My good friend and fellow adventurer, Albert Lin, recently returned from a five-week journey through China and Mongolia. Every few days during his travels, Albert’s friends and family received an email journal entry. Each story overflowed with a detailed description of a foreign land few westerners have ever dared to explore.

Albert is a fascinating individual who feels as much at home teaching graduate level engineering classes at UCSD as he does in Mongolia eating sheep’s carcass and drinking fermented horse’s milk with his nomadic Mongolian ancestors.

Upon Albert’s safe and highly anticipated return to San Diego, he organized his photos, stories and sound bites into a blog. His collection of photographs is impressive, but the adventurous spirit that radiates through his stories is one of a kind.

With Albert’s permission, I present to you, Albert in China.

This weekend was “domestic” in the sense that I actually slept in my bed in the house that I pay rent to live in and not in a tent or bivouacked on the side of a mountain or in the desert.  I got caught up on chores around the house and managed to fit in 25 minutes of hill running on Saturday. I played some hoops on Sunday before an hour-long beach run--which reminded me of the training I must do to prepare for the Avalon 50 on January 12.

This 50-mile race on Catalina Island has a 12-hour time limit which translates to a 14-minute-per-mile pace, minimum, just to finish in time. This is a great deal faster than the 18-minute miles I averaged in the Mount Disappointment 50, but the course itself it much easier. This time I won’t be at elevation and the temperatures will be mild. This makes it easier to fathom improving my time by over 3 hours. It’s going to take plenty of work to get there and I plan to include you all on my recipe for success. Speaking of recipes, check out Melissa’s latest blog post. I was lucky enough to sample her tasty Sweet Potato, Corn, Kale and Squash Chowder today and I give it two thumbs up.

I started off the work week by cycle-commuting with Jesse@Active. We ended up riding the train with our bikes so it was only 18 miles round trip and not the full 42 miles that we usually ride. My Tuesday-morning workout was with JoeDecker, who happens to be the Guinness Book of World Records World Fittest Man title holder. The workout itself is a fantastic combination of cardio, calisthenics, plyometrics and flexibility that lasts just over an hour. There are an average of twelve people who meet every morning and some are training for the Avalon 50 as well. Working out with a great group of people and having an enthusiastic coach has left me feeling stronger and stronger after each workout. You’ll definitely be hearing more about these workouts as I attend both Tuesday and Thursday sessions leading up to race day in January. Plus, Joe has recently joined the Active Community--check out his blog, Get Fit with the World's Fittest Man.

I’m looking forward to a return trip to Joshua Tree National Park on Friday. I had initially planned to explore the small mountain town of Idyllwild, California, this weekend but I learned that their forests remain closed due to fire threat. Southern California has plenty of options for the weekend getaway and Joshua Tree remains my favorite. If my calculations are correct, this will be my eighth trip during the two years that I’ve lived in San Diego. It’s a holiday weekend for some so the park is expected to be busy. I’m very much looking forward to a long trail run through the desert.

Stay tuned for more details on my Thanksgiving Grand Canyon trip. I hope you all have a great active week.

Active Toby

Active Video:

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Photo by Gill Weiss

This time last week, I was gearing up for a 60-mile bike ride in the Anza-Borrego Desert with the Triathlon Club of San Diego. Since then, a firestorm has destroyed homes and property and displaced thousands of San Diegans. The blaze, fueled by heavy winds and drought-stricken flora and fauna, continues to burn. Today, one of the multiple fires is 20 percent contained, another only 10 percent. Air-quality experts have deemed the wind-blown ash unhealthy for all individuals.

A week without fresh air has left me in desperate need of an escape. A four-hour drive and raging wild fires separate me from the 800,000-acre Joshua Tree National Park. Tonight after carefully navigating my way out of San Diego, I will sleep outside beneath a clear sky and a blanket of shining stars.

My goal for the weekend: climb hard, ride my bike 50 or more miles and snap plenty of photos and video for another Active Video installation early next week. I hope you all have a great weekend and please be sure to keep the people of San Diego in your thoughts.

My climbing partner, Gil (aka Mountainroad) and I attempted the Palisade Traverse this past weekend which began with a 5.5-mile approach-hike from South Lake trailhead (9,755 feet elevation) on Friday morning. The trail was well-maintained and we acclimated by sleeping in the parking lot the night before, allowing us to hold a quick pace from the start. It began to snow when we reached Long Lake and continued to snow for the remainder of the hike until we reached Bishop Pass (11,960 feet). We knew snow was in the forecast, but didn’t realize it would start so early in the day. The snow let up while establishing base camp (12,200 feet) just below the chute to Thunderbolt Peak, which we planned to ascend at 4:30 a.m. the next morning.

While replenishing our water supply in an alpine lake, the sky became a darker gray and the snow began to fall again, but this time at a heavier rate with steady accumulation. As soon as the sun set, the temperature dropped to the high-20s, giving me the opportunity to fully appreciate the warmth of my brand-new zero-degree down sleeping bag (Thanks, Mom and Dad!).

By morning, a fresh foot of powder blanketed everything in sight, including the chute to Thunderbolt peak, the first on our list of peaks for the Palisade Traverse. It was obvious at this point that we were snowed-out because the route would be too dangerous to negotiate.

Immediately, our focus shifted to staying warm, so we quickly broke-down our camp and packed our bags for the descent. The sun had yet to crest the ridge and it was still frigid. The hike back to the car was gorgeous. We were in a winter wonderland and were motivated by the thoughts of a hearty breakfast at Jack’s Restaurant in Bishop.

