I live in Moab, Utah, a busy town of 5000 surrounded by miles of open space, with my husband Ian, our cattle dog Cajun and two very spoiled rescue cats. We also sometimes live in a Sprinter van or our off-the-grid octagonal cabin on 20 acres of land near Indian Creek, Utah.
I started climbing when I was a freshman at the University of Maryland in 1991. In 1995, I got a Master’s degree in literature, made it through one week of law school, and then I moved into my grandma’s hand-me-down Oldsmobile, waitressing in Moab to save money for expeditions and climbing trips. Climbing is my anchor and my passion, as much a part of me as eating or walking.
I started to skydive and BASE jump in 2008, and human flight is my second passion. I love high places, seeing the world from above.
I’ve learned that climbing really is a metaphor for life in many ways. You have to do what feels right, what lights you up. Do your best always. Conserve. Never waste anything. You can only have what you can carry—choose it carefully, make it last, take care of it. Appreciate what you have for as long as you have it. Be ready to do without it. No matter what happens, deal with it. Adapt, instantly when necessary. Take care of yourself. Try to help. A lot of times you fail, sometimes you succeed. Either way, you’re never the whole reason for it. It’s easy to confuse intense emotion with fear. Intensity is what you came for; don’t irrationally try to run away from it. You never know what’s going to happen, even in the next second. Every decision you’ve made was the best one you could have made at the time: remember that when bad things happen. Things will not stop changing. No matter what, the only thing you can count on is yourself.
People are often curious about how I support myself in such an unconventional lifestyle, climbing and jumping all the time. I’ve been a sponsored athlete since 1996. I’m also an author and keynote speaker, and I run my own climbing events four times a year, two at Indian Creek and two in Moab.
It’s a beautiful world. Each day is a gift, actually each second is. Thank you for coming to share it with me!
