Author: KBGearDave

JMT Thru Hike #1 – Overview

On By KBGearDaveIn Backpacking/Hiking Stuff, Mountain StuffLeave a comment
Lots of discussion about which direction was better. The only two directions that really matter on the JMT are “up” and “down”!

At 5:45 on a Wednesday in August we walked into Yosemite Valley, twenty-one days after setting out from the Whitney Portal trail head…and just like that it was over. The thing we had been dreaming about, and planning, and preparing for so long was suddenly a memory. In one sense it is very easy to quantify the accomplishment. We had walked a total of 234-ish miles in 21 days and climbed 42,240 vertical feet along the way…but those are just numbers. Numbers don’t begin to capture the feeling of topping out on a high pass after climbing uphill for miles, or the sight of a snow capped granite peak perfectly reflected in an alpine lake, or the magic of the evening light on that same mountain at sunset, or the power of a roaring waterfall or the soothing sound of a gentle riffle on that same creek. The statistics of a through hike have nothing to do with the joys of walking through wilderness and talking with old friends, or the simple pleasures of making new friends along the way. A hike on the John Muir Trail is very much more than the sum of all these parts.

Three years prior to this trip, I had the privilege of hiking a portion of the JMT with Dan, Phil, Steve and Michelle. ( https://www.seizingthecarp.com/jmt-august-2016/ ) Because of knee problems, Sharon was unable to participate on that trip. Having seen and heard about our experiences however, she suggested that now with the time to do so, we should through hike the entire trail. She didn’t have to convince me, and we reached out to our usual group of willing accomplices. Eventually the field of the willing was whittled down to those actually able to take the time. Dan Boss, Cailie the Gnome Princess and Andrew O all signed on to accompany us almost half way to an exit point over Bishop Pass. Sharon and I would complete the journey on our own. That was the plan. Reality of course had plans of her own.

  • The first day was tough. Lots of uphill with ten days of food crammed in our packs.
  • High camp at 12,000′
  • We woke on day two to hysterical laughter while these two attempted to open Cailie’s bear canister. It was so full, it wouldn’t open.
  • Dan being helpful as always. “We should go up there!”
  • Whitney Pass and thankfully some “down” after all the “up”

On day two as we descended from Whitney pass, Andrew badly sprained his ankle near Guitar Lake. After an initial assessment and some treatment, we decided the best option was to make our way down to Crabtree Meadow and the ranger station there. By the next morning, it was clear Andrew was not going anywhere under his own power. His multi-colored, softball size ankle and the near certainty that he had broken a bone during his fall led Ranger Rob to order a helicopter evacuation. Thirty minutes later Andrew was whisked away, and we were left to mourn the departure of our friend. For someone who works as hard as he does, and has so little free time, it was incredibly sad to see him deprived of the rest of the trip. Having said that, it could easily have been much worse and we were very thankful for all the help in getting Andrew safely home (and to surgery several days later).

  • “Physician heal thyself.” First attempt at treatment at Guitar Lake
  • Andrew convalescing in Crabtree Meadow prior to evac. Rest, ice and elevate. Doing all the right stuff
  • Apparently only one in ten evacs are for ortho injuries. Most are for altitude related problems. Way to be special Andrew

With the evac done, we packed up and continued our journey northward. As I’ve noted before, the four remaining members of the Diapers and Depends team have shared many adventures and are all very experienced backpackers. We very quickly settled into an easy rhythm of life on the trail. Every day brought unbelievable world class views, challenging trails, stimulating conversation, and enjoyable camp life at the end of the day. All too quickly it was time for Dan and Cailie to jump off the trail and head out over Bishop Pass. The fact that we so enjoyed their company made it that much more difficult to say good-bye.

  • K2 and Bobo ready to head out over Bishop Pass.

Having said good-bye, Sharon and I fell right back into our own familiar routines…we’ve been doing this sort of thing for the past 34 years after all. One difference we did notice hiking as a couple, is that we started meeting and interacting more with other hikers along the trail. We met and spent time with some truly amazing people along the way (more on that in another post.) Unless you’ve done it, it is hard to get your mind around hiking 200+ miles or camping in the mountains for three weeks (without a shower I might add). Very quickly it becomes routine, and then suddenly the end looms. For me, walking into the campground at Tuolumne Meadow was the emotional end of the trip for me. We had decided that we would drop packs and hike the last bit from Tuolumne to Yosemite Valley as a day hike. Even though we took a detour to the top of Cloud’s Rest and enjoyed stunning views from far above Yosemite Valley – the last day seemed very much like an afterthought. We were really just connecting the dots to say we’d completed the hike.

  • Clouds Rest was a worthwhile side trip off the JMT on our last day
  • Pretty amazing view into Yosemite Valley.
  • JMT Rule #1 – Don’t believe anything anyone tells you! The official distance of the JMT is 211 miles. Note the distance listed to Mt Whitney…

So now we’re home. We’ve enjoyed several showers, washed clothes, cleaned and put away gear. We’ve reconnected with many of our friends here in Flagstaff and have tried to convey some sense of what it was like on the trail. We’re left to ponder what – if any – impact our time on the JMT has had. I’ll write more in depth, but here’s a quick first swipe at it.

  • We are fortunate beyond belief to have the time and the health to complete a lengthy and challenging trip like this.
  • We are fortunate beyond belief to have vast expanses of natural beauty like this in our country
  • Sharon and I had very different trips. I felt good and truly didn’t have a bad day. Sharon fought through an early illness and other health issues along the way. As Cailie said, knowing you have the mental resilience and physical toughness to fight through issues like that is something you can put in the bank during other difficult days.
  • I love nature and especially being in true wilderness settings without people. Having said that, having Andrew, Cailie and Dan along, and all the new friends we made along the trail really made this trip special.

There is much more I’d like to share about this trip. I’d like to talk specifically about some of the folks we met. I’ll speak a bit about some of the gear we used – what worked and what didn’t. I have no desire to give a step by step description of the trail or point out specific special places…there’s too much of that on the internet already. I would like to just share some of the beautiful images you might expect to see if you decide to wander this trail yourself…or at the very least, give you a small sense of what draws us to places like this. I will share some of the lessons we learned on a long trip (still possible to learn something new after all these years). So if you haven’t already done so, scroll down and sign up for email updates. And if you have any specific questions, please feel free to reach out. Sharon and I will be happy to offer any help we can. Until next time – Happy Trails and Seize the Carp!

