Ranger Lake, Silliman Pass and the Shoulda Couldas

I just returned from a two day backpacking trip with Wilson into the Jennie Lakes Wilderness area. This is the same area we traveled in last summer, but there was a different reason this year. Last year we hiked to Seville Lake and back out the next day. This year we were to meet Uncle John, Elias and another father and two sons. I joined at the last minute and drove up early to meet and pick up Wilson at Lodgepole.

The plan was to meet John and crew at Rowell Meadow at noon on Sunday. The most reasonable way to do that was to leave from the Horse Corral/Rowell Trailhead. We drove down to the trailhead and took off a bit late, but arrived at Rowell Meadow just a little after noon. We eventually realized that John wasn't going to arrive at Rowell Meadow. There had been a spectacular lightening storm the night before and figured they had to change plans. We had to decide what we would do. We could go to Jennie Lake and then over JO Pass the next day and back into Lodgepole. Or we could continue on the trail to Seville and Ranger lakes. We chose that option and started off.

We had been on this section of the trail last year so it was refreshing to see the differences. The big change was no creeks running.  Water was scarce with another drought year. We enjoyed the burned out section of forest like we did last time. A fire had burned through an area of the trail about 5 years ago. The trees left standing were like gravestones in a cemetery. It reminds me of a scene from the movie Jeremiah Johnson.

This was just before the turn to Seville Lake. Though unspoken, we realized we wouldn't be seeing the party we were looking for. I was tired at this point and Seville and rest sounded good. But the idea of the hike up and out first thing in the morning was not bueno. We both remembered it from last year and didn't want a repeat. We decided to continue on to Ranger Lake.  Wilson said it was pretty and I couldn't remember if I had been there before, so new scenery would be nice. We also had the bail out of Lost Lake if we got too tired. I didn't want to tell Wilson, but that was fast becoming an option. So it was on to Ranger and the end of a 10 mile plus day.

I'd like to say it was a good decision, but I will say it was a decision. We almost stopped at Lost Lake, but I reasoned that if we were to go over Silliman Pass tomorrow, it would be better to do it first thing when we were rested. So on to Ranger.  The last mile for me was one of those times where the envelope gets pushed and you realize you can do more than you thought. I shuffled into Ranger Lake just before 7:00 and Wilson had started water for tea and was laying out the rain fly.  I lay about for a bit to gather myself and we ate dinner before retiring.

The next day I awoke early, or should I say my fitful sleep of the night was interrupted by light in the sky. We ate and eventually left camp around 8:45.  The two miles up Silliman Pass was a combination of breathless views and breath challenging climbing. We reached the pass in two hours and the views were even better. East was the Great Western Divide and west down into the Great Central Valley. This has always the strange dichotomy of backpacking to me. The effort expended to see sights only seen by those that work to see them.

Regardless of the views, we still had 8 miles to walk before  getting back to Lodgepole. With the trail almost all downhill we certainly would make better time than the slow trip up Silliman. Could my knees handle the trip?

The rest of the trip was reasonably uneventful. Twin Lakes was pretty. The tree roots and exposed rocks that the trail consisted of were not. We reached the trail turn to JO Pass about 1:30 or so. We continued down, me slowly and my knees were talking. Looking down upon Cahoon Meadow was another nice sight. We eventually rolled onto the pavement of the Lodgepole campgrounds just before 4:00. We then had another near mile hike to reach Wilson's cabin.

Two days of backpacking and over 20 miles. Each day was a little over 10 miles. Two of the longest backpacking days I can even remember doing. Sights never seen by me. A wonderful trip with one of my sons where I was blessed to see how he has grown. We may disagree about music, politics and various subjects; but he is a good young man with insight and compassion. I also got to see where his knowledge and passion collide in the mountains.

P.S. After returning home I talked to Tio John. He said that part way into the first day a couple of the boys were starting to struggle with the walk.  They decided to cut their trip short by going up JO Pass and camping at Jennie Lake. They shortened their trip and enjoyed it.

If we had made the "other" choice at Rowell Meadow, we could have met them at Jennie Lake. Even after that they were at the JO Pass turn only a few hours before us on the trip out. Shoulda, coulda, woulda.

The Desire to Serve

This past weekend I attended the memorial service for a father of a colleague and friend. He was 92 when he died and had lived a good life as many would say. My first recollection of this man was in Boy Scouts.  He was one of the leaders of a troop from a nearby town. They were the largest and most honored troop in the area.  We were a young troop just starting from a small town nearby. There was a gathering of troops called a jamboree with skills tests of various camping and Scout techniques. On the first night it snowed on the gathering. Many did not follow the Boy Scout motto as much as they should and eventually a decision was made to evacuate the camp. I remember this man leading by example and slogging through the mud and snow to get troops and young men up the hill and on their way home.

This man served on the local school board for over 20 years. And as I got to know his son at work, the son and I talked some about being on a school board and the hours spent in that capacity.

