tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62530109456735977812024-03-12T22:45:50.611-06:00Marti's MusingsEverything you ever wanted to know about nothing--and then some. Politics, rivering, the homestead, and global travels.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.comBlogger76125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-41821961585417074762012-09-08T23:34:00.000-06:002012-09-08T23:57:04.059-06:00Grand Canyon..the Saga ContinuesOkay, so I haven't posted about my Grand Trip. In fact, I've been incredibly lazy about blogging. After breaking the ankle I spent one month in a cast. If you've had a cast you know what a pain in the butt it is. You get itches that you can't reach except with a popsicle stick or the use of a bamboo skewer made for the bbque. You are stuck in one position for a very long time. If you are an analytical type like me, you know that there is a growing amount of dead skin under there, too. It's sort of creepy.<br />
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Taking a shower is really difficult. You wrap a hefty trash bag on and secure it with some kind of tape that you can get on, but also get off. As soon as you step into the shower the slickness of the bag nearly drops you on your ass onto the shower floor, if you haven't already managed to punch a hole into the bag. That's when duct tape comes in handy. Anyways, you do shower, but you never really feel clean because, well, you still itch under that cast.<br />
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After 4 weeks, the cast came off and then it was on to the walking cast. Only problem is they actually wanted me to wear it at night. Can you imagine? I have chickens. And those chickens poop. And I need to go into the coop to let them out, and also to feed them and provide water. There was no way I was wearing that walking cast in my bed. I told my orthopedist he obviously didn't have chickens nor had ever walked in dog poop either. I mean, really? So I wore it all day long and took it off after work. Wow, real air, and a real shower. It took at least a weeks worth, maybe two weeks worth to eliminate all that stuff from under the cast. The first thing I did when I got the cast off was go get a pedicure. And a glass, actually three, of wine.<br />
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Well, now the walking cast is off, much to the delight of my coworkers. I couldn't sneak around my office at all. The walking cast had hinges that clicked into a specific position on both sides to keep the foot and ankle in the proper position. It was very noise and made a really annoying sound. Though my co workers said they knew I wasn't stealing anyones yogurt out of the work fridge because I'd be caught. They also noticed when the noise went away when I got it off a bit over a week ago.<br />
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Now I'm on to rehab. Having that cast on, and then the walking cast really wrecked havoc on my walking gait. It also threw my left leg out of whack, my back out of whack, and I have pain in my neck and shoulders. The achilles tendon is what I have to work on and flexibility to the tendons that attach to the ankle and tibia/fibula which are the two bone I broke. Who would have guessed you could get a clean break of two bones running a Class IV/V rapid while being in the raft? I've been walking every day about 6 blocks to a mile with the dog now. And today I did about two miles, but I'm pretty sore tonight.<br />
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Now that you're tired of this story I thought I'd share some photos of why running the Grand Canyon is worth breaking an ankle for.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-18816268010863682512012-07-07T12:26:00.001-06:002012-07-07T12:26:39.218-06:00Grand Canyon AdventureIt's Satuday June 30th (excerpted from an email I sent friends and family) and I am in Flagstaff at the Executive Suites Inn. I was injured in an accident on Thursday June 28th early afternoon running Lava Falls and have a broken right ankle. National Park Service helicoptered me out to South Canyon Village from Whitmore Wash at about Mile 187. The trip continued on without me, but I will be getting a ride in with the company crew July 3rd night or July 4th early moring to meet them at Pierce Ferry to drive home by way of Las Vegas.We hope to make it to Ely that evening and then on to Elko July 5th and hopefully home later that night.(Actually we made it all the way to Elko and Mike's wife Cindy had a fabulous dinner waiting for us!)
I have a tibia/fibula break with crepitice. That means the bones are rubbing against each other. Glad it wasn't compound (sticking out of the skin.) Didn't know I was injured initially. We ran first at Lava and my friend Mike was rowing. He's an ex Grand Canyon guide in the 1980's and one of the best boatmen I've ever known. He's done 9 trips in a row the past few years and I'm confident in his skill. We've done tons of whitewater canoeing/kayaking together over the years.
We made it past the entry ledge hole just slightly to the right and lined up for the V waves perfectly up the middle of the huge crasher but were tossed off right instead of left (bad place to be). Mike dug in with his left oar on that huge surging wave and I was high siding as that big monster wave rolled in on top of us; but he was ejected from the oars and I high sided more, flopping around like a rag doll. It was the most violent wave and water I've experienced before and that includes a couple of nasty swims out of my kayak from some huge holes on other rivers. Without a thought, I jumped into the rowing seat and flushed off the cheese grater rock wave chasing him in the river and got to shore and picked him up on river left. The current was really fast and not really an eddy so he had to grab the boat as I simply couldn't land it. Mike rowed us down to Tequila Beach ledges and when I went to take my wetsuit shoe off my right foot there was excruciatating pain. Those of you who know me well, know I'm pretty tough and it's rare for me to cry except at a very touching movie event or with joy over an accomplishment by my daughter or friends. Well, I was crying mightily. Still not sure what I hit as but the boat was so full of water we think my foot may have been momentarily caught under a box when I jumped in the rowing seat, or else I may have caught it in all the high siding big wave drama. In all the excitement and adrenalin working to prevent a flip and go retrieve him I didn't notice anything amiss until pulling off that shoe.
The private trip following behind us was running as we were dealing with my injury. Their paddle boat flipped and there was a yard sale of paddles and miscellany so I yelled to our kayaker to get in his boat and help them out, please. They had three doctors on their trip (E.R. docs experienced in outdoor medicine, yeah!) When the other private trip got all their folks together their docs and even a veterinarian looked at my injury and felt certain it was a tib/fib break. They also said while it would be beneficial to get me out of the Canyon, it wasn't life threatening and even if I waited a week I'd be okay so long as it was splinted. So Lee and Mike went to work on that splint.And a good job they did, indeed.
Well, after the accident things got a bit interesting. With two alpha males on our trip there was some bantering around about how my evacuation (if there was to be one) should be handled. In my court was Mike who is an EMT and Fire Dept. firefighter. I trust him implicitly. We discussed options of catching a ride out with a motor rig trip that would be arriving at Whitmore Wash heli pad later in the day and flying their clients to Las Vegas. Outstanding medical care and there was a high probability there would be room for me to helicopter out with the Hatch company guests and I could just pay them. Option two was call National Park Service on the satellite phone and ask for an evacuation for a broken ankle. This is what the Park Service also does very well. Alpha male number two was advocating immediate evac across the river and bringing in the calvary. It was somewhat amusing and annoying since only Mike had asked my opinion. I wanted to do the cheapest but healthiest way to leave and figure out how to meet up with Mike and Mark once they finished the trip. Egads, "I'm sitting right here, gang, and my brain is fine so how about allowing me some input into my evacuation?" It all worked out fine in the end. And it was Mark who reminded me and Mike that Moenkopi would be coming in to pick up the boats and gear we rented. So that was it--call the Park Service for the ride out.
The only real benefit of the injury was I got to fly over the Grand Canyon and back over most of the river we'd just run. This is restricted air space, so I saw things virtually no one else does. It was reasonably clear and the views and flying just above the Canyon walls and even at eye level with some side canyons was truly spectacular. I've never actually been on the canyon rim ever so this was a nice way to see it. But I wouldn't recommend breaking an ankle or leg just to get the view!
The battery on my cell phone was only one bar and I have a car charger so couldn't call friends or family to alert them to my dilemma. After the three hour hospital visit at Flagstaff Medical Center I was dumped on the street. Well, not exactly but I have a newfound appreciation for what is wrong with our medical system in America. I was a bit surprised they didn't keep me for overnight observation. In fact, they did a splint/soft cast and told me to go visit my own orthopedist when I got back to Boise.
Imagine the homeless, a veteran with PTSD or an elderly person alone who has been injured and they have no friends or family close by. Maybe they have insurance or maybe they don't. I did, and recited it off time and time again like I was a prisoner of war reciting my name, birth and serial number to each doctor, paramedic, ambulance service etc. Fortunately for me, the National Park Service has an RN liason at the hospital that helps patients who have been injured in the park. Pamela was a wonderful caring human being who helped arrange lodging (credit card required as this is America,) and contacted Brady Black, the owner of Moenkopi Riverworks.
Suffice to say this was not something I wanted as a part of my Grand Canyon trip adventure. Getting to the Flagstaff hopsital was more akin to a hitchhiking trip and a vision of Steve Martin hitching to the end of the fence row in The Jerk. It took a National Park Service helicopter ride to the South Canyon Rim and three ambulance handoffs to get there. As mentioned above NPS folks worked with me to find a place to stay and Brady Black who owns Moenkopi picked me up at the hospital and took me to get precription pain killers filled and to eat tacos at 11:30 at night before dropping me off at the Executive Suites Inn.
The Executive Suites Inn was saving money by leaving all the doors open and no air conditioning in the lobby or hallways. The Europeans staying there didn't mind since this is the norm in Europe except at the most high end hotels. But this is not the norm in America. The room had nothing executive about it. It did have air conditioning and an ancient tube TV with Cable, so I watched the Olympic trials for swimming and track. I am not accustomed to having to ask for help. I had to contact the front desk for ice twice a day since I couldn't hobble around on crutches with an ice bucket. Apparently that is a life skill I missed out learning. I also couldn't juggle a cup of coffee or bowl of cereal at the same time. Why oh why was I never a waitress? Brady's manager Marilyn picked me up Sunday from the Executive Suites nightmare to go stay at the company guest house where I stayed for two nights until going with the crew to Pierce Ferry under the full moon night of July 3rd.
The night at Pierce Ferry under the full moon was yet another adventure of sorts. John, a crew member, and I drove from Flagstaff leaving about 6:30 p.m. in temperatures of 74 degrees F. By the time we reached Pierce Ferry four hours later it was 95 degrees F. The moon was up, some clouds in the sky and we threw our Paco Pads on the boat trailer and a sheet each and I tried to find some personal gear to craft a pillow for my head and elevate my right leg. It was a fitful sleep due to the heat and no ice for my leg, but some ibuprofen and codeine took the edge off. Imagine my surprise to wake up at 6:30 to Mike walking across the parking lot. My group had just arrived from their 30 mile night float under the full moon.
I'm doing okay now, but I was kind of lonely and bored out of my mind. Thankfully I had a good book called The Book Thief, that I finished up while in "solitary confinement." And Amanda, a crew member for Moenkopi rescued me and took me to dinner at the Himalayan Grill in Flagstaff where I had my first good meal since leaving the river and was surrounded by adoring Nepalese men and got to practice my very dusty Nepali language skills I acquired some 25 years ago.
