CV | wildwanderings

Mike's Bio

This website has been 10 plus years in the making.

10 years ago James and I made our first foray into the mountains with what seems like now the heaviest gear we could find to get in touch with mountains and wild places again. We lived on a quiet cul-de-sac in typical suburbia fashion. We were both working insane hours and spending all of our free time trapped inside chained to desks and we knew that we were missing something in our lives but were not sure what it was. We had a feeling though that we needed a vacation and we both loved to fish.

As a kid I spent time in the Sangre De Cristo mountains of Colorado wild and free on the eastern side of the mountains (inset picture).

I had run of the range and always loved the area known as Lake of the Clouds.

Back then you could ride a motorcycle clear to lake but today it is in a national wilderness and the only way in is by horseback or on foot. Neither one of us had a horse since we were living in suburbia so we decided we were going to hike in after memorial day and spend a few days just he and I fishing and we were pretty sure the cell phone wouldn't work there and even if it did it would be miles away in truck.

All winter we gathered gear a piece here and a piece there when we could afford it. No thoughts to how much weight we were acquiring with our bargain gear we just knew that we had to have gear.

James's Bio

I grew up in rual eastern New Mexico. I've always loved the outdoors but it was hard to enjoy the landscape where I was raised. I love to ski and fish but rarely had the opportunity to do either. The rocky mountains spilled down into northern NM. I traveled to this area as often as I could. Santa Fe and Taos were roughly a 3.5 hour drive away. Spent a lot of time on the road doing what I love.

I moved to Colorado and this provided a much needed change. Skiing and snowboarding were my passions at the time and Colorado allowed me to persue those passions with greater ease. During my first year I picked up fly fishing and it started to dominate more of my life.

Mike and I became neighbors and quickly developed into great friends. What Mike and I had most in common was a love of the outdoors. With the rocky mountains as our backyard the annual camping trips began.

That first trip was terrifically agonizing. We were out of shape but determined. We hiked in far more than required for a weekend adventure and our pack weight was ridiculously heavy. You have to start somewhere right?!

Wild Wanderings

Mike's Bio

James's Bio

I moved to Colorado and this provided a much needed change. Skiing and snowboarding were my passions at the time and Colorado allowed me to persue those passions with greater ease. During my first year I picked up fly fishing and it started to dominate more of my life.

Mike and I became neighbors and quickly developed into great friends. What Mike and I had most in common was a love of the outdoors. With the rocky mountains as our backyard the annual camping trips began.

That first trip was terrifically agonizing. We were out of shape but determined. We hiked in far more than required for a weekend adventure and our pack weight was ridiculously heavy. You have to start somewhere right?!

I now live in UT. Mike and I meet somewhere between Salt Lake City and Denver for our annual trip.

We hope you enjoy this site. Our goal is to inform and inspire. Get out there and see these areas for yourself.

I can't think of a better way to burn a week of vacation than spending it with good friends in the great outdoors.