Zach's Rock Climbing (senior) Portraits :)

March 28, 2021 • Leave a Comment

DO YOU SEE HIM?

... look at about the halfway point of the cliff, on the right side of the waterfall ~

~ In Zach's free time, you'll find him in the mountains ~

:D woot woot! This was near the completion of our time together ~ we built UP TO the waterfall ~ we started (relatively) smaller :)

First: completion of preparations: Zach scheduled a neat trim-up with Barber Val, at Gene Juarez Men, at The Bravern.

All he needed was packed in his car, so immediately after the Barber, Zach drove East to Snoqualmie Pass.

I followed, and when arriving at our first location, I was a bit confused - I never saw the trailhead.

The entrance felt hidden & secret ~

Zach led the way through tall off-road undergrowth. The moment we were standing at the entrance, I didn't know how I could have missed it ~

a huge wildlife tunnel led to our climbing range. Within thick summertime foliage, the yawning tunnel is discreetly hidden from the nearby mountain road.

Headlamps? Check.

At one point, as I followed Zach, his silhouette was so picturesque, and to my eye, shows so much that we don't see in color photos, I had to pause:

Our Wildlife Tunnel leads to "Fun Forest" , a quintessential PNW rockscape of climbing routes.

Fellow climber, Brenna, is here to belay & double-check all the safety equipment ^.

I also appreciate our sherpas, thank you Joy & Nancy!

Okay, Forgive Me Now! for mistakes in naming Zach's climbing routes - or better yet - message me the corrections you can see are needed, please!

I LOVE route names!!!! They are whimsical, fun, fantastical :)

Here Zach is starting a route called:

MYSTICAL GARDEN OF FREE-WHEELING ANIMALS

The bolt Zach has clipped into ^ is shared by several routes: "POST-WIRED", "KILL ME IF I START TO LIVE", and "FLIGHT TO MARS" after the 4th bolt ~ these names make my heart sing & laugh & give me big smiles :)

Given, it seems that there are likely multiple names for the same routes! Because... everyone who conquers a route would like to name it ;)

To me, THE iconic route in this part of the playground is inside the detached pillar that forms:

CHIMNEY EXPRESS

Luckily for this photographer, there is a semi-circular scramble around the back, rounded side of the cliff ~ that brought me to a closer view as Zach climbed:

YES! Our Warm-Up is finished ;) Next up, Franklin Falls!

I LOVE Franklin Falls, I've enjoyed photographing here several times and its beauty is outrageous. I have yet to do a Winter shoot here with the "ice fall" and snow all around... hmmm...

A delightful trail through old growth forest leads to a narrow staircase, where we stopped to take some potential yearbook shots :)

The wet slick rocks are FAR too dangerous for climbing. Zach will rappel.

Securely roped above, and with Brenna belaying below, Zach carefully began his descent.

Waterfall top to bottom:

At this point, Zach is in the middle at about the mid-point of the Falls :)

Exhileration, through the misty view ~ a couple more moments as Zach finishes his descent:

HOORAY!!

Successful Senior Portrait Shoot! Whew! Oh my!

This was exhilarating for everybody involved. Thank you to Zach & his family for offering this opportunity to me :)

CONGRATULATIONS, ZACH!

Eastlake High School

Lake Washington Institute of Technology.

Class of 2021

Keywords: Seattle, adventure, Bellevue, Cascades, chimney, climbing, Exit 47, express", forest, Franklin Falls, Jeannine Pound Photography, mystical garden of free-wheeling animals, photographer, Photography, photos, portrait, rappel, rock, rock climbing photos, Sammamish, senior, senior pictures, Snoqualmie, teens

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