Author Archives: tg

Summer in the San Juan’s

Posted on by

IMG_3010tg croppedReally nice in Durango and the high country.  The above photo was taken along the Continental Divide at 12,500′ this week.  The wildflowers went on for acres and acres as we tramped thru them traversing a figure-eight track along the Continental Divide Trail high above Silverton.

I thought I was UL trim with a 9.1# base weight for this hike, but I was bested by Will who was 30% lighted with 6.5# base weight, however you’ll notice I had to carry his poles when we scaled a rocky couloir.IMG_2935

Ute Lake LoopOn only a two day trip (in on the blue track, out on the red one), Will Rietveld and I managed 27.5 miles and 14,000′ of elevation (gain and loss) checking out possible alternatives for a future 6-Day hike skirting the CDT.  As popular as this country is, we only saw 3 groups of hikers, one set of women 33 days out of Denver on their way to finish the 503-mile Colorado Trail to Durango.

IMG_6212At the same time Will and I were east of Silverton, Stanna and a number of her Wednesday hiking ladies were doing a three-day series of day hikes out of Silverton, while staying in the Highlander.  The Amphitheater Loop above Ouray, Ice Lake – Island Lake Loop and the Columbine Lake hike.

 

 

Unfortunately the Google Earth screen captures don’t show the real time color, but they do give you a feeling for the terrain and views of the San Juan’s. (Click to enlarge)

AmphitheatreIceIslandLoopColumbine

IMG_3055Meanwhile the tomatoes and deck garden is flourishing better than we can remember. (As noted earlier, our plant water comes from a Spring rather than the Animas, in case you’re worried about toxic tomatoes.)

Unfortunately our attempt to replicate Swiss hanging geraniums didn’t pan out, so next year we’ll try to get the proper Ivy Geraniums.

IMG_3057

 

 

 

WIS Experience

Posted on by

You may have noticed that I’m a WIS volunteer for the the San Juan Mountain Association in conjunction with the National Forest Service. It’s been really positive for a number of reasons: getting me in the backcountry more often, trying new trails and regions of our 600 square miles of public lands in the neighborhood, and meeting new folks along the way.

IMG_2917I sandwiched two WIS trips around the GD ride last week, which made for a non-stop couple of weeks outdoors lately. “Hiking with a purpose” is how I’ve described the WIS experience in the past, as we clear trails of minor and not so minor obstacles, do a little water diversion, pick-up litter (amazingly little these days), remediate errant fire-rings, report downed trees and chat up people along the way.

You wouldn’t normally stop and chat with every hiker or group of hikers along a trail, other than to wave a hello and speak a greeting.  But as a WIS volunteer we’re encouraged to chat with everyone and subtly, or not so, making sure they know about the Wilderness requirement of Leaving No Trace and not camping within 100′ of water among other things.

After 3 years of this, it’s getting much easier to find something to say or even open a conversation without it being awkward, forced or authoritative. I generally say, “how’s it going” and “where are you all from” before mentioning LNT or camping.  On a long day hike last week, I came upon two groups of 13-14-year-old girls on four-day adventures with their leaders.  After stumbling thru chatting with the first group of girls I’d wished I’d thought of something better and less inane to say than “did anyone get wet last night,” not knowing I’d have a second chance.

This second group came by about 2 miles up the trail, and I was warmed up and offered a better greeting. I told the story of meeting a group of girls on this same trail the year before and they had said that LNT – Leave No Trace was part of their curriculum. Immediately upon my mentioning LNT they formed a semi-circle around me and began singing and dancing thru this LNT skit they had memorized and practiced. I immediately welled up with emotion (a sign of getting older) seeing these girls dancing, gesturing and singing their 7 rules for LNT.  I hope I don’t forget this experience for a long time to come.

I wish I’d had the forethought or opportunity to photograph or video that skit.  As it was I never took a single photo that day, but the views were super in that part of the San Juan’s.

Then I got drafted to come along with a few Rotarians and friends for an overnight backpacking trip.  Since it was also in the Weminuche Wilderness I hiked as a WIS volunteer and got to chat up still more folks on a very popular Crater Lake trail. My group got caught up in the routine of chatting up other groups, finding micro trash and cleaning aluminum foil out of fire-rings. (We can only guess the Boy Scouts are still roasting baked potatoes in fires.)

