Short Trip to Colorado Today

That's what it's feels like on the drive up to the north rim of the Valles Caldera on FR100, FR 99, and FR144. Everything is so green. It's unbelievably, scrumptiously lovely and it will only get lovelier as summer turns into fall and aspens turn from green to gold.

Ed came to the parking lot to give Dorothy some maps of the Garita area that he copied off a map he had Travel Bug make for him. He wasn't going because he needed to get his 96 year old Mom a new walker. We didn't leave Mesa Public Library (MPL) until 8:34am because we talked with Ed for a while.

We turned right onto a dirt road off FR144 right after the cattle guard at the sign in the west direction that says end of latilla cutting. Dorothy parked and we went searching for a road that went out to a view. Our 5th road was the winner. The rest all deadended at confrontational landscaping, i.e., enormous berms and deadfall filled forests. The view of the entire northern Valles Caldera was to die for but we didn't stay long because it was looking ugly and thunder was booming. The rain began on the way back but no big lightning strikes. We only walked 1.47 miles in part because of the weather and in part because Dorothy developed a sore toe on the Valles de los Amigos Cerro Seco hike on Sunday.

BTW, Dorothy says that she does these projects to get out and could easily have others do it faster. She anticipates 2 more trips on the southern part of the West Rim and a trip from FR144 to FR376, crossing NM126. She's hoping that our scouts will take a look at the feasibility of a car shuttle trip starting down from Virgin Mesa to Battleship Rock. Then she says that Harry (?) McGavron contacted her about an old road from Scooter Pass to Pines that she wants to check out. Plus there are still a few more items to check out on the north rim, including finding a road that goes from Cerro de la Garita to the Hilton Gate.

When we got back into town, I drove up to the Ocean and finished my 4 miles through the woods alongside Camp May Road. I saw evidence that paint-ballers have been cavorting on the Route. The distance is about 1 mile from the Ocean to the top of Guardrail Hill and then about .25 mile from there to FR2998. A gray SUV was stuck in the big puddle on FR2998. No one was around. It was in water up to its gunwales.

Today I asked Dorothy to tell me again how to tell the native thistles from the invasive musk and bull thistles: Look at the back of a leaf at the midrib. There should be no barbs on that or down the entire stem of the thistle.

Yahoo! Dead

I give up. I tried earlier and just now but it's dead. I wanted to email Dorothy that the Brown's won't be coming tomorrow and see if there . I have to get up at 6am tomorrow so I won't try again. Maybe it will revive itself overnight.

Finally gave spouse the web address to this online journal. Seeing all the blah, blah, blah will probably abate his curiosity about it.

Daughter and I may go together to see Mamma Mia because the "boys" don't want to see it as it has a reputation as a chick flick. Men should be happy to go to chick flicks!

Spouse goes to Albuquerque for a 3 day "bomb" refresher course at Sandia this week.

Weekend Update

Friday afternoon, after the BESC hike, I entertained the plumber from Waller's while he fixed our leaky kitchen strainer which also entailed replacing the trap because the threads were stripped and he couldn't get it to hold water so the sink would drain properly. It's now bone dry under the kitchen sink and the pipes for the twin sinks are straight and look lovely rather than crooked like they were. He's a very good plumber and I'd recommend him highly. They send the bill rather than give you the bill when they leave so I still have that to look forward to!

Saturday was the Next Big Idea downtown where inventors and entrepeneurs showcase their companies and inventions. Perry's Dad was there with a machine that stuffs bagels and donuts. Grandson pretended he was going to gobble up the bagels and donuts because he was hungry. Spouse took him to McD's for chicken nuggies and then we all went to Santa Fe. I dropped grandson and spouse off at the Regal Theatre to see Journey to the Center of the Earth while I went for religious services at Vitamin Cottage, the health food temple! I exercised in the evening and that made for a late night.

Today, we went to Pajarito Ski Area with daughter and son in law. They went up on the Aspen Lift while I hustled up to meet them and miraculously, we ran into each other and walked down together. They ate at the ski area cafe while I sat with them and ate my homemade guacamole, hummous, and scary muffins. Hummingbirds were buzzing us as we ate. We met Dave and Faye on their way up. They're not coming on the Dorothy hike tomorrow but may come next Monday. On the way down, spouse slid - think he needs new hiking boots as the tread on his is rounded. We got done eating at 12:30pm and the weather was still quite nice.

