Station fire timelapse - southern california burning

Some very impressive time lapse photograpy of the Station Fire in Southern California from Brandon Riza, check out http://www.brandonriza.com/.

And tragically, from the Billings Examiner:

Fire officials announced yesterday that the Station fire, currently burning in Angeles National Forest, claimed the lives of two firefighters Sunday afternoon. The deaths occurred when the firemen's vehicle ran off the edge of a mountain road while they were working to control the intense flames near Mt Gleason. Deputy Fire Chief Mike Bryant made the announcement after the families were notified.

These were the first two deaths caused by the fire; several civilians were previously injured after failing to evacuate from their homes near the fire.

Meanwhile, the fire continued to rage through Sunday night and Monday morning consuming more than 85,000 acres of land. With only 5% containment, the fire is expected to continue growing in all directions. Estimates for full containment have now been pushed back to September 15th......

While the Station fire rages in the Angeles National Forest, a second fire erupted in the San Bernadino National Forest. Dubbed the Oak Glen fire, the blaze started Sunday afternoon and quickly expanded to burn close to 1,000 acres by Monday morning. Starting in the hills just south of Oak Glen Road, the fire's potential to expand even more is great given the terrain and continued hot weather across Southern California.

Tortured feet and trout

As I write this, my blisters and toenail have finally started to heal from the hiking trip last weekend. A couple of buddies and I hiked into a drainage north of Yellowstone National Park. Our mission was to scout the area for the possibility of a backcountry elk hunt (during the rut), catch some fish and avoid being mauled by a grizzly. We hit the heavily traveled pack trail just a bit east of Jardine. The trail gained 1000ft and descended 2500ft over 12 miles. We took a nice lunch break on the pass and had the opportunity to watch a grizzly bear frolick through the meadow. It went something like - "Hey stop, whats that?" "I think its an elk butt" "Really?" "Nope, its a griz - shit". A shot of adrenaline hit our veins as we all checked our bear spray. Sixty yards was close enough. Five minutes later we bumped into another bear, this time it was a black bear only 25 yards off the trail, time to keep moving on.

The descent ambled through alpine flats, crossed streams, snaked through dark patches of timber and finally broke out into the open scorched area that had been burned in the fires of 1988. During the lunch break I noticed a few hotspots on my feet and liberally applied some moleskin. It seemed that both my street shoes and my socks had seen better days. I had a hole working in the heel of my sock and a chunk missing out the heel of my shoe. The downhill kept on pounding and the pitch also took a toll on my right big toe I would later find out.

We set up camp in a big meadow near the Hellroaring ranger station. With the creek nearby, dry firewood everywhere and 2 flasks of Crown we had no problem settling in for the night. The bells on the packers horses in a nearby camp clanged away under the starry night.

The next day we made a 8 mile loop further up into the basin to check out the fishing. Half way up there I again stopped to assess the damage to my heel. To my surprise I found a silver dollar sized piece of skin had chosen to part ways with being attached to my body. The next remedy involved what I should have done in the first place, duct tape. We hit the meadow in a high valley and stumbled onto another bear. This guy looked to be easily 300 pounds and was lumbering along next to the creek, as if looking for an easy fish. At first we thought he was a grizzly however after zooming in the photos I took, I think it might actually be a black bear. See what you think and let me know eh? After watching him wander off through the willows, we sat down to have some lunch. One eye on our sandwich and one eye over our backs.

A primetime fishing hole beside us cut the lunch short and we started to sample the goods. I think we pulled 30 fish out of a 75 foot stretch of river. They averaged 8-10" with a dozen or so at 16". All of them cutthroat with great spirited fights. The next quarter of a mile turned up excellent cut banks stacked with hungry cutties. We must have hooked 50 fish a piece with many more strikes and refusals. I had never experienced so may refusals, the fish would often times bump the fly once then hit again only spitting it out a second later. Patience was the key.