After the long drive to Elko via Las Vegas and Ely, NV I'm back home in Boise with my daughter, who got her drivers license days before I got back. We went grocery shopping at WINCO yesterday but their two motorized shopping carts were both in use, so I had to hobble around on my crutches. Wow, I was really tired from that when we got home standing on one leg most of the time. She gets to be my chauffer for a while until I get a new improved cast on Monday when I get to visit a local orthopedist.I haven't downloaded my photos yet but will try to post some of them in the next blog spot. Obviously I have no photos of Lava Falls so you'll just have to use your imagination. The other private trip videotaped our runs and may post to youtube so I'll post a link if it shows up. Thanks for the well wishes from John and Susun and the Goatherder among others. If it hadn't been so hot at Cornville, I might have opted for Goatherder to come retrieve me from Flagstaff. Hopefully this heals quickly as I have another river trip on the Main Salmon in September!Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-29392839484881627872012-04-01T17:00:00.004-06:002012-04-01T17:26:18.068-06:00Goodbye Miwok, Goodbye Dancing Bare<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wW-X0hivb-o/T3jj1AqgAOI/AAAAAAAAAoA/JweYyr42irE/s1600/Scanned%2BImage%2B110010052.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 217px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wW-X0hivb-o/T3jj1AqgAOI/AAAAAAAAAoA/JweYyr42irE/s320/Scanned%2BImage%2B110010052.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726577426052415714" /></a><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CLkVLn2z5tc/T3jj0pvtfWI/AAAAAAAAAn4/JMKC4zjRn8U/s1600/Scanned%2BImage%2B120880002.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 224px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CLkVLn2z5tc/T3jj0pvtfWI/AAAAAAAAAn4/JMKC4zjRn8U/s320/Scanned%2BImage%2B120880002.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726577419900255586" /></a><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WbAa96cQOic/T3jgaWFO06I/AAAAAAAAAns/ZkEWB8CKnWE/s1600/Scanned%2BImage%2B120880000.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 220px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WbAa96cQOic/T3jgaWFO06I/AAAAAAAAAns/ZkEWB8CKnWE/s320/Scanned%2BImage%2B120880000.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726573669410329506" /></a><br /><br />There are times when you decide it is best to part ways with someone or something that has been part of your life. This weekend was one of those occasions. My trusty Miwok raft that Steve Romoff and I purchased together in 1980 from the original owner of ARTA in California, along with a few other friends who bought into the discounted purchase of Miwoks served me well for 30 plus year. I rowed this raft on three different Grand Canyon trips two of which included Johnny Montezuma, Wayne Ranney and Bryan Brown among other notables. The trusty Miwok ventured down the Middle Fork, Main and Lower Salmon numerous times, typically with me and Steve Romoff sharing kayak and rowing duties. It ventured down the Selway, the San Juan, the Salt, Desolation Canyon and the Green River among others. Steve pretty much quit rafting 15 years ago and simply told me his share of the raft was mine so the raft stayed with me ever since. Once I had Megan and after I got divorced running a bucket bailer with a young child wasn't very practical so I purchased an Aire Ocelot cataraft. Megan loved doing day trips on that with me. But her first river trip at age 5 was the San Juan on that raft. After that she also did the Main and Lower Salmon on it. <br />Wonderful people from the nearby town of Emmett saw my Craigslist ad and came over to help me blow up the raft, rig the foam under the drop in wood floor and set up the frame and three ancient oars and the thole pins and clips. They fell in love at first sight. Wade, as it turns out, had been a rec planner in Idaho Falls for BLM and managed the South Fork Snake. And has fate would have it, his younger brother followed me around in my career with the Natural Resources Conservation Service, taking three jobs in a row after I had moved on and up the career ladder. How ironic is that? And now his brother is the State Conservationist of Utah for NRCS. Gee, maybe if I'd stayed on I'd be the State Conservationist of Idaho for NRCS but I digress. Was and his wife made a deal with me that I could borrow back the raft at any time if I found a need for a bigger boat. That is the awesome part. My friend Norm Henderson, who sold his Miwok two summers ago cut the same deal with the buyers of his raft, too. So $600 later my dearest Miwok has a new home, and the owners are convinced this was the greatest thing to hit them over the head. Ms. Miwok knows her way around the eddy and I'm certain her new owners will love her as much as I did.<br /><br />Fast forward to the next googbye. Dancing Bare is my Dagger Dimension tandem whitewater canoe. I fell in love with this particular tandem canoe 20 years ago or so when I ran it on a back to back trip on the Middle Fork Salmon and Main Salmon with my dearest of friends Ms. Lynn Green. We made the entire trip without a single swim and some amazingly fancy eddy hopping in Webber Rapids and Dried Meat, among others. And then there was Tappen Falls. Wowie Zowie. Another trip I did once I purchased my very own Dagger Dimension was with my ex husband on the Main Salmon at 20,000 cfs over 4th of July in 1996 while six months pregnant. I couldn't fit into my wetsuit so had to wear poly pro, fleece, a dry top and neoprene shorts and rain pants. Fortunately for use, we were the only people who didn't swim out of our kayaks or canoes on the self supported trip. And the weather was awesome. I ran that canoe on several other trips on the Middle Fork, Main and Lower Salmon along with Cabarton, Staircase, South Fork Payette Canyon and Main Payette Rivers in Idaho. It made a San Juan trip, a Dirty Devil trip, and several outings on the Upper Salmon near Stanley running Shotgun Rapid and Piece of Cake day stretches. But paddling on my knees has taken it's toll and so I listed Dancing Bare on Craigslist and my Facebook page. A friend who had moved to Oregon this past year saw it and contacted his friend in Coeur d'Alene who runs the outdoor program at North Idaho College. Jon called me and wants the canoe and will pick it up in May after he returns from his late April Grand Canyon trip. So Dancing Bare will have a new home up north but still in Idaho, loved by yet another river person. And Jon and I agreed I could borrow her back should I get the hankering to take her out with someone one last time.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-90327774317704263032012-03-17T12:26:00.001-06:002012-03-17T12:27:38.527-06:00Happy St. Patricks Day to Biologists and Beer Drinkers<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/L6dzUOYTQtQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-67158674501135638462011-12-12T12:59:00.002-07:002011-12-12T13:07:55.096-07:00Solstice Schlock<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MRpuC8lEwFA/TuZe5EEXMII/AAAAAAAAAng/Ixh8KV0g1mw/s1600/3%2BPenguins.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MRpuC8lEwFA/TuZe5EEXMII/AAAAAAAAAng/Ixh8KV0g1mw/s400/3%2BPenguins.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5685335914039423106" /></a><br />Marti’s Solstice Schlock – December, 2011<br />With Apologies to the Dude who Wrote the Original<br /><br />Twas the night before skiing<br />And inside my boot<br />Was a moldy ham sandwich<br />And what looked like a coot.<br /><br />That stuff in my boots<br />Came from some where.<br />It smelled really stinky<br />Like Boise’s bad air.<br /><br />“Who could have done this?”<br />I mumbled to no one.<br />My dog’s not that smart,<br />Perhaps it’s my young ‘un.<br /><br />“Megan!” I said sternly<br />“Did you touch my boots?<br />They smell like dead animal<br />Or someone’s bad hooch.”<br /><br />“I wouldn’t do that,”<br />She said with a smile.<br />“But I know who did,”<br />And she smirked with some guile.<br /><br />“Remember last winter<br />Coming home from our ski;<br />You stopped for a beverage<br />Then got out to pee?“<br /><br />"Your friend found the coot<br />Dead in the road;<br />Put it into the boot<br />But forgot to unload.”<br /><br />“The sandwich, however,<br />Is a mystery to me.<br />Perhaps it’s an omen<br />By someone you’ll see”Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-77082896820699895672011-11-20T14:25:00.003-07:002011-11-20T14:30:59.076-07:00Can Boise State Bust the BCS Again?<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/cDAhXmzowGU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br />Well, football fans, it's hard to say if Boise State can bust the BCS or not. Despite getting off to a good start this year, we found ourselves without a kicker. We have a kicker, a decent human being named Dan Goodale, a walk on freshman who is learning the kick of the trade. But at 32 yards as his farthest field goal, we're sorely lacking. To Dan's credit, he hasn't taken it lying down and he is only a Freshman. So one of our local fans wrote a song to honor our lack of a kicker; all in good fun.<br />And let's face it. Boise State has beaten Virginia Tech, Tulsa, Georgia, Oregon and Oklahoma before. They can run with the big names. And most of those big names have been going down this season. So being back ranked at 7th in the polls again, well, maybe we'll see ya'll at the Sugar Bowl this year, and maybe a BCS championship if we can get a kicker.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-35971011179529371602011-11-17T14:39:00.006-07:002011-11-17T20:01:28.644-07:00Snowmageddon This Winter<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sqb5yFwTdQM/TsV_vNj4NyI/AAAAAAAAAnM/xA1hF8nKDso/s1600/winterOutlook_Temperature.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sqb5yFwTdQM/TsV_vNj4NyI/AAAAAAAAAnM/xA1hF8nKDso/s400/winterOutlook_Temperature.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5676083354441103138"></a><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JavgORynP7E/TsV_uYZMxvI/AAAAAAAAAnE/kz9OThvWnFk/s1600/winterOutlook_Precipitation.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 225px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JavgORynP7E/TsV_uYZMxvI/AAAAAAAAAnE/kz9OThvWnFk/s400/winterOutlook_Precipitation.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5676083340169234162"></a><br />Well snow sports fans in Idaho and elsewhere. We're definitely headed for cold temps this winter and well above precip here in ski, snowboard, sledding land of the Northern Rockies. Though admittedly, the storm that we expected to dump 10 to 12 inches of snow at Bogus Basin in the next couple of days turned North and even South. But there is indeed hope for those of us afflicted with snow fever. We'll be at this years Warren Miller film on Friday November 18 to share in the revelry that is snow sports.<br /><br />You probably read about Jamie Pierre getting flushed at Snowbird. I thought he had the record for the biggest cliif jump.<br /> <br />Evidently not . . .<br /><br />Click on the title of this blog for the 300 plus accidental free fall by a French skier who survived while filming for a ski film. Amazing.<br /> <br />And Jamie, rest in peace, dude. You were one of my favorite extreme skiers and I am so sorry early crap snow at Snowbird underneath the first POW of the season took you from us, but more importantly, took you your wife and children. I hope you and Saucer Boy meet up with Speedy in the big free ride pie in the sky of extremely amazing people.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-40604878025434179032011-10-31T13:28:00.003-06:002011-10-31T13:32:03.513-06:00Megan Ski Jumps (at age 11)<OBJECT id=BLOG_video-199e9b45702c2dd class=BLOG_video_class width=320 height=266 contentId="199e9b45702c2dd"></OBJECT>I found this video on my computer at work that a friend sent back when Megan was ski racing for BBSEF in Boise. Figured it was time to post before I lost track of said video. She went the farthest of the J4 girls. I think she was 11 years old.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-25299250779964583032011-10-28T18:13:00.014-06:002011-10-28T21:04:22.129-06:00Mom's 90th Birthday Party<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-a9alrQHsMWI/TqtsVvdTgYI/AAAAAAAAAm4/wT2Ny9SUvIk/s1600/PA260167.