The Smashing Pumpkins were right all along...

Today is the greatest day I've ever known... Okay, so those were not then, nor are they now, earth shattering, shake you to the core lyrics. But there is definitely something to them. There are many decisions that we have to make in our lives. Most of them are really not that big of a deal. Like what to have for dinner, which of our 17 puffy vests to wear, or what to name our dogs (Really, they don't care. That whole thing is for us. Bear responds to "Kiddo" half the time). Yet some of them really are a big deal. Or are they? I think in all of the decisions I have made over the years, the ones that are the biggest deals seem to be, in the end, the easiest ones to make. Although I have also found that I never really know if I've made the wrong decision because so far, even if they were "wrong" they seemed to always work out in the end. Probably, our decisions are just what we make of them. So it stands to reason that we shouldn't spend so much time agonizing over them. Perhaps we should just enjoy the ones we've made that have gotten us to this point. Some day soon I'm sure I will have to make another one of those "life-altering" decisions, but fortunately, today is another day that I don't have to make one even as little as what to have for dinner. (Jon made that one for me... and he grilled it. Sweet.) Today is a day for enjoying the last big decision I made. I suppose today is the greatest day. Its the one I have. And as if to re-affirm that decision, 4 feet of snow fell on our little town this week. What could be better?

Winter?

Bear and Tiksha enjoyed a pre-dawn romp in 9 inches of fresh snow. Good thing the foot is still on the mend or there would be some hookie playing from work. It is possible that this is officially the start of a Mammoth winter. Here's to hoping. :) Hope the snow is falling wherever you are, too! (Unless you're in Texas. Y'all don't have any plows.)

Facebook: Life's Greatest Moments

Before I headed to bed this evening, I took a cruise through the Live Feed on my Facebook homepage. There were many highlights. I love it when people post great photos (usually of their kids). I like hearing about fun new stuff in people's lives. I could do without the "I'm exhausted and my life is really hard" status updates, but most of them I really enjoy. I feel much more connected to people that are far away. Here's the thing, though... I don't do status updates. I don't feel like very many things in my life warrant a status update. The highlights I picked out today were:

• Having a drink celebrating being homeowners
• Posting new baby pics.
• Just picked out the dresses

Those are indeed milestones. Homes, babies, bridesmaids. In response, I have thought of a few status updates that I will never post, but that adequately reflect my life in the past year.

Actual update: is getting married!!!
My update: Is still living in sin.

Actual update: is giving Tyler his first bath.
My update: is giving my dog a bath after he rolled in a dead seal.

Actual update: OMG! The twins are potty trained!
My update: OMG! My dog just got colitis...again...and pooed directly on top of a pine cone so it made an even bigger mess. Still working on the potty training.

Actual update: Just bought a house!
My update: Just mailed in my twelve thousand dollar rent check.

Actual update: Is painting the kitchen.
My update: Is trying to adjust my faux suede couch cover and thrift store throw pillows in such a way so as it doesn't look like I own a $15 couch.

Actual update: is relaxing watching the Colts beat the Pats after a day of lawn work.
My update: is relaxing watching the Colts beat the Pats after walking the dogs with the boyfriend in a beautiful mountain town in the Sierra.

Well, maybe things aren't so bad after all... :) I still won't probably do status updates, but I hope everyone else does... clearly, I enjoy them. Thanks to all who keep me checking my Live Feed!

So I Just Cooked My Dinner In The Men's Restroom...

I often try to take a step back from my life and look at it from an outside perspective. I realize to the outsider my life is probably really weird. But to me, it just makes me laugh. So you might be wondering what would cause someone to cook their dinner in a bathroom? Homelessness, (I guess technically I am homeless right now, shocker I know) brief moment of depression, or some random social experiment? My justification for this fine dining experience was the radiant floor heating. Clearly. Allow me to fill in some details.

