Mountain Monday: Pining for Summertime

Gearing up for a season of rocks in high and low places

By Meggan Wenbourne

Last weekend found me in San Luis Obispo, hiking up a giant hill. Although in hindsight, it wasn’t that big, I do remember thinking how much harder this hill would be if we were at elevation, instead of just a little over sea level.

With summer just around the corner, it is no wonder I am worried about elevationn… summer time means summer climb time, which means all those places with snow will soon be melted and exposed. This in turn means hiking is going to take on a bit more of a difficulty factor since I live at sea level if I want to get up to those beautiful stones up high.

To all my snow-loving friends out there, I am sorry, but I am so excited for the summer season to grace us with its presence. (For the record, I am thrilled we actually got some much needed precipitation in the state of California!) I cannot wait for that Sierra granite outside of Tahoe to be exposed so I can grunt my way up to the top of its cliffs and paddle on the lake.

Today was my first day of actual training for an upcoming event in Tahoe in June, The Broken Arrow Skyrace. Not only am I not much of a runner, but I also live approximately twenty feet above sea level, which is going to make things a little more interesting when I am attempting to complete a race up a giant hillside in Squaw Valley. I know, I know, I should have started training months ago for this, but here we are and I am not backing out.

Together with friends of all ability levels, we are going to complete a race when all but a few of us live at close to sea level. We will rock this and be that much closer to rocking the climbing season in the Sierra.

Want to join us? Learn more here.

Here’s to getting ready for the upcoming season of sunshine and Sierra splendor!

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Meggan Wenbourne is an avid climber, mountain biker and backpacker who works and plays in Santa Cruz, CA. She spends her time traveling to the mountains as often as possible to get lost in the pine trees and explore the granite rock of the Sierra Nevada range and has recently developed an obsession with the desert and its red rocks. When not away on an adventure, she can be found eating burritos and training at Pacific Edge Climbing Gym, riding amazing trails in the Santa Cruz Mountains or nestled away in her cozy tiny house with cookies and adventure reading.