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-a9alrQHsMWI/TqtsVvdTgYI/AAAAAAAAAm4/wT2Ny9SUvIk/s320/PA260167.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668743676748333442" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ky-fHmTxfg0/TqtsUyZDXUI/AAAAAAAAAms/Wp8uk7xYQig/s1600/PA260166.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ky-fHmTxfg0/TqtsUyZDXUI/AAAAAAAAAms/Wp8uk7xYQig/s320/PA260166.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668743660355935554" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iEBGn9r58ro/TqtsUduhN4I/AAAAAAAAAmg/-G1716mEiCc/s1600/PA260157.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 274px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iEBGn9r58ro/TqtsUduhN4I/AAAAAAAAAmg/-G1716mEiCc/s320/PA260157.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668743654808827778" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_eeO886PJ9w/TqtsUBTnbII/AAAAAAAAAmU/pFJdm0SY8c8/s1600/PA260155.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_eeO886PJ9w/TqtsUBTnbII/AAAAAAAAAmU/pFJdm0SY8c8/s320/PA260155.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668743647179795586" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XbF8lLdKyO0/Tqtqtq8vLaI/AAAAAAAAAmE/32mrNr_9idg/s1600/PA260153.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XbF8lLdKyO0/Tqtqtq8vLaI/AAAAAAAAAmE/32mrNr_9idg/s320/PA260153.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668741888831597986" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mme4-oGtr-o/TqtqtTQh-MI/AAAAAAAAAl0/wKXhH8AYiiw/s1600/PA260152.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mme4-oGtr-o/TqtqtTQh-MI/AAAAAAAAAl0/wKXhH8AYiiw/s320/PA260152.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668741882472167618" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9chP3b8GHCc/TqtqtGVhxSI/AAAAAAAAAls/vOI5qvfH2m0/s1600/PA260150.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9chP3b8GHCc/TqtqtGVhxSI/AAAAAAAAAls/vOI5qvfH2m0/s320/PA260150.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668741879003464994" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-awqgkPTYYJQ/Tqtqsb5ZZKI/AAAAAAAAAlg/RuFOo7assq4/s1600/PA260149.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-awqgkPTYYJQ/Tqtqsb5ZZKI/AAAAAAAAAlg/RuFOo7assq4/s320/PA260149.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668741867611186338" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-m4hh8SOCbLY/TqtqsA4QDoI/AAAAAAAAAlU/JmYr1Ip7XME/s1600/PA260146.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-m4hh8SOCbLY/TqtqsA4QDoI/AAAAAAAAAlU/JmYr1Ip7XME/s320/PA260146.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668741860358622850" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W8cTXlTUPgQ/TqtoISxZ8qI/AAAAAAAAAlI/bVaQGjQrIQ8/s1600/PA260145.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W8cTXlTUPgQ/TqtoISxZ8qI/AAAAAAAAAlI/bVaQGjQrIQ8/s320/PA260145.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668739047663202978" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xQfSlAok9zQ/TqtoIMoY6cI/AAAAAAAAAk4/qgBGIWtLHEg/s1600/PA260144.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xQfSlAok9zQ/TqtoIMoY6cI/AAAAAAAAAk4/qgBGIWtLHEg/s320/PA260144.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668739046014773698" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XKSR1xHhe48/TqtoIJe_1CI/AAAAAAAAAkw/wVteSpkE6yk/s1600/PA260143.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XKSR1xHhe48/TqtoIJe_1CI/AAAAAAAAAkw/wVteSpkE6yk/s320/PA260143.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668739045170074658" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lboybr2uQ5A/TqtoHHXO6RI/AAAAAAAAAkk/aPtD6aBl9IA/s1600/PA260141.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lboybr2uQ5A/TqtoHHXO6RI/AAAAAAAAAkk/aPtD6aBl9IA/s320/PA260141.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668739027420768530" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S_tWwj2YAOE/TqtoG7EUkBI/AAAAAAAAAkY/_nkJUyyYR24/s1600/PA260140.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S_tWwj2YAOE/TqtoG7EUkBI/AAAAAAAAAkY/_nkJUyyYR24/s320/PA260140.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668739024120221714" /></a><br />My mom, Barb, turned 90 this October. Making it to 30 was an ordeal for me and many thought I'd never get there. Making it to 90 and still walking on your own most of the time and living with a minimum of assistance is an epic undertaking. Mom and Dad are moving much slower and live at a retirement complex with assisted living options. They have their own apartment and mom still putters in the kitchen and makes some breakfasts and an occasional lunch or dinner. Most dining is done in the dining room at Primrose, where they live in Illinois. Dad needs quite a bit of assistance and now uses a cart he drives through the hallways and can take to the elevator to go downstairs for meals. He's a real terror in that thing!<br />My brother and I fly home every October to check up on mom and dad, and to celebrate mom's birthday. This year, however, was more special. We asked her if she had a preference on cake and she said she wanted angel food with burnt sugar frosting. This was something my brother recalled more from his childhood, than I did. A neighbor in Missouri used to make burnt sugar cake with burnt sugar frosting so he was pretty excited to have me find someone who could do something similar. The onus was put upon me, my sister in law Virginia and my best friend Anne to find the perfect bakery to concoct said cake. Well, Anne put in a call to her mom, who happens to be one of my mom's best friends. Donna, Anne's mom, knew of a bakery called Lana's in Decatur that might be able to do this.<br />Next stop was paying Lana a visit, where we found out she could indeed make us the cake but she'd never made the frosting. An elderly woman who was 95 came in and heard us discussing the frosting and said she knew the recipe and even knew how to make burnt sugar cakes. Between her and an internet search, Lana knew she could deliver. And believe me, when we picked up the cake the day of mom's birthday and then had that first bite after birthday dinner party, we knew we'd been "done right" by Lana.<br />To Lana's credit, she had her bakery decorated with a pumpkin sporting potato head adornments, so you can imagine how delighted I was to do business with Lana. Plus, she made my brother a burnt sugar cake he picked up the day after I left.<br />The angel food cake was a real hit with mom at her birthday party, but the coup d'gras was the Tiara I picked up for her to wear. Anyone over the age of 50 probably saw at least one episode of "Queen For a Day" on TV growing up in the 60's. I don't remember who the host was. If it wasn't Bob Barker, it should have been (aka Truth or Consequences host). In fact he went to college with my mom. Another story for another day. Well, Jan picked up a birthday card with Barack Obama, Michelle Obama and Queen Elizabeth on it. We got other folks to sign the card from Barry O, Shelly O and Liz as a joke. We gave her the card prior to the cake and then brought out the Tiara. Mom was beside herself, and enjoyed all this joking and attention with great gusto. <br />We had eleven of us at the dinner: me, Jan, mom and dad, my step brother Jim, his wife Virginia, my best friend Anne and her husband David, Anne's mom Donna, and lifelong family friend Bob and his new wife Mary. It was a stellar evening that capped a great day, all day for mom. We managed to dole out birthday cards all day long to her prior to the dinner.<br />Jan says I've created a monster with the Tiara as mom was prancing around in the dining area at Primrose the next day at lunch showing off her Tiara and even wearing her corsage we had made for her.<br />I guess we done right by mom.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-74885616653471632382011-10-28T18:06:00.002-06:002011-10-28T18:13:34.806-06:00Boise State vs Air Force<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cw8HTz-5Ugw/TqtE9M59dwI/AAAAAAAAAhI/xm39aFNbI6I/s1600/PA200130.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cw8HTz-5Ugw/TqtE9M59dwI/AAAAAAAAAhI/xm39aFNbI6I/s320/PA200130.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5668700374202939138" /></a><br />Okay, I'm posting long after this game occurred, but there is a small tale be told. While waiting in the Boise airport on Thursday October 20 to catch a flight to Denver and on to Chicago the plane I'd be going out on arrived. Coming off the ramp was most of the Air Force football team, slated to play the BSU Bronco team on Saturday the 22nd. Air Force had a 3-3 win/loss thus far and is a formidable foe. They always "show up" to play. While the money was certainly on the Broncos to win, there was no doubt this would be a great game. The de-planing cadets included this young cadet in casual blues with the team mascot resting on his arm. The Peregrin Falcon is the Air Force mascot, and unlike Boise State's man in a horse suit Buster Bronco, they bring the "real deal". The falcon had flown on the plane in the cabin with the cadet. It was one of the coolest things I've ever seen in public and certainly not expected at the Boise Airport.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-88695379875370236972011-10-14T12:55:00.005-06:002011-10-20T10:23:37.646-06:00Goodbye 14, Hello 15<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NVQWFABlmBY/TqBK4ZqKNGI/AAAAAAAAAfg/uzoc9yHReFY/s1600/megan%2B%2526%2Bbrett%2B15th%2Bw_cake.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NVQWFABlmBY/TqBK4ZqKNGI/AAAAAAAAAfg/uzoc9yHReFY/s320/megan%2B%2526%2Bbrett%2B15th%2Bw_cake.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665610664052929634" /></a><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V-tKYek3WvU/TqBK4JOoyyI/AAAAAAAAAfU/WmJSuw_yWfg/s1600/megan%2B%2526%2Bbrett%2Bblow%2Bout%2Bcandles.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V-tKYek3WvU/TqBK4JOoyyI/AAAAAAAAAfU/WmJSuw_yWfg/s320/megan%2B%2526%2Bbrett%2Bblow%2Bout%2Bcandles.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665610659642526498" /></a><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2HQeLKvqiXc/TqBK22D4-FI/AAAAAAAAAfM/CHbtTv4HxLg/s1600/megan%2B%2526%2Bbrett%2527s%2B15th%2Bparty.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2HQeLKvqiXc/TqBK22D4-FI/AAAAAAAAAfM/CHbtTv4HxLg/s320/megan%2B%2526%2Bbrett%2527s%2B15th%2Bparty.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665610637317306450" /></a><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8XRSpEHCIL8/TqBK2vsn2tI/AAAAAAAAAe8/_wqdkwSwZzU/s1600/megan%2B%2526%2Bbrett%2527s%2B15th%2Bsleep%2Bpile.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8XRSpEHCIL8/TqBK2vsn2tI/AAAAAAAAAe8/_wqdkwSwZzU/s320/megan%2B%2526%2Bbrett%2527s%2B15th%2Bsleep%2Bpile.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665610635609103058" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5vk-bPLLPFw/Tp9tuA30NzI/AAAAAAAAAb8/UnGbN6FzMvM/s1600/PA150129.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5vk-bPLLPFw/Tp9tuA30NzI/AAAAAAAAAb8/UnGbN6FzMvM/s320/PA150129.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665367493530892082" /></a><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W160USMiWGE/TpiG5XTNdeI/AAAAAAAAAbs/BlhnboyX0tE/s1600/marti%2Band%2Bmegan%2Bcropped.bmp"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 302px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W160USMiWGE/TpiG5XTNdeI/AAAAAAAAAbs/BlhnboyX0tE/s320/marti%2Band%2Bmegan%2Bcropped.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5663424851483653602" /></a><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-B7gZls9y2vE/TpiG43kdUcI/AAAAAAAAAbk/Oj7ti2vwW4Y/s1600/Megan%2B%2526%2BBrett.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 298px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-B7gZls9y2vE/TpiG43kdUcI/AAAAAAAAAbk/Oj7ti2vwW4Y/s320/Megan%2B%2526%2BBrett.