Cell Phones, Survival, Halo 3 and Parking

Cell phones remain a useful tool for backcountry travelers. Many upper mountain rescues, and a few false alarms, have been phoned in via the devices. And as the NY Times points out, new technology can sometimes let Big Brother (or your parents, spouse, or significant-other) get a fix on your location too... But climbers and backcountry users should not rely on such devices around Mount Rainier, as triangulation and pin-pointing is challenging in remote places, and often there is no cell service.
Not everyone carries a cell phone, or more importantly, other key components of the 10 essentials. Case in point: a 20-something couple took off for Camp Muir during good weather last September. They packed light and enjoyed a night in the public shelter. The plan was to descend to Paradise the next day but the weather intervened and turned for the worse. Complicating the heavy fog and light rain was the fact that the boot track they had followed the day before was gone amidst the sea of hard, dirty ice that we call the Muir Snowfield. The result: the pair ended up lost and hypothermic near the chutes that descend to the Nisqually Glacier...
Thankfully, Canada came to the rescue in the person of Canadian climber Phill Michael. Phill was also descending from Camp Muir that day. He had separated from his climbing buddies near Moon Rocks and while making his way through the fog, heard distressed voices and wandered in their direction. Good thing too, because he found our lost couple cold, wet, and very confused as to what they should do to survive. What ensued were 2 nights and 3 days of Muir Snowfield camping and survival: camping for Phill, survival for the couple. Why? The couple didn't bring shelter and didn't have the navigation skills to get themselves out of the predicament. Thankfully Phill entered their soggy cold world with the equipment and abilities to pull them through the storm. You can learn more about this incident (and his summit climb) through Phill's podcast EPISODE 4: Mount Rainier (sounds like another edition to the Star Wars series).

And while we're geeking out on tech devices and Star Wars connections, maybe you'll decide to get lost in the video game universe of Halo 3. While there myself, I stumbled upon Mount Rainier! If you're a gamer (of the X-Box 360 persuasion) you may notice some familiar NW landmarks as you pummel, destroy, and generally kick alien butt around the galaxy. May the force be with you.
Of course no amount of "The Force," shield regenerators and futuristic space weapons will help against the ensuing parking lot pressures at Paradise this winter. With the ongoing construction project, there will be a pinch in the overnight parking situation. The current plan calls for a limit of 20 vehicles per night at Paradise. Between Sunday night and Saturday morning of most weeks, this limit won't be too big of a deal. However, on 3 day weekends or when the weather forecast is good, everyone should plan to carpool and STILL risk not getting a spot! This is a hot issue so stay tuned as the information evolves.

A weekend without kayaks

This past weekend we headed up to Devils Lake, Wisconsin. We didn't bring boats. We didn't bring bikes. We didn't even bring camping gear. But we did bring family: the four of us, plus Alec's parents and his brother and sister-in-law.

Devil's Doorway. Alec's brother and sister-in-law are in the foreground.



An opportunity to take photos with a non-waterproof camera.



We stayed in the lovely Willowood Inn, hiked in the park, played lawn games (bocce, horseshoes, baggo, ladderball), and indulged our love of exploration.

Hannah samples the local flora: a morel mushroom, sort of.



Alec and Hannah playing bocce with Alec's mother and father.

Travel has always been a way for us to reconnect. We go somewhere with a plan; some of it works and some of it doesn't. Everybody has to be flexible and figure things out together. And in the process, we discover things about the place we're visiting and about ourselves.

On the way home, we stopped at Dr. Evermor's Art Park.



Hannah cuddles up to a scrap metal creature.

We all prowled the scrap yard next door.



We've included this post even though it isn't about paddling because travel, exploration and self-discovery are ( as it says in our blog tagline) "related passions."

Wearing of the Green

HAPPY SAINT PATRICK’S DAY!

Green Tree Frog – Audubon Society Aquarium of the Americas
New Orleans, Louisiana (April 2003)

Springtime in Currumbin Valley

It's perhaps surprising that it's been several months since I took a simple ride out to Currumbin Valley -- and perhaps even more surprising that a simple 70km jaunt should be the highlight of a weekend of riding. On the other hand, it wasn't a usual weekend. I had a visit from a family member who had just been to London and Florence, and was trying to fit my rides in between swapping travel stories. That might even have worked if I hadn't somehow managed to pick up a stomach bug on Sunday afternoon which basically took 24 hours to clear up, and effectively removed any possibility of a night time jaunt to Springbrook.

On the other hand, I suppose an "easy" weekend is a good idea occasionally. Saturday morning's ride in warm temperatures with the scent of blooming flowers in the air has whetted my appetite for other rides. Now all I need to do is shake off this current little set back, and make the effort to get out on the bike tomorrow evening.

The problem I invariably face after a lay-off of any kind is that idleness breeds idleness. Often it's just too easy to settle into a pattern of not doing very much, it becomes habit forming. While there is a deep-seated desire to get on the bike and explore new places, it's all too easy to slip into a comfort zone, a "do it later" mentality. I suffered from this a little toward the end of 2006, and I have no intention of letting it happen again.

