Shelter

Another TBT to last July in the Sisters Wilderness of Central Oregon.

My fantastic shelter, a Yama Mountain Gear Swiftline. This was the only shelter for Goddess and I during our 2015 PCT thru-hike. In 2017 it was my shelter during three weeks of trail maintenance on the PCT.*

For those of you who have kept track, it has been used and abused for well over 200 nights, packed for close to 3,000 miles.

One of these days, we’ll be sad to see it go. But it will be replaced with another of Gen Shimizu’s hand-crafted ultralight tents.

I was glad to capture the sun setting behind the tent this particular evening. A few days later, I would be diving into it quickly after dinner, glad for the protection from Oregon’s Air Force, the gazillion mosquitoes that would be plastered against the screen, hoping for a meal.

And while we are enjoying everything that this winter has to offer, looking at these pics has me looking forward to summer. But just a little bit. There’s still plenty of winter to enjoy.

———

* full disclosure for those relatively new here – Yama Mountain Gear sponsored us during our PCT thru-hike, providing not only the tent pictured, but arranging for other gear and mentoring to help us succeed. We did. We have been under no obligation to continue discussing the products after 2015, but continue to do so because we truly believe that Gen crafts truly great lightweight and ultralight tents, as well as other gear..

Middle Sunset

A TBT to last July, when I hiked back into the Sisters Wilderness of Central Oregon, relaxed by myself for night, then hiked back out to meet a trail crew, just to return to the same spot for a week.

This was the view from my tent site. Really not a bad way to spend summer evenings.

Cascade Sunset

TBT*, something I typically don’t do, but I have a lot of catching up to do with pics that haven’t been posted here.

One of my favorite sunsets from last summer, sitting with Goddess on a big pile of lava, looking north towards Mount Jefferson just a few days before the big fire that roared through its wilderness area.

*TBT=throwback Thursday, for those of you not hep to the lingo.

Upheld

This photo has become a tradition for this blog on each Christmas Eve since 2010. This ornament is appropriate, as it was spied that year hanging in a vendor’s booth at the Christmas Market in Vienna, Austria.

I do believe I missed last year, but we were busy traveling the world. Goddess and I spent the first half of this year continuing those travels, spending time with friends and family all over the world.  We’ve settled down for a spell to see how that suits us.

Know that our wish for you is to have a peaceful end of the calendar year adhering to whatever practices bring you comfort and joy.

Hopefully you will find a bit of relaxation in there too.

Autumn Tree Line

Boardman Tree Farm, Morrow County, Oregon

A fantastic tree farm full of beautiful Pacific Albus, easily accessible off of the highway, which also makes it very popular for photographers, regardless of the season.

Unfortunately, it was recently sold and is already being turned into plots for potatoes, like the field in the foreground.

So if you are in the Pacific Northwest and want to catch a glimpse of its beauty, you better hurry.  The news reports state that it will take years to clear the trees, as each plot will be allowed to grow to commercial viability.  But once they are gone, they are gone.

Concert View

It has been more than a bit crazy here lately, hence the infrequent posts.  We certainly did not need any distractions.

So we got one and took advantage of it.

Over the last weekend, we put 1,800 miles on the car making a quick run down to California to visit a dear friend, spend the weekend watching bands, back to Ashland to quickly take care of some unfinished business after leaving there in June, saw a few friends there (but not enough), then beat feet back home.

Although it was long hours in the car once again, it was a trip good for the soul.  Not only was it two solid days of auditory overload, but fantastic scenery and great friends.  Plus, I was finally able to collect the rest of my memory cards that had been in safekeeping since April.  Perhaps I can get to the pictures that I took from last October through April and post a few here.

So what is with the title?  It is the typical concert view anymore.  At the first flash of light, the first beat of the drum, the first strum of a guitar, all of the damned phones go up.  I can’t see squat and I’m 6-feet tall.  My poor Goddess, who is nowhere near 6-feet tall, just gives up.

And before someone cracks wise about me taking this picture with my phone, there wasn’t anyone behind me other than the guys at the sound boards.  And they were on a platform about 3 feet off the ground.

But other than that, we had a great weekend.  Hopefully you did too and that you are about to enjoy another.

My Sunshine

A throwback to last April, watching the showers, hoping for some lightning or other exciting action.

Which may not have been smart, since we were on the highest point for several miles around.

But that’s what we do.

She’s looking at the last bit of last winter’s snow on Mount Ashland.  They’ve already received their first snowfall.  Here’s hoping that they have another great year.  They really need it.

Pilot Cumulus

A flashback to a day last spring.

Goddess and I were sitting with a friend on a bluff overlooking the Rogue Valley in southern Oregon, watching the rain showers roll past.

There are five climbers silhouetted on the summit of Pilot Rock that are only visible in the original image.  Discovering them made me smile, thinking of another day a couple of years ago where we made that same climb with friends.

Final Stretch

It has been a crazy week since we’ve moved out of the house. But it has all been good.

In a nutshell, we tied up a few loose ends in Oregon and headed south. 

We spent the weekend with our resupply goddess getting a late delivery of food put together;

We drove south through California’s central valley.  We were planning on taking a couple of days to get to San Diego, but got word that there were just a handful of spaces left at our planned auto storage facility that were first-come, first-served, so we pushed hard to get there and get our spot.  We did;

Then it was last-minute chores of sending out resupply boxes and getting everything ready. But since San Diego is my old stomping grounds as a teenager and Jennifer has never been here, there was food to be enjoyed and places to see.

We will catch a breather before we hit the trail.

I hope.

Packing

The packing continues.

We got the entire house packed, cleaned and handed over the other day. We wanted to spend yesterday napping, but there is still plenty to do.

It doesn’t help that, thanks to a shipping snafu, that we are still waiting on delivery of about 120 meals worth of dehydrated vegetables and protein.

Here’s our hotel room right now. I suspect the housekeeping staff is shaking their heads every time they walk past the open door.

It’s a last minute sanity check, as we have realized that some important items are now somewhere in the storage unit. No show-stoppers, but things we will need to find (not likely right now) or replace.

Once this is done, on to the last minute packing of meals as tracking tells us that the food shipment is in town as of yesterday, but apparently too far from the mailbox to pick up.

The adventure begins and continues.