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5663424842966061506" /></a><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--z5iJv8VKxQ/TpiG4VzdTyI/AAAAAAAAAbU/Q3m2i_KOiAo/s1600/Megan%2B%2526%2BBrett%2Bfrontside%2Bpayette%2Blake.jpeg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--z5iJv8VKxQ/TpiG4VzdTyI/AAAAAAAAAbU/Q3m2i_KOiAo/s320/Megan%2B%2526%2BBrett%2Bfrontside%2Bpayette%2Blake.jpeg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5663424833902169890" /></a><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hZyhoP-LFdA/TpiG4JkOmJI/AAAAAAAAAbM/AVgThK8uNHs/s1600/Megan%2B%2526%2BBrett%2Bbackside%2Bpayette%2Blake.jpeg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 227px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hZyhoP-LFdA/TpiG4JkOmJI/AAAAAAAAAbM/AVgThK8uNHs/s320/Megan%2B%2526%2BBrett%2Bbackside%2Bpayette%2Blake.jpeg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5663424830617065618" /></a><br />Well, my daughter is a 9th grader this year and today is her birthday. The years have flown by quicker than I thought. Of course, there are those days when you wish they'd fly by slower, and others that go on forever.<br />Megan and her closer friend Brett are celebrating their 15th birthday together on Saturday with a huge party at Brett's parents house who are graciously hosting. I'm in charge of the cake and these photos will appear on that cake. Brett and Megan are dear friends at Junior High and also play club soccer for the same club, though different U-15 teams. Tommorrow nights shindig will include a dozen boys (who will be made to leave at 11 p.m.) and a dozen girls who will be sleeping over under the supervision of Brett's parents. They are having a big bonfired and will eat and giggle and enjoy themselves to the hilt, I'm sure.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-33721847382192688092011-10-12T22:51:00.008-06:002011-10-19T19:06:05.367-06:00City of Rocks-it Rocks Out!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SaPd-7tosno/Tp9zrRKO5PI/AAAAAAAAAew/sTTtFohUhC8/s1600/PA090115.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SaPd-7tosno/Tp9zrRKO5PI/AAAAAAAAAew/sTTtFohUhC8/s320/PA090115.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665374043433264370" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_iavjPa9NMA/Tp9zq2xcOtI/AAAAAAAAAek/mow1cIIoiPA/s1600/PA090116.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_iavjPa9NMA/Tp9zq2xcOtI/AAAAAAAAAek/mow1cIIoiPA/s320/PA090116.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665374036349958866" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NFeq8D9AEPM/Tp9zq4tEaSI/AAAAAAAAAeY/TIG6TEeCCfk/s1600/PA100122.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NFeq8D9AEPM/Tp9zq4tEaSI/AAAAAAAAAeY/TIG6TEeCCfk/s320/PA100122.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665374036868491554" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-47DdlWWBNZ4/Tp9zqHMx_HI/AAAAAAAAAeQ/WNdbyySJ9IU/s1600/PA080053.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-47DdlWWBNZ4/Tp9zqHMx_HI/AAAAAAAAAeQ/WNdbyySJ9IU/s320/PA080053.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665374023579729010" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lc5lntOvm38/Tp9zp7dkGqI/AAAAAAAAAeA/UgGPUZs4CFc/s1600/PA090109.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lc5lntOvm38/Tp9zp7dkGqI/AAAAAAAAAeA/UgGPUZs4CFc/s320/PA090109.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665374020428896930" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n75bOzoMr3s/Tp9yJJJFZcI/AAAAAAAAAd4/8usmeMlzang/s1600/PA090095.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n75bOzoMr3s/Tp9yJJJFZcI/AAAAAAAAAd4/8usmeMlzang/s320/PA090095.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665372357653784002" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KJ8zFRZ779s/Tp9yI3_qvGI/AAAAAAAAAdo/mqUyFh8gCSQ/s1600/PA090108.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KJ8zFRZ779s/Tp9yI3_qvGI/AAAAAAAAAdo/mqUyFh8gCSQ/s320/PA090108.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665372353050885218" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AS3Lo7qbm8Q/Tp9yIK_tHaI/AAAAAAAAAdg/2jUtb26Evms/s1600/PA090105.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AS3Lo7qbm8Q/Tp9yIK_tHaI/AAAAAAAAAdg/2jUtb26Evms/s320/PA090105.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665372340971445666" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-07CKr3ZUI7U/Tp9yH7A1gwI/AAAAAAAAAdQ/sbe7pEWuTDo/s1600/PA090096.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-07CKr3ZUI7U/Tp9yH7A1gwI/AAAAAAAAAdQ/sbe7pEWuTDo/s320/PA090096.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665372336681222914" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ed2DluP2sOM/Tp9yHgRpogI/AAAAAAAAAdE/kYDTfbbEVh8/s1600/PA090092.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ed2DluP2sOM/Tp9yHgRpogI/AAAAAAAAAdE/kYDTfbbEVh8/s320/PA090092.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665372329503990274" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kazotZ93aXA/Tp9vZwQ9arI/AAAAAAAAAc4/xIoPoAlkY_Q/s1600/PA080078.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-kazotZ93aXA/Tp9vZwQ9arI/AAAAAAAAAc4/xIoPoAlkY_Q/s320/PA080078.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665369344498821810" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-N1Gf2sI0Sa4/Tp9vZod2pTI/AAAAAAAAAco/DtGvaqEZgAE/s1600/PA090085.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-N1Gf2sI0Sa4/Tp9vZod2pTI/AAAAAAAAAco/DtGvaqEZgAE/s320/PA090085.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665369342405420338" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RiQ2oVppIm4/Tp9vZDhp83I/AAAAAAAAAcg/WKgnvJHWLPM/s1600/PA080073.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RiQ2oVppIm4/Tp9vZDhp83I/AAAAAAAAAcg/WKgnvJHWLPM/s320/PA080073.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665369332489253746" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XN7EFWis-BU/Tp9vYxjLD6I/AAAAAAAAAcQ/OVXEkDrAl1Y/s1600/PA080060.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XN7EFWis-BU/Tp9vYxjLD6I/AAAAAAAAAcQ/OVXEkDrAl1Y/s320/PA080060.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665369327663779746" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--lfpjfj0dGY/Tp9vYo7QOMI/AAAAAAAAAcI/ZMPzPZ7oTq0/s1600/PA080051.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--lfpjfj0dGY/Tp9vYo7QOMI/AAAAAAAAAcI/ZMPzPZ7oTq0/s320/PA080051.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665369325348862146" /></a><br />Okay, so the short story is this. Last Friday it was raining cats and frogs in Boise. In Idaho Falls where Little Yonni and Susun reside it was snowing to beat the band, as they say in Midwestern parlance. Kind of reminds me of parlaying in Pirates of the Caribbean, but I digress. Suffice to say that Little Yonni was way stressed about trying to back his pickup and pop-up camper out from under a dearth of snow and branches; or finalizing his rigging to get he and missus to COR on Friday late afternoon for a rendevous. <br />I had already arranged for a dog and chicken sitter to tend to my hearth and flock so was inclined to get out of Dodge, as they say. I decided to call my brother and sister in law in Rupert at the family farm to see if they'd put up with for a night and they graciously and enthusiastically agreed I could come and hang out.<br />So, all packed up I left Boise and figured I'd meet up with Yonni and Susun at COR on Saturday around 11:30 to noon. An enjoyable evening was spent with Steve and Marcy at the farm joined by Willie, Waylon and Vanna the cats, and also the beloved 10 year old border collie mutt named Callie who squeals a whimper that is both endearing and annoying at the same time. But I adore her.<br />After a breakfast of fresh peaches and berries with cereal I headed off to Almo, the remote spot in MOAN country where the does and bucks are nervous. Much to my surprise Yonni and Susun had pulled in only about 60 seconds or less prior to me. They accused me of spying on them when I rolled in.<br />We headed on out after maps and a pit stop to look for a campsite. It would seem that despite the plethora of climbing clientele, that folks had quickly tired of three days of rain and snow. Campsites appeared full and we went up to a higher site only to find excess snow to the tune of 6 inches on the picnic table and drowning in moisture and snowy wonder at the tent location. I wasn't particularly enthused at this option. Yonni and I left Susun to hold this less than desirable camp and we headed back to below snow line to look at other options I'd identified previously. As luck would have it, the climbers were sick and tired of being cold and frozen and rained upon for the past three days, most of them without any kind of fire wood, so camps were being evacuated. That was good news for us as we snagged one that I'd identified as highly desirable. Well, it turned out it was more than that. We had 360 degree panorama vistas, shelter from wind, morning sun and a flat spot for Montezuma family to park their pop up camper truck. I was in hog heaven, actually. I don't typically camp in formal campgrounds and this was hands down the best developed campsite with a picnic table and fire pit/grate I'd ever been to. I kid you not!. I even went on video to proclaim this, but Yonni hasn't put it on U tube boob yet, so it might show up later on this blob of a blog.<br /><br />Well, all I can tell you is we had 48 hours of the most incredible break in weather known to camping/hiking mankind and we made the most of it by hiking all around the place. Yonni had a better description and I'll try to link to his blog when I remember how to do that.<br />We saw climber on the Bumblie trail loop and we hiked up on an adjacent rock dome near our camp with amazing pot holes full of snow melt and we could see lots of snow on Independence Mtn and Cassia Peak along with Mtn Harrison near Pomerelle Ski area. Hiking was superb. Coyotes sang us to sleep and the full moon almost, came up on our Sunday evening under the night sky. Susuan serenaded us with her version of Dancing with the Susun and her hippie dippie lava light tubes. I brought enough wood from my firewood pile at home to keep us in good stead for the full two day of camping.<br />We met folks from Bozeman, Banff in Alberta, and Boise, Nampa and even Colorado who come to hang out. All of them by and large were climbers but they were appreciative that were hikers not climbers but loved what they do. We met horse people on the trail around Bumblie on Sunday.<br />The difference between COR and Great Basin National Park was the difference between night and day. I didn't see a single "ranger" with law enforcement authority, nor did I see rangers or personnel per se at all except at the visitor center. We saw some state of Idaho Parks Dept folks who all waved and were convivial and they never bothered or harassed anyone.This was in stark opposition to my experience at Great Basin where I was ticketed for supposed speeding within less than 5 minutes of crossing into the boundary of the park. The Visitor Center Park service employee at Almo was amazingly knowledgeable and helpful unlike the staff at Great Basin. This guy knew everything. But then again, he was easily 30 year older than the staffer at Great Basin. And even the older staff we met seemed clueless.<br />My experience here was stellar. The scenery was superior to anything Great Basin has to offer and far less hassle. I plan to come back again same time next year. I'd been here at least 6 times since it became a joint NPS/State Park venture. I think the NPS should consider this model more often. Great Basin doesn't deserve National Park status and should probably be a monument or reserve and they need to unwind all their regulations which are overkill.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-13388385153241876482011-10-03T08:50:00.002-06:002011-10-03T09:02:15.472-06:00All Work and No Play Makes a Girl TiredSaturday was filled with soccer games for Megan and then doing starting the process of stacking green wood while listening to the Boise State vs Nevada Wolfpack game on the radio. BSU beat them 30-10 with one TD run for 92 yards that was called back. There was a lot of penalties for needless roughing and holding during this game, and the Broncos made mistakes they can't afford to make. Consequently when the polls came out on Sunday they dropped from 4th to either 5th or 6th depending on which poll. Of course, there are some surprise teams making headway like Wisconsin and Clemson moving up and folks like TCU out of the polls now, and big drops for Virginia Tech. I love watching who goes undefeated. BSU's hopes of a BCS championship game are probably not real viable this year with all the teams they play getting trounced by teams they shouldn't be losing to. So I'm betting on a Rose Bowl berth that they lost out on last year. We shall see.