Southwest Colorado…Again

On By KBGearDaveIn Misc. StuffLeave a comment

A beer budget ‘vacation’ with champagne views!

Just a short time ago, a two week vacation was a big deal for us. We would painstakingly sift through our list of places we’d like to go, people we’d like to see, things we’d like to do. I imagine it was something like a dog lover going to the animal shelter and seeing a dozen adorable animals they’d like to take home – but knowing realistically they can only pick one! Every trip we considered looked up at us with adorable puppy eyes, silently pleading, “Pick me! Pick me!”

Prior to April of 2019, time and money were always the limiting factors. Since we stepped away from full time work, we’ve (more or less) removed time as a limiting factor. Now we have to make sure we have the long term means to finance our wanderlust. During the month of July, we took what for us was a pretty typical low rent, beer budget ‘vacation’ with champagne views and accommodations.

We spent two weeks wandering around southwest Colorado. We explored a new mountain range. We spent some quality grandparent time. We helped renovate a historic building. We spent time getting to know our future daughter-in-law. We spent days and days high in the rugged San Juan mountains enjoying the always breathtaking views. It was a perfect, inexpensive, sustainable way to spend two weeks.

After several days wandering around the mountains, we joined the George family and several friends for a work weekend up at the St Paul Lodge and Hut. Chris George Sr. purchased the St Paul mine and with virtually no money, but loads of ingenuity, converted the head house and a miner’s cabin into a backcountry ski lodge. Chris and Donna have recently handed over operation of the lodge to their children. You can learn more of the fascinating history/location here https://stpaulhut.com/about-us/ . We spent a fun weekend, making some major upgrades to the systems, and just enjoying the unbelievable ambiance of the place.

After the work weekend was over, we met up with Katie Jo – our soon to be daughter-in-law. Having found herself with some rare downtime during her psychology PhD program, she decided to join us for a week of wandering, camping and time with Aaron, Vanessa and the wee ones. Katie is developing into an accomplished ultra athlete, so we did our best to challenge (and share) with her some of our favorite hikes and climbs. I think we succeeded.

Two weeks of no stress bliss with family and friends in one of our favorite places. Truly a champagne lifestyle on a beer budget, and another wonderful chapter in the story of our retirement…with more to come.

Ode to a Bonk

On By KBGearDaveIn Endurance StuffLeave a comment

My legs felt tired as soon as I started up the trail. It normally takes a bit to loosen up and feel good, so that wasn’t surprising. On this particular day though, I wasn’t feeling it. Not only did I not loosen up, as the climb continued, I felt more and more tired and (it hardly seemed possible) actually started moving even more slowly. It gradually occurred to me that on the previous day, I may have been a bit light on calories. In fact, on reflection, I hadn’t really eaten much after breakfast. Just wasn’t hungry and we were busy doing stuff. No problem! I told my body, “Body – you’re ‘well marbled’ with a fair bit of reserve fat! Why don’t you just burn some of that instead!” My body thought about that for a moment and then flipped me a double bird, planted a solid hit on the family jewels, gave me an atomic wedgie followed by a swirly, and then danced over my crushed spirit singing, “Na-na-na-boo-boo!” In other words, using a military reference, I was experiencing a MOAB – Mother Of All Bonks! Not the British bonk, but as a Runner’s World article put it, the “sorry stewpot of dehydration, training errors, gastric problems, and nutrition gaffes” that causes either the legs or the brain to call it a day!

One would think that after doing this sort of thing long enough, bonking would be a thing of the past. I’ve found, however, that I never go wrong underestimating my capacity for stupidity. Anyway, I told my body, “You’re not the boss of me!” and kept trudging uphill, moving so slowly that time actually moved backwards. To pass the time I re-worked one of my favorite Dr. Suess stories (my apologies to Suess BTW).

Well… I was hiking up the mountain, and I saw nothing scary. For I have never been afraid of anything. Not very. Then I was high up on the mountain when, suddenly, I spied them. I saw a pair of pale green running shorts with no calories inside them! I wasn’t scared. But, yet, I stopped What could those shorts be there for? What could a pair of running shorts be standing in the air for? And then they moved? Those empty shorts! They kind of started jumping. And then my heart, I must admit, It kind of started thumping. I said, “I do not fear those shorts with no calories inside them.” I said, and said, and said those words. I said them. But I lied them. Then I finally reached the mountain top and the next thing that I knew, I felt my hand touch someone!
And I’ll bet that you know who. And there I was! High in that awesome place Those spooky, empty shorts and I were standing face to face! I yelled for help. I screamed. I shrieked. I howled. I yowled. I cried, “OH, SAVE ME FROM THESE PALE GREEN SHORTS WITH NO CALORIES INSIDE!”
But then a strange thing happened. Why, those shorts began to cry! Those shorts began to tremble. They were just as tired as I! I never heard such whimpering, so….I put my arm around their waist And sat right down beside them. I calmed them down. Poor empty shorts with no calories inside them.

Dr. Suess…sort of!

When I finally trudged to the top of the climb, I sat down and had a serious talk with my body. I promised, in the future, to remember to provide the necessary calories before heading out on a long hike/run. It apologized for the rough treatment it gave me on the way up (although just between you and me – I’m not sure my body was entirely sincere). In any case, we made up and actually had a decent run back down As unpleasant as it was, those kinds of experiences always serve as good reminders that no matter how experienced we may be, it can be the simplest of things that trip us up. Lesson learned. Thank you, body, for that!

Gear Report: KB Rain Kilt 3.0

On By KBGearDaveIn Backpacking/Hiking Stuff, Gear StuffLeave a comment

Of all the trips we’ve taken, and of all the adventures I’ve written about, the most visited page here is the one describing the rain kilt. (Kilt 2.0 ) If you’ve read that article, then you know I’m a big fan of the rain kilt. Since the first version was field tested back in July of 2016, and a major revision shortly after that first trip, I’ve used the kilt exclusively in all my travels.