After an extraordinary summer (and our first ski day of the season yah!!) in the Eastern Sierra Clay and I said our "see you laters" to a great group of people, and a lot of dogs ;) With two weeks before our winter in the Tetons begins we decided to explore some new places. Lassen Volcanic National Park, Lava Beds National Monument, Bend, Oregon, Weed, CA, and Mt. Shasta were all on our to see list, just in no particular order. With a pretty grim weather forecast predicted, including all known forms of precipitation, we decided to go for it anyways. As we pulled into Lassen our first night out the snowflakes started falling. They continued to fall as we set up our tent and throughout the night. The next day there were brief, yet thoroughly appreciated, moments of sunshine as we hiked up to some frozen lakes. After a later than anticipated departure we headed to Lava Beds National Monument. We scoffed at Mapquest's suggested route involving roads with only numbers, i.e. US 395. We opted to utilize those roads that also included letters, i.e. Forest Service Road A15. Through the maze of logging roads we went. We had no idea that Northern California was one of those areas of the world where carrying gas cans with you is worth considering. After about 3 hours into our supposed 3.5 hour drive we began to question our route choice. It had been at least an hour since we had seen the headlights of another vehicle and those belonged to a logging truck. The fact that the road we were travelling on didn't have any lines painted on it except for the spray painted squiggly lines pointing out frost heaves, wasn't super comforting either. We eventually did come to a sign that was barely legible but we could make out some wording indicating Lava Beds was 19 miles away. As we turned onto a dirt road covered with fresh snow we began to question our decision making process. After a couple miles of washboard bliss Clay brought up a valid point. No one has any idea where we are. I turned around. This required a 12 point turn. As we headed back we changed our mind again, we were (supposedly) only 19 miles away. Another 12 point turn. We made it further this time but then the road forked. At this point we really had no idea where we were. Another 12 point turn ensued. We then found our home that night along some other logging road. We were awakened promptly the next morning at 5:00am. Apparently loggers like to get an early start to their workday. We finally made it to Lava Beds that afternoon. We explored some lava tubes and hiked to the top of a cinder cone volcano. As we were hiking down the precipitation began again. We barely got our tent set up before the sideways snow started falling. As the snow increased in intensity and accumulation we retreated to the only warm haven we knew of. The men's restroom at the visitor center. Thoughtfully chosen since men seem to be less offended with the opposite sex in their designated restrooms. Not that their was actually anyone else visiting their national monument that fine evening. As we fired up our backpacking stove on the bathroom floor and enjoyed some delicious couscous and tuna I laughed out loud several times at the randomness of my life.

When we unzipped our tent the next morning we were rewarded with a winter wonderland scene, and some sunshine. Sunshine didn't last too long though. As we drove to Bend we drove through several full on blizzards. Yea!! After a delightful stay in Bend we are heading to the California Coast. We will keep you updated with our adventures in where to cook dinner ;)

Oh yea and Lassen Peak erupted. Who knew? I don't think anyone saw it coming!

Lassen Peak

Eureka! We finally found it!View from look out tower at top of Schonchin Butte.

Winter wonderland scene leaving Lava Beds.

Eastern most extent of Basin & Range Mountains in Lava Beds. Ironic as we head to the western most extent of these mountains for the winter. Does that make us basin and range groupies?

*This blog entry is dedicated to Mr. Bob Henry and his lack of sunlight in the great far north.

Girls Night Out

These usually start with someone saying, "We're coming over to play X-Box." I have dabbled in the X-box here and there, a little Tiger Woods Golf (I'm horrible), some Trivial Pursuit, and a tiny bit of MLB 2008. But honestly, I'm not a huge fan. The X-Box is, unfortunately for the boys, on its last leg. I suggested those Sony PS3's as I can use it as a Blu Ray player. That's my relationship with gaming systems.

So, Aimee suggested we hit the bars. We hit a bar because we're getting too old to "hit the bars". The bar we picked is normally within walking distance of the house, however, due to the current crippled state of things, we drove. I then hobbled out of the car, down the stairs and we were promptly greeted by many, many, many, men. I think there were three other girls in the bar and they were very, very drunk. The kind of drunk you don't let your friends get in public. At that point you're dragging them and their loud, slurred words out the door and hoping they go quietly. But, Sarah was sold on the $1 corn dog promo, so we stayed.

Aimee walked up to the bar to order. As we approached, we were greeted by the best pickup line ever. "Hi, I'm a prick. Name's Ernest." Oh, my, I was sold!!! Never fear, it was quickly saved by, "No, really, I'm an ass. I won't call you in the morning, but mind if I join you?"
Well, he had us at hello. We introduced ourselves. Aimee's being the shortest and sweetest of the intros: "Hi, I'm Aimee and I'm married." If Sarah and I had only had that out... Throughout the evening, he regaled us with many great stories and one liners about Phoenix, where he supposedly lived, and British Columbia, where he was supposedly from. While he was talking, Aimee left to follow a bar fight up the stairs. Sarah tried to go too, but I reminded her that I was a cripple and she should NOT, under any circumstances, leave me with a strange Canadian. Post bar fight, he continued to charm us with more great stories. But all good things must end.

