Mt. Princeton 2026

This was to be our third and final big hiking day of our 2026 trip to Colorado. Originally I had been planning to take two of my sons, Luke and Seth up Grizzly Peak as a new peak for all 3 of us and it looked like a fun climb. However, 2 days prior we had a very big day on Holy Cross doing the Halo Ridge and my son Luke decided he was good for the trip and didn't want the extra hiking day. This left my son Seth and I to either tackle the new peak (Grizzly) or an opportunity for Seth to hike a peak his brother had already done. We went with the latter option and that led us to Mt. Princeton. My oldest Luke and my 2nd Jonah did Princeton back in 2017 and Seth wasn't along that day. This would be the perfect hike, especially as we were staying close to Buena Vista, for us to tackle.

Mt. of the Holy Cross Halo Ridge

Mount of the Holy Cross is a wildly underestimated fourteener peak amongst the ranks in Colorado. Certainly underestimated in its physical difficulty with its long strenuous approach. But also underestimated in its beauty and what a wonder it is, though remote, and far from the beaten path.

When my father, brother, and I first summited it in 2000 we were on a backpacking trip by the Seven Sisters Lakes Area. We sorta made our own route up to the summit approaching along the ridge from the south. We never had the pleasure of the standard route and Halfmoon Pass approach to Holy Cross. As I've begun to repeat most of the 14ers over the years this was quickly rising to the top of wishes to experience that route.

Along the way I'd also learned of the Halo Ridge route it also quickly peeked my own interests. My brother and I have especially been enjoying trying alternate routes, even some of the more difficult and formidable ones, like the Ellingwood Ridge on La Plata. He and I have discussed numerous times putting Halo Ridge on the to do list someday. Unfortunately my brother and I hadn't yet been able to figure out a year to make it happen but opportunity struck for me to take two of my sons this year. I've been seeking to challenge them in the mountains both in effort and in climbing difficulty and this seemed a good next step up for them and so we sought to make it happen.

Mt. Sherman 2026

This was my fourth trip to Mt. Sherman. This was one of my early 14ers back in 1992 when I hiked it with my immediate family. It remains to this day my mother's only 14er. I returned in 2011 for a winter ascent with my father and good friend Matt. I was back a year later in 2012 for an ascent with my aunt, uncle and cousins. That was a first and only 14er for two of my cousins. And now this ascent which was a first 14er for 3 of my nephews. Sherman holds lots of firsts for our family!

Trip Info:
Mt. Sherman Trail from the Fourmile Creek TH

Trailhead Elevation: 11,895 ft.
Distance: 7.81 mi. 
Elevation Gain: 3,049 ft.
Start Time: 7:18am
End Time: 12:53pm

Trip Report:
My family met up with my brother's family to accomplish the ascent this day. My brother's family was on the tail end of a long national parks road trip that took them to the likes of Glacier, Yellowstone and Grand Teton. They were in Colorado for two days and we timed our trip to meet them and accomplish this first 14er for my brother's boys. We were also able to get my father up with us at age 74. This would end up being 14er ascent #92 for him

Pinckney Blind Lake Backpacking Dec '25

This was my first and only opportunity for backpacking at Blind Lake in 2025. While the rest of the family was in North Carolina visiting Sarah's family, I had free time to get some hiking in. The weather reports were mixed for today and that had some effect on my plans. I had at one point contemplated doing the entire Waterloo-Pinckney Trail again but the Friday weather really made that a bad idea. I decided on a night of backpacking and then to hike the full Poto loop the next morning.

Trip Info:
Potawatomi Trail Trailhead Elevation: 888 ft.

Therefore We Will Not Fear Though...

[From my sermon on November 28, 2025]

Last Sunday in the Church Year - Proper 29C

Psalm 46

Brothers and sisters in Christ, grace and peace to you, Amen.

We are nearing the end.  The number of our days grows fewer and fewer.  Time runs short.  These ominous phrases might be clear, they might not.  I could be talking about the end of the world.  I could be talking about how much time you think you have left to shop and get ready for Christmas.  Whatever way we look at time and the deadlines we have before us we do seem to regularly live with a sense of time fleeting away from us.  Its like watch the sands in the hourglass slowly slip by and we anxiously see that they will soon run out.

