🏔 Notes from the Mountain

Notes from the Mountain - Issue No. 12

Every Fourth of July, our country celebrates another birthday...and so do I. This year feels especially meaningful as our country marks 250 years and I celebrate a milestone birthday of my own. My ...

Notes from the Mountain - Issue No. 11

For twelve days, almost everything around me felt unfamiliar. Not just the obvious things. The plants. The color of the soil. The smell after the sun came up. The way people made use of what the l...

Notes from the Mountain - Issue No. 10

There are a lot of decisions that go into making soap that customers never see. One of them is ingredient selection, specifically olive oil. When I first started making soap, olive oil was one of t...

Notes from the Mountain - Issue No. 9

Lately, it’s been a little quieter than usual around here. Not because nothing is happening...quite the opposite, actually. Summer soap making season has been in full swing, with batches curing eve...

Notes from the Mountain - Issue No. 8

Mt. Harvard (14,421') as seen from Mt. Oxford (14,158') I’ve been thinking a lot lately about time. Not in a dramatic way. Just in the quiet realization that at some point, life stops feeling like ...

Notes from the Mountain - Issue No. 7

Lehigh Gorge, PA There’s no place like home. I grew up in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania, back before smart phones, social media, and constant notifications pulling everyone in differ...

Notes from the Mountain - Issue No. 6

I’m a planner. Even when something looks spontaneous on the outside, there’s usually been a lot of thought behind it. The spring lineup is no different. Every bar was mapped out months in advance:...

Notes from the Mountain - Issue No. 5

Blue Lakes - Breckenridge, Colorado There are places you don’t notice right away. Not because they aren’t there, but because they’re hidden. We drove up Peak 10 in Breckenridge, CO a few summers a...

Notes from the Mountain - Issue No. 4

👉 This one didn’t go as planned... - Some details may be slightly exaggerated… Summit of Mt. Princeton (14,196')— July 2015 This climb is also known as: The one where Merle lost the trail…The one w...

Notes from Mountain - Issue No. 3

👉 This one finally feels right - It took a few tries to get here. There’s always a moment right after a pour when you can tell if something worked.Not always perfect, just… right. Cedar Trail didn’...