IMG_2899What was most interesting on this trip was the contrast in backpacking styles, specifically gear and weights. Two of the guys had 60+ pound packs with the “kitchen sink” IMG_2920compared to my 9.5 pound base weight.  It was a teaching moment when they hoisted my pack and then saw I had more necessities than they at camp.  They’ll be weighing things, investing in lighter gear, and buying new packs in the near future.

 

EPA Flood August 5th 2015

Posted on by

EPA FloodMany people have seen the recent news about the toxic flood coming down from a mine above Silverton.  It’s hit the major news media primarily because it was an idiosyncratic injury to the portal dam at the Gold King Mine caused by a contract crew working for the EPA.  That orange pollution of the Animas River hit Durango about 36 hours later and ran thru town in a couple of days.  Fortunately none of the river water was being pumped up to Durango’s domestic water storage reservoir because we’ve been having a very wet summer and our primary water sources are well east of the Animas River, several thousand feet up and 20-plus miles out of town.

We had to think twice about watering our tomatoes though, since it’s pumped up from a horse trough next to the river, but the source filling that trough is a spring coming from the western hills above our complex.

This is not to say domestic water sources aren’t affected down-river from Durango.  There have been a number of public meetings, some streamed live on the internet, about the emergency conditions caused by this toxic flood.

The Durango Herald said:

Toxic wastewater was released about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, while an EPA crew was moving dirt from the collapsed entrance of the mine. Investigators underestimated the amount of wastewater that was trapped behind a wall of material. During excavation, loose material gave way, opening the mine tunnel and spilling mineral-rich wastewater. It also washed away a small retention area the crew had built.

There are many stories about how it actually happened and I’m sure one could find more detail on the internet.

IMHO it’s only a matter of concentration of those pollutants because that same mine has been disgorging the same chemicals in the water effluent since I worked in the Sunnyside mine in the  70’s.  All the mines in the Silverton-San Juan Mountains produce an effluent that exceeds EPA standards and for the past 20-25 years a group of Animas Stakeholders has been working in the field to remediate the worst of that effluent getting into the Animas River with a great deal of success.

The community of Silverton has been debating how to address the “mining legacy … loading to alpine streams and creeks” with metal residues, and the Animas Stakeholders’ efforts have been successful at holding a Superfund cleanup at bay.  At this point, I’m not sure what to think about a Superfund initiative coming to Silverton, but I’m certain that debate will gain energy on both sides as a result of the recent spill.

For those who don’t realize it, I worked underground in the Sunnyside Mine the day before it’s collapse under Lake Emma which flooded the entire mine on June 6th, 1978, and caused the mine to be closed.  The old Gold King workings are contiguous to the Sunnyside.  The Sunnyside main level portal plug, which was installed to stop contaminated water flows, has now backed up the waters and flooded all the surrounding abandoned mines.  Thirty seven years ago the Animas was polluted by a flood from the Sunnyside mine.

 

Great Divide Climax

Posted on by

IMG_2886I’m proud to say I’ve finally finished the Great Divide ride from Banff, Canada to Antelope Wells, Mexico. Unlike the Tour Divide racers who tackle it starting in June of each year and manage to complete it in one non-stop marathon effort over 20+ days, I’ve taken 3 years and 5 legs to “get’er done”.

If it weren’t for a pair of Warmshowers guests 3 years ago I’d have never known about the mountain bike ride shadowing, paralleling and sometimes overlapping on the Continental Divide Hiking Trail.  Purest mountain bikers scorn the GD trail because it’s not single track all the way, but it’s honest tough riding over the 2,745 miles with 200,000′ of elevation gain and loss. I’ve often touted 2,900 miles which is probably correct when you count getting lost and going into towns for provisions and succor.

Great_Divide_Mountain_Bike_RouteMy first venture on the GDMBR was just to test my mettle from Steamboat to Del Norte inside Colorado on a “gifted” FSR Cannonade Super V whose bottom bracket sounded IMG_6862like a coffee grinder when I reached Del Norte (about 500 miles).  Encouraged to do the whole ride, I bought a newer, lighter, used carbon Cannonade Lefty and set off of knock out Del Norte to mid-New Mexico somewhere.  That effort was short lived when the “new to me” plastic saddle wore silver-dollar-size sores you-know-where after 3 days. So that left Abiquiu to Mexico and Banff to Steamboat remaining.