Use any piece of gear and before long you see room for improvement. That has definitely been the case with the kilt…there has been a constant evolution. The beta version proved the concept in some truly nasty conditions. However, it turned out to be too square and didn’t overlap enough. Version 2.0 was an improvement, but consisted of two pieces which required extra time and effort to sew. And even though it only weighed 8 oz, I was interested in using some lighter weight materials as well as tweaking the design a bit more.

Version 1.0 … note the almost square shape.
Slightly more colorful and slightly more flared version 2.0

Before retirement, one of my co-workers happened to be a professional seamstress. We had several interesting conversations about design possibilities, and with her help, I came up with a new design that not only fits better, but is easier and quicker to sew.

An early version of 3.0 One piece and even more flare.
For this version I used 1.1 oz Silnylon. Final weight…1.95 oz!
Feeling very manly in my rain kilt (its not a skirt!)

I’ve now made three kilts using the new design, and with each one I’ve made some small, but significant changes. In a few weeks, I am excited to be joining four of KB’s “sponsored” athletes. We will be field testing the latest and greatest to come out of the KB Skunkworks on the John Muir trail in California. Based on the feed back I receive, I will incorporate any final design changes into the pattern. If anyone is interested, I’m happy to share information on making our own. Seize the Carp!

Continue reading “Gear Report: KB Rain Kilt 3.0” →

Wanderlust

On By KBGearDaveIn Misc. StuffLeave a comment

“My heart is on fire for the things I haven’t done, and I’ve yet to grow tired of being on the run. It’s my ever restless spirit – sometimes it brings me down. And the only way I know to stay afloat is by kickin’ round from town to town. Cuz’ I’ve been too long in one place Got the whole world at my feet and I can’t wait I’m taking off I must escape – cuz’ I’ve been too long in one place

(Barefoot Movement – Too Long in One Place

After being on the road for two months, we were excited to be home. We were looking forward to reconnecting with our Flagstaff friends – and we’ve done that with a passion. Hardly a day or night has gone by since we’ve been home that we haven’t gotten together with someone…to play, to pass the time and catch up, to eat or enjoy the local night life. We were looking forward to all the outdoor activities Flagstaff offers. We’ve been out mountain biking, mountain hiking, trail running, paddling, camping, etc. We’ve been getting after some long overdue home projects and general maintenance. So, yeah, it is good to be home.

A good deal of our time at home, however, has been spent prepping for our next adventures – ten days in the San Juan or La Plata mountains in SW Colorado, three weeks of backpacking on the John Muir Trail, Imogene Pass Run (again), a two week paddle up Lake Powell, and some extended quality time below the rim up at the Canyon. That gets us to the end of October! Because of the length and nature of these trips, there’s a fair amount of work to be done preparing food, organizing gear, taking care of logistics, and coordinating with all the fine folks who will be adventuring with us.

Even though our plate is full of exciting adventures, I share John Muir’s sentiment, “The world is big and I want to have a good look at it before it gets dark.” Several of our good friends have shared their experiences in Scotland. “You should totally go” they say. “You’d love it!” Why, yes, I’m sure we would. And we say to each other, “Wouldn’t it be nice to visit Scotland (in spite of the rain)? Maybe we could combine that with a return trip to Norway. Wouldn’t it be fun to take our bicycles and tour – yes, in spite of the rain! If we biked and camped it wouldn’t cost that much! Maybe we could extend it to other parts of Europe?” But then Mike and Lori, and then the Smoldering Whartons and their beautiful girls wax poetic about the wonders of New Zealand. “You should totally go” they say. “You’d love it!” Why, yes, I’m sure we would. And then we talk to other friends and see pictures of the alps, and the coast of Greece, and Croatia and Montenegro – who wouldn’t to grab a ruck sack and head to those places? But then, there is so much to see closer to home. For years we’ve talked about returning to the Canadian Rockies. We were there backpacking with Aaron when he was only six months old, and we’ve been trying to get back ever since. And what about sea kayaking in Georgian bay on Lake Huron – the pictures are amazing! And speaking of kayaking, haven’t we talked about going back to the Pacific around Vancouver island? And southern Utah…I mean…come on…southern Utah is a world apart! And not just Utah, but Colorado, the Grand Canyon, the entire southwest! There are several life times of exploration to be done within a few hours drive. And the grand kids. Oliver is shredding it on his mountain bike and Kiri just started walking. And family, and friends, and, and, and, and….”My heart is on fire for the things I haven’t done.“

Ah…the curses and joys of wanderlust. We are well aware of the curse. The constant desire to see what is over the horizon can blind you to the every day beauty all around. We try hard to be mindful of the joy of friendships and experiences right before us. Life is too short to waste a single day, especially just wishing to be somewhere else. The joy of wanderlust though is to be forever energized and excited by experiencing new places, meeting new people and making new friends. Mark Twain said it well. “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” So, as we like to say, seize the carp! Today! Tomorrow! Right where you are or over the horizon! With us or on your own!

Life on the Road

On By KBGearDaveIn Misc. Stuff3 Comments

Reflections on a two month road trip.

On April 8th we left Flagstaff on our first road trip as retirees. Seventeen states, almost eight thousand miles and two months later we pulled into our driveway again. We’ve spent the last few days getting resettled and reconnecting with several of our Flagstaff friends. Yesterday morning a friend asked, “So what was your favorite part?” I was actually kind of stumped. I gave a long, rambling, I’m sure unsatisfactory answer! There were so many good parts I hadn’t really thought of any as my favorite. Her question got me thinking. Sharon and I talked about it a bit. So after some consideration I thought I’d share some reflections of our time traveling.

What worked? For a variety of reasons, we put the cargo van conversion idea on hold and decided to hit the road in our trusty eleven year old 4Runner. That turned out to be a good decision. It is comfortable and quiet. Even packing for two months of traveling, kayaking, and mountain biking gear, we had room to spare. Our two wheel drive version easily goes just about anywhere. Even with bike and boats attached it isn’t immediately obvious that we are sleeping in back. With the recent flood of people jumping on the whole “van life” bandwagon, sometimes spending in excess of $100,000 in order to, ironically, “live simply“, there is some smug satisfaction in making do with what we have (and long since paid for). The feeling now is that unless some screaming deal on a van comes our way, we will likely continue to make use of Grandma and Grandpa’s “Bumpy”.