We followed the trail back to the trail and found that something larger was also using the same trail. Some bear tracks that measured up to my foot. Unfortunately we never did cross a single elk track or see any elk scat. We fished some great canyon sections back near camp and turned in for the night, dreaming of the 12 tortuous miles ahead.

The next morning I made one of the best decisions yet, I opted to hike out in my Chacos. With a piece of duct tape over the missing pieces of heel, it was money. It definitely proved that those sandals are a worthy tool besides just lounging once you get to camp. As it so often seems to happen, the rain began to fall on the hike out. But it was a perfect cool down to a 32 mile trip into paradise. The beers that put on ice at the trailhead......yeah they tasted okay.

Alaska Mountain Wilderness Classic - one nutty race

Andrew Skurka, Bobby Schnell, and Chris Robertson hike and packraft 180 miles in 3 days 18 hours across the eastern Alaska Range to place first in the 2009 race. They started with all the gear and food they needed to finish; no aid stations, support crews, or caches were allowed.

Sayulita, Mexico

Almost one year ago, some great friends of ours visited Missoula from a far off Alantic island. It was a bit of a homecoming for them, visiting the town where they had grown fond of each other while jumping from perfectly good airplanes. They had a hankering for cool mountain air, good tunes in the street and fantastic trout fishing in crystal cold waters. Low and behold they dropped a proposition on us that seemed far fetched at the time, but a few days later was total reality. Let's go to Mexico.

Our tickets out of Western MT were booked in the dead of winter. Which in some cases I'm sure contributed to the overall success of the trip. White blasted the land and the mercury hovered in the twenties, who wouldn't want to go to Mexico? The promise of 90 degree temps with the equivalent in shirt-soaking humidity sounded like the perfect remedy to winter's cold clutch. Never mind the soon to be 21 month old twin girls that would surely attempt to take over the cockpit while en route to our destination.

Oh the preparation, you have no idea my friend. We analyzed every possible toddler necessity one may need while in a 3rd world county. In the end after a massive heap of baby gear, medicines and clothes were sorted on the bed, we crammed it all into two suitcases and maxed out our baggage weight (50lb/bag). Distractions for the kids on the plane were priority numero uno (that's number one for those the don't speak Espanol). Let it be known that you should not underestimate the power of a 50 cent Winnie the Pooh wrapped in a gift sack. These little gems ran interference on the kids like nobody's business.

Three legs on the plane dropped us into Puerto Vallarta. After which we hit up the Mega SuperMarket and stocked up on 20 pounds of chorizo, drinkable yogurt and diapers (Okay, a few other items were added to the card). We learned that efficiency in a mexican super market and paying with traveler's checks do not go hand in hand. After solving the dinero challenge, I was greeted with another. One of the girls decided that the foreign smells and heat did not agree with the bottle of milk she had finished 2 hours earlier. T was unfortunately wore the brunt of her upchuck. Prior to that moment I did not know how to say "Clean Up on Aisle 7" in spanish.

The winding jungle road out of Puerto Vallarta north was a great introduction. We topped the rise and dropped down into the great town of Sayulita. Our driver knew the name of the house we were staying at, didn't even need an address. After 18 hours of travel it felt muy bueno to be setting up shop at the casa. Sounds cliche, but the place had sweeping ocean views from the patio/hammock with ocean breezes blowing through the palm trees.

The next 2 weeks or so were mainly spent something like this; walking down to the beach at dawn to try and catch a wave, lounging by the pool in the sweltering mid-day heat, sucking down Pacifico's laced with lime, sampling the best fish taco's at great little restaurants, enjoying the surf and sun at some great beaches, and constantly pondering what else we should put on the tortillas (I should have brought a case of those home). Another cliche, it was good to leave all the worries at home.