As we this Sunday mark the end of the Church Year we do have this sense of time growing late.  The End Times are upon us.  In fact this very week, I had no less than 3 people remark to me in conversation, “with the way the world is, the Lord needs to come back soon.”   I agree.  Come, Lord Jesus, come.  

As we contemplate the end of our time on this earth, whether that means the time of our own life running out, or whether that means the time of this universe drawing short, there is a sense of fear that comes with it for most.  We worry about the prophecies from Scripture like we heard in last week’s gospel.  Terrible earthquakes and wars and rumors of wars.  We worry about the hardships that might come and increase in our lives.  We just worry and fear what the end of it all will be like.  What lies in store for us and our loved ones?  

In the midst of all the worries and fears we might bear as burdens in this day and age we heard the words of Psalm 46.  I hope to share with you this day how Psalm 46 is the Lord’s gift to us and an answer to our worries and fears.

Hear again with me Psalm 46, verses 2 and 3 

2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth give way,

    though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,

3 though its waters roar and foam,

    though the mountains tremble at its swelling.

There is a key phrase in these verses “Therefore we will not fear though…”  What a powerful thought.  Though this terrible thing may happen, we will not fear.  It is like saying we will not fear though I am asked to pray in front of a group of people.  We will not fear though I lose my job.  We will not fear though the end of the world comes.  And in fact the words of the Psalmist come pretty close to saying just that.   “We will not fear though the earth gives way.”  What if this creation fell into terrible disorder and chaos?  What if this earth were shaken by horrific earthquakes and other disasters.  What if the mountains were moved into the heart of the sea?
  

Here in the comfort of the Lord’s house these words probably roll of our tongues with not much of a thought.  But if tomorrow were to witness even a glimpse of this? Imagine the worst of natural disasters.  “Therefore we will not fear though…” this happens?  Much harder to imagine. We certainly rejoice in saying and hearing these words of comfort like “The Lord is with us”.  “God is our mighty fortress” and we do pray the Holy Spirit work such a faith in us that we live and believe these words.  But many a soldier has gone into battle believing the emphatic motivation speeches of our their commanders, believing they are ready for war only to find the battle beyond all their worst imaginations.  We know life can become at more times almost more than we can handle.  Where is God to be found, then, when we find ourselves in over our heads? How is he a refuge and strength in the times of greatest need?

Let’s hear again the next few verses of Psalm 46.  

4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,

    the holy habitation of the Most High.

5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved;

    God will help her when morning dawns.

In these verses we get the image of a river.  A river is living water.  Its water with a source and a mouth.  Water that carries things along with it.  Water that gives life to many living things.  This image of a river in Psalm 46 brings to mind the description of the river in the Garden of Eden in Genesis 2.  “A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden. (Gen. 2:10a)”  It also brings to mind the river in the New Jerusalem in Revelation 22. “The river of the water of life … flowing through the middle of the street of the city… (Rev. 22:2)”  These references to rivers in the beginning and ending of Holy Scripture have something in common.  In both places they describe a place that is calm, tranquil, and at peace.  And this is all the case because God is in the midst of it.  God dwells with His people in these places of life and living water.  Psalm 46 speaks the same way.  The river has streams which make glad the city of God, the habitation of the most high.  God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved.”

While Psalm 46 begins with a description of creation in chaos and uncertainty, it then begins to make clear for us while we need not fear any of it.  The Lord is in the midst of His creation.  He is a part of the river flowing with living water.  We see all of this most clearly in Jesus Christ.  He is the one in John 4, when talking with the woman at the well who offers to her the living water of Himself.  Jesus is the one prophesied by Isaiah to be born of a virgin and be called Immanuel, which means God with us, God is in the midst of us.  He is the one whom John 1 describes as the Word made flesh who dwelt among us.  In all of this we see how Jesus is our refuge and strength because He is truly with us.  He is not some distant fortress that must be found with long journey and hardship alone.  He is not far off at all.  He is truly with us. 

The last few verses of the Psalm give us one more critical theme.  We heard the chaos of creation in the first few verses.  We heard the living presence of the Lord in the midst of us in the middle few verses. Now we hear verses 6, 8, and 9.

6 The nations rage, the kingdoms totter;

he utters his voice, the earth melts.

