Bouldering with Flo

The Mission 7B, Torridon

Flo from the Mountain Equipment team was over for a few days. The weather was perfect and we had our pick of disciplines (providing we didn’t mind getting cold). Flo was keen to boulder, so we headed to Torridon, the Arisaig Cave and Glen Nevis. It was quite strange for me to visit some of these favourite old haunts of mine with someone else. Normally you won't see another soul at most highland bouldering venues.




Flo enjoying Inward Bound 7B, the classic of the Arisaig Cave.



Flo begins the crux swing on Under the Hat 7C, Heather Hat Boulder, Glen Nevis



Flo clinging to the ship boulder (The Mission 7B), Torridon.





Eyeing up the next edge on A Bridge too far 8A, Torridon.



I hadn't visited the Arisaig Cave for 2 years because I'd basically run out of projects. The one great line still to do there just seemed too hard last time I was there. But having a look at it (As in standing on the ground, just looking, as I still had only one functional leg) I decided that I really ought to return for another scrap with it. Likewise in Torridon I discovered a couple of great lines to go back for soon.

A 14,556-Step Day

We had all kinds of ideas for things to do today, but we didn’t do any of them.  Why?  It was just too darn cold.  When we got up at 6:00a it was a mere 45F (7C).  We hoped that as the day progressed the sun would come out and warm us up a bit.  That didn’t happen.  It was overcast all day and the temperature barely got up to 52F (11C), staying there for maybe 30 minutes before it began moving back down again.

I’m not really complaining; I’ll take cold temps over hot anytime, but we had hoped to sit outside this weekend, maybe have an al fresco meal or two.  The damp chill put paid to those plans.  Perhaps next time.

Not that we stayed home mind you.  After all, you can’t walk 14,556 steps inside the Phaeton.  Well, you can, but since it takes only 17 steps to get from the cockpit to the far side of the bedroom, it would take forever to rack ‘em up.  I’m participating in the “10,000 Steps a Day” Program sponsored by my company, so I’m off to a good start :-)  Actually, I easily walk 10,000 steps a day; so my goal is to get above that number.  (With my stride, what I accomplished today equates to 4+ miles (6+ km).  Not too shabby.)

After relaxing around the bus-house until mid-morning, we took the .5-mile trail from the campground to Gunston Hall, George Mason’s colonial home.  Since we had toured the estate on a previous visit (post here), our purpose was to get some exercise by strolling the grounds.  Of course, there were some photo ops along the way, some of which made me wish I had my DSLR and tripod with me.

Field of buttercups as far as the eye can see.

a yellow poplar tree with plenty of blooms.

So, this is what the blooms look like when they’re still attached to a tree branch.

Behind the visitor center, a secret garden bordered by tall hedges revealed …

Viburnum bushes

Easy to see why this species of viburnum is nicknamed common snowball.

… as well as the snow white blooms of azaleas.

When the white azaleas start blooming, I'll come back to you … or so the song goes.

Azaleas bloom in the spring; it sure doesn’t feel like it today.

We returned home around noon and grabbed a quick bite to eat.  Then, Mui went off to shop for a project he has in mind (post later).  While he was gone, I processed the photos from our Gunston Hall stroll.  That done, I headed out for a walk around the campground loop to find ‘acceptable’ sites for future visits.  A few shutter clicks added to my collection of Pohick Bay Regional Park photos.

A head-on view of Site 71 shows how wide it is.  our space goes out to the fire ring on the far left;
and there’s wide open space to our right.

Clockwise from top left: a small portion of the play area (for adults and kids), which is rimmed by campsites behind a ring of trees; another angle of view of site 71; one of the two comfort stations that house restrooms and laundry facilities; mountain laurel buds; behind the trees on the far side of the coach is the play area pictured in the fist photo of this collage.

When Mui returned from his shopping trip, we headed out on another walk.  This time we took what was supposed to be a 1-mile paved path to Mason Neck State Park.  It was one mile, OK; but that was just to the park’s entrance.  When a roller-blader told us that it was another 1½ miles to the visitor center, we decided to turn back and leave exploring the park to another visit.

Look at the size of that root base!
Mui’s just being macho; it really IS cold today.  OK, OK – Truth be known, we both took
off our jackets on the return portion of our trek.

The fertile spore-bearing fronds of the Cinnamon Fern gives the species its name.

We saw plenty of these blooms in The Smokies as well; now I know that this flowering
plant is the Sawtooth Blackberry (aka Southern or Highbush Blackberry).

And so we wrapped up another day at PBRP.  It wasn’t quite the day we’d hoped to spend here, but sometimes you just play the hand that’s dealt you and move on from there.

Intense Lady Slipper

Intense Lady Slipper, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

These lady slippers are so interesting. The flowers are shaped exactly as the name would suggest. This particular flower was much richer in color than others nearby. Seen in the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum.
Anybody been there?

Mt. Borah Epic

Today was the running of the Mt. Borah Epic. While the race is on the Saturday of Festival of the Trails - it is separate from the festival.

According to the promoters:

"The Mt. Borah Epic is nothing short of its true definition. A series of trail systems developed by the Chequamegon Area Mountain Bike Association, also known as CAMBA, have led Mt. Borah to stage a race that pays tribute to the trails and offers a one-of-a-kind experience found no where else but Northern Wisconsin.