Hands down, the best piece of new gear was the Yakima “Full Swing” bike rack. Crazy expensive, but unbelievably convenient. Without it, we would not have had access to the back unless we removed bikes and rack. Comes with a retractable cable lock. Not a super fan of the bike attachment straps, but they were adequate. Overall, this rack probably did more to make our living arrangement work than anything else we did. One other lifesaving gear was our home made duct tape/magnet bug screens for our windows. Cool air came in, all the little nasties stayed out.

But, back to the question du jour…what was our favorite part of the trip. Turns out no one thing rose to that favored position. The “favorite” part of the trip was having the time to take the trip in the first place, arriving back in Flagstaff with lots of pleasant memories and experiences in tow. In no particular order of importance, some of our favorites include…

  • Paddling in cypress swamps in Louisiana with the amazing wildlife (including stone, cold killer gaters).
  • Boudin sausage….mmmmmm, so good.
  • Karen’s 80th birthday party in Florida with family and friends.
  • Chickamauga civil war battlefield museum.
  • The Wednesday night paddle on the Tennessee River with the Chattanooga paddlers.
  • Amazing single track bike trails all across the country.
  • X-Ray tech x-ray tech reunion in Madisonvilled, KY with time for me to take a side trip to Land Between the Lakes
  • Several new friends
  • Memory lane tour of Milwaukee seeing old familiar faces and places.
  • High School Graduation for nephew Andrew
  • Spending time up nort’ der in Wisconsin with Mom, Mike, Lori, Candy, Harry, Georgia, Bob, Dana & family, Jennifer, Barry…and the bear!
  • Kayaking Cave Point, Rock Island and around Peninsula state park on Lake Michigan.
  • Camping on Washington Island and an evening at Fiddlers Green.
  • Spring Peepers looking for love
  • Spending time with old friends Allen and Lisa, Laura, Phil and Kathy, Tim and Gretchen, Rob and Cailie.
  • Finding out that Souix Falls, SD is a pretty cool place – and getting to spend time there with Sandy, Blair, Seth and 12.
  • Time with Kevin and Katie in Colorado Springs and getting to meet and play with her very cool family.
  • Hiking and biking and camping in the Buffalo Springs area northwest of the Springs…and watching Katie crush her first ultra-marathon!
  • The mountains of Colorado.
  • Hanging with Aaron and Vanessa in Durango and getting to be full time grand parents with no time constraints.
  • Having a “just very good” place to call home at the end of it all.

This list is by no means a complete list…just a few of the more memorable highlights. Like any good trip, the list of people and places we couldn’t visit was even longer than the things we did.

What didn’t work….as well. Looking back, there are a few things that could have gone better. Obviously we had no control over that wicked wench winter. She just wouldn’t leave. We somehow failed to anticipate that as a possibility. As a result we brought more warm weather clothes than necessary, and left too much of our foul/cold weather at home. The other thing that didn’t work as well was our schedule. We purposely planned our trip to be present for some major family milestones and opportunities to visit. We knew that going in, but the result was that because of the distances involved, we rushed through some areas and had to decline invitations that normally we would have accepted. In the future, whenever possible, we would definitely like to leave time to embrace opportunities that arise along the way.

By the end, we were ready to be home to enjoy all that we enjoy about Flagstaff…but we were also quite comfortable being on the road. Apparently our “practice” over the years has paid off. Its been a smooth transition. And even though we’ve only been home for a few days, talk of future adventures has already begun. For now though, we’re grateful to have the time to dream about the future and every day enjoy the things we enjoy! STC

Cheers!

Friends and Family Tour #3

On By KBGearDaveIn Misc. Stuff, Water Stuff2 Comments

An Ideal Day on Washington Island

For the past few years as we worked toward our goal of retiring, we often started conversations “So – speaking of retirement...” During these conversations we added to our list of things that needed to be done, ticked off progress made, but mostly talked about how we imagined our lives would be apart from work. Now that we’re actually living the dream, so to speak, a recent day captured it beautifully.

We caught an early morning ferry (“Just the two a yuhs?”) from the very tip of Wisconsin’s “thumb” sticking out into Lake Michigan across “Death’s Door” to Washington Island. It had probably been a quarter century since we’d made the trip. With no real plan, we eventually found ourselves at Jackson Harbor, looking a mile and a half across open water at Rock Island. The weather looked, the winds were light, so we decided to seize the carp and paddle over to the island. Rock Island is actually a Wisconsin State Park with regular ferry service during the summer months. This early in the season there was no ferry, so we had the island to ourselves. We spent several pleasant hours wandering the trails and exploring historic sites.

Taking the ferry from Door County to Washington Island.

Landing at Rock Island

Lake Michigan shoreline

Historic buildings on Rock Island

Sharon enjoying the fruits of her labors…a New Glarus Spotted Cow.

Back at the dock we relaxed and hydrated (it’s a safety issue) with an adult beverage before heading to the island’s performing arts center to watch the local school kids perform the musical “We are Monsters“. Pretty impressive for grade school kids. It must have been exciting for the kids to perform in front of an enthusiastic packed house. It was fun for us to be able to peer through this little window into island life.

Washington Island School play.

Our musicians/entertainment atthe Fiddlers Green.

After the play it was off to Fiddler’s Green Pub. Kate, the proprietor, is a fascinating lover of music and pub funkiness. Two long time friends of Kate came in to play and sing in the most informal of settings. By the end of the evening everyone in the bar had pretty much met everyone else, and also had been invited to play or sing. A friend of the musicians bravely picked up a guitar and shared a song. It was a magical evening.We ended up back at some property owned by a friend of a friend who graciously and enthusiastically encouraged us to stay on his land. We spent another peaceful night in the 4Runner.

As we imagined and dreamed, this was exactly the kind of day we hoped for…being active in beautiful places, meeting new people and adding unique experiences to our memory bank. Clearly, you don’t have to be retired to enjoy a day like this. You just have to look for, and then say yes when opportunities arise. For our part, we’re going to continue to seize the carp wherever and whenever possible.

