Last weekend started out pretty typical: my boyfriend and I made the four-hour drive to Yosemite for a few days of climbing with friends. But what I wasn't counting on was sleeping in that first morning and missing my chance to climb. Left alone, I figured I might as well go for a hike. My original plan was to do a two-mile hike to the base of Vernal Falls — ha! Twelve hours and 17 miles later, Read more

When it comes to working out or playing on the weekends, I'm an outdoors girl. Where I live, it never gets too cold during the Winter, but in Tahoe or Yosemite — my weekend getaway spots — it can be downright frigid. That's why I was stoked to try out a new pair of leggings on my Valentine's Day climbing trip. Rock climbing when you're cold is not fun. It can be really difficult to get Read more

While the world gears up for next week's Winter Games, the culinary industry is waiting with bated breath for its own version of the Olympics: the Bocuse d'Or. This Saturday, Feb. 6, at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY, 12 semifinalists will compete for one coveted position on the Bocuse d'Or USA team. The winning chef and commis (assistant) will compete for the world title at Read more

Last week, I took a trip to Yosemite National Park for the kickoff session of The Ahwahnee's annual Chefs' Holidays. The event ended with a big blowout dinner, but I walked away with tons of tips. Chef Matt Bolton, who runs the kitchen at Pacific's Edge restaurant in Carmel's Highlands Inn, showed the audience how to confit a duck leg to make pâté-like rillette. But I was most impressed with Read more

The 25th annual Chefs' Holidays — a monthlong culinary event at The Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite — started off with a bang when chef Cal Stamenov whetted a watchful audience's pre-lunch appetite by demonstrating how to make caramelized diver scallops and crème brûlée crepes. Chef Cal, who is the culinary director at the posh Carmel Valley spot Bernardus Lodge and the executive chef at its Read more

This week, I attended the first session of the 25th annual Chefs' Holidays, a monthlong culinary event that takes place at The Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite, CA, each Winter. The celebrity chef-studded affair, which included kitchen tours, cooking lessons, and a blowout gala dinner, proved to be as educational as it was recreational. One of the highlights was a cooking demonstration led by headliner Read more

I was lucky enough to hit the Reel Rock Film Tour — an annual showcase of the best new films about climbing — when it passed through San Francisco this weekend. Highlights of the festival include the world premiere of Progression and a preview of First Ascent, a new series for the Nat Geo Adventure Channel. Climber or not, the Reel Rock festival is a must see for adrenaline junkies, outdoor Read more