Fires and More Fires

So last week I decided to go out on the motorcycle and see from the top of Dalles Mountain what the fires looked like up there. Mt Adams has a huge fire going on that is burning east and consuming many acres of land. The view from this top is incredible for sure and you can really tell just how big the fires are. Hard to believe that we had such a wet winter and spring and we are so DRY right now!

Siskiyou Out and Back 50K Trail Run

Weekend before last I headed to southern Oregon to do a trail run called the Siskiyou Out and Back on the Pacific Crest Trail. Must say that it was a tough race but one that I enjoyed very much all but the last 6 miles.

I left on Thursday went down to Stacie's parents house in Grants Pass and had some great food and stayed the night there then headed over to Ashland on Friday afternoon. The race started at Mount Ashland Ski resort and I just slept in the back of the car and was up early to race that Saturday at 7AM.

I would say that the run up till the marathon distance was just fine but after that I started to struggle, I had been eating along the way just not sure that I was eating enough. After one of the last rest stops there was a three mile climb back out of the gap up to the top of the mountain, I have never seen such a long three miles in my life.

Well I can say that I finished and the time was a respectful 5 hours 35 minutes.... I will be back there next year to do it all over again!

2008 Dirty Half Marathon

So last Saturday AM a bunch of us headed down to Bend for the running of the Dirty Half Marathon.  Joel, Jen, Bill, Hollie and myself all made the trip down and had a great time.  First stop off in Bend was to the Deschutes Brewery for some lunch and then off to check out some of the retail stores that Bend has to offer that we can't find here in Hood River.

Stacie's parents were nice enough to let us stay at their condo for the night so after getting a good nights sleep we all headed out early to get to the start of the race.  I have this problem of always wanting to be somewhere early but we did get a good parking place.

The race was good, fast for sure, something that the three of us from up here never get to run that much.  We all ran fast and had fun, the drive back was good, Jen got some food along the way back and she talked the rest of the way home!  Bill thanks again for driving and I look forward to doing this all over again next year!

Carson to Stevenson Ridge Run

So on Sunday Christine, Joel, Hollie, Bill and myself all went up to Carson, WA for a "trail" run. It was a 14K race that started in Carson and then over to Stevenson by the ridge that separates the two. It was called a trail run but was really a mix of paved roads and some STEEP fire roads. We really had fun though and I think that we all ran well and happy with the way that we finished.

One final note is that Bill didn't do the race but got up early and drove us out there and then went down to Stevenson and picked us up and I can't say how much better that was than trying to shuttle cars... Thanks again!

Backyard Work

So Stacie and I started this project about two weeks ago and we finished it last week, I have not been doing a great job on my blog so just trying to catch up some.  

We wanted to do some kind of raised beds for planting and this is what we came up with.  I made the boxes, then we hauled some topsoil and then we moved the rocks around and Stacie did the placement of them, I think that it turned out great.

Kinda strange how much I enjoy just doing stuff around the house, Stacie has always liked it but I just recently got on that program.  I can thank Stacie for the way that the yard looks now, it was all her idea....

Long Lost Friend Comes to Hood River

So just this past week I had a college friend visit that I hadn't seen in 1991. Rob Hughes and I went to Hungary and were roommates there in the summer of 1990. I had lost contact with Rob for a long time and just last summer we caught up with one another. Anyway to make a long story kinda short Rob was visiting some friends in Seattle and drove down last week and spent the night with Stacie and I.


So while we were in Hungary Rob bought this bottle of Tokaji wine bottled in 1981 and had said that he wouldn't open it with anyone else beside me. In hindsight I wish that he would have opened it with someone else because the taste was so bad, it had become sherry or something....

I don't think that either one of us could keep a sip down, tasted a lot like metal...

Next stop was the sink and poured the remainder out....

I even got Stacie to try some, she didn't like it either, I even think that she was scared of this stuff... Kinda look like river mud as Rob said.

All joking aside about the wine it was great to have Rob down here and show him around and go on a great hike, 17 years since we last saw one another.... That is a long time!

Night shots

So just the other night the moon was coming up and it was clear and cold so I thought about going out and taking some photographs... This is what I came up with on a few? Kinda strange for sure... but I like it!

So what happens in this is that I just set the camera on bulb and in the dark just take a flashlight and "paint" myself in... Now if Mick would send me that Mac that I am waiting on my life would be great:)