Friends and Family Tour #2

On By KBGearDaveIn Misc. StuffLeave a comment

One of our goals, as we travel, is to find reasons to fall in love with the places we visit. We’ve flirted with a few places along the way, but in each case ultimately decided “It’s not you…it’s me, but we can still be friends, right?” Late in the day on Easter Sunday we found ourselves at an overlook on the top of John’s Mountain in northwest Georgia, about 30 minutes outside Chattanooga. Along with a group of high school kids, we looked out across a lush valley. As the sun dropped behind a distant ridge, one of the girls in the group said, “When I think that the same amazing God that gave us all this (motioning to the valley, ridges, and sunset) decided that I needed to be in the world also…it just blows me away!” A profound, if unexpected observation from a young lady we assumed was part of a group just looking for a place to party.

Not far from that lookout, we spent one of our best nights of our trip. Except for a deranged whippoorwill, we camped in peaceful solitude along a small creek, deep in the Georgia woods.

A good portion of the next day was occupied hiking the ridges, valleys, and waterfalls of Cloudland Canyon State Park. The views and the workout were much appreciated.

After a fair amount of discussion, we decided our next stop would be at a state park east of Chattanooga. While we much preferred free camping, its convenient location would allow us better opportunities to get acquainted with this intriguing southern belle. On the way, we made a slight detour to Chickamauga battlefield. The exhibits and movie offered excellent insights into this important and costly civil war battle. I’m always amazed that if not for a bad decision here, miscommunication there, lack of information generally – any one of these civil war battles – even the war itself might have had a very different outcome.

We spent the next few days getting to know Chattanooga and the surrounding area. This corner of our country has much to recommend it. Enterprise park has highly entertaining mountain bike trails, lovely picnic areas, as well as dedicated hiking and equestrian trails. The downtown area offers a beautiful Riverwalk along the Tennessee River. Wednesday afternoon we enjoyed food and beverages at one of the local microbrews with Cathy and Bob. Also retired, we’d met this delightful couple from Orlando at the campground. Later that evening we joined a group of paddlers as they made their weekly pilgrimage out to an island in the middle of the river. As we enjoyed a beer and got to know the colorful and welcoming members of this group, one thing was clear. Every single person was passionate about his or her love of this active, vibrant, outdoorsy community.

Coolidge Park and the Tennessee River from the pedestrian bridge

Biking on the Riverfront trail

College rowing team practicing on the Tennessee River below the pedestrian bridge.

Downtown Chattanooga

Our newest friends

Sharon and some of our ‘Nooga paddling friends

Well played Tennessee, well played. And to all you Tennesseans who made our stay such a pleasure “Thank you!” We’ve fallen in love with your little corner of the world. And as all the paddlers were eager to point out…we barely scratched the surface. We will definitely be back.

https://www.chattanoogafun.com/blog/post/free-in-chattanooga/

Friends and Family Tour …#1

On By KBGearDaveIn Misc. Stuff4 Comments

The first leg of our Friends and Family Tour in retirement was to Florida for Karen’s 80th birthday. My dream was to stop along the way in Arlen, Texas to meet Hank, Peggy, and Bobby Hill. Maybe chat with Hank about propane and propane accessories. Then move on to the great state of Alabama, to Greenbow, Alabama to meet Forrest Gump. My ultra running hero…………turns out they are all fictional characters. Thanks reality for crushing my dreams. So now what? Well, we still had a birthday party to go to. While I am definitely not a big fan of driving long distances, the math was pretty straightforward, 2,400 miles in six days meant four hundred miles per day. So Friday we said farewell to a houseful of our Flagstaff friends. Sunday we said farewell to our church family and pointed the 4Runner east.

A long day one took us southeast of Amarillo down a deserted road.

1st restful night in our 4Runner luxury “RV”

Prior to this trip my only experience with Texas was an Interstate across the panhandle. We actually rather liked Texas. Although a current Texas resident and friend of Sharon’s thought they might not embrace my suggestion for a new state motto. “Texas – doesn’t suck as much as I thought!” And with the exception of the puzzling Dallas/Fort Worth roadway system, we found plenty to like in Texas.

Our hearts were set on using our narrow window of free time to explore Louisiana, so we ended our 2nd long day of driving at Chicot state park. Unlike anything we’d ever seen.

We were the only campers in a very, very soggy state park. Cue the banjo music? Nah. It was lovely!

Paddling through the cypress swamp was otherworldly. We were treated to an amazing variety of both new and familiar birds. Sharing the swamp with alligators was by far the coolest…and spookiest part of our day. It’s easy to ascribe feelings and personality to other animals. Alligators are soul less, stone cold killers. While we were watching one swim by up ahead, an unseen gator about five feet to my right did a massive “I don’t want you here” splash/thrash. I just recently managed to unclench my butt cheeks!

Cuddly little gator chillaxin

We spent an interesting few days roaming around one small corner of Louisiana, sampling the swamps and tasty sausage known as boudin (thanks for the suggestion Steve and Michelle).

Another night of free camping on a levee along the banks of the Atchafalaya river.
Enjoying adult beverages in our custom retirement cups…thanks Glenn.

It still hasn’t sunk in that we are retired. In spite of several pleasant travel days across the south, and several pleasant days with family here in Florida, it still feels like we’re on a vacation. A vacation, that like all other vacations that have come before, must inevitably come to an end. But not today. Today we celebrate the completion of Karen’s 80th trip around the sun. We’ll think about tomorrow, and any other tomorrows…tomorrow.

Help Us Fall in Love…

On By KBGearDaveIn Misc. Stuff2 Comments

…with your little corner of paradise.

I’ve already made it pretty clear that we love living in Flagstaff. Draw a six hour travel circle around Flagstaff. Within that circle you will find several “trip of a lifetime” National Parks, the red rocks of Sedona, the San Juan mountains of SW Colorado, world class mountain biking, rivers to float, mountains to climb, and trails to explore. If you stretch the six hours a wee bit, you also get the Pacific Ocean. Right here at home we have our own mountain, running and mountain bike trails, and a community crazy in love with those activities. We love Flagstaff!

Throughout history though, inquiring minds have yearned to discover what lies “beyond”. As much as we enjoy all there is to enjoy in our own little six hour circle, we also yearn to discover what lies “beyond”. We’ve already done lots of exploring in our first half-century (plus) of trips around the sun. Turns out there are still quite a few blank spots on the map. I’ll be honest though, my bias toward mountains and canyons leads to somewhat negative preconceived notions of what lies “beyond” in many of those blank spots.