He had left our table and had gone to the bar to get what I can only assume was his 18th Pale Ale, and some time between that moment and the next one had managed to piss off someone enough so that our next meeting with Ernest involved grabbing our bags from the table so we wouldn't get hit by his body which had just been hit off a bar stool and was moving quickly and uncontrollably towards our table.
There was then some wrestling on the floor, some gallant fight breaking upping, and some slurred denials of guilt.

Although that was damn funny, we decided to call it quits for fear of ending up in the emergency room or having to endure any more stories about bikes, Phoenix, or Canada. Having not witnessed a bar fight since about 2002 (my last year in college), this was a good reminder of why you should always follow certain rules when going to bars so you don't end up face down in a plate of corn dogs after a $100 bar tab...

• Travel in groups, but makes sure the people in your group like you.
• Be careful when they offer $1 corn dog night as the promo.
• If ESPN can not be found anywhere in the bar, you're taking your chances.
• Check your bill at the end. You may be more sober than your bartender.
• Never leave a man behind.
• I can't stress enough about the corn dog thing...

So next time the boys decide to play X-Box, I'm sure we'll try a new bar, but at least we now have a well crafted list to help us choose more wisely.

Come on, Who Doesn't Need a Shotgun Wedding?

Just a quick update for the loyal blog readers... Hopefully this is the final chapter in the saga of my stupid foot. This past weekend Jon and I went to Vegas. We managed to a. not get drunk and married by a fat Elvis, b. gamble away our life savings, and c. buy anything that says "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" on it. We thought it was pretty successful. Oh, and I got my foot cut open. Apparently the ligaments were not tightening on their own, so those had to get fixed, there were bone spurs that were somewhat troublesome that got removed, and some nasty scar tissue was done away with. This has about a 70% chance of leading to a fully successful ski season. As I was working with 0% before, I'm counting this as a win. As this trip to Vegas was focused on wellness, maybe next time we'll look into those other options.

When I grow up I want to be a...

Strangely, when I was in San Francisco this week, I stopped at a random museum on one of the Piers in Fisherman's Wharf. A friend told me that I had to see it. Well, do you all remember the weird carnival fortune teller from the movie Big? Creepy. This museum was full of such gems. My favorite, however, was the "Career Pilot". As someone who has more career ADD than anyone I know, I found this fitting. I go through this about once a month: What should I do when I grow up? Rapidly approaching 30, I often feel that I should be grown up already. Perhaps its a function of my chosen line of work... the move around to move up culture. I was sure I'd just hang out in Mammoth for a while. But as I am nearing the close of my second summer here, I'm getting the itch to move on to a new adventure in a new place. Perhaps it will subside. Perhaps not. I wish it was all as clear as this game in which you load your quarters, spin a wheel, and you too could be a Love Pirate or an Adagio Dancer. To all those Adagio Dancers and Fish Peddlers out there, cheers! Way to follow your dreams!

A Darn Funny Story and Some Darn Good Views

Sunset from Donohue Pass along the John Muir Trail.

So a couple weeks ago Clay and I decided to visit Yosemite. Walking distance about 32 miles. Driving distance 60 miles. We opted for the walking option. It was an adventure filled weekend. At one point I really thought the mosquitoes were going to pick me up and carry me out. We waited out a pretty nasty hailstorm in our little 32 ounce tent. It held up amazingly well. We walked back into civilization at Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite around 1:30 in the afternoon and realized we had about a five hour wait until the bus came through to take us back to Mammoth. So we decided to try and hitch a ride back home. I'm not going to lie you always feel a little bit like a dirtbag sitting on your backpack on the side of the road with your thumb out. I was glad though that we were under the safety of the "National Park Safety Bubble." This is California after all. We hadn't sat there ten minutes before an oddly familiar gold Lexus pulled over. Before the driver even got out of the car I knew who it was. As the Superintendent of Devils Postpile got out of the driver seat and started moving stuff around in her car for the dirties on the side of the road I was already laughing out loud. That's right our Superintendent picked us up. For those of you who don't have a superintendent it would kind of be like the CEO or President of your company picking you up off the side of the road when you had just hiked for a couple days and are covered in alternating layers of sunscreen and bug spray. Super. I realize the odds of this happening are slim to none. Which is why it is such a darn funny story. As we exited through the fee station at Yosemite we confused the crap out of the ranger in the booth when we all said we work for Devils Postpile National Monument. He responded with, "Oh you work for the Forest Service?" Oh the plight of being a little 800 acre monument. Ehh, we are loving life here. When your Superintendent is picking you up off the side of the road you know you are in a good place :) Previously mentioned hitchhiking.
View from Donohue Pass.
Thousand Island Lake.