My old high school buddy that I cycled from Austin to St Augustine with wanted to give the GDMBR a try from Banff last year, so I rode with him, and eventually just me, down to Steamboat.  This April I started at the Mexican boarder and tried riding north hoping temps and weather would warm and abate as I got that southern 500+ mile section completed. After 4 days of rain, below 60 temps and waking up to snow on the tent, I bailed leaving just 200+ miles in middle New Mexico to finish as soon as it warmed up and snow melted.

That takes me to last week when Stanna whisked me down to Abiquiu to finish that last 200+ over one mountain range and across a high desert to Grants, New Mexico. Following the day after a “heavy rainfall” in the high mountains made for very interesting riding.  Fortunately I only spent an hour in the muck pictured above, stopping every 10 to 15 minutes to claw off the mud.

IMG_2887Everything went smoothly until I realized I’d made a dyslexic turn at the top of the mountain and went 12.5 miles downhill the wrong way, giving me a total of 8,500′ of uphill by the time I found my way back on the correct track. So after adding 10% to my total distance the first day I made extra-sure I turned correctly.  Of all the legs of this Great Divide ride, this was the first time I’d ridden a full day with cotton-mouth.  I just couldn’t get enough water in the desert, even though I’d never run out. My goal was to finish in 2 and half days and I had to ride a hard 100 miles the second day to keep on track.

As I was listening to an Audible book the end came as a surprising anti-climax. Only riding home in the car did it strike me: “It’s over, done and finished.”

 

Legend Trees – Escalante River

Posted on by

Just back from 5 days “logging” legend trees in the Escalante Wilderness Area of Utah.  Actually we didn’t cut down a single tree, we recorded the location, elevation above the river, height, health, girth, number of stems and species in proximity to the “legend” trees in the Escalante River corridor.  We were a team of three, headed by veteran Grand IMG_2819Canyon botanist Melissa McMasters, who spearheaded the tamarisk removal and vegetation replacement program along the Colorado River thru the Grand Canyon.  Mike Taylor was one of her “star” volunteers and seems to learn when she’s got a trip or a project lined up.  Fortunately Mike needs a partner and I’ve been lucky enough to go along.

IMG_2801Melissa has the contract to do the entire Escalante River corridor and it’s going to take a couple of years to count and record the legend tree data for that entire stretch.  The Escalante River is popular and famous for it’s remote, wild and scenic desert beauty.  Most of the drainage is not easily accessible to hikers unless they’re prepared for rugged riverwallmulti-day backpacking, and since it’s become a Wilderness Area the trails have become almost nonexistent.  Occasionally it’s possible to run the river in smaller rafts or kayaks, but it’s normal flow is in fractions of a CFS.  When it floods with 1,000, 2,000 or even 4,000 CFS it runs wall to wall in many places but reportedly only for very short periods. You need to be constantly aware of the flash flood possibilities.  It was .86 CFS for us.

IMG_2797Mike and I were skeptical of the minimal mileage Melissa expected to cover each day, when she told us about her previous trips above our starting point.  Less than five miles seemed too little for a full day of hiking.  Well, we diminished even that small number of miles by totaling only 1.5 and 2 miles of river in a 10 hour day.  We did manage just over 5 miles hiking each day, but when you go back and forth, round and round, across the river and back all day long, it’s hard to get very far down the river.  Below is a screen capture of our track (Gaia GPS App on iPhone) for just one meander of the Escalante River.Untitled

BanksWe did manage 29.8 miles total, according to the Gaia GPS data, but as for data recording along the Escalante River, we only managed to knock off a little less than 7 river miles in 5 days.  The hike in was 5.5miles and the hike out was 4.9 miles, and those tracks weren’t spent recording data. So that leaves 19.4 miles of walking around 7 miles of river bank.  And walking isn’t the best descriptor, since the foliage and Melissadensity of vegetation along the river proper is more like desert jungle, with Tamarisk, Coyote willow, and Russian olive, not to mention 5 and 6 foot Rabbit Brush.  Just getting out of the river and up 6-to 8-foot shear vertical sand and grass banks provided plenty of slipping laughter.

IMG_2849Legend trees have to meet certain criteria: for Cottonwood it needs to be greater than it’s cohorts, in this case at least a meter in diameter, have deeply furrowed bark, at least two dead branches and meet a subjective criteria sometimes measured as a vocal “Oh shit, look at this one”.