8  Come, behold the works of the Lord,

how he has brought desolations on the earth.

9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;

he breaks the bow and shatters the spear;

he burns the chariots with fire.

In these verses the Psalmist describes a God who is in control.  While nations rage, His is the voice that holds the power and authority.  The answer to the chaos of creation, the answer to sin and death and all other evil is in Him. It calls to mind the moment Jesus was on the sea with His apostles.  Mark 4:35 describes it.  A great windstorm arises, waves are breaking into the boat, and the men awaken a sleeping Jesus and say to Him “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”  And Mark tells us Jesus awoke and said to the sea “Peace! Be Still!” … and there was a great calm.

Once more, the Psalmist delivers us similar words reminding us of the ever present reality that Jesus is always the Word made flesh.  In Psalm 46:10 we hear “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”  Be still.  The same words Jesus used.  These words can command the chaos.  These words can still the great storms.  These words can calm the tumultuous heart.  

The Lord speaks to you and to me “be still” when we are full of fear.  When we are anxious and worried about what tomorrow will hold.  He says to us “be still” when we face loss, when we face illness, when we face shame or sorrow.  He says to us “be still” when we struggle with temptation and unbelief.  “Be still and know that I am God.”  Know that I am in control.  All things are in my hands. And I am with you always even to the end of the age.  

Therefore, we will not fear though … disaster may strike.

Therefore, we will not fear though … we suffer loss or the world hates us

Therefore, we will not fear though the end of the world should come.

Because when that final morning dawns, we know Jesus will be there with us.  He is always there with us, of this there is no doubt.  He is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

All glory be to Him who makes all things new. Amen.

Mark Witte is the pastor at Grace Lutheran Church.

You can contact him at pastorwitte@gmail.com

AuSable River Trail (Hartwick Pines State Park)

Hartwick Pines State Park is located just a few quick miles off I-75 just northeast of Grayling. It is a very accessible park with seemingly plenty of trail options. I was heading home from a conference in Boyne City and stopping in here for a quick hour long hike seemed perfect. The weather also cooperated wonderfully.

Sawatch Ascent 50K (Sawatch 50-50)

Will it work to run back to back 50Ks? Under most circumstances it would seem like a crazy question, especially if you've ever run a marathon or another kind of ultra. You know that wrecked and everything-is-sore feeling you get the day after one of these long races. It seems unthinkable to go out and do it again. Yet it is possible, and it is not as bad as you think.

When I signed up for the Sawatch 50-50 this was one of several goals I had for myself. To find out if this back to back was possible for me. I see this as my biggest challenge to date, greater than the 50-mile races I've attempted. I want to keep putting challenges before me even if I should ultimately fail. After all, you learn more in life from your failures than your successes. If I kept upping the ante and trying new challenges I hope to keep seeing where this adventure can take me.

West Line Winder 50K (Sawatch 50-50)

(Photo credit: Freestone Endurance)

My journey to the Sawatch 50-50 began with another failed attempt in the Leadville 100 lottery. This was my second year in a row attempting to gain entry to Leadville. As this attempt failed I began to look at the bigger picture and weigh my options and choices for the future. One of them became giving further consideration to the High Lonesome 100. Much like Leadville, it is a race run on many trails I'm familiar with and in an area that is very near and dear to me. I also have another odd connection to it. When my father and I were hiking Mount Antero up the Little Browns Creek drainage in 2019 we ran into two individuals who were helpful in the original setup of the course. (If my memory serves, I believe Betsy Kalmeyer was one of them) They were out scouting for the course when we talked to them that day. So I've been familiar with High Lonesome since the start. It too has a difficult lottery to gain entry with. I did learn that running the Sawatch 50-50 is a qualifier for that lottery so that made this choice all the more enticing.

CDT Cottonwood Pass North Out and Back

With some time to use productively I wanted to get some high altitude exposure and move the legs a little bit today. So I decided a simple drive up to Cottonwood Pass with a short hike on the Colorado Trail would fit the bill. It also would just be scenic. After getting my little camp set up at the Sawatch Ascent trailhead where many of the runners were camping I made the drive up to Cottonwood Pass. The drive itself was quite beautiful with many of the aspen's already turning golden. I had the window in the car open just to soak in all the wonderful air. Up at the pass it was down to 58°. The recent dusting of snow had melted off in today's sun. I didn't want to work out the legs too hard today and so I decided to head in the northerly direction which has just a little bit of gain and descent. It's also a direction I really hadn't gone very far on before. Not to mention it's heading in the direction of the hike I did with my boys in June. We had come up from Texas Creek and instead of heading to Cottonwood Pass we made our way over to Brown's Pass and then on down to Hartenstein Lake. This section of the Colorado Trail I could hike today would give me some views of the upper portion of that June route.