Southeast Glacier Mt. Ritter.

Summit of Mt. Ritter.
Ritter Lakes from summit.

Minarets from Iceburg Lake.
Cecile Lake.

A Box of Joy

Did you guys ever see that Scrubs episode where JD and Turk get two prizes out of the same cereal box and it was the best day of their lives? Well, we had a similar moment last night at the Octagon. Aimee was pouring a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch after a long mountain bike ride and lo and behold, out of the box flops a plastic bag encased thing right in the Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Of course we had no idea what this treasure actually was until we opened the bag. Now, to set this up, we had already this week discussed that Sid the Sloth was Aimee's favorite Ice Age character. (Yes, we are all rapidly approaching 30). The cereal treasure was, as if willed by fate, a Sid the Sloth pencil topper. We will now come up with excuses to use pencils for at least the next day or two. It's good to know there is still joy to be found in cereal boxes.

A Word From Beardog

Me at Upper Little Lake in Rock Creek Canyon

Me and my mom at Upper Little Lake

As this is partially my blog too, I thought I'd weigh in. So this last week, my mom left me. She left me with the other two dogs. And that day started off so well! I got a walk at like 6 in the morning, it was still cool and pleasant. I saw bags going into the red car, but I figured I was outside, so I must be going. I should have known something was up though when they were putting bags in the red car. I can't fit in that damn car. Not with those other animals. Well, I was promptly put in the back yard and watched the car drive away without me. Stupid. But then things got better.

Clay and Aimee didn't go. And Aimee is a sucker! I got to sleep in their room (YES!) and woodwork with Clay. My favorite part is rolling in the wood shavings. And hanging out with the other dogs was okay too. Tiksha tries to play bite face a lot which is super annoying, but I'm over it.

When they got back from this trip they said it was super hot. I hate being hot. And they went to some place that doesn't allow dogs on the trails. Something about big trees. I don't know, but it sounds like I was better off rolling in wood shavings. But then we went for the sweetest hike ever the next day. Oh man, so many lakes! I swam in every one of them! I chased some squirrels, and while that black dog was lost chasing a bear, I got to lay down in the river. I hopped 4.8 miles that day. I was super tired when I got home, but my mom gave me lots of chicken treats and let me sleep for two days straight. I'm feeling better now and ready for my next adventure!

On Reverting back to old habits

Honestly, there have been very few good things that have come out of this stupid broken foot. Most of this process has been a lesson in tolerance. Particularly since moving back to the Eastern Sierra. I skied my first day of the season on May 17. It was exceedingly painful, but totally worth it. Beautiful corn snow at 8:30 a.m. I skied 2 hours, and went immediately back to the couch to ice. Hiking usually ends the same way. 2 hours, ice.

Yesterday marked 1 year since I forgot my shoes and decided to play ultimate barefoot anyways. Obviously, in hindsight, that decision was sub-par to say the least. I do feel, however, that I have gotten a taste of what life would be like if I wasn't the type of person that inevitably I am. For one, you get way more laundry done in a much more timely manner. Your bathroom stays cleaner. Your dog gets walked more. You take up hobbies you would have never thought of. For example, there is now a garden on my roof. Spinach, tomatoes, rosemary, bell peppers, and squash. I voluntarily did lawn work. We raked our entire yard clean of pine needles, cones, and winter debris from the snowplows.

I have not gotten lost in any canyons, swam in any alpine lakes, stood on top of any peaks, or camped in a rocky spot far from screaming children and the roar of diesel generators.
I like that my bathroom is clean. My dog likes that he is walked more. I will enjoy the veggies later this summer. But all the cookie baking and clean carpets in the world are poor substitutes for watching the sunrise over an alpine lake. Thursday I go in to try to figure out what to do next. Hopefully this will be better by the time the first snow flake falls in the high country. My 2009-2010 ski pass is hanging on the key rack like a bikini on a hanger for a compulsive dieter.