IMG_2802When you focus on trees, vegetation species, and go slower than the average adventurer, it makes for an extremely interesting and rewarding trip.  Mike kept us aware of the long forgotten Petroglyphs he noticed on the Navajo Sandstone walls, plus the numerous animal tracks reminded us we were only moments away from fleeing and feeding game who knew the trails far better than us.  It was a great trip in a very special Wilderness.

We all look forward to going back.SelfieIMG_2825And of course there’s always the “virtuous” reward meal…Strawberry Cheesecake milkshake, Mushroom Onion Burger and Onion Rings back in civilization.

For Mike’s photos in Picasa go to Mike’s Photos, and several of his photos are in this blog, since the iPhone was in a water-tight bag.

A Picture Is Worth…..

Posted on by

StuccoCompositDouble Click for Full Size photo

UPDATE: There wasn’t time to explain the photo composite for those who aren’t aware of the summer gig we have in Silverton.  The Highlander is my sister’s building that we do weekly cleaning and maintenence on when we’re in the country.  The original stucco job had a number of issues and the little fixes didn’t work, so we had to get serious about the stucco repairs.  That’s my nephew Chris doing the heavy lifting, brother-in-law Chris Senior advising and their helper.

 

10,000 Steps

Posted on by

I just figured I have to get 250 trips between the kitchen and the computer desk to make my 10,000-step goal for the day.  Since I don’t wear a Fitbit like Stanna or carry my iPhone in the house to measure steps in my Health Data app, I’ve decided to carry an almond from the kitchen each time and multiply the number of almonds times 40 to determine how many steps I take each day.

IMG_2673I’ve also learned that my favorite route tracking app, Gaia GPS www.gaiagps.com (most expensive app I’ve ever purchased at $19 – but the best value ever) now works in Airplane Mode on the iPhone and uses hardly any battery (12% on the last 5.7 mile, 5-hour total time, 2:51 moving time) during a day’s hike.  As I’ve mentioned before, having a USGS topo on your phone with a real-time GPS arrow showing your exact location is a real comfort not to mention a “which trail should I take” energy saver.  There are a number of app’s available but this one, like GPSNavX for the sailing community, gets better with each of their frequent updates.

IMG_2719Just like knowing how many steps you take in a day with your FitBit or pedometer, it’s fun to learn how far you’ve hiked or ridden, what the ascent and descent was, how fast you average and most interesting is how long you stopped compared to the moving time (1:52 Stopped Time in that 5-hour hike above).

MaggieGulchI often export from the Gaia iPhone app the “track” via email to myself or hiking partners so we can view it on Google Earth or Garmin Base Camp (free apps) or post it in a blog.

 

10,000 steps isn’t anything compared to the total racked up in the Hardrock 100 “an ultramarathon of 100.5 miles in length, plus 33,992 feet of climb and 33,992 feet of descent for a total elevation change of 67,984 feet, at an average elevation of over 11,000 feet”.  This week’s adventure was hiking 8.5 miles in to the Pole Creek Aid Station at Mile 20 of the 2015 Hardrock 100 (thumbnail above) and nothing compared to the 153 runners who came thru our aid station.

IMG_2668IMG_2698The food and equipment is horse-packed in and the “crew” backpacks in to this fairly remote mountain point at about 11,500′ with their individual gear and food.  Water is collected at a creek a half-mile away and horse packed to the aid station where we treat the water and decant it into gallon jugs for refilling runners’ water bottles. Crew had to carry in and out the gallon jugs because the sound “spooks” the horses.

When the race is run “counter-clockwise” as it was in 2015 the runners pass the 20-mile aid station in a four-hour time-frame.  On opposite (clockwise) years when it’s the 80-mile mark it can take the runners 24 hours, and all thru the night, to pass thru the aid station because they are so spread out by that time.  This year they came between 10 AM and 2PM  so it was quick and easy, if you don’t count the effort to get there, set up, take down and pack up.  Only 3 of the aid stations are remote and inaccessible by road, this one is the most remote.

I’ve been touting ultra light backcountry travel but these runners put our base weight numbers or even total weight on your back to shame, since they carry only a vest that acts as a holster for 2-4 water bottles. Yes, they do carry a gossamer rain jacket and a headlamp, but not much more besides Gels and salt tablets.