A Sermon for Holy Cross Day & Current Events

[Adapted from my sermon on September 14, 2025]

Brothers and sisters in Christ, grace and peace to you, Amen.

What a world. Will the tragedies and heartbreak ever end?  Will mankind ever tire of the bloodlust we have in our hearts so full of hatred and violence?  It was 23 days ago that a Ukrainian refugee, a defenseless woman who was minding her own business in her seat on a train, was senselessly and inhumanely attacked and murdered.  We cannot even begin to imagine what kind of madness moves a human to do that to another.  It was 24 years ago just this past Thursday, September 11, that the equally inhumane attacks took place in New York and on our nation’s capital.  Planes flown into buildings.  Innocent people attacked and murdered.  This past Wednesday another attack on our kids in a school in Evergreen, Colorado.  More senseless, inexplicable violence.  What is the mental illness that moves these individuals to continue to copycat the hatred of others in attacking children in schools?  

The Cost of Discipleship

[This is my Faith Post for September 2025.] 
[Adapted from my sermon on September 7, 2025]

Around the year 200 AD was a young 20-something year old woman named Perpetua.  She was married and had an infant son whom she still nursed.  She came from a well-to-do family.  Her father was a pagan man but she had been introduced to Christ.  She was a self-professed Christian.  She lived in an era where Christians were under great persecution by the Roman Emperor and it happened she was arrested because of her faith in Carthage, North Africa.  In the midst of this she was also a writer.  She recorded the events of her imprisonment. Her writings are considered to be the earliest of any Christian woman in the history of the church.  

Mackinac Bridge Labor Day Walk 2025

This is a true Pure Michigan Classic. After having lived in Michigan for 19 years we decided it was time for us to join the tradition and take part in the Mackinac Bridge Walk. It's one of those things that's such a big deal, in particular for the bridge to be shut to traffic for 5 1/2 hours, that you see road signs reminding residents about it for months on end in all corners of the state, even hundreds of miles away.

For us this became a matter of fortuitous timing. My son Seth and I were already planning to travel up to Marquette in the U.P. to run a marathon on Saturday of Labor Day weekend, and it became obvious that while up north on Labor Day one needs to hit the bridge and so we did. The walk itself is free and open to all and we saw on our day people of all ages from young to old, and of all abilities. There were babies in wagons and elderly in wheelchairs. There was a strong sense of community and American spirit and all of that made for a wonderful event.

Marquette Marathon 2025

For about a year now my son Seth has been expressing his desire to run his first full marathon. We've done a couple of trail half marathons together and he had done training runs up to 16 miles on his own. He certainly appeared ready and able to handle the preparation and ultimately the race itself. The question then became which race and when. We had to balance his school schedule as well as cross-country, soccer, and track seasons to make sure the race we picked would fit all of it. We also wanted a race that would be on a fun course and a worthwhile first experience.

The Grand Teton, Grand Teton National Park, WY

The Grand Teton, Picture below taken Wednesday, August 20, 2025

The Grand Teton has been on my bucket list for some time after completing the Colorado 14ers 10 years ago with the summit of Capitol Peak. I was looking for something challenging that could incorporate my route finding skills from the 14ers and my rock climbing skills from my years of technical climbing. This created a bit of a conundrum with the Grand Teton because with any technical climb, you need a partner with equal or better skills than you to help belay. After asking around for some time if anyone was interested in joining me, and turning down several who had no idea about the technical nature of what I was seeking, I asked a caving expert from our church, Grace Lutheran in Little Rock, if he had any interest in the Grand Teton. He had already completed a guided hike of Mount Rainier many years ago and continues caving to this day. Shaun Baker quickly got back with me and said, "Yes, that sounds like fun!" He said he had the technical skill but had never done a high alpine climb before and so this started to interest him. Both of our talents started to mesh well as most of my experience was in high alpine environments with route finding capability and his with technical rigging. You need both to climb the Grand Teton.