Until then, I'm enjoying watching a red breasted sapsucker near my bird feeder and I'll probably go buy more potting soil today, coming to terms with the fact that although alpine lakes may not be in the cards for this summer, winter is still far away and I have plenty of time to get better. Hopefully this year, that logic will prove true and I will revert back to my old habits... skiing till the burning in your legs is too bad to bear, your nose is peeling from the sunburn you can't get rid of no matter how much sunscreen you put on, and the only think you can think about doing when you get home is eating dinner, drinking a beer, and going to bed. No bathroom cleaning, laundry, or planting. My apologies to house guests when that happens. Better come out this summer while I'm still motivated to vacuum daily.

The moral of this story? If your feet will take you there, you should go and enjoy every minute you're there.

Misadventures on a Smaller Scale

The start of the June Lake Loop.

Jon and Aimee in the snow at the Vista en route to work.

So normally we'd be getting into trouble on some snowfield somewhere in the Sierra by now. However, barefoot ultimate has proven to be more of a life changing event than I initially thought possible almost a year ago. This week? Adventures with a bone scan. Something about bone spurs and cartilage damage... But when life gives you lemons...

You ride your bike.

An uneventful, but pleasant ride, the June Lake Loop was 22 miles of up and down and up and down and surely up again. But more eventful was when Jon and Aimee and I decided to ride our bikes to work in the snow. It wasn't snowing when we started, but 1000 vertical feet later (not to mention we were up at 530am for this scheme) it started snowing. The best quote of the trip was Aimee, "Crap, that's ice!" as her back tire went into a skid heading up the hill. I won't go into the details of the trip down, but lets just say 1500 vertical of icy wind from a 35mph bike leads to frozen parts. Brrrrrrr!

Yesterdays ride was almost as cold, but sunny -- no snow.... The sweet part was when at 430pm, we decided to ride back up the steep winding road 13 miles back home. Normally, we ride down and get a ride home. Ah, ambition. Out of food, already ridden 13 miles in the morning, such a good idea. About half way up, my stomach started eating itself, I'm pretty sure. Jon ate all my emergency snacks. You know, the granola bar that now looks like a tootsie roll from having sat in some obscure pocket of your pack for 4 months? The flavor you don't really like, but will only eat in an emergency? Yep. Eaten. So after about 1000 feet of climbing we both stopped at a pull out to assess our decision making skills. This, of course, did us no good, as we were now in it to win it. We only had 500 feet to go. Just ignored the lactic acid buildup in our quads.

Shortly thereafter, we made it to the summit and started the chilly decent to the house, hoping that dinner was at least started when we got home. Sweet. Chicken Chili, Chips and Salsa, and best yet, an ice cold pint of Black Butte Porter. I forgave Jon immediately for eating all my emergency snacks, despite the cursing on the way up.

The moral of this story? There really isn't a good one. Just hide your snacks, plan ahead, and make sure there's beer in your fridge.

A Home and a Job

Having not had a place to live or a job for quite some time now, to have both all the sudden has been a bit of a transition. It has been overwhelming really. We have to set alarm clocks and can buy food that requires refrigeration. For the past several months Clay and I have lived out of duffel bags, suitcases, and backpacks. We have slept in backyards, back porches, and dorm rooms. Most of these provided by many of you. We cannot thank you all enough. Really the working part has been the biggest transition. Luckily though we are easing into it all slowly with staff meetings at the coffee shop and what not. But all good things must come to an end I suppose. At least that is what they tell me. But really I feel like my good times are just changing venue. That new venue being Devil's Postpile National Monument in the Eastern Sierra. Leaving the Tetons was no easy task but knowing that we were going to such an amazing place made it an easier move. We are stoked for new adventures and for all the crazy shenanigans that are sure to occur with the reunion tour of MAC and Beardog and company. If you need a summer vacation we love visitors :)Said home. It's round. New work place. Rainbow Falls. I haven't actually seen this personally yet. But very soon.
A snowy bike ride.

Family photo at Mono Lake.

A Stunning Achievement

This will be brief as I have no photos to prove it... Y'all know how I'm always amazed by my dog (taking joy in simple things is healthy, I swear). He seems to learn new things every day, like what the sound of the chicken jerkey bag means, or how to actually have two objects occupy the same space. This weekend, Bear learned how to jump up and catch a disc in the air. Yep, that's right... three legged frisbee dog. This would not be so entertaining if he was, say, a border collie or an australian shepherd. But because he is a furry yeti of a golden chow mutt with very little grace or ability to land on anything but his face, it is both funny and amazing. Don't call SPCA yet... we only play on the grass and he only landed on his head once or twice. But man, the joy and satisfaction when he catches it... sweet. I'm sure he feels good about it too.