The sounds and sights of a different culture were refreshing. The slower way of life, cobble and dirt streets were perfect. My only recommendation is that they place air-conditioned booths every 300 yards for gringos like myself. I would then be able to dry my sweat soaked clothes and avoid all moisture related sores and diseases. JK. Our whole crew had a great time. A six year old learned to surf; twins developed a fine taste for sand and to frolick in the ocean spray; a land locked mountain boy caught some waves and landed a monster 30lb dorado; and parents relaxed and watched as their kids enjoyed a new world.

And I even came home a smarter man. I learned that passing on corners is not a good idea, making coffee with mexican tap water speeds up "Montezuma's revenge", the key to fish tacos is fish, mexican speed bumps are big, watching sheet lightning on the roof is exciting, wearing sandals where scorpions lurk is a good thing, and last but not least - Mama is always right. I could go on but hopefully I'm painting the picture that this vacation was just plain kick ass.



And finally, the fish that made my year, a 30 pound dorado (aka Mahi Mahi, dolphin fish).

Fouth of July with a little flavor

We had a blast celebrating the US's independence. As usual, shenanigans were the name of the game. But in the end no one got hurt, except for maybe the chicken. But even she turned out just fine. Just don't go hunting w/ that guy that has potato gun in the last scene, I think his aim might be slightly off.

**You'll want to wait a few minutes for the video to load, press play then pause it and go get a beer***





There some recent pictures over here too - http://zootownpowderhounds.shutterfly.com/725

To all the haters

If you don't like it, why do you continue to come back?

Montana and Idaho fire forecast calls for increased activity

The skies to the west of Missoula looked a bit smokey last night, most likely from the agricultural burning over in Washington and Idaho. But it made me wonder enough to look at the National Situation report. In the news over the last 2 weeks there have were two articles pointed to the possibility of a hot and smokey summer.

Missoulian article: Fire forecast calls for more activity

excerpt: The coming wildland fire season will be slightly more active than normal in western Montana, authorities predicted this week.

Idaho news: Idaho fire season expected to be very active
A dryer than normal spring has setup Idaho for a what could be a repeat of 2007 when 346,000 acres burned in the Boise National Forest.

Lou Dawson reviews Stepping Up (2nd edition) on WildSnow.com

Recently Lou Dawson over at Wildsnow was kind enough to have a look at the book Sam Cox and I put together, Stepping Up (2nd Ed). We thought who better to review the book, but the man who has written six books on backcountry travel in the Colorado high country. The ski industry is always a great place for networking.

Lou had some great compliments about the book such as, " The amount of detail is stunning — obviously of biblical import for anyone aspiring to be a disciple of “The Ridge.” ". But he also had a point of critique which I can only agree with - "...overall lack of historical anecdotes about the individual routes...". This is certainly something we can work on in the future. Thanks for everyone's support on this project, it's been a lot of fun.

Follow this link to the review on WildSnow > http://www.wildsnow.com/1851/bridger-bowl-guidebook-stepping-up/

Lochsa River rafting carnage #2

Last year I posted a link to a great rafting carnage video from the Lochsa, which is in Idaho, just over the hill from Missoula. The same fine folks, Lochsa Info have put togther another great video this year. I need to get over there and get in my kayak.



The flow is on!

New waterfall record in a kayak, 186 feet

In March, Brazilian Pedro Oliveira ran a 127-foot falls in Brazil breaking Tyler Bradt’s former 107-foot record (alexandra falls, NWT canada). There was huge media coverage worldwide about Olivia’s record. While most people imagined this record would stay for a very long time, Tyler Bradt just ran the 186 ft (nearly 60-meter) Palouse Falls in Washington State, smashing Olivia’s record by 59 ft!!!

Looks like Sports Illustrated took down their video, so the new one can be found here >>> http://kayakwaterfalls.com/

Crazy street riding - Danny Macaskill

A friend recently sent this video to me off of youtube. This guy makes me feel like an old lady on a tricycle. But seriously, this guy Danny Macaskill is flat out impressive and insanely skilled at what he does. Some of the clips that really impressed me are at 3:05 and 4:30. Enjoy.