I saw this man in parades as a member of a local search and rescue group that gained a reputation for a loud and raucous parade presence. The reality was they actually rescued people in rough situations in the mountains. This man was the oldest member of this group.

I heard of other instances where this man helped others and served his fellowman. Where does one get this desire to serve and help others?

I also learned at this memorial that his man flew 37 missions over Europe as a B-17 pilot in WWII. He didn't lose one crew member in that time. He also remember the time he turned to his navigator just before a .50 caliber bullet came through the wind screen, just missing him. This man felt he was given a gift and it was his duty to help others.

We need to have others like this that realize when they have been given a life others will never have.

Bits of This and That

I had a chance to talk with a couple of friends yesterday. One retired last year and one just recently with me. We all talked of the differences in what we are doing, but something stood out.  All three of us commented on how easy it was to disconnect from our former job. It may be the school we taught at or maybe it was just the job, but we all are mildly curious what is happening, but all thoroughly happy not to be there any longer.

I have cleared my room of my personal items and have been helping the new teacher in the Crafts shop. He, like myself, is a long time English teacher who is being moved into Crafts. I filled two and a half dumpsters when I moved in and I hope he doesn't have to do the same. I also know it will be a strange transition for him.

The farmer's market days are going well. I find that the time at the market is a nice break to talk to people and engage others, but it's easier to disengage and be solitary than teaching. While selling you're on stage like teaching, but while away from the market I don't run into buyers in the same way I interact with former students. I can be more anonymous. Not a bad thing.

We are having some successes and failures in the garden this year. The biggest failure for me is that I'm not as engaged as I want and should be. One of the perceived benefits of retiring is I can do more in the garden and help ease the work load for Maureen. We realized that by the time the school year was over, most of the current garden is in already. The thought now is that the fall/winter garden is when the help will be better realized.

We tried corn this year and it has been a success so far. One bed has tasseled and ears are forming and the second is up and growing well. That's food because the tomatoes aren't doing well. They are a frustration. Big beautiful plants and little fruit. The Suncrest peach has good fruit this year though small in size, and it tastes good for the most part. We still have aphids and are trying to combat those pests.

The transition to non teaching is subdued in that it is still summer and life during the summer has always been a bit strange. There is no "old" routine and any "new" routine is only temporary until school starts again. So the new "new" routine will start in August when school starts again.

A big project now,and will be for a time, is the organization of Stuff. I kept some of our possessions at school because I used them or I had more room there. No longer will my room be a storage facility.  My classroom materials also have to be dealt with.That hasn't been as hard as I originally thought.  I've been purging for a few years already, but this is the final tossing in many ways. I'm learning sentiment should play little part in deciding what to keep. Let's hope I can keep that attitude.

To go with that, we're upgrading and fixing many things around the house with the money at hand. One fiasco we've found ourselves in while upgrading our computer is the PC vs. Mac battleground. We currently have an older PC that needs much help, if not destruction. Our children use Macs and, like most Mac owners, love them. We also have realized with me home most of the time now, we could use some form of two computers. We're looking as fixing and upgrading the PC and getting a laptop. One option is to upgrade the PC and get a Macbook. Yes, straddle the fence.  It would allow us to keep something we know and can use and at the same time, move into a new world. When we mention this, the uproar became an outrage. In my mind it really is a money vs. convenience issue. the PC route is cheaper and the Mac will eventually be some what more intuitively convenient. Or at least that is what we're being told. We're going to tryout a son's Macbook this weekend and get a better handle we hope.

I'll leave you with a picture of the makings of pickle relish. Good Stuff.

Ben Stein

A BIG Tree Trimming

 We have a pecan tree in the back yard that is both a friend and nuisance. Pecans shed something all year long. Pecans, aphids, goo, blossoms, leaves, and just plain stuff. Ours was barely more than a twig when we moved in to the house and now it had grown taller than the 50 year old oak in the next yard. It was time for a trim, but much more than we could handle. So we called Pete's Tree Service and they did a great job. And even came back to touch up a limb afterwards.

Gunnar isn't sure what is happening at this point.

 These are a few views of the tree before trimming. The tree on the right is the oak my great aunt planted in the early 1960's. The purpose as to save some of the tree for some shade and pecans. It had become too much shade for the garden below it. As we have expanded our vegetable growing in the yard, we realized we needed more sun for the plants. Rather than cut the tree down, we decided to trim it first.

If you look close in this picture you can see the trimmer about to cut the top limb.

The final result, almost. We estimate about a 60% reduction in leaves and limbs. The result is also virtually no shade on the garden and back deck in the late afternoon. (Temperatures have been over 105 for the last few days, so a bit hot in the evening.)  We haven't used the deck in a few years and had been planning on using the space for chickens or other critters, so this moves that project along.

In talking to the arborist he said we should expect to get about three years before another trimming is needed and the tree will fill back out over the next year or so. 

The move to the side yard for outdoor eating is now official, shady and closer to the kitchen.  All good.