<br /><br />Sunday was spent grousing over finding my sprinkler system valve boxes and electrical had flooded and shorted out. I'm guessing strongly the pipe that feeds them was crushed by the nimrods who cut my trees last week and appear to have rolled a several hundred pounds stump grinder within two inches of said boxes, which had been marked to avoid. So I've got a call into the tree cutters boss regarding this issue, though of course, they have an escape clause to not be responsible. And some other tree cutting work and stump removal was not done. Then it was time to clean out the gutters completely to get ready for rain, rake out all the yard debris the wood cutters didn't clean up, and water some places with the garden hose, which took quite a bit. Bush trimming and some other work took up 6 hours and I was totally whooped. A neighbor stopped by to help roll log rounds over to my wood pile stacking area where these new pieces will sit for a few years curing. I covered the wood piles with a brand new tarp. They usually only make it one winter. Then there was the issue of sufficiently cleaning up my garage to get the SUV in. I also recycled some little kids outdoor lawn chairs to a neighbor with one toddle and one due this Thursday. Figured they could use them.<br /><br />So now it's back to work for the week and packing at O-dark Thirty this coming Thursday evening after Megan's soccer practice in order to leave Friday afternoon to meet Mr and Mrs Montezuma at City of Rocks for what hopefully will turn out to be sunny and crips fall weather after what's looking to be three to four days of rain and high elevation snow. Wish us well.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-33422839477803449452011-09-25T09:55:00.002-06:002011-09-25T09:58:56.204-06:00Chicken AlertAs the proud mama to two Auracana hens that have grown these past five plus months I'm happy to announce that I got my first blue-green small egg yesterday. Next on the agenda is trying to determine whether Thelma or Louise is the responsible hen. The egg is smaller than the ones likely to come in the future, but this breeds eggs run in the small to medium category if one was to grade them on the USDA scale. But they'll be fun and these two girls are real sweeties as hens go.<br /><br />As the "Perry Mason" in me takes over I'll give you the update on who the real chicken layer is.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-24107472300053610582011-09-22T10:10:00.004-06:002011-09-22T11:17:05.695-06:00The Great Basin is MOAN Country...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--TBAJrIkqZk/Tntru2DcFsI/AAAAAAAAAbE/gE_lnioq0Ys/s1600/P9190032.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--TBAJrIkqZk/Tntru2DcFsI/AAAAAAAAAbE/gE_lnioq0Ys/s320/P9190032.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5655232209621882562" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2BCfDLlNpwQ/TntruvHw1II/AAAAAAAAAa8/JWU1DBYvn4U/s1600/P9200038.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2BCfDLlNpwQ/TntruvHw1II/AAAAAAAAAa8/JWU1DBYvn4U/s320/P9200038.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5655232207760970882" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2EG7bAbz9mk/TntrB-zsEFI/AAAAAAAAAa0/X_2l_FlYQBo/s1600/P9190028.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2EG7bAbz9mk/TntrB-zsEFI/AAAAAAAAAa0/X_2l_FlYQBo/s320/P9190028.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5655231438877626450" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6J-7EX_K45c/TntrBv9fe2I/AAAAAAAAAas/d_ENIWdtrXE/s1600/P9190021.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6J-7EX_K45c/TntrBv9fe2I/AAAAAAAAAas/d_ENIWdtrXE/s320/P9190021.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5655231434892213090" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jAmdUfNxBNU/TntrBdQQauI/AAAAAAAAAak/djR-K4qdNBk/s1600/P9190011.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jAmdUfNxBNU/TntrBdQQauI/AAAAAAAAAak/djR-K4qdNBk/s320/P9190011.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5655231429870643938" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mGlkcjCD43s/TntrBPPpfMI/AAAAAAAAAac/3-2ydOn7AWc/s1600/P9190006.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mGlkcjCD43s/TntrBPPpfMI/AAAAAAAAAac/3-2ydOn7AWc/s320/P9190006.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5655231426109996226" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0nqbXh5XQSc/TntrAgmAVeI/AAAAAAAAAaU/gf5itEhkwOs/s1600/P9190014.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0nqbXh5XQSc/TntrAgmAVeI/AAAAAAAAAaU/gf5itEhkwOs/s320/P9190014.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5655231413587301858" /></a><br />Well, 1150 miles later roundtrip and $500 poorer I'm back from the middle of absolute nowhere country, as Johnny Montezuma would call it. Driving across Idaho even on I-84 much of the time you are without cell phone service. Once I headed south from Twin Falls on US 93 towards Jackpot, NV that was pretty much it. I had cell service for about a mile coming and going into Jackpot, Wells and Ely, NV (pop. 4255) and then nothing from there on out as I took US 6 toward Great Basin National Park. <br />The Park is anchored by the tiny burg of Baker (pop. 68.) There is a Ranger Station there, a Stinker gas pump that takes credit cards and has showers for free in a building out back, and there are about three businesses with food, some variation on lodging and that's about it.<br />No sooner than I had entered the park road did I have my first negative encounter of the trip. A Park Ranger was driving about 22 mph on the 8% grade road. He pulled over and turned left into a campground turnoff. Then he pulled back out behind me. I thought nothing of it and headed up the road with my sights set on camping at the base of Wheeler Peak. Barely a minute later, and I kid you not, lights are flashing behind me. I pull over thinking maybe my tail light is out or brake light. Ranger C. Otto gets on the loud speaker and tells me to run off into a campground road, which I do. Then he of course appears at my vehicle window and in a very surly tone asks me why I think it's ago to speed along at 49 mph in a 35 mph. I told him I did not believe I was speeding at all and surprised he thought so. I told him I thought maybe he stopped me because I had a light out that I did not know about. He gruffly took my drivers license, insurance and vehicle registration. I figured he'd come back and admonish me again but no, he comes back and hands me a ticket for $225. My jaw dropped. I said " you've got to be kidding me? A ticket, not a warning? I simply don't believe there is any way I could drive 49 mph on this steep road." Ranger C. Otto smirked and then asked for my social security number and phone number, which I provided. Apparently the Feds can ask for this so they can attach your social security checks or payroll if you don't pay the fine. I said very succinctly to the Ranger that I thought this was no way to treat a person who'd driven more than 8 hours and 500 miles to visit the park and it surely didn't reflect well on Park Management to drive away visitors. I also told him it meant I would now not be paying to camp there, nor would I spend a dime in the park or in the local community since I'd be paying for a speeding ticket that I was certain I was not guilty of. Ranger Otto and his sidekick, who stood outside my window on the passenger side the entire time this episode was going on, got back in their rig and drove off. I turned around and drove out of the park, into Baker and headed out to a separate canyon with primitive camping sites that the Park Service has amazingly not managed to screw up yet. I was so steamed I almost left immediately and drove back to Idaho.<br />But, I didn't. I also did not spend a dime in the park or locally since I didn't have any extra money in the budget now due to this inane speeding ticket. However, I did drive back up the Wheeler Peak Road to the top and the fastes I could get my rig to go was a whopping 39 mph, nothing close to 49 mph. It was like driving up the road to Bogus Basin Ski area with lots of curving, steep roadway and a few hairpin curves. The Ranger never showed me how he determined I was speeding, either, so I plan to look into pleading not guilty if I don't have to appear in a federal court in Nevada, as opposed to Idaho. Needless to say this whole experience really soured my trip, since the journey into the basin had been quite lovely.<br />Coming south out of Ely there is an enormous elk wildlife range set aside where elk were reintroduced from Yellowstone with 32 elk. It's been too warm for the elk to come down yet from the mountains and I wasn't there at the right time of day even if they had come down, but I was impressed they'd set this aside. Also coming out of Ely there was a sign I'm remiss I did not photograph. It stated "Prison ahead, hitchhiking prohibited". Now you don't see that everyday, and just after that sign there was a BLM Campground sign indicating a spot not too far off the road. I figure since the prisoners can't hitchhike when they escape they can at least go camp out close by awaiting their re-arrest!<br />Reuben and I set up camp in the Snake Canyon along a rushing creek that feeds water to a Nevada Fish and Game rearing hatchery down stream from where we camped. I imagine they raise Lahontan or Bonneville cutthroat trout there. We had a great little camp we stayed in for three nights. Despite the later hour in setting up, after the Ranger Rudeness scenario, I got the tent up, firewood ready, mixed a nice vodka drink, fed Reuben and commenced in the what was now o dark 8:00 p.m. to cut up some steak meat and peppers and onions to skillet fry for dinner. I was really hungry as I hadn't eaten since breakfast in Boise. The meal was tasty and I settled into watching my little campfire with my dog at my feet, and read until about 10, then went to bed. At the 3 a.m. pee wake-up call I stumbled out of the tent to the darkest of darkness. The night sky was so full of stars I could see every constellation imaginable, many of which I'd long ago forgotten the names. The moon came out later, but for then it was pitch black, save the starry night sky.<br />Next morning Greta Garbo Goat ensured I enjoyed my Ethiopian coffee made with my Melitta filter. A breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage and fresh tomatoes from my garden kept me going all day. Reuben and I packed up and headed out further in the basin past the burg of Garrison and on up a road into Lexington Arch. There we took a not quite 4 mile roundtrip hike up many switchbacks on open slope dotted with all manner of Great Basin vegetation including single leaf pinon pine, bitterbrush, rabbit brush and ultimately some aspen and spruce. The climb was worth it and Lexington Arch was actually quite nice. When we cam back down into the flats of the basin I made a little video panorama that hardly captures the sheer expanse of it all.<br />Still, I kept asking myself why this is a National Park? It's pretty and all, but in my mind it just isn't what I consider National Park caliber. It would have been better to be BLM or Forest Service managed like it was before, just get rid of the cows and do a slightly higher level of protection, which either agency could have done. Same thing up the canyon we were camping in, which was just perfect the way it was, because it had previously been USFS before the Park Service got their mitts on it.<br />A great dinner of grilled steak was the meal for the night with salad made from tomatoes, cucs, green onions etc from my garden. <br />Tuesday we drove back up where Ranger Rudeness had interceded in ruining our day and checked out each and every campground. I was actually glad we stayed where we did because we only saw one other person camped up in our canyon. I don't need running water and toilets. We had a picnic table and fire grate so I was fine. Plus creek water that could be boiled or used for dishes. And that steep climb up the 12 miles--well, the fastest I ever hit on the drive up after the base was just as I suspected, 38 mph. Now coming downhill was a different story. I had to put it into 1st gear to let the engine just creep at 25 to 30 so I didn't have to ride the brake.