After our meal, we headed across the street and rented a bouldering crash pad from Wilson's Eastside Sports for $10 to use at The Buttermilks, a world-class rock climbing area. A crash pad breaks a climber’s fall when climbing without a rope no more than 20-feet in height. It’s the duty of the spotter to redirect the trajectory of a falling climber, so they land on the crash pad and not the ground.

Gil and I climbed in the warmth of the sun at The Buttermilks for the rest of the day. When the sun dropped behind the front range of the Sierra Nevada we set up camp nearby. I’ve crafted an Active Video from my weekend adventure using pictures, video clips and music composed by my manager, Rob Costlow. Enjoy!

Tuesday night my relay team did a training swim sans wetsuit to simulate Sunday morning’s La Jolla 10-mile Relay Swim. It was approximately 62 F in the water as the sun was setting. For all of you cold-weather freaks who consider me a wuss for thinking it was cold out therethat doesn’t faze meit was freezing! I lost sensation in my fingertips during the swim and it took close to a half-hour afterwards to come back. The water temperature has gone up since, so last night was more bearable during the SportsQuest Direct Aquathon with the Triathlon Club of San Diego. The 1,000-meter swim took me 15 minutes and I felt unorganized and rushed. My form was off for the entire swim and I never settled into a groove. This will be different on Sunday, when the swimmers are more spread out. I’m looking forward to that.

Anyhow, my transition to the run went quickly and I was into my 5K run in a minute’s time. The run along the beach to Scripps Pier and back, twice, went well. There were piles of washed up kelp to hurdle along the way and confused-looking beach goers to dodge. I liked the out-and-back format of the run because I got to see how fast some of the other club members are. My 5K took me 21 minutes, which is a solid pace, and I felt good about it. But when I saw some of these guys and ladies blow by me in a sprint, during both laps, I was really impressed--and motivated.

Photo Courtesy of TCSD

I’ve been working on my race schedule for 2008 for the last week, and with the help of our Active Expert Gale Bernhardt, I’ve decided on the schedule below. My main events for the year will be the Vineman Ironman in July and the San Diego 100-mile Trail Run in October. The races in between are still open to debate, but this is my first draft for the time being. What do you think? A little too ambitious? I’m feeling good about it. 2008 will be a big year, but I feel like it all becomes relative along the way, right?

I woke at 3:30 a.m. to the beat of my heart working hard to counterbalance the altitude. I had been at sea level in San Diego less than a day ago and had just spent a restless night camped at 12,000 feet. My watch alarm was set to go off at 4 a.m., making me solely responsible for waking my three companions for our big day.

Our two-hour approach to get to the base of Mount Russell, the eighth-highest mountain in California, consisted of a 1,000-foot elevation gain that traversed a massive boulder-covered ridge. We marched through the darkness guided by the dim glow of our headlamps which we turned off when the sun’s rays finally crested the ridge and began to warm the bitter cold rock face.

Gil and I got organized and roped up while Jake and Albert started climbing the first pitch at 8:30 a.m. Albert and Jake went first because they would be moving faster while alternating who was on lead and who was following. The lead climber carefully places spring-loaded camming devices in the rock. When a spring-loaded trigger wire is pulled, it retracts to make the device narrower. This allows the climber to slide the unit inside a crack. When the trigger is released, the cams expand to fit the rock and then the rope is clipped into the device to prevent the climber from falling. Once the leader makes it to the top of the pitch, an anchor is set for the follower to begin removing the camming devices while climbing to where the leader is stationed.

Gil’s level of experience with leading routes far surpassed my limited knowledge, so it was quite simple: He would lead all seven pitches of the climb and I would follow. This was the most efficient means for our 1,000-foot rock climb to the 14,088-foot summit of Mount Russell.

We estimated the climb itself would take eight hours, providing ample time to think over each move and be as careful as possible. Gil was strong on lead all day as he negotiated each move and placement of gear in the rock.

We powered our way up each pitch, and remained calm and focused even when the freezing-cold hail storm closed in on us while fully exposed on pitch five. The winds and hail pinned us against the mountainside for an hour until the storm continued north through the Sierra Nevada.

This pitch was rated the hardest pitch of the day by the guide book. The fact that my hands were wet and numb made it a formidable challenge. I literally had to wipe the hail off of the rock in search of hand holds while climbing with a 20-pound backpack.

The panoramic view from the summit was impressive. Getting to the top was incredible but by no means the most challenging aspect of our day. It was five o’clock in the afternoon and we still had a 2,000-foot descent to our base camp through the massive boulder field. By the time we packed up base camp and began the 3,500-foot descent of Mount Whitney’s mountaineer’s route, it was 8:30 p.m. This was the most difficult part of our day—each lugging 45 pounds on our backs down what at the time seemed like an endless staircase of switchbacks into the darkness below. Arriving at the car by 11:30 p.m. was a great relief to the group as we all were showing signs of extreme exhaustion.

After nourishment from a local late-night diner, we began the final leg of our journey: a four-hour drive back to San Diego during which my watch alarm sounded for the second time that day. We all took turns driving to battle the severe onset of exhaustion and arrived home safely after our 26-hour day.

This was the first installment in my journey to climb all 15 peaks in California over 14,000 feet. Please watch my ActiveVideo and be sure to join me on my next journey. Active Toby

This was from my trip "back east" for July 4th. I swam to this rock out-cropping and my brother took the pictures from his kayak. My parents watched from their pontoon boat but were too worried to get any closer. Do you know that feeling when you see a rock and you just have to climb it? Well anyways, enjoy the show!