IMG_2661

This could be the winner, Kilian Jornet of Spain, who now holds the record, under 24 hours for 100 miles and 68,000′ of elevation gain and loss in both directions, topping off water and sampling only the watermelon before running off.  He got back to Silverton, the start/finish line, before we woke up the next morning.

 

IMG_6164It was a good three days, because I got to test a number of UL backpacking items. Most unusual was hiking in to the aid station 8.5 miles in a heavy downpour with sleet and finally snow on the pass, using only an umbrella for rain protection. Hiked with only a wind shirt and never got wet above the knees, if you ignore wet hands and of course feet. Another gear test was the 2015 version of the Gossamer Gear Kumo ultralight backpack which I’d borrowed from one of their gear testers, Will Rietveld. This will most likely be the replacement for my zPacks Arc Blast which I’ve almost worn out in five seasons. Lastly I’m experimenting with a very small fanny pack to carry my 10 essentials, iPhone/camera, toiletries, sunscreen and things I need quickly so I don’t remove my pack as often.  Bonus is that it takes 24 ounces off my shoulders and reduces my base weight in this last hike to 8.59 pounds.  Sweet.

Problem I quickly learned with the almond-counting method is there aren’t any almonds left at the desk by the end of the day.

“When did we have time to work?”

Posted on by

I heard myself saying after yoga yesterday that “summer’s half over”, in response to, “What big plans do you have for the summer?”, and it was only July 1st.  A lame answer, considering it’s just really warmed up, the tomatoes on the deck are just reaching the top of their wire cages, and the snow’s not yet melted enough to get up in the high country of the San Juan’s.  But on the horizon is our new tradition of late summer hiking in Switzerland and that’s just around the corner (…not too late to join us). It sure feels like summer’s slipping by.

Felix

We’ve now had our 2nd Warmshowers guest cross-country cycle tourer stay with us, and that always puts things in to prospective.  They’ve already cycled half way across the states by the time they reach Durango and it’s easy to wonder, once again, what we’ve done.

Felix is a German cyclist who just recently graduated from university in Geology and is starting his Master’s in the Fall.  He started on the East Coast and with occasional help from AmTrack ($10 to take your bike) has seen more of the East Coast than I have, and still has 3 months left to devour the West. His bike was fitted with the latest in German cycle technology: front dynamo hub for charging all his electronics, rear 14 speed internal hub so he didn’t use a derailleur, and all the kit in-between.  I couldn’t lift his bike loaded and he still had a newly purchased Osprey backpack filled with about 7 liters of water for the upcoming desert sections.

The day Felix arrived from Pagosa Springs I’d just finished an epic overnight backpacking trip.  Eager to get back on the trail, I chose a loop I’d done previously in the lower San Juan’s adjacent to our newly designated Hermosa Wilderness Area.  The earlier trek started from the northern access and measured approximately 24 miles.  Definitely doable, especially since I was going solo and trying out a near SUL backpacking setup.

SUL is Super Ultra Light and means a base weight of under 5 pounds. The pack, and load on by shoulders, weighed in at 6.38 pounds, however I was also trying out a minimal fanny pack with 24 ounces of gear that is normally in my back pack, so in honesty the base weight was 8.15 pounds including 1.15 pounds of electronics.  This was by no means minimal as I still had a 2 person tent with mosquito netting and floor, a 20° sleeping bag, pad and down parka, long pants and rain suit, however quite a contrast to Felix’s 100 pounds of gear.

I wanted to start in the south closer to home and there by neglected to add in the access mileage to the bottom of that previous loop that we drove to: an extra 5 miles each way.

Dutch LoopI never realized this fact until I arrived at the Loop’s Trailhead some 4.78 miles in a that gave me the incentive to “knock-off” at 16 or 17 miles the first day.  As it was I logged 21.5 because I wanted to get back down to a creek-side meadow with water and flat ground.

The next morning trail map says “Route finding may be difficult in this area” and it was. Late spring rains produced tall grasses and the seldom used trails became even more obscure every time the trail flatten out. The GPS track on my iPhone came in handy when trying to make a choice on which meadow exit track to follow.

