Going to give up snowshoeing and sell my snowshoes next year at ski swap.  I haven't been using them much at all in the past few winters and my posterior tibial tendon dysfunction seems much better.  The snowshoes weren't really appropriate for breaking trail but I used them for that anyway, to the detriment of my feet. 

So, instead of snowshoeing, when the trails are snow-covered, I'll walk paved roads, sidewalks and forest roads.  Today I wanted to walk FR181 but the parking lot was too treacherous for me to park there - fie!  (Next time bring a snow shovel!)  Instead, I drove to the plowed, paved parking area near the Dome Road, FR289.  I walked to its intersection with FR36.  They now have mile marker signs on the Dome Road!  I estimate I walked 4.5 miles.  It wasn't icy or muddy but I'll carry my YakTrax next time just in case.  

First cousin Butch died yesterday.  Only a year or so older than me.  Had recent operation for colon cancer.  Not sure it he'd started chemo yet.  Sad.  His Mom, my Mom's last remaining sibling, Ethel, had died a month or so ago - was in her 90's.

Yesterday, attended Halloween Potluck at WRSC.  We brought delicious tuna salad from LA Food Co-op.  I helped a little afterward with folding up chairs. Much more work remained to be done - dirty dishes, folding tablecloths, etc., but I had to leave.  I'll help again next time.  I like helping when it's not an obligation but freely done.

Also, on WRSC hike before potluck, one hiker had balance problems and toppled over and was very unsteady on way back.  I and another hiker stayed close to him on the walk back.

Upset last night when spouse partially closed laundry room door which has no heat and in which, several winters back, water pipes froze and burst.  He couldn't understand why I'd be upset over that!

Still trying to figure out what to do with handwritten journals.  There is much good in them but also much blathering and complaining.  How to easily get rid of the dreck and keep the interesting stuff?

Listening to Wild by Cheryl Strayed.   I like her honesty.

Yesterday, volunteered at Home Tour.  Sat at a house in our neighborhood to greet people and make sure they either put on paper booties or took off their shoes.  As a volunteer, I could have gone on house tour also but why bother?  I didn't even take a look at the lovely house I was stationed in, only venturing from my doorway chair to quickly use the bathroom.  Won't volunteer again on the weekend or at the Home Tour - not my style.

Family is making annual pilgrimage to Salman Raspberry Ranch this year.  Me, I can buy frozen raspberries at Trader Joe's so I stay home and reap the fruits of their labor.  Besides, I have to get up early tomorrow for a volunteer task that will occupy most of the day.

I will go with them next weekend to Rancho de las Golondrinas Harvest Fest - crowded, hot but at least it's family time!

Made brownies yesterday - cocoa powder, garbanzo bean flour, applesauce, honey, date sugar, vanilla extract, natural peanut butter, almond butter, soy milk, rolled oats.  They actually taste good - even husband likes them - but after we use them up, I need to start eating less green tea, cocoa powder and honey. Need to try to adhere better to OmniHeart diet to improve my cholesterol profile.

Cool, cloudy and drizzly.  Guess I should be happy after the sweltering days of summer!

Friday hike was local on White Rock streets so we could attend grand opening of new White Rock Visitor Center.  The new visitor center is beautiful! Hopefully no runaway cars will bang into it like happened with the old one twice!!  Spouse and I decided not to stay for the blah-blah-blah dedication and the wonderful spread of food given as a reward for attending.

Instead, we ate at Lee's.  I got the homestyle tofu with cashews.  Saltier than I'd like but delicious and I didn't eat all the sauce - only what clung to the food.
They don't have brown rice so I skipped rice.  Also skipped the soup and egg roll.

Felt sorry for obese elderly woman who could barely walk but came in for take out from their buffet.  She told waitress she comes in every day.  Too bad White Rock doesn't yet have a hot meal program for seniors.  They have to go 10 miles to Los Alamos to get a hot lunch.  Poor thing didn't need all that salt and calories when she already looks all swollen!

Signed up to volunteer at home tour tomorrow.  Ay yi yi - the agency sponsoring called to remind me and tell me about the list of rules that I'm supposed to tell people - no bathroom, no food, no picture-taking, no cell phones, no touching anything (have I forgotten any?)  Reciting the rules and handing out booties are my main duties - ay yi yi!!  I'll skip this next year!!

Let me first say  - I don't like the new blogger interface.  I preferred the old, so-called Beta version.  It was more attractive, easier to understand and use.  To figure out what all the symbols mean on the new interface, I'm forced to hover my cursor over them until they, a la "open sesame", reveal their meaning.

It's all hazy smoky here today from the conjoined wildfires in the Gila Wilderness.  This reminds me too much of last Spring when we were treated to days of smoke inhalation from the Wallow wildfire in Arizona.  It's also been dry and windy here which brings back unpleasant memories of similar conditions last year which resulted in the devastation of the Las Conchas wildfire.  I tell myself that there is not much left to burn but I know there is plenty left, especially if dry, windy conditions continue.

This morning we walked with the White Rock Senior Center Friday group on the north section of the Perimeter Trail, starting at the Mitchell Trailhead and going toward Quemazon Community.  The leader surprised my by wanting to ascend to Pipeline Road above the north branch of Pueblo Canyon.  We then went the short distance down Pipeline to Quemazon Road and followed that to an access trail which led to Upper Pueblo Canyon Trail and then down an access trail to Yucca Road and back to the cars.  We were joined by 3 hikers from the Betty Ehart Senior Center walking group because their leader was on a trip.  I forgot to check my GPS but think we did 3 miles.