Beautiful Sunset

Turned out the Gordon's Concert was on Pajarito Mountain. I went out on the Mesa Trail last night a little past 8pm and was treated to a slow to develop but beautiful sunset. I wish I could adequately describe it. It was a peaceful sunset not a sky-filling, blaring, trumpeting one but one with strips of elongated cloud-rolls that turned a tender pink above the silhouette of the Jemez Mountains west of Los Alamos. I wanted someone there with me to admire it. Isn't it weird about humans - we like our privacy and solitude and yet at moments like last night's mellow sunset, we want to share it with someone?

I did my monkey bar business at the East Park playground plus walked around the raised, wood perimeter of the playground for my balance

The weather up on Pajarito looked perfect and it made me wish that spouse and I had driven up there not so much for the concert but to enjoy the sunset.

Spouse really enjoyed the BESC hiking group. We'll try to go on his Friday's off. I may go next Friday as Mary says it will be to the East Fork Trail. She was trying to tell me about an upcoming August hike but then said she'd call me about it. I'll ask her next Friday.

I had no idea that Dorothy would fire off that email to Doris and quote my email in it. I really only wanted to know for my own information because I so often forget names of plants that Dorothy tells me and just figured this was another one I had messed up. I believe Doris that it's called Cosmos but I wanted to find online its other common names but couldn't verify the Mountain White Ragweed one so I asked Dorothy.

Dumb Donkey

I take it back. Spouse is not so intelligent. Yesterday he consumed 800 calories of beverages including 2 beers, approximately 5 ounces wine, and 2 Starbucks Frappuccinos (the ones you buy in the grocery store that are 200 calories a pop). That's criminal for someone who's fasting blood sugar on his most recent tests was 133.

Lab Fitness Trail Still Open to Public

Spouse and I joined the Betty Ehart Senior Center hiking group this morning for their 8:05am start. Norma came up from Pojoaque to hike so Mary tailored the hike for her because Norma's a bit slow. We went to the LANL Fitness Trail near the Wellness Center, parking in the big lot that replaced the running track that I used to love to go to. I thought the Fitness Trail was closed after 9-11-2001 but I'm glad I was wrong. This gives me a new option of a close-in, quick trail to do my 4 miles. It goes all the way to S-Site. I'll go back to explore this area and work out some 4 mile walks.

There were 9 of us on the hike. Art always does his own hike but today Jane, who's lived in LA since January 2008, joined him for a cross country trek back. It was fun being with people. Spouse was excited to meet Bob Cowan who's a well-known nuclear physicist. I always like spouse better when we're in a group because I appreciate his true, gregarious, intelligent nature better. At home, I'm so likely to classify him as brain dead when he asks where something is before he even looks for it.

Even though it's his Friday off, spouse had to go into work for an hour to check on some computer runs. I have to stay home to wait for the plumber to fix our kitchen sink leak. I actually vaccumed the kitchen floor for him so he doesn't have to lie in filth when he gets under the sink.

The group only did 3 miles so I'll get in 1 more this evening. I walk to the Gordon's Concert and back.

Channel 13 says we're having a good monsoon and it should last until Labor Day. It looks dark over the mountains and I hear thunder.

Guess all thoughts of brevity have gone with the wind!

Thor's Hammer

Weird of David Espinoza to go up on the roof without knocking on the door and telling me he was here unless perhaps he knocked and I didn't hear him. I checked the vent pipe with binocs but can't even see where he put caulking - time will tell.

Really don't want a plumber messing around under my kitchen sink but don't want a leak underneath either - rock and hard place.

Went to woods along Camp May Road even though skies looked ferocious. Pulled thistles and NM locusts along the way. Was chased back down by terrific lightning (3 screams, twice saw flash and and immediately heard thunder), rain, and hail. My old golf umbrella officially died, breaking 2 more ribs in the winds but at least it lasted until the rain died down. Got pretty wet anyhow. After excitement died down, I finished 4 miles by going up Guardrail Hill again. Will finish weeding another time.

Olivas Tree Service did excellent work and I'd recommend them to anyone!

Trying to make these shorter like I would if I had to write out all this crap!