It was in one of these lush meadows that I almost bumped into a small bear standing inside a young 6′ pine pursuing I know not what.  The tree was jiggling and I stopping to discern if it was wind and soon realized that the light brown shading inside the rich green needles was the cause.  Backing off with arms raised I retreated to the creek bank to bearreconnoiter an alternate route thru the valley.  As I was considering the choices I looked up to notice another bear just above the same trail I’d walked toward the first.  Not sure if it was just the same bear moved or a second and possible “mama” bear, I decided across the creek was the best option.  Neither bear seemed to notice me.  [Photo from Earth Times . org] I didn’t think it was prudent to pull out a camera.

SD 8536Other than a two day hike, a little electrical sleuthing for my brother-in-law Chris (switching a 3-phase compressor over to single-phase) and an evening with Mike Taylor practicing flycasting in a local lake (I now caught 3 fish 5 attempts in 10 years), one wonders how you ever had time to work.

Tech Support week

Posted on by

Hard to admit but I don’t really have any photos to show that we’ve been busy.  We just haven’t done much outdoors or momentous enough to photograph. The primary reason for not getting out is we’ve just finished our 16-day Carac skin treatment that keeps us out of the sun during the process and for the next 14 days for the most part.

AvastSo it’s indoor chores and thankfully quite a number of tech support calls and house calls. Seems a number of Macs have gotten some kind of Malware or Adware bug installed in their systems.  I’ve never felt the need to run or have any virus protection on my Mac but today I’ve installed Avast, free highly-rated virus detection software for the OS X systems. Avast Mac Download.  Before I tried Avast I followed an Apple Support bulletin that gave me the files to delete in the first reported case.  I later ran Avast and found still more files in the Firefox realm.

The symptoms in the first encounter reported was Ads popping up stating that you have a virus and to call an 800 number.  This machine also had pop-ups with various ads that would not go away or allow you to close the browser in both Safari and Firefox.  Searching the Web produced more problems than solutions, as many of the sites and forums actually recommend loading apps like MacKeeper, that contain similar Malware.  The only one that seems legit at this time is AdWare Medic AdWareMedic link which I’m testing as I type.

AdwareMedicAvast takes a long time to run if you have a large amount of data stored on the hard drive. After 45 minutes and 7% of the HD scanned it found 14 “infections”.  AdwareMedic produced a list of 16 files to remove in only several minutes and has a button to “Remove Selected Adware”.

I have to shut down the browsers to enable the Remove process for AdwareMedic, which I’ll do shortly.  Avast is 60 minutes in and still only 14 “infections detected” but 9 files it was unable to scan and 58% of the HD scanned.  I’ll report back on the outcome.

Oh, we did get in a couple of day hikes, Stanna warped the loom, and the garage got a short “sorting.”  Does planning count as worthy of mentioning?  We’ve traced our last two Swiss hikes (dark green lines) and have a number of ideas for this September (post-its).IMG_2551 We do enjoy getting your emails and “reports” so keep us posted.

Update: Steve Eliot comfirmed AdWareMedic’s recommendation

. . .  about a month ago, I was having  a lot of trouble with my iMac . . .  screen freezes weird things that I never saw before that would lock up my screen so that I couldn’t  do anything.   I finally used Apple Care.  They reported about the same problems that you were talking about on your blog.  They also told me about AdwareMedic  they said they run Adware the first thing in the morning before they do any thing else.

I immediately installed it on my Mac and so far I have only caught one bad item.   So I guess my machine is pretty clean.  I have also not had any of the recurring problems that I had a month ago.

Thanks Steve, for the feedback

 

 

 

Late May Early June

Posted on by

It seems like we haven’t been doing anything when we haven’t posted a blog. Normally there’s always time to sit down and write about what we’ve been doing and what we hope that you would be doing: having fun, exercising and getting outside.

IMG_2310

Right now we’re in Portland working on Daniel’s new house, rather his new old house, which was built in 1888. But before we get into the remodel in Portland let’s just tell you that we had a busy week just before leaving for Portland. Week before last Stanna’s IMG_2318brother David and his wife Pam came down from Denver. The weather cleared enough for us to do a great 5-mile hike right in one of Durango’s mountain parks. As you can see “Durango records wettest May on record” so it wasn’t possible to get out much at all.

Besides catching up with news about their family, grand-babies and recent wedding adding a fourth spouse to their five grown children, David & Pam took home some of our purged loot. Best of all is  knowing the 60-pound dish-packed box of Beekley China will have a home at their cabin in Estes Park.