There and Back Again

Annnd we're back! It only took a 2.5 hour flight from Auckland to Nadi, Fiji, an extremely hot and humid 7 hour layover in Fiji, a 10 hour flight from Fiji to Los Angeles, a 45 minute shuttle to the downtown LA Greyhound Station, a 2 hour wait in the bus station, and a 2.5 hour bus ride from Los Angeles to Palm Springs where our friend Tom picked us up and drove us back to Joshua Tree. We got into LA at the same time we had left Auckland. Something about crossing the International Date Line. It felt like March 30th would never end. It all went pretty well until we retrieved our packs. Clay's pack looked like it had gotten in a fight with a wolverine and the wolverine won. Total bust. It was so busted up that he couldn't even wear it. The airline company initially refused to do anything about it. Awesome, great to be back. But apparantly there are still some angels in the City of Angels. Or maybe we just looked really pathetic sitting on the floor trying to figure out how we could get the pack to a point where Clay could wear it for a bit. But the guy who had just denied us came over and said he felt really bad about it and would put a claim in with the airline company. I am pretty sure there will still be a lot of paperwork in our future but hopefully we will get reimbursed for some of Clay's pack. But that being the worst thing that has happened to us in in three months of backpacking gives you an idea how great of a trip this was. New Zealand is an amazing country that we only barely touched the surface of. But we are stoked to be back in the States. Putting on a new (new as in the sense that I haven't worn them everyday for the last three months) pair of pants this morning was emotional. Well we are excited to see everyone and can't wait hear about all your winter adventures :) Cheers!

*Special prize to anyone who knows the original work of literature that I plagurazied for the title of this blog entry.

Going Out With A Bang

At the end of our last trip with Mt. Ngauruhoe in the background. You might recognize it as Mt. Doom from Lord of the Rings.


With lighter packs, busted boots, and a full (4G) memory card, we walked out of the New Zealand Hills for the last time on Sunday. And what a finale of a trip is was. We were in New Zealands first and the world's fourth National Park, Tongariro National Park. It was the most diverse trail we have hiked here, and possibly ever. We hiked through alpine tussock, lush beech forests, desert, and 3 kilometers of paved road. We hiked around and on three separate volcanoes. One of which last erupted in 2007. Neat. Our second day of the trip was really just a treat. It started out with me braking a boot lace. This was merely just a minor inconvenience. It wasn't even a challenge for Clay's MacGyver skills, and he had me hiking ready in no time. But even his Eagle Scout skills couldn't help a couple days later when the side of my boot (same boot) ripped completely away from the sole. This is the same boot that has already been to the cobbler once on this trip. A couple hours after the boot mishap Clay had a spontaneous nosebleed. We eventually got that under control but not before creating a Haz Mat scene all over the trail. After another hour of hiking we found ourselves walking through the most hanus weather we have experienced in New Zealand. It pretty much just came out of nowhere. We had started off that morning with blue skies. But it was now sleeting sideways and the wind was making it impossible to walk straight. The wind was blowing so hard it was blowing snot out my nose completely unprovoked by myself. Just wanted to give you all a reference. Visibility deteriorated down to a couple meters. We just put our heads down and walked as fast as we could through a section of track that is regarded to be one of the most scenic in New Zealand. We couldn't see each other let alone the scenery. The weather did not let up and eventually we got to a very full hut. Although it was a pretty miserable day it was the only day of bad weather for the seven days we were out. Sweetness. So thankfully the next day we were able to do a bit of backtracking to see what we had missed. It was totally worth the extra hiking. We are now working are way back to Auckland to fly to LA on the 30th.* Then we will start retracing our steps and trying to gather back all our worldly belongings scattered throughout the Western United States.
Should be fun ;) Sunset behind Mt. Taranaki. Mt. Taranaki is another volcano on the west coast of the North Island. About 250 kilometers away from us in this pic. Mt. Ruapehu. Last erupted in 2007.
Mt. Ruapehu. Some pretty awesome weather.
That's just good advice.

