A Postcard From The Confluence
byI am sitting at the confluence of the Colorado and Little Colorado rivers at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, wondering how to explain…
essays
The Art Of ‘Getting Old’
byFrank led up the first pitch of El Matador as I fed out rope, the west face of Devils Tower glowing gold as the…
Skiing: A Bumpy Love Story
byI leaned on my poles at the intersection of Why Not and Vagabond, green and blue runs, respectively, low on the mountain at Steamboat….
The Dawn Wall And The Idea of ‘Wasting Time’
byA week ago, two guys finished climbing an astronomically difficult 3,000-foot route on El Capitan as the world kept up via seemingly every mainstream news…
Thanks, Eddie Vedder
byEddie Vedder turned 50 the day before Christmas Eve, as musicians and regular folks often do, and I was astonished for just a second…
In Praise Of The Real Conversation
byI scrolled through my iPhone photos from the past year and found a couple shots of these two guys I don’t know, sitting at…
Considering Gratitude
byMike and I arrived at Lincoln Falls to see a dozen people spread across the base of the routes, and decided to go a…
How To Be A Writer: One Story
byEvery few weeks, I get an e-mail or a Facebook message from someone who has a few questions about writing: how to get their…
Notes From A #VanLife
byOne Saturday last May, I slid a key into the lock on a scrappy little apartment 80 feet off Denver’s noisy Colfax Avenue. We…
The Definition Of Adventure
byAs I descended the corniced summit ridge, I saw a climber coming up the same path. I hacked out a small ledge in the…
Those Who Can Change Lives, Teach
byIn August 2011, my old 7th-grade Geography teacher, Mr. Button, sent me a message saying that he was dying: Last week I was diagnosed…
The Benefits Of Discomfort
byAbout a year ago, psychologist and author Kelly McGonigal gave a TED Talk on “How to Make Stress Your Friend,” which has now been…
The Toughest, Goofiest Lady I Knew, 1927-2014
byMy grandmother died at 6:07 p.m. June 24, in an intensive care unit room full of machines, four of her seven children, and me….
The Lost Art Of Dreaming Over Maps
byI was talking to my friend Mark about mountain biking a while back when he mentioned linking together a bunch of shorter trails around…
Don’t Focus On The Dog Shit
byIn the span of a few minutes yesterday morning, I read about a shotgun-wielding man threatening a neighbor teaching his daughter to ride her…
Hiking Is Cool
byDo you ever think hiking doesn’t get much respect anymore? Wait, better question: Remember that hiking film that showed at the Banff Mountain Film…
Tough As A Mother
byMy mom threw up at the climbing gym, just after I lowered her from the top of a route. She came out of the…
What Story Are You Telling Yourself?
byChad Kellogg died in Patagonia on Valentine’s Day this year, at 42 years old. I didn’t know him very well, just through a handful…
How To Climb A Hill
byI was in the audience during a presentation at the Green Mountain College Adventure Education Colloquium last week, when the presenter, Jojo, asked everyone…
The Man’s Guide to Being A ‘Real Man’
byYou probably read a few news stories over the past couple weeks about the rising popularity of beard implants, specifically the $3,000 to $8,000…
The Not-So-Bad Bad Day
byRob at Green Garage in Denver understands the art of telling someone how expensive their car repair is going to be: You can’t deliver…
Semi-Rad.com Is 3 Years Old Today. Thanks For Reading.
byThree years ago, on Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011, I clicked “publish” on a blog post on this web site, and then put a link…
Do Things And Make Things Next Year
byMy parents gave me Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York book for a holiday gift, and I spent the next hour flipping from cover…
The Grand Canyon Guide To Parent-Child Relationships
byI hopped over a stream crossing the Bright Angel Trail, taking a big step from one rock to the next, then turned around to…
Tyler Durden, Yvon Chouinard, And Growing Up
byI watched Fight Club the other night for the first time in over a decade, out of curiosity if it would still seem as…
A Moab State Of Mind
byI sat under Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park, 60 minutes from Moab and 20 miles as the crow flies, on a busy fall…
A Photo Is Worth A Thousand Miles
byMy friends Dan and Janine have made lots of outdoor photos all over the world. You’ve probably seen them in Backpacker, Trail Runner, on…