IMG_2339First on our agenda in Oregon, before tackling the house remodel, was catching up with Polecat.  Don & Janice just happened to roll their only home into a Portland state park the day before we arrived.  We all had to get out, even in the rain, so we hiked a popular Multnomah Falls Loop trail.  They had eyed a fresh fish market earlier and hoped the skies would clear long enough for a fresh salmon barbecue.

IMG_2351IMG_3338

IMG_2355

IMG_2532

Daniel’s new house in SW Portland, located on a hillside overlooking the Willamette River, was built in 1888. His plan is a total remodel of the basement and two floors, that includes gutting of the kitchen and entire second floor. The short-term goal is to get moved in by August 30 and that would mean making the main floor totally livable with an entirely new kitchen.

IMG_2400We arrived in time to be involved with the demolition work in the upstairs: only took one hard day to take out every wall of the second floor. Gutting the kitchen was a little more involved and took about three days, because I had to remove appliances cabinets, plumbing and soffits. Daniel originally thought it would only require a 10 yard dumpster but I think the pile is now close to 20 yards.

IMG_2394Since his house is over 120 years old it had multiple layers of wallpaper, in some places as many as eight. We rented a steam wallpaper remover and it took a full seven-day rental to remove the wallpaper from the first floor walls that were over 10 feet high. Many places we could only get down two or three layers to an impermeable layer which Daniel is IMG_2369just going to sand and paint. Most of the interior construction is with lathe and plaster but the serious remodels show the various stages of sheet rock from the earliest types to the more modern.  The first-generation sheet-rock with the brown paper covering absorbed steam too easily and prevented us from taking off a layer of wallpaper directly attached to that oldest drywall.

IMG_2382IMG_2393 (1)This trip coincided with the end of school here in Portland so we got to see a number of functions for our granddaughters, the most interesting of which was at Sophie’s elementary school where she participated in a fifth grader “states float” parade and the final day “clap-out.”  Clap-out was pretty remarkable because all the younger elementary school students IMG_2450and parents of the fifth-graders lined the central school hallway as the fifth grade graduating students exited their classrooms and received a clap-out and high-five from all the gauntlet of well-wishers.

IMG_3464Our final project at the house was ringing-out and planing the remodel’s wiring. Lots to be upgraded and since they’re going to finish out the basement as well, a number of new circuits need to be added. Two weeks in Portland sure went fast.

 

Stage III GWAWH

Posted on by

It a well known fact that Durango has 300 days of sun each year, the monsoon rains start on July 4th, and above all, if you don’t like the weather in the San Juan’s, wait 30 minutes. However I don’t recall a cold wet May like we’re experiencing.  Of course, if you round up I’m 69 and it’s probably time for me to start wearing three shirts and a coat in the house, but it’s just not right to be cold in May.  Sure we’ve lost quite a number of tomato plants here in the last 32 years, but that’s only with overnight temps close to 32°. Normally when the sun’s up, it’s warm, especially in our Feng Sui sunroom/office. It’s almost June and the deck sliding door hasn’t even been cracked for more than a pass-through.

webcamStanna’s put up the deck garden between thundershowers, and the drip system is installed and waiting for sun to dry out the slushy potting soil enough to need water.  All this cold wet weather is welcome because the snowpack, water levels and lakes are well below average, it’s just hard not to be outside enjoying Spring.  Every time we plan a backpacking excursion, it’s not the nighttime lows that cancel our plans, it’s the daytime lows of high 40’s low 50’s, and high 60% chance of snow/rain that discourages us.

Jacks CardIMG_2291We did have a Warmshowers guest, Jack Day, who is completing a two-year circumnavigation of the “west”, as defined by all those states west of the “midwestern” town of Des Moines, where he started and plans to finish by July. Jack was, like all the crosscountry cyclists we’ve hosted, a welcome and enjoyable guest. Jack probably takes the prize for the most gear on his bike. He even had a full-sized bicycle floor pump bungied on.

IMG_2213Jack was even game to help when I went over to friend Will’s house to finish off his 5.2 KW solar array project we’d started the week before. Mike Taylor and I had helped install the panels earlier, and this time Jack and I strung electrical-code-required chicken-wire on the back-side of the array. A task far more difficult than the initial installation.

