***Fall leaves at Almaden Quicksilver Park
I thought it might be ironic to capture spectacular fall colors… in black and white.
***A fall hike with a breathtaking payoff
[SFGate] Tom Stienstra writes:
The hike to the Mount Tallac summit is like a slow-burning fuse to a case of dynamite. On the slow trip up — even though you know [...]
***Agreement Reached on Nature Preserve.
The State of California has agreed to buy 2,800 acres for a tentative $150 million to create a nature preserve in place of a planned $2 billion golf course and housing community. By The Associated Press. [New York Times: Science]
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***The Sierra aspen colors
are supposed to peak in early October. I have a final pack trip planned for about that time and I think I may try to visit one of the places where there are a lot of aspens on the way there. I’m thinking of the summit of Monitor Pass near Markleeville.
***Spawning Salmon [...]
No big trips this
weekend. I’m driving my two oldest kids to Southern California. My
daughter starts college at UCI and my son returns to UCLA. Classes
begin for me on Monday.
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***This week’s pack trip
was similar to last week’s - but different in two ways. First, my son Brandon went with me. It is cool that he still wants to backpack with me after 18 years of this. Second, while we did go to Fletcher Lake and then climb the ridge to Ireland Lake, we did [...]
***Back from a quick overnight
pack trip to Fletcher Lake in the Tuolumne Meadows area of Yosemite with my son, Brandon. We travelled light, leaving behind lots of gear that we might take on a longer trip of if weather was threatening. We hiked up to Fletcher Lake on Saturday and on Sunday took the long [...]
***Tuolumne trip delayed
until tomorrow. Looks like it will be a quick one!
***A photo from today’s morning hike
at Almaden Quicksilver County Park
Santa Clara Valley from near the summit of the Mine Hill Trail at Almaden Quicksilver County Park.
—–
***Casting a Cold Eye on Arctic Oil
- Special report from the New York Times:
Drilling supporters also grossly understate the impact of drilling when they speak of only a 2,000-acre “footprint” in the Arctic. The reality is that oil would mean roads, lodgings, pipelines, security fences, guard stations and airstrips ˜ and my children would [...]
***Finally… some pictures
from my short pack trip last weekend. The first three were taken during my 8-mile cross-country jaunt on Saturday, when I ascended to a 12,000′ ridge that I had not visited before. The fourth picture was taken on the last day near the trailhead.
A small alpine tarn between Townsley and Ireland Lakes.
Looking across [...]
2003.09.30
***GPS Users Still Lost in the Woods.
As GPS navigation services and gadgets become more popular, people are discovering they can still lose their way — even when they know their exact coordinates. By James Bernard Frost. [Wired News]
“I’ve heard stories of people being lost in the woods with thousand-dollar GPS devices,” says volunteer Shawn Gillogly. [...]