Skill, endurance and perseverance will be asked of each rider as they challenge the Epic this upcoming spring. Each section of the course holds its own key to success. Racers will traverse rocks, roots and navigate through pine groves, all while enjoying the epic single track that has inspired us to stage this race from the very beginning."

I was not in Cable, WI for the start (probably should have gotten up earlier enough, but needed my rest). Taking a break from shooting some photos of the skill class, I noticed a growing number of folks in blue sweatshirts gathering at OO Trailhead. I learned that the point-2-point race will be coming through here. Found a seat and spend about an hours shooting the riders.

OO Trailhead was about 1/2 point of the 30 mile race and the only (for what I know) fuel/water stop. Photo with this posting is the race leaders at the fuel stop. Once they are sorted, proof copies will be on my events & race web site.

Rainy day paddle

The forecast today was rain and waves. So as soon as the kids left for school, we packed up and headed to Montrose beach to paddle with Scott Fairty. This wasn't supposed to be a paddling day, but you don't just let 2- to 4-foot waves get away unsurfed.

Guess which car is ours.



Synchonized paddling?



The waves were rolling in nicely at the beach, but the area just north was chaos. Waves were hitting the "sheet piling" (shoreline retaining walls) and bouncing back, creating surf in both directions and at times meeting and combining to create waves twice as large.

Going....

Going...



Gone!



Waves like these can be intimidating. They may be more of a challenge to your confidence than they are to your skills.

Paddling in conditions like these, we realize how well our kayaks handle chaotic waves if we let them. Sometimes we just bob around in confused conditions without bracing to see how little we really need to do. But today, some bracing was necessary.

Forecast for tomorrow:

See you tomorrow, Scott?

Sharon out to sea.

The Dining Room

Today I'm showing you my dining room.  Someday I plan on writing a book about the building of our house.  There are quite a few good stories to tell and things to show.  To begin: The photo of the two pictures side by side-They belong to a matched set.  I don't know how many were in the set originally.  Funny thing is that I found these in two different states.  The left one has a caption that reads "The Farm Yard" and the right one says "Southern Fruits".   The pictures of Christ knocking at the door is written in German.  I found it in a local junk shop for $5!  It's victorian and has pressed flowers, a celluoid Jesus figure, and is stitched on perforated paper. The washstand was bought here in Statesboro.  Supposedly, it belonged to a local personality but was put up for sale in a divorce settlement.  I just love it!  The open book on the tray is an Art Masterpiece Every Day book I bought to enlighten the family; ever the teacher.  Each page is numbered with the date and a painting for that day.  I've found the grandchildren (and Darcie) giggling over a nude or two.  Kids!  The high chair, which I found in Woodstock, Georgia, is handcarved.  I only let very small children sit in it for fear they'll break it.  I have a sturdier one in the kitchen that is in use all the time.  The full size chair belongs to a set of six that my parents bought in the 60's and passed down to me.  Mama rebottomed the chairs for me with seagrass rope.  That woman can do just about anything!  I embroidered the ABC sampler and put it in a victorian frame.  More next time.

Through the Woods

Our hike today with San Antonio Hill Country Hikers started on the Government Canyon State Natural Area trail at precisely 7:45 a.m. One of the attributes I like about this group is they start on time...no dilly-dallying.

We headed out into the frontcountry on easy trails to warm up before heading uphill into backcountry. The first part of the hike was on wide, flat trails. When we ventured into the backcountry, the trails became narrower and a lot rockier. Thankfully, most of the hike was in the woods. Woods = shade!

Hill Country Hikers at one of the park overlooks.

Trail distances. (Click photo to enlarge.)

Trail map. (Click photo to enlarge.)

Shade!

Nice logo on the spur trail signs.

Well, not quite. Paul took us down to an overlook.

View from the overlook toward park headquarters.

Brief break.

Paul describing the lay of the land.

Our group with Paul, our leader.

Gone to seed.

Nice tree trunk arch frame.

Straw flower.

Horse crippler cacti.

Mountain lions inhabit area.

Saying our good-byes.

We hiked six miles this morning and learned a lot about Government Canyon: There are at least 40 miles of hiking trails, more acreage has been added to the park, and new hiking trails will be constructed; wild pigs live in the park as do rabbits and mountain lions.

There was talk of going out for pancakes after the hike and I was game, but a solid plan didn't materialize by the time we left. Instead, we stopped at Taco Cabana and each had egg and potato breakfast burritos with salsa from the Salsa Bar and a bottle of orange juice. What a great protein replenisher after the hike.

This afternoon our 5th wheel refrigerator stopped working. It's a Norcold and the display window is giving us a symbol like an "n" or upside down "u." We have tried turning it off, waiting a minute, then turning it back on. No go. We bought a bag of ice and put the most critical items in our Coleman cooler with the ice. Tomorrow I will call about our warranty and see when we can have the refrigerator fixed or replaced. Looks like we'll be eating out quite a bit until then ** or ** buying lots of ice!!



Movie review: Last night, we watched our Netflix selection, Side Effects, starring Jude Law, Rooney Mara, and Catherine Zeta-Jones. The plot was very convoluted and involved prescription anti-depressants, a murder, medical ethics, and mental instability. Our rating was so-so, maybe 2-1/2 stars.

Now we're kicking back and relaxing. Thought about going to the San Antonio Missions baseball game, but the wind kicked up, clouds moved in and there's a chance of showers or thunderstorms. Don't want to sit exposed in a stadium with lightning bolts flashing around us.

Have a good week. Travel Bug out.