*Just going to throw this out there any case anyone has any great ideas. Clay and I will be flying into LA on March 30th. And getting to and from our car in Joshua Tree National Park has proven to be the most difficult part of this trip. Anyone with any great ideas shoot them our way :)

Another Year of Breaths

I'm not going to lie. Aging is not something I look forward to. I get nervous that "living the dream" will become more difficult if not obsolete. But sometimes life lessons come to us in the most obscure fashions. A couple days ago Clay and I had finished our last backpacking trip in Kahurangi National Park. After getting a ride out from a very isolated trail head we find ourselves on a main road which although not as isolated still seemed a bit starved for traffic. We got pretty lucky though. After only several minutes a car slowed down as it saw us. The passenger side window rolled down and an elderly lady well past Golden Age Pass status asked us where we were headed. I answered, "Nelson." "Your lucky, hop in." The driver shuffled to the back of the car to open the boot. After coercing my backpack into an already full boot, and Clay managing to put his pack on his lap, we hopped in. As we slowly pulled back onto the road, " The lady said, "We older hitchhikers have to help out younger hitchhikers." That is awesome. They had just spent the weekend in Nelson Lakes National Park at a boat regatta. Still living the dream. As we rode with them for the next hour they told us about their 14 grandchildren spread all over the world. They talked about all their travels throughout New Zealand. They laughed at each other and gave each other a hard time for confusing street names. It was obvious that they had enjoyed many years together and continued to enjoy each other's company. Living the dream. When we got to Nelson they insisted on showing us some of the sights around the city. Amazingly generous of them. When they did eventually drop us off they both got out of the car to wish us well. Clay had mentioned earlier it was my birthday. So as they pulled away the lady asked me, "Well how old will you be?" I said, "27." She responded, "Yes, yes that's a good age." I have a feeling she would have said that if i would have said 27, 47, or 87. We didn't even get their names. But their smiling faces and obvious enjoyment of life and one another will be something that I remember for quite some time. No doubt the definition of "the dream" is different for all of us, and it will change with time and circumstances. But that is probably a good thing.

Well here are some pics for the last couple weeks. Right now we are in Nelson and heading out on Saturday to spend our last two weeks on the north island.

We traded in our hiking boots for a sea kayak. We kayaked for three days in Abel Tasman National Park stopping to camp along the beach as we went.

Said sea kayak. Tide going out in Anchorage Bay.


After sea kayaking we camped a night in Moteuka. And we found this amazing pillow thing. It was in the campground barely 30' from our tent. It was about the coolest thing ever.Then we did our last backpacking trip on the south island in Kahurangi National Park. Tablelands in Kahurangi National Park. Balloon Hut, Kahurangi National Park. Kahurangi National ParkClay hoping that a little dog will score us some sympathy points.

Lessons from a Dog

I got Bear back in August of 2006. I can't remember life without him. Many of you might remember what an agonizing decision it was for a seasonal park ranger to take on a 70 pound three legged dog... I remember calling my sister before his surgery saying, "What if I don't want a three legged dog?" My sister said, "But he'll be your three-legged dog and that will make him the coolest dog ever." Well, not to brag, but Bear is pretty cool, although I think I have very little to do with it. Wherever I go with Bear I get the sad pitty face. One lady in Tahoe actually bought Aimee and I coffee for "doing such a good deed". Admittedly I was homeless and jobless, so we took the coffee, but that's not the point. I guess it was sort of a good deed, but I feel like I have certainly been the larger beneficiary. Bear has taught me many things, but most importantly about priorities. Once I got Bear, all of the sudden I was on tripod dog web sites and consulting vets on how to keep him healthy and active, and buying dog life jackets and bike trailers! I never thought I would ever give up a ski day to hang out with my dog. Turns out, it's often pretty darn entertaining. Bear the wonder dog has truly been that... a wonder dog. Every day I am impressed with his loyalty (read: follows me to the bathroom and waits outside the door) his ability (the day he re-learned to swim, I was sold!) and how he has changed my life.


What is the point of all of this? Well, there's another tripod in this world that needs a home, as as I already have three dogs, I can't take him in (trust me, I did think about it-- even busted out the pro and con list!) If you know anyone who might have room in their lives for a special needs pup, please direct them to this website to meet Benji. He lost his front leg the same way Bear did- in a car accident. He's a five year old Golden Retriever and darn cute! Please pass this message on to anyone you know who might be up for a trip to Jackson Hole to check the little guy out. Thanks for reading!