My Garden

I took this photo at first light one winter day.  I was looking at a lot of gray and not much color.  My camera saw blue for some reason.  I was sure surprised when I got my photos back from the developer.  I love it.  It's in our backyard looking toward a big pecan tree before you get to our fields.  
When we bought our forty acres about twenty years ago, the place where we decided to put our house had been a farm many years before.  There was even an old barn and outhouse still there.  I really regret not being able to salvage either building, but the termites and time had done their work well.  
 We tore down old wire fencing from a hog pen in the area which was between the house and the field.  This left a football size area of bareness behind the house.  In what I now consider a major act of courage or stupidity, I laid out my gardens.  I collected old bricks from houses being torn down around town and laid several pathways.  I planted boxwood hedges and huge perennial beds.  I laid out an herb garden enclosed in a white picket fence.  There was only one single, tiny thing I didn't know about gardening:  YOU HAVE TO MAINTAIN IT!  I guess I thought that once it was put in and laid out, it would take care of itself.  Boy was I wrong; especially where we live.  The growing season is year round.
So, I've spent the last twenty years being frustrated and never enjoying my garden.  All I see is all the work that needs to be done and all the weeds and grass that need to be dealt with.  I now know that gardening is a daily job.  I don't like garden maintenance.  I'd much rather plan the garden, put it in, and then forget it.  In my next life, I'm going to be a landscape architect.
Anyway, as soon as it cools off a little (around October), I'm going to work outside a lot.  Child #3 has just moved back home, so I'm going to use his services in exchange for room and board. He's going to be my gardening slave.  A teenager from our church wants to earn some money for his Junior/Senior trip to Europe, so I'll hire him too for a few hours a week.  Between the three of us, we should be able to whip it back into shape.
But I'm changing some things.  Those large perennials beds far from the house are too much upkeep.  I can't keep the grass out of the beds which are edged in brick.  I'm going to let the grass retake the bed, take out the brick, dig up the perennials, and put in a hedge of roses or something similar.  I'd go with the Knockout Rose, but it's so common around here I'm tired of it.  I can keep up a bed of flowers if it's close to the house, so that's where I'm putting them.
I may redo the patio area right behind the house too.  We never use it as it is.  I can't figure out why.  I've got to do some hard thinking about that.  I'm reading a book called The Weekend Gardener which tells how to have a low-maintenance garden.  Ha!  That's funny in South Georgia.  But I'm sure I could make it more low-maintenance than it is now.
Ryan Gainey's garden was on the front of Cottage Living last month.  I've been an admirer of his gardening style for many years.  His garden is located in North Georgia; somewhere around Atlanta.  It's also open to the public, so I may pop in some day for a visit.  He inspires me.  I love everything he's ever done in his house and garden.  I also love the gardens of Williamsburg, but that's another post.  This one's getting too long!

Northern Lights!

Last night before going to bed I saw that the aurora index was rising and that there was an expected CME impact to occur overnight, so I decided to head out and see what I could see. The lights were pretty good as soon as I left the house, but faded quickly. I decided to stay out until at least midnight since the lights often flare up around then, and sure enough they did! Between midnight and 1:00 AM there was a pretty spectacular show, with dancing lights directly overhead and somewhat to the south as well. By 1:00 AM the clouds had moved in and the lights were no longer visible. It sure felt good to photograph the aurora again, as it has been way too long since I've seen a good display such as this!

Trace Construction Update

Connectors to the street and sidewalk are yet to be poured in Silver City. Contractor is shouldering the trail North of town. Additional photos taken 9/2.
No work on the Trace planned for next week. Work in the Malvern area will start week of 9/13.

One Whole Year

When my family and friends lived near me, it was easy to grab someone by the arm, drag that person over to a flower border and say, “Look at this!” The people who came to our house in Illinois knew that a walk around the garden might well be part of the visit and many of them enjoyed seeing the changing floral scene.
For the past 12 months, thanks to Blogspot, I’ve been able to do the same thing on a larger scale, posting a photo and saying “Look at this!” to other gardeners around the world. We can enjoy conversations, and if they're also bloggers, I can have the pleasure of visiting their gardens. I’ve even met some Austin garden bloggers in person, and feel as if I know many more of you. You’ve been so kind and generous with your comments, have touched my heart with the Mousie nominations, and you even let me sing and play the piano.
Thank you all for a wonderful year!

My first post on June 7, .. had a photo of the Blue River II Hibiscus, but in .. those buds are not even allowing a glimpse of their white petals. Another large white flower carries fewer blooms on its branches, but has the advantage of fragrance, and it graces the page today. There were five Magnolia blossoms, from bud to blown on the ‘Little Gem’ tree this morning.
Tomorrow should bring a story about passalong daylilies – and that will be my last post for a couple of weeks. My mom has been recovering from surgery and she's doing well, thank heavens. At this point it looks like I can be useful in person, and I’m heading up to Chicagoland to be with Mom and the Illinois family. My mother’s home is an internet-free zone, so I’ll catch up with you when I get back - Philo is keeping the camera, ready to take photos of what is happening here in Austin garden while I'm gone. Happy June Gardening to everyone!