Mountains of New York State, for our annual family reunion. I was able to revisit some of my favorite spots there and indulge in some nostalgia for my time at Cornell.
For a penultimate hurrah before the start of our respective PhD programs, Becca and my family and I spent a week backpacking in the Elk Mountains of Colorado, another world-class mountain range that I was lucky to get to spend some time visiting.
For our true last hurrah before saying goodbye, Becca and I headed up to Washington Pass for an ascent of Liberty Bell. The morning of our climb, we snuck out into this frosty meadow for a nice view of our objective.
The start of classes at UW didn’t keep me from my beloved wilderness. As the fall progressed, I was able to escape for a few overnight trips in the Cascades, and a brief backpacking trip near Zion with my father.
And finally, as winter has settled happily into the Cascades, I’ve shifted my attention to backcountry skiing. The mountains really are at their most glorious at sunset on a clear winter day, when the snow reflects the hues of the sky. Most recently, I’ve gotten out for several ski trips in the Mount Baker vicinity, some in spectacular weather, and some more stormy.
Photos in this album can also be viewed as a slideshow in Google Photos, here.