So here’s the challenge. Sharon and I have determined that we would not let our preconceived notion of places determine where we go – or more importantly – how we see the places we go. Clearly, lots of people live in and love parts of the country (and world) that we might never consider either living in or loving. We have decided that as we travel, we want to try to find what it is about a place that people love. We want to find the things that would make us fall in love with some place we’ve never been. We’d like to meet the people, eat the food, experience the way of life, find the little pockets of beauty wherever they exist, and fall in love with a place. We’d like your help. We’d love it if you’d reach out to us in some way and let us know what you love about your little corner of paradise and why you love it.

I’ll be writing about what we find in our upcoming travels. Sign up below if you’d like email notifications when new posts are added. And thanks in advance for your help.

Seizing the Carp…full time!

On By KBGearDaveIn Misc. Stuff4 Comments

Because of Sharon’s work at the hospital, and the need to put in vacation requests well in advance, every fall we’ve had to plan our vacation schedule for the following year. Every year we comb through our list of possible adventures, and then pare it down to the bare minimum. Typically we realize we need about 87 vacation days. Sadly, neither of us has such a generous employer. So after many years of scrimping, saving and working hard, our adventures will no longer be limited by the number of our vacation days. In early April we will begin seizing the carp full time!

Early on we decided that the “van life” lifestyle would suit us perfectly. We’ve spent years researching the different options. And now, as retirement looms, we still haven’t pulled the trigger. While Sharon and I agree on the basic concept, we may have a slight difference of opinion when it comes to the execution.

For example, given our love of wild places, this seems like the perfect vehicle to the more rational members of our family. Others, however, insist on calling this “ugly!” and refuse all attempts at reason.

Much discussion has centered on desirable interior features – usually heavily influenced by anti-husband sites like Pinterest.

Then, there’s the reality of what we can realistically afford…

…and the type of camping we actually prefer.

With so many competing interests, so many choices, my absolute hatred of vehicle buying, some uncertainty in the stock market, time demands of work, etc., here we are a month away from retirement sans “adventure van.” What do to? A few years ago we took a road trip to southern Utah in the 4Runner with a sleeping platform in back that I’d built as an experiment. It worked well enough that we’ve made use of several times since. Given the nature of our first road trip visiting lots of family and friends, we decided that with a few minor modifications, our trip will be with “Bumpy” – Oliver’s name for our trusty 2008 Toyota.

This might also be a good time to mention once again how fortunate I am to be married to an amazing woman. Someone who actually prefers to sleep under the stars or in a tent in remote locations. Someone who views sleeping in the back of a 4Runner not as “roughing it”, but as rather luxurious! Yeah – I scored big time!

Camping on the north rim the night before a Rim to Rim hike. Not having a frosty tent to break down in the morning made for a quick and easy start.
Toyota camping in southern Utah in late November. Normally we’d opt for our tent, but for the purposes of scientific research, we spent a long weekend sleeping inside. Pretty comfy and cozy!

With the platform, there is quite a bit of storage underneath. As always, inquiring minds want to know…would it be possible to remove the rear seat to add some storage? Eight bolts later the answer is – yes! Quite easily in fact. Thank you Mr. Toyota. That bit of extra space will come in quite handy.

We’re expecting that this trip will yield a treasure trove of information to help us decide which vehicle will best suit us long term. We may decide Bumpy is all we need. It may lead us to expedite our search for a van. Either way we’re looking forward to the adventure. So one more month. Time to give our elder Bumpy a little shop love to take care of some oily incontinence and other age related issues. Time to dial in our gear list and packing plan. Then – time to begin seizing the carp – full time.

Pay It Forward

On By KBGearDaveIn Misc. StuffLeave a comment

Duane and Jennie were friends of my aunt and uncle, and they were really cool adults. For starters, they didn’t treat me like a kid, even though I was in 6th or 7th grade. Every morning Duane would leave the little enclave of cottages clustered on the shores of a central Wisconsin lake and head out for a bike ride…and then roll back in several hours later! I was in awe! Then one day he invited me and my nerdy Schwinn Collegiate to join him for a 20 or 30 mile ride. I had no idea such a thing was even possible. Yet, with his help I did it several times! That same summer Duane taught me the basics of sailing his little AMF Minifish sailboat, and even better, gave me permission to take it out any time. Duane was just sharing things he loved with some kid he saw one or two weeks each summer while I visited my aunt and uncle at their cottage. He had no way of knowing what an impact he would have on my life.

Looking back on it now, I can see a direct link from those early days sailing around Fish Lake to my lifelong love affair with sailing, and all water related travel. It took a while, but I’ve owned and enjoyed three different sailboats, plus a number of other water craft. Additionally, a lifetime of cycling…commuting, racing, triathlons, mt biking, touring – including a two month bike tour up the east coast of the U.S. and into the maritime provinces of Canada all can be traced back to those first rides with Duane.

This all came up in a conversation recently. Sharon and I were talking about people who have touched our lives, the possible impact we’ve had on other people, and the realization that it is not always possible to know when, or how, something we say or do may have an impact on someone. Duane’s example certainly highlighted for me the importance of looking for opportunities to “pay forward” some of what others had done for me.

Dan has climbed Rainier more times than I can count, and twice I accompanied him. In 2013 Dan and I made plans to lead a group of good friends – noobs all – to the top of Rainer, and then a year later to Mt. Baker. It is always enjoyable spending time in the mountains with Sharon (of course), Cailie, Rob, Steve, Andrew and Dan. It was huge amounts of fun practicing self-arrest on the slopes of Snowbowl after hours, practicing basic crampon, ice-axe and rope management skills. We spent a great day learning crevasse self-rescue skills while hanging from the top deck of our house. Best of all was seeing this group of friends master new skills, and eventually, succeed in reaching the summit of my favorite mountain, and later, Mt Baker. Paying it forward and seeing the results was more satisfying than getting to the top myself.