Houses Need Care

The pruners are here. Tomorrow, maybe a plumber. Our kitchen sink leaks underneath where the tailpiece attaches to the sink's strainer. I tried some cautious tightening but that neither harmed or helped so it's Waller's to the rescue! I'm also waiting to hear from Casey's Top Hat to get our chimney cleaned this year. David Espinoza Roofing came out but I didn't even realize he had been up on the roof to put some silicone caulk on the furnace vent pipe until he knocked on the door and said he had.

Frankly, my dear, I'd rather live in a cave!

Upper East Fork Jemez River: A LL Hike

There were 17 people counting Eric and Adam, our leaders's son and grandson. Eric carried Adam in a baby backpack. It was cute watching our leader feed little bits of Oreo cookies to Adam to keep him happy. He was a very good 13 month old baby and got to run around at lunch. He liked when I played peek-a-boo with him, taking my mask off and on. Our leader had to cut the hike short because her toe was giving her pain. The hike was advertised as 7 miles but only turned out to be 3 miles. We got back to the East Fork TH at 12:30pm - early - just as rain began.

This hike begins at the Roland Pettit Trail but quickly goes west up the hill and over the ridge north of Las Conchas Picnic Area and then goes down to the official East Fork Trail. We took the abbreviated version of hike #74 in our leaders's book. We had to cross the East Fork twice. The leaders said the crossings would be easy because the water was low but it must have rained since they checked because I had to take my shoes and socks off for the first crossing although others said they found a log to cross on further downstream. The second crossing was easy - rock-hopped across. I see that a bridge is being built to replace the last old, rickety bridge - yippee!

I felt lonely after the hike. Maybe it was because it was so short and the group seemed to be speed-walking, except for our leader - Doris stayed back with her - and I didn't feel I connected with anyone in the short time frame. The after-hike social time was cut short because of the rain.

Afterwards, I drove up to the Ocean and hiked little beyond Paintball Road. I did some stretches back at the Ocean. I think there are ghosts on the Camp May Road Route because I felt even lonelier hanging out at the Ocean! It looked dark and I could see lightning and hear thunder but it never rained while I was there.

I would like to know the difference between White Mountain Ragweed and Wild Cosmos. I thought sure that Dorothy had called White Mountain Ragweed what Doris called Wild Cosmos today. I'll check with Dorothy. I'm sure that Doris is correct but perhaps the other name is correct too.

I'll do email tomorrow as that will be good to do when the pruners are here.

I discovered last night that our kitchen sink trap has a slow leak. I'll call Waller's one day.

Kwage Mesa Trail and Engineering Marvels

Although I saw no mad dogs or Englishmen on this trail this afternoon, it was hot enough! Clouds were building over Pajarito and I thought "Hot dog - it would be fun to go to Kwage Mesa and watch the clouds build over the Sangres and the Jemez and maybe it would get overcast and cool off - WRONG! Clouds built but they didn't do anything and the trail was sunny and dry but I had it all to myself as no one else was so stupid! I went on the trail to the right of the dressage arena instead of the old road to the left of the dressage area that I usually take. The official Kwage (also called North or Horse Mesa) Mesa Trail winds and winds across the mesa and seems longer than the 1.4 miles that Craig Martin says it is. The only living beings I saw were large raptors flying around, waiting for something to die.

Walking along, I had views to the south of Los Alamos Mesa and the Los Alamos Airport. The cap on the old dump on the side of Los Alamos Mesa, at the south edge of the airport, looks like a dam with the earth above the cap shaped like a funnel. I need an engineer to explain that one to me. If you cap an old dump, why would you build an earthern funnel above the cap? Maybe I could figure out things if I had brought my binoculars.

I could also see that work has begun on the Airport Basin site. It's between De Colores and the Industrial Park on Los Alamos's Main Hill Road and the site is on the steep south side of the mesa and is above some breathtakingly steep cliffs on Los Alamos Mesa that plunge straight down to Pueblo Canyon.

I also wanted to take a gander at the road work on Diamond-Conoco Hill. It looked exciting but it still looks like piles of rubble to me. Pity the homeowners in that area. I didn't realize that Volvo makes excavators but there it was shoveling dirt with Volvo emblazoned on its rotating cab.