After lunch at home, I did 2 more miles, going east on the Pueblo Canyon Rim Trail to just past Zeus's easy chair carved out of tuff.  Near the intersection with the Zipline Trail, I watched 5 turkey vultures circling around and around.  Despite their "naked" red head which looks similar to the carrion they eat, they are beautiful birds that fly with grace and ease.

Just realized that I went on and on so much about the Route and the forest service that I forgot to say where I walked today. I practiced jogging intervals on the White Rock Rim Trail from the official trailhead near Overlook to where it intersects Pajarito Canyon. I continued all the way to Sherwood Ave. on the rim trail but gave up on the jogging practice because of the wind, the rocky trail tread and the uphill. Was listening to book on CD, Head Trip, that I recorded to audio cassette. I meant to follow the easy way back but wound up back on the rocky part of the rim trail for part of the way. The whole round trip is ~5 miles.

Voted today. Stopped by forest service office (astounding to see it actually open and the desk manned!!) and asked when the Las Conchas forest closure will be lifted. Its been since last June 26 and I'm eager for the forest to reopen. Couple of weeks was the answer and the forest supervisor is working on the lifting of the closure order. I, of course, will believe it when I see it but if it happens soon, I'll be very jubilant!!

Very windy this afternoon. Was going to walk on the Route to see its condition after the Jemez Mountain Trail Runs (JMTR) 50k race used it on Saturday. The forest there is not actually open but the race directors had a one day special use permit. When the forest recovers more, they will go back to the race courses they used in the past but for the meantime, were forced by the Las Conchas wildfire to use different trails. Decided not to risk walking on the Route with all the winds. There is one tree that looks like the leaning tower of Pisa and ready to fall if I breathe too hard on it. I had hoped the forest service would remove it as a hazard tree to ensure the safety of the runners but that never happened. They put red flagging around the hazard trees and left them to fall where they may.

The forest service considers the Route an illegal, user created trail and really doesn't want to maintain it but they should because there is a real use for it. It's a safer way to walk up to Pajarito Mountain than using Camp May Road and runners and bikers have started to use it more frequently now. I met two runners on the Route and they said they were happy to have discovered this alternative to Camp May Road. Maybe with time, the trail will become so "real" that the forest service will be forced to maintain it. I suffer no illusions regarding how good a trail it is. It has far too many sharp turns to be safely used by bicyclists. I followed two bikers down one day and I could see the places where they skidded to a stop. The trail needs more maintenance than I can give it.

Last week while walking on the Route, just below Guardrail Hill, saw a portly gentleman sitting on a rock enjoying a snack. I'd earlier seen him walking by on Camp May Road. I'm not completely sure who he is (maybe the man who lived in a cave in Los Alamos Canyon several years back?) but he carries a stout walking stick and wears sandals. As I passed by, he commented on there being a trail in the woods and I told him that it would be part of the JMTR 50k race. I was doing a final sweep for trash on the Route to make sure it was presentable for the racers. Can't do anything about all the glass chips, though because it's too hard to pick up every last piece. I pick up the big pieces when I see them glinting.

When I speak of the Route, I'm only talking about the section from the Ocean to FR2998. The larger trail, called the Camp May Road Trail, of which the Route is a small, less than 2 mile section, goes all the way up to the Townsight Lift at Pajarito Mountain Ski Area.  The Route can be accessed from Camp May Road via the Coblentz Climb (which I assume is also an illegal, user created trail but really neat!), a short, steep connector trail that goes up to the Ocean where you can then pick up the Route on your left, just follow the cairns.  Other access points are the Ocean or FR2998.  I access it from the intersection of the West Road bypass and Camp May Road by following some old roads and crossing Camp May Road to go up to the Ocean.  

Walked out and back on Pueblo Canyon Rim Trail from Los Alamos Airport to top of Camp Hamilton Trail.  Skies looked dark to the south, with virga falling.  Got spit on by a few raindrops but made it back home dry and alive.  So much trash on trail below the Pajarito Cliffs site and the Eastgate Industrial Park.  I'd like to pick some up one day but it seems a big task for one person.

Spouse is fully retired from lab now but will teach a college course this Fall which shall keep him busy.  He's allowed to go back to the lab as an unpaid guest scientist starting next week which will also occupy him.

Today, we ate lunch at the senior center and right now, he's at the movie theatre.  On Mondays, ticket prices are reduced all day for seniors.

Been doing lots of hiking, as usual, but not much journaling.

Winds Calmed

Went out to walk around 4:30 pm. First mile, winds of Hades and some kind of occasional, white precip - maybe graupel. Second and third miles, terrifically odd because the sun came out and blue skies were overhead. I say "terrifically odd" because the day was mostly overcast and the mountains hid in pall of dust. Fourth mile, winds and overcast came back. Shall be interesting to see how much it snows overnight. Only an inch is predicted.

I'm now emailing these posts. I've gone back to using a subject because Mail becomes very suspicious if I don't and double checks if I'm sure I want to send a message without a subject. What would I do without this computer to supplement my brain?

Winds of Hades Upon Us - Snow to Follow

I've put off walking because the winds are blowing around so much dust. Soon, though, I'll walk and listen to the broadcast of This American Life and then NPR. We had several spring-like days last week but, alas, that is past. I wonder if I'd mind the cold as much if this house didn't leak warm air like a sieve. On last Wednesday's hike, a woman told me that she and her husband never have to turn on their furnace and sometimes even open windows to cool off in the winter. They live in a condo with a south-facing exposure and also get heat from the units above and below them. Sounds good to me! As I get older (or maybe as my thyroid gets older), I'm less tolerant of the cold.