This winter, the whole concept of “paying it forward” really hit home in a different way. While there wasn’t a great deal of training or instruction involved, my folks did get me on skis at the tender age of four – or thereabouts. I like to say that I can hardly remember a time when I didn’t know how to ski. I will forever be grateful for that experience. In turn, Sharon and I made sure all three boys were out “shredding the gnar” at the same age. We had huge amounts of fun tackling the massive 150′ vert at Little Switzerland in southern Wisconsin and many other hills over the years. Our daughter-in-law Vanessa was likewise introduced to skiing at a young age. So it follows that our grandson, at 3 1/2 is already enjoying his 3rd – yes, you read that right – his 3rd winter on skis and totally enjoys shredding the gnar! He’s also embraced his parents and grandparents love for all things outdoors.

We definitely tried to share our love for the outdoors with our children, and it is fascinating and fun to see that same passion already taking root in Oliver. Pay it forward indeed.

Oliver shredding the gnar!

Today’s takeaway: When you’re thinking about seizing the carp – think about the folks who helped you get to where you’re at, and think about paying it forward to others as well! Its kind of fun! And you never know how you’ll impact others – or the memories you’ll create.

Trail running with the little fjell geite

Nepal 2012 – The Pictures

On By KBGearDaveIn Backpacking/Hiking Stuff, Mountain StuffLeave a comment

It’s been said that you can’t live in the past. I politely disagree. A long time ago someone told me “You are who you are because of where you were then.” It was a clever way of saying that we are products of the people we’ve met, the places we’ve been, and our experiences. Even though it is now in the past, the friendships we developed, the people we met, the things we saw and experienced had a lasting impact on us. Nepal changed us. That part of our past lives on in the present.

In the previous posts, I’ve tried to provide some insights into what made Nepal special. Hopefully, a few favorite photos will engender a sense of awe and wonder for this part of our world. This first gallery contains pictures taken near the end of our trip during our climb of Imja Tse. Located in the shadow of Everest’s neighbor Lhotse, the views from on top left me speechless.

The people, the villages, the temples, stupas, mani walls, prayer flags all offered a visual feast. Ultimately though, as lovers of high places, we had come for the mountains – and they most certainly did not disappoint.

Feel free reach out with any questions you might have about visiting Nepal. I/we would love to share any insights or info we have.

Nepal 2012 – The Trek

On By KBGearDaveIn Backpacking/Hiking Stuff, Mountain Stuff1 Comment
The Diapers and Depends Gang

After planning and anticipating for close to a year, having traveled from various places in the U.S. to San Francisco in order to fly half-way around the world, having survived both the traffic in Kathmandu and the flight into Lukla…we were more than ready to finally begin hiking.

The Great Diapers and Depends Nepal Expedition outside of Namche, with – yes – Everest in the background.
Dave, Joel, Dan, Cailie, Finjo, Andrew, Rob, Allison, Sharon, Nima
The Route

Given that our group was composed of people who love mountains and high places, we specifically chose a three week trip that would take us throughout the rugged area south and west of Mt Everest. All trekkers to the Everest region of Nepal start by flying into Lukla, and after two days of walking, arrive in Namche. The most popular trip from this historic village appeared to be the out and back trip to Everest Base Camp (EBC). Our trip would avoid that main trail and take us off significantly the beaten path. As we completed our meandering clockwise journey around the region, we would cross over two high passes – Renjo Pass (17,585′) and Chola Pass (17,782′). We would take a side trip north to Everest base camp, with a chance to climb Kala Patthar (18,192). Finally we would take another side trip to attempt to climb a mountain tucked into the shadow of Everest known as Island Peak (aka Imja Tse – 20,305′). In all, we would spend close to two week above 14,000′.

Everest High Passes and Peaks route
Trekking…in general

There are several options available for anyone interested in trekking in the Himalaya. A few folks found their way to Lukla by themselves. Hiking with backpacks, they either camped or made their own arrangements each night to stay in one of the many tea houses. As an alternative, Philip and Michele hired a guide and porter through Mountain Monarch to help with logistics, but followed their own itinerary. Others went with western guide companies. They had porters carry their gear, but generally had western guides and food. To a large degree, it seemed that while they passed through the region they remained separate from the local scene. Our choice was to go with a package deal from Mountain Monarch. We had a full complement of guides and porters. With the exception of base camp at Imja Tse, we ate and slept in tea houses along the way. We also followed a defined agenda, with our path, distances, rest days, etc for the most part predetermined. While we totally enjoyed our trip as it unfolded, it also would have been nice to travel using our famous “no plan” plan. If we were to do it again, we would probably follow the example of Philip and Michele. There was definitely value in having local knowledge and expertise, especially just getting through the airport to Lukla. They enjoyed a bit more freedom in deciding when and where they wanted to go.

Lodging

Trekking has become big business in the Khumbu Himal. In many villages, it appears that almost the entire economy is given over to accommodating trekkers. We were part of that. We took all our meals, and spent most nights in tea houses. In general, tea houses all have a common room, heated by a yak dung stove, where folks could hang out and where meals are served.  Sleeping areas are unheated double rooms with simple platforms topped with a foam pad. Typically there is a single bathroom – dubbed the squatter – that is shared by all. While they all had similar features, that is not to say they were all the same. Some were a bit more …’polished’ than others. Some had lights, some had none. Some had carpet in the bedrooms, some had dirt floors covered with a bit of astro turf. Given the remote nature of our trip and the cold weather, even the most rustic tea house offered a relatively comfortable place to call home at the end of each day.

Food

The food was…a bit of a challenge for us. Locals typically ate a vegetable and rice dish known as dal bhat and seemed quite content. Several times our guides turned up their noses at offers to share our western food choices. Dal bhat was fine, and we all tried it at our first group meal. Personally I would have had a hard time eating that twice a day for three weeks. The tea houses tried hard to tailor their menus to the tastes of an international population of trekkers. Given the difficulty of getting supplies to this remote region, and the unfamiliar nature of many foreign food preferences, they were actually remarkably successful. Having said that, there were also some spectacular failures. The “spaghetti” with “home made noodles” was instantly renamed “tapeworms in blood” both for the looks and taste. Since wasting food in a poor country was almost unforgivably thoughtless, and after trying several optimistically named menu items, we all learned to stick to simple, safe fare such as hard fried eggs, and various potato dishes. We recognized that our difficulty with the food had more to do with our taste and expectations than what was offered. Having said that, we all struggled to get enough calories to fuel our hike and keep us warm in the constant cold. We also agreed that the word ‘explosive’ should never, under any circumstances, ever apply to certain bodily functions. We all agreed based on experience. Enough said. We laugh about it now, but at the time it was a real challenge.