The weather hasn’t slowed down the Purging Program though.  Stanna is in Stage III of “Giving With A Warm Hand,” sifting through family heirlooms this week: jewelry, photos and paintings, china, silver, and linens all selected to be parceled out to younger interested family.  It would be a good time to put your name on anything we’ve got, lest it goes out with the recyclables.

IMG_2302

My only productive claim during this cold spell, is rigging a hands-free Chrome Dome umbrella set-up for my backpack.  The umbrella has accompanied me on several outings but never when it’s rained.  Just seems fitting to figure out the rig while it’s raining outside.

Eager to get back on the trail, but it looks like it will have to be after we get back from Portland in mid-June.  Hope to see Don & Janice as well as Ivan & Jeanie who’ll be there at the same time.

“If it’s snowing at the Put-in…”

Posted on by

IMG_0929Stanna has a saying from a river trip on the San Juan River, one March some thirty years ago, back in the last century: “If it’s snowing at the put-in, step off the raft and get back in the car and say: I’ll meet you at the take-out.”  This photo isn’t at the put-in, rather at the rendezvous point just outside of Durango last week.  Two inches of snow had fallen while we were loading the rafts for the trip to Green River, Utah, to run Grey and Desolation Canyons of the Green River.  Her advice could have applied.

It wasn’t a bad trip at all, just stormed and rained more than I’ve ever experienced on a P1010378river trip.  The online weather outlook was poor for the first day, “…high of 56 and low of 39 with 30% chance of rain…,”  but the remainder of the week to warm nicely with mostly sunny days according to the forecast.  We did have one nice day, thankfully, sunny enough to dare bathing in the river and drying off in the sun (while it lasted).

StillHowever, much of the time we were in long pants with fleece and rain jackets. We did manage a number of canyon hikes along the way.  One unusual site was a bootlegger still and cliffside rock cabin located in such a remote river canyon that we couldn’t figure out how he got his grain in and hooch out. This was situated 45 miles downriver halfway between two towns, but it was adjacent to an Indian reservation, so he wasn’t all that crazy.  Another site was the elaborate petroglyph panel featured below.

IMG_2239It was intimidating taking photos with my iPhone next to our trip-mate Jeff (note him in the bushes with his tripod mounted lens) and his Sherpa son carrying all his professional photography gear.  His Nature Revealed photography gallery is located in Durango and it was very interesting seeing him work and appreciating his “patience.”

IMG_2260Several evenings we had to cook dinner in the rain and warm ourselves with a fire in the firepan (a long-running requirement for campfires and BBQ’s in the river-permitted regions).

One particularly stormy, thundering loud and windy morning, I moved the camp stove under the teetering table and made coffee huddled on the ground below the collapsed “parawing” rain fly.  Luckily breakfast was just granola and yogurt with no need of a proper galley.

As unusual as the weather was for a mid-May desert river trip, so was the theme of the trips conversations.  Of the eight rafters, 4 were teachers with science backgrounds, one
of which enthralled and overwhelmed several of us with details about quantum mechanics (the science of the very small: the body of scientific principles that explains the behaviour of matter and its interactions with energy on the scale of atoms – Wikipedia).  “There are more atoms in a pebble than grains of sand on the earth,” “…everything is now regarded as a wave” and “all light comes from photons” –  just to give you a sense of the responses to our naive questions.  Electrons entered much into the camp and raft conversations, along with an ample portion of geology.  Learning was going all directions just like photons and electrons.

P1010331One mystery no one could explain, was just how beavers managed to chew through a number of trees almost 7 feet off the ground, near one of our lunch stops.  There was a large abandoned “lodge” close by and at least four of these higher trees lopped off above our heads.  No evidence of a perch or floating vantage point.  And snow doesn’t get that high at that elevation, even if the beaver wasn’t hibernating.

P1010335“My father wasn’t very careful with fire…,” is how one of the campfire stories started when Ed Zink livened up the sophomoric and socratic moods.  His jokes and limericks made for great company and balance to the 101-level non-traditional student questions firing back and forth to the professor.  Add in the great meals, side hikes and camaraderie, not to mention the wonder of drifting down a 90-mile section of one of the West’s remote desert rivers: this was a great trip.  Now if we could remember all that was taught and said, we’d have jokes and trivia for many more gatherings.