It’s possible to know something is over before you are ready to say goodbye. I’d describe this feeling as a homesickness for something not yet gone, coupled with a nostalgia for magic you can never recreate. Surely we should have a word for this, but we don’t. So you’ll have to take my word for it when I tell you that I feel all of these things – and more – when it comes to leaving my dream job as the Director of Membership & Communications at The Mountaineers. My last day is June 6, 2024, my 11 year anniversary. Looking back, I cannot believe the incredible ways my life has been enriched ..read more

In this article, originally written for Mountaineer magazine, I got to talk about poop and advise readers of the best places to sit back (on the pot), relax, and enjoy the priviest views in Washington. When you’re sourcing content for a story about outdoor toilets, your first thought probably isn’t, “I’m going to make my mom so proud.” Well, your mom isn’t a copy editor for this magazine, but my mom is, and when I told her about this article, the first thing she did was groan and say, “Oh Kristina. You aren’t writing about poop again, are you?” Full of unconditional love, she did a quick cours ..read more

Dear Procreation, We’ve had an interesting run, you and I. For many years we were all about avoiding each other. First with medication, and later with a metal body guard keeping your grubby hands at bay. Then I met someone. A very special someone. We got married and started trying. Suddenly I was chasing you. You remained elusive. Perhaps you were nursing a hurt ego from my years of avoidance. I get it. Rejection hurts. I probably deserved a taste of my own medicine. Catch & Release Then I caught you. At least I thought I did. I was blindsided when you pulled one over on me, slicing my sou ..read more

Wriggly, round, and completely disoriented, Carlo Jordan Tursi makes his presence known in this world…loudly. He calms down quickly in his father’s arms, a testament to his sweet nature. The best part is, he arrives just how mama wants: exactly on time. Here is his birth story. You’re not due tomorrow? Conceived in April 2022, Baby Tursi II seems chill from the get go. I barely have morning sickness and, aside from showing early, I am mostly able to ignore that I’m pregnant. At some point around the 20-week mark, Jordan says he keeps forgetting that a baby is on the way. Easy to do when you ha ..read more

Being an outdoor recreationist doesn’t have to break your wallet. Follow these helpful tips to learn where to buy affordable outdoor gear. “Contrary to the examples that most blogs, magazines, and brand-name catalogs present, a backpacking hobby doesn’t have to be expensive, extremely arduous, or put on hold until you are at your goal weight.” Shared in the opening pages of How to Suffer Outside: A Beginner’s Guide to Hiking and Backpacking by Diana Helmuth, these wise words are written with backpacking in mind but apply to all things outdoor gear. Finding the right gear can be an expensive or ..read more

This post is an ode to the relationships we forge thanks to – and sometimes in spite of – outdoor adventures. Cheers to our belaytionships, packmances, and nature-loves. As far as blind dates go, meeting at 9,500 feet on Wy’East (Mt. Hood) is about as good as it gets. Our mutual friend Johnny invited Theresa Sippel and I to attempt a summit ski in July of 2013. Going into the weekend, I was hopeful that the team would be successful, but I had no idea I was about to meet my future “skilationship” life-partner. Our skimance was love at first turn. I admired her deep knee bend and impeccable ski ..read more

I had an abortion while desperately wanting to be pregnant. There was no heartbeat. I had no choice. In truth, I did have a choice. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s start from the beginning. One I’ve had four miscarriages. The first stole my innocence. It took from us the pure joy that only expectant parents feel when they’ve just created new life. Holding the secret that only we knew, we went to a camping-wedding-weekend where I started cramping and bleeding. I knew in my bones I was losing the baby, and spent the weekend bleeding in an outhouse. I was 7.5 weeks pregnant. Babies before ..read more

Tired of feeling like emotional garbage? Feel better instantly with this trick for maladies and ailments. Unwelcome. If I had to choose one word to describe Petra, unwelcome would be it. A not-so-pleasant parasite I picked up in Thailand, Petra’s mission in life was to make me miserable, and boy was she good at it. She plagued me for two years before I was able to shake her. At first Petra was not Petra, but a malady known as Tonsai Tummy, common in the popular climbing area of Thailand I was visiting. My friend and I both got it, then spent 24 hours lying on the floor of our shared bathroom a ..read more

I suffer from infertility and PCOS. This story explains how we got pregnant thanks to modern medicine (despite its many shortcomings). I cannot get pregnant on my own. We tried for over a year and suffered two pregnancy losses before Lucca arrived. He has already brought us so much joy, and I will be forever grateful to modern medicine for the assist with our infertility. My diagnosis is polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Affecting 10-15% of women, PCOS in an umbrella term used to cover many ills impacting women of reproductive age, specifically hormonal imbalances which can lead to menstrual i ..read more

In this interview, Iranian climber Kiana Ehsani shares why finding belonging in the outdoors is so important, and how those of us with privilege and access can make more space for the historically excluded. Meryl Lassen (she/they) is a 7-year member, Super Volunteer, and member of our Equity & Inclusion Working Group. She has written about her personal journey to find belonging in the outdoors, and she’s an outspoken supporter of The Mountaineers efforts to create a community where all people feel belonging. Meryl met Kiana Ehsani (she/her) on an Intermediate Glacier Travel Field Trip to t ..read more