The Trail

I believe Joel and Allison calculated after the fact, that we traveled some 160 miles during our three week trek. The trail varied from finely laid stone paths to ‘barely-there-path-wannabe’ pathways. We varied in elevation from 8,500′ a day out of Lukla to almost 18,000′ crossing over the passes. We walked in shorts for a day or two, and endured horizontal snow and well below freezing temps. We passed through humble villages and bustling trekker hot spots. We visited monasteries and met young monks texting on smartphones shortly after chanting words from ancient texts. We were treated to stunning mountain vistas while walking in the footsteps of generations of Tibetan traders and the earliest mountaineers. It was all exactly what we hoped for in a trip to Nepal.

Next time: A picture speaks a thousand words. I’ll be posting some of the most dramatic pictures from our time in Nepal. Sign up below for email notification.

Nepal 2012 – The People

On By KBGearDaveIn Backpacking/Hiking Stuff, Mountain StuffLeave a comment

In the Throne Room of the Mountain gods

As we all pondered and prepared for our trip to Nepal, our main focus was on…well, the mountains. We were going to be spending three weeks wandering around in the shadow of Himalayan peaks. What we didn’t know, and hadn’t anticipated, was how much we would come to admire and appreciate the Nepalese people in general, and our guides and porters specifically.

Dawa Finjo Sherpa met us at the airport. For the next month this young man was our guide, mentor, nurse-maid, and friend. Although he was young, he had a wealth of experience in the mountains both as a climber and as a guide. He made all the arrangements for us at the various tea houses as we trekked through the countryside. He sized up our abilities and planned our route and side trips accordingly. As we all, one by one, fell prey to various lung and intestinal maladies, he reached into his bag of western and traditional remedies to nurse us back to health. Gradually as we got to know him, we were able to coax out some amazing stories. One of my favorites was about his successful Everest climb just six months prior. He had been paired with the egotistical and incompetent leader of an Albanian national team of climbers. This ‘climber’ was more than willing to let the Sherpa guides break trail, fix ropes, haul all the gear, food, oxygen, set up the tents, etc. so that he could ‘climb’ the mountain. Despite his lack of talent, this individual insisted that he be the first to reach the summit. Finjo just nodded and smiled – and dialed back his oxygen flow. As he slowed down, the rest of the team caught up and they reached the top together. Well played Finjo – well played. Now seven years later, Finjo still makes sure to wish the “Queen Mom” (Sharon) a happy birthday every year when the date rolls around. We couldn’t have asked for a better trip leader.

Our trip through the Himalayas would have been very different without the porters. We were each allowed a 35 lb duffel bag with extra clothes, sleeping bag, personal gear, etc. This was in addition to our day pack. Each porter would carry TWO of these gear duffels, plus their own gear, plus a portion of the community gear. And, we found out later, no matter how far we traveled or how high we climbed on any given day, it was a point of honor for them to arrive at our destination before the clients. One thing we noticed almost immediately was there was a definite “servant – master” dynamic evident. This made us all extremely uncomfortable, especially when we saw other trekkers totally buy into that and treat their guides and porters with disrespect. In spite of all their hard work, the porters often were required to sleep outside. Our accommodations were definitely rustic, but still a far cry better than what the porters were given. Throughout the trip we tried to communicate how much we appreciated what they were doing for us, but given the language barrier it was hard to gauge our success. We regularly bought snacks and drinks for the crew, and at the very end during our farewell dinner, we made sure they were seated in the tea house so that we could serve them food and drinks. We never were able to find out what they earned for all their hard work, but we know that the tips they received from us were greater than the average annual income for a Nepali. As we were thanking them for all they did for us, they were thanking us for the privilege of schlepping our gear all over the Himalaya. The money they earn is generally used to support a large portion of their extended families. They definitely earned our admiration and respect.

One of our porters in particular, Santos, had a heartbreaking story. Throughout the trip, Santos was always upbeat, always had a smile, and even though we had a significant language barrier, liked to joke around with us. We found out after we’d parted ways and were back in Kathmandu that just days before our group arrived, his infant son had died. He apparently had contracted an illness that would have responded to the most basic of antibiotics. Since there were no antibiotics available in his village, his son died. Any one of us would have been immobilized with grief, or filled with anger at the unfairness…yet he did nothing to indicate he had just suffered this tremendous loss. It also saddened us to realize that regardless of his feelings, he could not pass up this financial opportunity. His work ethic and attitude, coming on the heels of that personal tragedy, left us all absolutely dumbfounded – and in awe.

Just a few days out of Lukla we stopped to spend the night in the village of Thame at about 14,000′. All afternoon, Cailie had been feeling a bit out of sorts. During the night she developed HAPE (high altitude pulmonary edema). HAPE is a life threatening condition where fluid collects in the lungs. The only treatment is to descend to lower altitude so that the fluid can reabsorb into the body. Fortunately, one of the pieces of gear that our porters carried was something called a Gamow bag (good job Mountain Monarch). All night long the porters took turns keeping the bag inflated, which made Cailie’s body think it was several thousand feet lower than our 14,000′. To be fair, it probably helped that they all had a massive crush on Cailie – but still…

A Gamow bag in action

The night in the Gamow bag improved Cailie’s condition. Still, the decision was made for Cailie and Rob to return to lower elevation for a bit, with the hopes of joining us later on the trek. So after a tearful goodbye, an assistant guide and porter walked Cailie and Rob back toward Lukla. We found out later that during the next night, Cailie’s symptoms returned. Fearing for her safety, they took turns carrying Cailie on their backs 3,000 vertical feet down a steep, rocky trail from Namche Bazaar to a lower elevation. Thanks to their efforts, Cailie and Rob made it safely back to Kathmandu and a full recovery. Once again we were in total awe and very grateful!

While most of our interactions were with the members of our group, we did meet some interesting people along the way. And while we came for the mountains, much of what we remember most fondly were the people we met along the way.

Next Post: The Place…Lots of photos and videos – the Himalayas were everything we hoped they’d be – and more.