Makapu'u Point Trail

My family and I found our way here at the tail end of a 10-day Hawaiian trip that included a 7-day Inter-Island Hawaiian Cruise. On our last day we disembarked our ship at 8am and had until 9pm when our flights left. We decided upon a tour of the east side of Oahu which included lunch in Kaneohe and then a drive down the coast past the beautiful Waimanalo Beach culminating at Makapu'u Point.

Pu'u Hinahina Trail

.Waimea Canyon State Park is one of the geological highlights of Kauai, and that's saying something on an island full of great sights. Many call the Canyon the "Grand Canyon of Hawaii" and it is a title well deserved. I would compare some of its better overlooks to that of Zion National Park, no joke.

While I wish we had time for a more full hike in the canyon we decided to at least do a little something during our visit. From the Pu'u Hinahina Parking Area there is trailhead signage for the Canyon Trail. I honestly thought we were starting onto the Canyon Trail but other trail sites suggest that's not what we did. Rather we were on a Pu'u Hinahina connector trail that heads to the lookout and the actual Canyon Trail. Either way, we made the nice hike down to a cliff overlook and enjoyed the sights. The trail started flat and then eventually began a steep and very rooted descent. It then began to climb again and this confused me. I thought we were still heading north and it felt like we were climbing back up to the Canyon Road where we started. In actuality, we had descended down to the Halemanu Stream bed and the ascent was coming back up the other side to the overlook. The jungle forest was so thick it was truly hard to keep bearings. We encountered a steady stream of hikers along the trail. The overlook had a guard rail as it very dramatically was on a cliff with a deadly dropoff. The trail was entirely in the trees until we reached the overlook.

1974 Lava Flow (Hawaii Volcanoes)

There was no trail here, but there was plenty to explore. As we drove the Chain of Craters Road through Hawaii Volcanoes National Park we saw the parking and the signs for Luamanu Crater. What we found even more interesting than the crater was the 1974 Lava Flow. It was easily walkable and gave plenty of room for adult and kid alike to explore this unique landscape. If time had allowed we would have been able to go much further. We wondered if this flow came from the Keanakako'l Crater which the maps suggest. It would be reasonable to conclude all of these flows and craters connect back to the Kilauea Volcano.

Sliding Sands Trail (Haleakala)

The Sliding Sands, or Keonehe’ehe’e Trail is the easiest and best ways to hike into the Haleakalā crater. We used it as a way to get just a tip of the iceberg taste of hiking here. I stumbled upon it as an idea on another site which recommended the Sliding Trails trail as a combo with the Halemau'u Trail. From one trailhead to the other was 11.4 miles and would cover gorgeous terrain. We were planning this in the middle of a family visit to Maui and in particular the Haleakala Sunrise. We had our reservation in places for the Sunrise and our whole family group of 15 would be up there in 3 rental jeeps. We just had to figure out who was hiking and who wasn't and how to handle the vehicles. If we did this great combo hike we'd have to shuttle vehicles between trailheads or figure something else.

Diamond Head Crater

We got to Diamond Head parking at 753. It was interesting driving through the one-lane tunnel to get into the Crater area. The entry gate didn't make a big deal we were 7 minutes early. The hike up Diamond Head was fantastic. The early part was paved nicely and then eventually it changes into a nice switching backing trail. It was mostly slabby rocks and firm trail the whole way, very sustainable for the large crowds. Railings were on the sides of the trail for much of it. Near the top there was a long staircase and then a walking tunnel we went through. At the top of the tunnel there was a trail option. Another steep staircase which would lead into the bunkers or a more gradual ascending trail to the summit area.

Mt. Democrat 2025

There were some who questioned our decision to hike the Decalibron on the 4th of July with all the potential crowds. It was a reasonable question. But the crowds weren't the issue for us today. While there were a fair amount of people on trail in the relatively short time we were up there, that wasn't really the problem. In fact, we've now spent 2 years in a row on 14ers on the 4th of July and it becomes quite fun to wish random people on the trail "Happy 4th" as you enjoy what should be a favorite pastime of America: enjoying our beautiful outdoors.