Filmed over the period of a few months in and around Edinburgh by Dave Sowerby, this video of Inspired Bicycles team rider Danny MacAskill (more info at www.dannymacaskill.com) features probably the best collection of street/street trials riding ever seen. There's some huge riding, but also some of the most technically difficult and imaginative lines you will ever see. Without a doubt, this video pushes the envelope of what is perceived as possible on a trials bike.

Flipped on Lochsa Falls

On Sunday we loaded up a cataraft and a 15 foot raft and headed over to the Lochsa. Leaving Missoula we knew might not have the best weather, but it was better than moping around waiting for it to get better. The catraft would be leading the way with my buddy at the oars of the raft that my buddy and I would be in. Our rower had been down the Lochsa quite a few times but never actually "in charge". So going into it we knew might be getting a little more wet than the rain.

Flows were around the 3 foot range which is a good intro level for the Lochsa. A drizzle at the put in and 45 degrees, we pushed off. All the rapids leading up Lochsa Falls were run clean. We followed the line of the cat raft, dug in hard to get over the falls wave. The next thing you know, we were going over. The raft ended up pretty much in the eddy right below the wave, so we didn't have to swim too far. I somehow ended up with both paddles luckily. We righted the raft and jumped back in.

No matter the weather, its always good times on the Lochsa. These pictures were taken by Rapid Action Photography. And as you can see by the quality, I was too cheap to pay for the prints. You get the picture of what happened to us at Lochsa Falls.

Texts from Last Night

This would be the part where this blog changes seasons and possibly shape/form/taste. After yesterday's rafting trip down the Lochsa with a few buddies, I think I am finally relinquishing my skis. There is a chance I may get out a couple more times, but for the most part I am ready for water and warm weather.

So in that name, I bring you this tasteless and mindless humor. There is some funny shit in on this site if you have a few minutes to browse it. It really makes me want to bone up on my texting skills and start surprising people with my telephonic funniness.

www.textsfromlastnight.com

Here's a sample of some of the goods I found:

(662): I scissor kicked a one legged man last night.
(662): He was trying to put me in handcuffs.
(1-662): You have my attention.

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(301): I'm sorry my penis didn't work

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(217): I'm trashed wearing your mom's snuggie. She says hello.

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(517): I thought I drunk dialed Adam last night and left him a voicemail. I just checked my phone. I realize I left a drunk voicemail with my son's teacher.

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Wildlife Photos from 93N Camera Monitoring (Ravalli Hill)

These photos came throught on an email the other day and thought they were pretty impressive. Especially the one with the 2 mountain lions walking side by side. The photos are from a motion activated camera monitoring critters using one of the wildlife crossings installed on the improved Highway 93 by Ravalli, north of Arlee. Arlee is about 20 miles north of Missoula, MT.

The tunnels effectiveness were researched by UM biology Professor Kerry Foresman. You can read more about the research here. The tunnels have also been installed on Hwy 93 south of Missoula.

Hanging on the edge - sketchy ski plane "landing"

I thought this was pretty impressive. A guy over on the TGR boards posted this thread and took this great picture. He was out flying somewhere near Talkeetna, Alaska (I believe) when he took this picture from the air.



If you look closely you can see the plane on the left, holy crap. The story as near I can tell goes something like this:

"these guys are way fucking lucky, they had intentions of skiing, but messed up the landing big time...Coming from the direction that they did, you land on a fairly steep incline and it kind of rolls over to the edge of this cliff, and as the picture shows, you cant really see the edge until it is too late, the plane is held there by the wing in the snow and one ski....A good stiff wind (like the one blowing last night) would send this thing 4,000ft straight down the cliff to the bottom...I still cant think of how they got out of there without tipping that thing off the mountain.....The pilot actually crawled back in the plane and radioed for help, this is just outside of town so a helo was dispatched pretty quickly..."