<br />When going up toward Wheeler Peak we checked out the Stephen Mather Overlook, named after the first Park Service Chief. Wheeler Peak was nice, but again, there is alot of stuff in Idaho, Utah and Colorado far Superior. Just because it's supposedly the highest peak (there really is one higher, but no one's talking) doesn't mean it needs to be a National Park. I went for short hike to the Bristlecone PIne forest once I got to the 10,000 feet base area for hiking to the top of Wheeler Peak. Since the Park Service Nazi's don't allow dogs on any trail here except to Lexington Arch I opted not to do the 8 miles round trip hike up Wheeler. The short hike to the bristlecones was nice, though I've seen bristlecone pines in Idaho on top of Mt Harrison, too. And likely as old as these, actually.<br />When it was all said an done, while the drive was scenic, that really was the best part. The drive. Lehman Cave, which is actually quite small was a National Monument all along. And that's probably how it should have stayed. I didn't go into the Cave because I wasn't going to spend the money, and I've been in lots of caves before. This one is unique in that it is marble rather than limestone by and large. There was nice gift shop and small restaurant with reasonably priced food. And the lady that ran it made home made ice cream sandwiches to die for. But those aren't on my diet right now so I resisted.<br />MOAN country in this part of Nevada is interesting, but I wouldn't want to live there. It's a real hard scrabble life and reminded me a lot of folks in the Depression. Kind of that "Of Mice and Men" look about the area all around the Basin.<br />We drove home and the scenery was still stunning, but I would say that unless you need to go this route on your way to someplace else, I'd skip it. Idaho, Colorado, Utah and Arizona beat this place hands down. And I probably will stay away from National Parks. They now employ far too many Park Ranger gun nuts who seem to have a burr up their butts. I met three other people during my short time at the park who had also had negative experiences with Ranger Rudeness. I suggested they drop the Superintendent a letter, just as I plan to do so.<br />Were it not for Greta Garbo Goat and Reuben the wonder dog, it would not have been as much fun.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-50574078600891099292011-09-16T20:21:00.003-06:002011-09-16T20:31:13.074-06:00Wheeler Peak Camping Companions<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dWlBvLZ74pg/TnQGNIheXKI/AAAAAAAAAaM/_Hs7-nVItxs/s1600/P9160005.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dWlBvLZ74pg/TnQGNIheXKI/AAAAAAAAAaM/_Hs7-nVItxs/s320/P9160005.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5653150254952766626" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bKfC29lLYmc/TnQGMyd2aLI/AAAAAAAAAaE/BqOcp363_m0/s1600/P9160001.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bKfC29lLYmc/TnQGMyd2aLI/AAAAAAAAAaE/BqOcp363_m0/s320/P9160001.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5653150249031985330" /></a><br />As I get ready to make my first ever visit to Great Basin National Park I have been trying to decide what travelling companions will join me. I have a family of Potato Heads that have been my friends for a while. They like to travel and are relatively quiet and don't take up much room. Joining the Potato Head gang is a new addition--Greta Garbo Goat. Great is a pygmy goat who just joined the family today. She's kind of a small pygmy goat as pygmy goats go. She doesn't eat much and I'm betting she's really going to go nuts over the aroma of Ethiopian coffee I brew every morning. She'll be joining a long line of goats who have smelled Ethiopian coffee beans, and she'll get to enjoy that aroma with the spuddy buddies at Wheeler Peak.<br /><br />Stay tuned for the adventures of Greta and Spuddy Buddies next week.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-46140090026109525432011-09-02T12:29:00.002-06:002011-09-02T12:36:31.946-06:00Ballons Over Boise<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-s_z9oPRDy_k/TmEh95EdcqI/AAAAAAAAAZ8/bx6MkKobefE/s1600/Boise%2BBalloon%2Bfest2.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-s_z9oPRDy_k/TmEh95EdcqI/AAAAAAAAAZ8/bx6MkKobefE/s320/Boise%2BBalloon%2Bfest2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5647832754874577570" /></a>
<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bS5Zht7w7-k/TmEh9tXJXuI/AAAAAAAAAZ0/pEPRMXdzqZ4/s1600/Boise%2BBallon%2Bfest3.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bS5Zht7w7-k/TmEh9tXJXuI/AAAAAAAAAZ0/pEPRMXdzqZ4/s320/Boise%2BBallon%2Bfest3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5647832751731728098" /></a>
<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K_dOGl79uEM/TmEh9nWfFgI/AAAAAAAAAZs/aj5Pkw40ZoY/s1600/Boise%2BBalloon%2Bfest%2B1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 223px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K_dOGl79uEM/TmEh9nWfFgI/AAAAAAAAAZs/aj5Pkw40ZoY/s320/Boise%2BBalloon%2Bfest%2B1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5647832750118344194" /></a>
<br />Who can resist hot air ballons? From Dorothy and Toto being left behind in the Wizard of Oz, to The Great Race, hot air ballons capture our imagination and our hearts. Boise used to have hot air balloons as a showcase of the now defunk Boise River Festival. I don't miss the has been music acts or the ridiculous crowds of the Boise River Festival, which mostly trashed the adjacent parks and made one wonder what was being celebrated? I did miss the hot air balloons. To that end some individuals and sponsors brought back the Spirit of Boise Balloon Festival that is happening over this Labor Day weekend, 2011.
<br />What a lovely sight at 7:45 a.m. driving to work to have literally two or three dozen balloons gently grace the skies of Boise in the downtown and over the Boise River. It absolutley brings out that childlike wonder I posess and a toothy wide smile to my face.
<br />The photos are courtesy of the Idaho Statesman and were published August 31, 2011.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-61803282211518237362011-08-07T12:52:00.004-06:002011-08-07T13:29:13.996-06:00Celebrating Jeret "Speedy" Peterson<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0zbKetQAcmo/Tj7knRRVk7I/AAAAAAAAAZk/Ipxbd_GymKQ/s1600/Speedy%2Btakes%2BSilver%2Bmedal.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0zbKetQAcmo/Tj7knRRVk7I/AAAAAAAAAZk/Ipxbd_GymKQ/s320/Speedy%2Btakes%2BSilver%2Bmedal.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638195146816590770" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OWjmFmJ8-OM/Tj7knVK4pWI/AAAAAAAAAZc/m_jo7gJZOnQ/s1600/Jeret%2Bat%2BVancouver%2Bopening%2Bceremony.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-OWjmFmJ8-OM/Tj7knVK4pWI/AAAAAAAAAZc/m_jo7gJZOnQ/s320/Jeret%2Bat%2BVancouver%2Bopening%2Bceremony.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638195147863270754" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q9Ku-FcmEdc/Tj7knE0wNxI/AAAAAAAAAZU/gQtdbTs_0Yc/s1600/Emily%2BCook%252C%2BAshley%2BCaldwell%252CJana%2BLindsey%252C%2BJeret%2BPeterson%252C%2BLacy%2BSchnoor%2Bweek%2Bbefore%2B2010%2BOlympics%2Bat%2BPark%2BCity.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q9Ku-FcmEdc/Tj7knE0wNxI/AAAAAAAAAZU/gQtdbTs_0Yc/s320/Emily%2BCook%252C%2BAshley%2BCaldwell%252CJana%2BLindsey%252C%2BJeret%2BPeterson%252C%2BLacy%2BSchnoor%2Bweek%2Bbefore%2B2010%2BOlympics%2Bat%2BPark%2BCity.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638195143475476242" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E15sy-l-R94/Tj7km90JDSI/AAAAAAAAAZM/w76DTxmYnTo/s1600/goodbye%2Bjeret08_07_2011%2Bmemorial.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 250px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-E15sy-l-R94/Tj7km90JDSI/AAAAAAAAAZM/w76DTxmYnTo/s320/goodbye%2Bjeret08_07_2011%2Bmemorial.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638195141593861410" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iVrStZcdSKo/Tj7kmjNnbRI/AAAAAAAAAZE/uWmS660VPrA/s1600/celebrating%2Bjeret_change%2BB%2Bto%2BJP-8-06-2011.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 230px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iVrStZcdSKo/Tj7kmjNnbRI/AAAAAAAAAZE/uWmS660VPrA/s320/celebrating%2Bjeret_change%2BB%2Bto%2BJP-8-06-2011.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638195134452952338" /></a><br />The last time I saw Speedy was a little over three weeks ago. He joined me on a river outing on the South Fork Boise along with some other friends. A few years back I told him he needed a summertime sport like kayaking or rafting. He took me up on teaching him how to roll a kayak. He was such an exceptional athlete who understood physics of body movement. He learned to roll in three attempts. That was it. <br />How I came to know Speedy was a bit of a quirk. At about the time he made the US Olympic team in 1998, I think it was, I was then the mom of a toddler. I went to watch a US Ski Team event in Moguls at Bogus Basin. Jeret was only 15 or 16 then, and he was the star attraction. This wild pink jacket he wore just cracked me up. "Pink is the new Black", he joked to me as I stood in the lift line with him on his way back up to compete. The kid just effused a mix of cockiness of a 15 year old, and the charm that everyone who ever met him came to know. That little episode encouraged me to keep my eye on him as he matured in his sport. And it led to periodic phone calls, emails and personal contact. When Megan left the ski team after USASA Nationals in 2009 I took the money I would have spent on her and donated it to Jeret to help support his 2010 Olympic bid. <br />In 2002 when he was awarded the last spot on the freestyle team for the Olympics when Emily Cook was injured, I knew I had to go to Salt Lake and see him in his aerials event. <br />By then Megan was skiing and the next year she started ski racing. She finally met Speedy in 2007 at a ski team event. Jeret took an interest in her ski "career" when he found out she was competing in Skier X. Not a lot of girls were doing that event. And it wasn't under the onus of the US Ski Association either but rather USASA which was a snowboard organization. When she made it to Nationals in Skier X in 2008 and 2009 he seemed as excited as she and I were. He even texted her before her race in 2009 to tell her "Stay out of the back seat, breathe deep and ski fast!" He always seemed to make time for the little things with other people.<br />He was the best at whatever he attempted, whether it was skiing moguls, throwing the "Hurricane" (his signature aerial jump), swinging a hammer as a carpenter or earning himself a Dean's list honor at Westminster College where he was working on finishing his degree until fate took a different turn. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Click on the blog title for an article from the Idaho Statesman.</span><br />Jeret suffered terribly from depression. He seemed to be a poster child for bi-polar with the worst of the symptoms from manic to crawling in a cave emotionally. Having dated someone who was bi-polar I tried hard to encourage him to always seeks help. And he did, regularly and through his closest friends. But it just wasn't enough to take away the pain that chased him each and every day. How he managed to get up every morning and push himself was beyond belief. I wish, as we all do who knew him intimately and from farther afield that he could have been helped. He gave so much joy to so many people it is unbelievable.<br />Yesterdays Memorial Celebration was a cathartic experience for everyone in the room. I met people in his life many of us not having ever known each other or about each other. But every single one had something special they had shared with Jeret. That's just how it was with him. Dino, a close friend of Jeret's from Park City, sat next to me. I'd met him on the rafting outing. We both wept openly and held each others hand. There was alot of that going around. I'd never seen so many men openly weeping. We shared laughter, grief, tears, and warm hugs. I know the pain won't go away right away for me. I do know the pain for Jeret is finally gone and his energy is swirling in cosmos sprinkling particles of himself upon all of us. I will miss him.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-42768857642920159132011-08-01T19:43:00.005-06:002011-08-01T20:59:32.682-06:00ROAD TRIP!!!!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ot9JndAzXqQ/TjdmzPs346I/AAAAAAAAAY8/8xMiKBcRWtk/s1600/P7300152.