Mt. Dana

I traded in the Andes of Peru for the Sierra of California. We went with friends to hike Mount Dana — the second highest point in Yosemite National Park. Here's a view of Mono Lake from the top.

Ediza, who needed some help up the snow, didn't make it to the top of the 13,061-foot mountain.

As we went higher, it got cold and windy. This marker at the top has certainly weathered many storms.

Peru pics

Here are some more photos from my trip to Peru.
Talk about an endless sky...

This was the courtyard at the hotel we stayed at in Cusco.

Here's the cathedral in the main square of Cusco.
The rainbow flags remind me of San Francisco.

Some alpacas at Sacsayhuaman, perched on a hillside overlooking Cusco.

We saw a traditional weaving demonstration, where the alpaca yarn is colored with a variety of natural dyes (including a bug found on a cactus and human urine).

Some more pics of a village we walked through....

These were taken in Ollantaytambo....

Inca Trail Marathon

Recently returned from running the Inca Trail Marathon. Here's a group of us the day before the run.

We hiked to our campsite — sandwiched between a river and a potato patch near the archaeological site of Llactapata.

The next morning, we woke up at 2 a.m., ate breakfast and hit the trail by 4 a.m. We had to wear headlamps for the first two hours of the run. In addition to being dark, it also rained on us.

I saw these llamas towards the top of Dead Woman's Pass, which had a fresh dusting of snow.

Here I am at the top of Dead Woman's Pass — the highest point of the trail at an elevation of 13,800 feet.

Eventually, I made it to the finish line — Machu Picchu! It took me 8 hours and 33 minutes.....good enough for second place!