Except for a short jaunt to California for undergraduate studies, I have spent my entire life in the beautiful Pacific Northwest I grew up in the shadow of Mt. Rainier and watched the ash fall from the sky as a child when Mt. St. Helen’s exploded. It was during these formative years that I developed a love for the stunning beauty of the outdoors. Bills have to be paid and laundry has to be folded, but at every opportunity, I escape to the mountains with my daughter and hiking buddy. We summit Mt. St. Helen’s every summer, made it to Camp Muir on Mt. Rainier last year, and have conquered Mt. Elinor and much of the Olympic Mountains. In 2019, we hiked in five countries throughout Europe, which wasn’t nearly as treacherous as driving the autobahn proved to be!