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ot9JndAzXqQ/TjdmzPs346I/AAAAAAAAAY8/8xMiKBcRWtk/s320/P7300152.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636086489251570594" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1xJIKDD5ia8/TjdmzGsjM2I/AAAAAAAAAY0/dOFjHOTBzYk/s1600/P7300159.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1xJIKDD5ia8/TjdmzGsjM2I/AAAAAAAAAY0/dOFjHOTBzYk/s320/P7300159.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636086486834295650" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yAoNcG5RdVY/TjdmyMlyThI/AAAAAAAAAYs/R0Z149pl4jc/s1600/P7300155.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yAoNcG5RdVY/TjdmyMlyThI/AAAAAAAAAYs/R0Z149pl4jc/s320/P7300155.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636086471236668946" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hxQSo-alVZw/Tjdmx09BjiI/AAAAAAAAAYk/WYIlstymYv4/s1600/P7300156.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hxQSo-alVZw/Tjdmx09BjiI/AAAAAAAAAYk/WYIlstymYv4/s320/P7300156.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636086464891686434" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7eHXjxDRF3c/TjdmxjJm2fI/AAAAAAAAAYc/BY2O9QRbUa8/s1600/P7300150.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7eHXjxDRF3c/TjdmxjJm2fI/AAAAAAAAAYc/BY2O9QRbUa8/s320/P7300150.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636086460112624114" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1HZvK92F5Rw/TjdbgHPKFTI/AAAAAAAAAYU/OJ1xlsv3irw/s1600/P7290136.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1HZvK92F5Rw/TjdbgHPKFTI/AAAAAAAAAYU/OJ1xlsv3irw/s320/P7290136.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636074065934030130" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P-jec8ISr64/Tjdbf5KoONI/AAAAAAAAAYM/RvJjLQolt84/s1600/P7290134.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P-jec8ISr64/Tjdbf5KoONI/AAAAAAAAAYM/RvJjLQolt84/s320/P7290134.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636074062156937426" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PTDsh1TExRc/Tjdbfl4azbI/AAAAAAAAAYE/cQJyUT_VwLc/s1600/P7290128.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PTDsh1TExRc/Tjdbfl4azbI/AAAAAAAAAYE/cQJyUT_VwLc/s320/P7290128.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636074056980286898" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--_80dqY9q80/TjdbfegBhQI/AAAAAAAAAX8/ZzK1Ontyd3Y/s1600/P7290131.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--_80dqY9q80/TjdbfegBhQI/AAAAAAAAAX8/ZzK1Ontyd3Y/s320/P7290131.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636074054998918402" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PHA_P1QALg8/TjdbfAGVhvI/AAAAAAAAAX0/L55I2zXw-Xc/s1600/P7290122.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PHA_P1QALg8/TjdbfAGVhvI/AAAAAAAAAX0/L55I2zXw-Xc/s320/P7290122.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636074046838114034" /></a><br />Okay, so I've gotten your attention. I kind of had a bad week last week. One of those times full of "when it rains, it pours" life changing and life annoying issues that turn a person into an irrational and distraught person. I knew the best thing for me was to get out of "Dodge" or in this case, Boise, and visit with folks who are always uplifting to me.<br />At the suggestion of my brother in law, Steve, I drove from Boise to Bliss and hopped off the freeway (I-84) and headed toward Gooding. I didn't take any pictures at Gooding but wished I'd had the "smell o' meter" so I could somehow give your olfactories a whiff of the 1000 plus head industrial dairy that comes into view just slightly west of the highway once you get off I-84 and head north toward Gooding. Gooding County commissioners seem to love trashing the landscape with industrial dairy farms, not to mention the smell, and the waste stream. Imagine this--we ship out nearly 100 percent of the milk products and keep 100% of the cow poop. Gotta love the Idaho dairy industry. Instead of "got milk?" the motto should be "got poop?" Then I drove through Shoshone where gas prices were a dime cheaper than Boise. Heading just barely south out of Shoshone you turn east picking up state Highway 24 that then zooms you over a great paved road hardly used that takes you through MOAN country. That's MIddle of Absolutely Nowhere for the uninitiated. MOAN in this neck of the woods, means driving through such esteemed places at Dietrich, Kimama Butte, Acequia, and Minidoka. <br />It's also not far from where our nation made one of the worst errors of their history other than abject slavery--the Minidoka Internment Camp. The Camp was where over 10,000 people of Japanese ancestry who were citizens of this country were rounded up after the bombing of Pearl Harbor by the Nation of Japan. Our government had the audacity to question their allegiance to our country and placed them in concentration camps. You really can't call them anything else, because that in essence is what they were. Most of these folks came from near cool, rainy Seattle and were dumped into the scrub 110 degree heat of the high desert of Idaho with shanty barracks to live in.Ultimately water was diverted from the MIlner Gooding Canal so they could grow crops. The children were educated. A couple of renowned artists were interned at the camp. But it was a dark day in history from my point of view that this could ever have happened. I looked in vane to find Hunt Road, which surely goes by the Mormon road numbering system and I think the signs had been pulled down. I do know that virtually nothing if left of the camp buildings and maybe that is really a blessing in disguise.<br />The highlights of the drive along this portion of the route included the train station at Shoshone, where Amtrak no longer stops. I remember picking my mom up there at 3 a.m. when I lived in Ketchum from 1981 to 1984. The Union Pacific still runs the train depot which has fallen into considerable disrepair. Bricks are falling out of the building walls. There were about 4 people working there when I stopped by on Friday. Shoshone doesn't have much glamour anymore. It used to see alot of sheep herders, and the tracks went to Sun Valley in the early days taking people like Marlene Dietrich (gee, maybe they named the town after her--bummer for her) to ski. After touring the train station and having not really paid any attention to it for 25 years I hit the road to get on highway 24. Dietrich is a tiny town of farmers and not much else. I didn't even drive off the road to go into town. The last time I set foot in Dietrich was in 1993 or 1994 because they were trying to get a grant from the state to improve their drinking water system, or maybe it was the sewer. Either way, the town had no money and needed help. It's also the site of a sugar beet dump, though there are far more later near Kimama, Minidoka and Acequia.<br />Kimama is known for its Butte which serves as a focal point from the bleak landscape, actually. And there remains an amazing water tower right next to the rail siding at Kimama. Mindioka is home to the Idaho Youth Ranch juvenile detention facility that gives young first or second time offenders of non violent crimes an opportunity to get their act together and learn how to live in civil society. And Acequia is something I skipped entirely but it does have a rail and stock yard as I recall. I used to go that way and cross over on the Jackson Bridge to get to the other side of the Snake River to the Neilson Family Farm, but the bridge is now closed so I had to drive in on Meridian Road into Rupert near the town of Minidoka.<br /><br />Next stop--Neilson Country aka Goose Beach Farm<br /><br />Back in the late 1970's I married into the Neilson family. Scott and I tied the know in 1978 after meeting in 1976 and I joined a clan of characters and some dysfunction where I remain welcome to this day, despite the fact that Scott and I later divorced in mid 1980's. Steve is my brother in law and he and Marcy have remained steadfast friends. They are hands down two of the smartest people I've ever met. Amazingly educated and self taught on a variety of topics. I love to come visit and hang out with them, dog Callie, and several cats that include Waylon, Willie and now Vanna. There are chickens and turkeys raised for eggs and meat, an amazing garden, a view of the Snake River from the porch and the Albion Mountain and Mt Harrison in the distance.<br />There is also Glenn, my father in law, who I remain close to. Glenn always was one of those men with an eye for the ladies. It got him into some trouble over the years but he's still plugging along. When he retired from farming, most of the farm was sold off. Steve and Marcy have some acreage, Glenn has some along with his house and another shirt tail cousin has a small piece on the what's left. Scott and acre on the river, too.<br />To truly understand my relationship to the family I quote Steve upon my marriage to Scott "Well, Marti, welcome to notoriety!". Boy howdy. Being a Neilson was rife with notoriety, and not being a shrinking violet I added some to the coffers when I shot a snowmobile dead in a snow trench Scott and I set to keep trespassers and would be thieves out of the Mt. Harrison summer cabins. <br />Steve and Marcy read alot, so I'm always talking with them about the latest books they've read, sharing books and geology, and all manner of politics and whatnot. A visit to Goose Beach Farm, as Marcy calls it, is always a joyous occasion.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-81065886978053032912011-08-01T19:19:00.004-06:002011-08-01T19:43:24.446-06:00Idaho Falls Was the Place to Be!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UVXgd1-w5Hk/TjdVj1nuDNI/AAAAAAAAAXs/URti0jmWtTE/s1600/party_continues.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UVXgd1-w5Hk/TjdVj1nuDNI/AAAAAAAAAXs/URti0jmWtTE/s320/party_continues.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636067532854922450" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tfIvq5Yg6DA/TjdVjvOr9qI/AAAAAAAAAXk/et6JSRoseHQ/s1600/P7310161.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tfIvq5Yg6DA/TjdVjvOr9qI/AAAAAAAAAXk/et6JSRoseHQ/s320/P7310161.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636067531139315362" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J_MhbCG21Uw/TjdVjUInRDI/AAAAAAAAAXc/moB5Gqvpsao/s1600/P7310163.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J_MhbCG21Uw/TjdVjUInRDI/AAAAAAAAAXc/moB5Gqvpsao/s320/P7310163.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636067523866084402" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-J5RSjnfNqj4/TjdVjG6hIHI/AAAAAAAAAXU/BpkkPti6GUE/s1600/P7310166.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-J5RSjnfNqj4/TjdVjG6hIHI/AAAAAAAAAXU/BpkkPti6GUE/s320/P7310166.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636067520317300850" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XxCYKCuXoas/TjdVi2mUERI/AAAAAAAAAXM/FNkeyhorXOU/s1600/P7310164.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XxCYKCuXoas/TjdVi2mUERI/AAAAAAAAAXM/FNkeyhorXOU/s320/P7310164.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636067515937591570" /></a><br />Idaho is a state that seems to have many waterfalls named after towns. Or are the towns named after waterfalls? It is a true chicken and egg dilemma. I've been to Idaho Falls, Twin Falls, Post Falls. Shoshone is a town but doesn't have "falls" in its name. And Shoshone Falls therefore isn't named after the town. Also, Shoshone isn't anywhere near the water, actually. It's on the edge of the Arco desert and lava beds.<br />But I digress. Idaho Falls was the place to be this weekend as my 2nd major stopover on the my 4 day road trip. Johnny Montezuma and his lovely bride Susun move their Second Chance Ranch selves northerly from the oppressive heat of Camp Verde, Airy Zona to IF for six months out of the years. After two very cold and snowy winters, and due to a fluke of the economic downturn that led them to get their lovely straw bale house back from the buyer, they live in two places--but not at once.<br />John and Susun have managed to entrench themselves in to the day to day life of IF. Johnny enjoys going shooting with several other gentlemen of leisure a few times a week at the local shooting range. Susun has made various and sundry friends over their past 4 years living in IF and finds her self doing volunteer work at places like the ReSTORE for Habitat for Humanity.