A Seed is Sleepy

I have, over the last couple of years, said several disparaging things about my job. Who hasn't, really? But every once in a while, you have those moments that remind you why you like what you do. Now, I have also said disparaging things about other people's children. Why? I'm a bad person. Normally, other people's children are not my thing. Some of you may remember my brief stint as a day care "teacher"... Three months. And I wanted to pull my hair out every day. Except for the one day this kid was crawling around the floor and when I asked him why he said, "I'm going sniffing!" That was funny. The point? I'm getting there. So yesterday, I went to the library for story hour. I was the guest reader. The topic was springtime. Fitting as it was 63 degrees yesterday. I chose several books loosely related to the topic of spring. One was called An Egg is Quiet. I read the title to the kids and this four year old girl with a pineapple top ponytail looks up and said, "Of course it is, ranger. Its an egg!" Kids are quite logical. In all of the times I had read that book, no one had ever pointed that out. Hmmm... I found it to be quite amusing. I also read them A Seed is Sleepy. This met with a similar response, although I think it took them longer to realize what that one was all about. Sleepy seeds are very confusing. Maybe I didn't get to the point on this entry... I guess the point is that there is much joy to be found in reading to children. Even I found it. I hope to schedule more programs like that. It's good for me. And, we all planted seeds afterwards. It was about as much gardening as I have done it a very long time. I didn't decorate my pot nearly as well as the kiddos did. Anyways... if you get a chance, read a kid's book. If you can read it to a kid, even better!

Vino

As I get older, I'm starting to get picky. More picky than I was before. I'm picky about clothes left on the floor. I'm picky about toilet seats left up and dog hair drifting across the floor like tumbleweed. I'm picky about beer. Recently I have learned that I am picky about wine. Not saying that I have developed a taste to good wine, just that I'm picky about which cheap wine I will drink. In college, I remember many days drinking wine out of the box as if it were a drinking fountain on the playground. Then again, I also drank Jello shots out of ultimate discs (that were possibly also used as a game disc and/or and water bowl for the animals) and Keystone Light, so that is possibly not the best example. And that's right... I put Keystone Light in the same genre and dog water. But, as with food, everything tastes better when drank outside looking at the stars. Like a PBR found fortuitously wedged underneath a rock in an alpine lake. Or a magnum of Yellow Tail Merlot drank out of $2 plastic wine glasses purchased at Wal-Mart three hours into the trip. Somehow, it all tastes better outside. Word to the wise, however... once you make the switch from the Yellow Tail to the next price bracket, when you go back to the Yellow Tail, the first few sips have a bit of an acidic bite. :)

Noah's Ark: The Sequel

Fellow hut friends huddled around a mountain radio in Blue Lake Hut listening for the weather forecast and hoping for good news. None, rain, rain, and more rain.

I could have swore that God promised to not destroy the earth by floods after that whole Noah's Ark deal. After this last trip I'm not sure that he isn't rethinking that decision. The forecast wasn't terrible when we started out. Some heavy rains at first and then some light showers for a couple days. Wrongo dongo my friend. It rained for six straight days. The forecasters got the heavy rains nailed but they missed the hail and snow. Long story short it rained harder than I have ever seen it rain before. The rains came down and the rivers went up. The rivers can rise one meter an hour. Yikes. So we had to abort our originial trip itinerary which required a river crossing that would have resulted in our immediate deaths. We went with Plan B which didn't involve a river crossing and therefore we got to live some more. Really wasn't a tough decision. But the last two days of the trip made up for the previous six days of torrential rain. So I guess God decided to not destroy the earth after all. On our last night on Lake Angelus there was a sweet rainbow disappearing down into the canyon we had just hiked up. We thought about releasing a dove to see what it would return but we didn't have any :)
We are off to Abel Tasman National Park for some sea kayaking and then Kahurangi National Park for some more hiking. Somewhere in between we are going to come back to Nelson to celebrate my birthday, then off to the North Island for the last bit of our trip. Enjoy the pics :)View from Robert's Ridge looking down at Lake Angelus and Lake Angelus Hut.

Our last day hiking out Robert's Ridge.

Rainbow behind lovely alpine lake. We took this as a good sign that God had found some good people again on this earth.

Living the dream above yet another alpine lake we found.

Some more of the same, but yet different.

Lake Angelus. View from Lake Angelus Hut where we stayed with 40 of our closest friends. Crazy. There might be another blog entry someday about my thoughts of placing a huge hut right by an amazing alpine lake.

The track we had just come up, and the stream coming out of Lake Angelus.

We had actually just come down from Travers Saddle when we read this sign. Maybe we weren't prepared, I guess we will never know.