<br />But much of the time is spent entertaining those of us who simply can't stand not to be around two of the great human beings on this planet.So a steady stream of friends far and near drop in and out of their place for various kinds of frivolity. Such was the past two days I spent with them. We'd not seen each other since my trip to Second Chance in March to visit and also kayak in the Verde River Canoe Challenge.<br />Susun has the most awesome little garden that John has helped her with. It's loaded with the tallest most sturdy hollyhocks I've seen. We picked fresh zuchini to go with dinner, first of the season. And Johnny has ensured that there is a stellar croquet court in the lawn for us to play several games a day. But even better is the mini foosball table Susun found at a yard sale. We jerry rigged that thing so it was attached to a tool work table with rope and some clamps. Top it off with some bubble makers, wine coolers and two wild and crazy gals and you've got foosball mania.<br />Not to be outdone, however, is Johnny's renowned "three hour tours", of which we partook of on the bicycles to view the IF Greenbelt that goes along the Snake River. Topping it off, are dozens of innovative public art works benches that the City Parks Dept raised money for and John helped jury for the selection of the winners. It's a real highlight. Plus riding through old town IF on a Sunday is perfect because there just isn't any traffic. We were given nice cool biking weather with overcast skies. <br />All I can say is IF is the Place to Be. It was just like "Green Acres" without the pig.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-76872556714466893522011-08-01T19:05:00.005-06:002011-08-01T19:17:32.975-06:00There's Something About the Arco Desert<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QNKQKiLjXPY/TjdP0IWeW9I/AAAAAAAAAXE/VSQQV4R_A-8/s1600/P8010172.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QNKQKiLjXPY/TjdP0IWeW9I/AAAAAAAAAXE/VSQQV4R_A-8/s320/P8010172.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636061215691004882" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jAdDCVh2mXg/TjdPz_7e8oI/AAAAAAAAAW8/Yci1yXQ2FYo/s1600/P8010170.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jAdDCVh2mXg/TjdPz_7e8oI/AAAAAAAAAW8/Yci1yXQ2FYo/s320/P8010170.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636061213430313602" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7IJ8zQIRlEU/TjdPzoEmlCI/AAAAAAAAAW0/8edRXBpmDzY/s1600/P8010169.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7IJ8zQIRlEU/TjdPzoEmlCI/AAAAAAAAAW0/8edRXBpmDzY/s320/P8010169.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636061207026111522" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KCPKda49oKg/TjdPzDFHUJI/AAAAAAAAAWs/tWaIcaGJBeU/s1600/P8010167.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KCPKda49oKg/TjdPzDFHUJI/AAAAAAAAAWs/tWaIcaGJBeU/s320/P8010167.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636061197096145042" /></a><br />Day 4 of my 600 miles road trip my afternoon was spent driving across the Arco Desert past Craters of the Moon National Monument south towards Carey, Idaho. The Arco Desert in my humble view is that stretch of road near Craters all the way to Carey and southerly towards Minidoka and Shoshone. The heart of the area is crossed by Goodales Cutoff, a spur of the various Oregon Trails and wagon train routes. Goodales came across more or less from Ft Hall, cut through some nasty lava rock areas with narrow wagon tracks, and heded toward Mountain Home cutting over toward Boise at a place called Bonneville Point. There are many variations on the theme. Those travelers had to be tough as nails to do this. The most successful didn't go by wagon but rather went by horseback The easier routes were those that went near Cauldron Linn but stayed north of the Snake River rather than crossing there, or else they crossed at Glenns Ferry.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-44685702847686473852011-08-01T19:00:00.003-06:002011-08-01T19:05:01.984-06:00Rain Storm Pummels Boise's North EndSo I just returned home from my 4 day soire to find hundreds of pine cones littering my yard. The rain barrel that I water the chickens and hanging planters outside is full again. Despite the .85 inches of rain; it looks like I need to add some more Huma Green to the soil (iron and magnesium) for better tilth and feeding the lawn in this heat. I went form 65 and rain in Idaho Falls this morning to blazing sun and 94. That's okay, it's the reason I live in Boise. And I have my first cherry tomato turn red today. Raspberries are in full tilt, too. And Reuben the wonder dog is happy to have me home. It's great to have an awesome chicken and dog tender when I want to wander about.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-13959714751130465152011-07-26T13:17:00.005-06:002011-07-26T13:49:07.816-06:00Saying Goodbye to an Old Friend?Anyone who has lived in a small town probably has had a post office box that they visited daily. It's a place to meet and greet friends, neighbors and all manner of humanity who reside somewhere "out there." Lately the US Postal Service has been considering closing a number of post offices that only make $50 or less a day, are open on average two hours a day for actual services, and more often than not are within 5 miles of another postal facility. Click on the Title for a List of Idaho closures.<br /><br />One of the post offices in Idaho prospectively on the chopping block is Johnny Montezuma's old favorite, Clayton. Clayton, Idaho, where 7 folks showed up with entries to last weekends Chile Cookoff. Clayton is known as a wolf-hating side show by the Salmon River. It's a place you drive through, not to. My former roommate had his pickup truck shot up in Clayton by some anonymous miners he had shut down for Clean Water Act violations. It's that kind of place. Probably not where I would personally want to hang out if someone is "going Postal" as they say.<br /><br />I can’t say that I’d notice if the Post Office disappeared in Avery, Desmet, Tensed, or Harvard. I’ve been to all of them in North Idaho and I doubt they get much mail. Desmet and Tensed are associated with CDA Tribal lands so maybe the Tribe would miss it. Avery is up on the St Joe River and was an historic logging town about 100 years ago. Avery is also locally known as a haven of felons and incest--great spot, huh?Harvard has no claim to fame other than it’s on the Bovill run, a drinking and driving circuit made famous by Univ. of Idaho Vandal college students. There is a post office at Santa, also along the Bovill run; and that one is amazingly popular as you can imagine. Santa Claus sends letters stamped from there with a hand stamp every holiday. I lived outside Santa and it was where I got my mail. Santa is NOT on the list.<br /><br />There's one slated for closure in Boise that I didn't even know existed. Same for Pocatello. Then there is tiny little Almo, a sleepy Mormon hamlet with beautiful Victorian brick homes that were once filled with a bazillion kids eating lime green jello with crushed pineapple and marshmallows in it. Almo is slated to close. I guess they'd get their mail in Albion, where the long closed state Teacher's college, Albion Normal remains borded up. Albion was my first home in Idaho and my first post office box address. PO Box 171. I wonder who has that box now?<br /><br />Going to the post office was the most fun for me when I lived in the Wood River Valley from 1981 to 1984. I had my original PO Box in Ketchum, but got one in Hailey instead. How I loved to go to the Post Office. In Ketchum it was where you picked up eye candy and got asked on dates. Really! And since it was before the advent of email,texting and cell phones, it pretty much was the spot you made plans because everyone showed up to get their mail between 4 and 7 at night typically. Also, for dirt bag skiers it was a great place to sleep in an emergency in winter because there were heating vents on the floor. No cold nights out in a doorway. The place was never ever locked. Can't vouch for that now. It was quieter and cleaner than sleeping in the laundromat.<br /><br />I don't know what I'll do if the do away with Saturday service, though. I have gotten accustomed to getting Netflix movies then. But now that they've raised their rates, and I have access to REDBOX, I'll probably cut back to one movie at a time and watch others they have on line. So maybe Saturday won't matter. <br /><br />I don't get much mail anymore. Most of those bazillion credit card offers have gone by the wayside with the economic downturn. I've gotten myself off the catalogs, and most of my bills are payed on line. But I do still get magazines and the occassional snail mail letter, both of which I love. So maybe I should write you all a letter instead of blog. Now wouldn't that be nice for the postal service? But alas, I didn't check to see if Cornville or Camp Verde, AZ were on the closure list or not. Hope not for your sake. And mine.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-31822649078941630962011-07-06T08:57:00.004-06:002011-07-06T09:10:38.129-06:00Learning to Drive-Surviving with my Teen at the WheelWhen you live with a teenager, well, you live with a teenager. Summer is her time off from soccer. Sort of. We finished up State Cup the week after school ended in June. But then it was time for tryouts for soccer for next season. Then it was getting a new soccer uniform. And then there's soccer camp the last week of July. Competitive soccer is an obsession throughout the country. An unhealthy one, I might add. <br />But alas, during the month of June starting immediately after school ended she was enrolled in drivers education. Yes, folks, my daughter at 14 1/2 will be driving in Idaho. We pretend to be a farm state, which we're not. We're a little archipelago of urbanization with huge wilderness and roadless areas interpersed throughout. Illinois is more rural than Idaho by a long shot.<br />Drivers education lasted 4 weeks, of which she drove 12 times with her teacher and the rest was classroom time. She passed the written test with a 94. Now she's enjoying sleeping in till noon for a few weeks, since she's finished with drivers ed class. Now we get to teach her on her learners permit. <br />I let her drive me home from her dad's house last night. Whew we woo. Talk about trying to not show my panic. She's decent for only having driven maybe 12 times. Lots of work to be done in teaching her to multi task in watching what's going on around her and anticipating dogs, kids, bicyclists, people pulling out of driveways, and also not side swiping a vehicle on our right. Hay carumba.<br />Luckily for her my SUV is an automatic. Her dads Honda Van is also an automatic. But his Ford Focus wagon is a stick shift. And she's going to have to learn to drive that, too. Stick shifts were a required right of passage in my household before you could drive a car. And the same will be for my daughter.<br />So stay tuned for updates on how driving with my teen is going. Not only should texting be prohibited in a car driven by a teen, but so should eating, drinking anything, and listening to music. An none of their friends should be allowed in a car with them until they are 18. The distractions are amazing. Even she admitted it is the hardest thing she's ever done. And this comes from the queen of multi tasking--she can listen to music, watch TV or surf the internet and do her math homework (A's and B's, mind you); but drive--totally different altogether.<br />I know the grey hair I already have will be silver by the time this is over with.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6253010945673597781.post-6077906053916970552011-06-23T22:52:00.003-06:002011-06-23T22:55:26.398-06:00Lightning Storm in Boise- Early 4th of July Only Better<iframe width="560" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Ezjm3MPvmwY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br />Last night we had one of the most incredible lightning storms I've ever seen in Boise. It went on for nearly an hour. It was so bright. I could actually see my hens on their roosting bar in the coop from my dining room window. Better than 4th of July fireworks.Marti Spudboaterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15277036335158434202noreply@blogger.com0