Boulderstash, The No Name Forest photos

The No Name Forest quiet awaits our return

Laura and I had fun bouldering at a local spot the other day... Here's a couple photos

Laura on a clean slabby classic

Laura throwin' down her best
"Goodman on MOJO" impression.

Faster than a speeding bullet... Chipmunk parkour.
Photo by Laura Hahn

Laura working the sloping edge of Pyramid Block

Despite our best efforts the boulders always win the battle!
Until next time... Shhhhh

Silver Springs Nature Theme Park

Today we visited Silver Springs. This is one place we planned to visit since we arrived in this area. We were going to buy a season pass, along with Rich and Donna, and at the last minute Donna saw something on their website. They were in the process of changing ownership, and along with that they were reducing their attractions down to their glass boat rides. So we decided not to buy the season pass and just to make a trip here sometime. We were going to visit yesterday and went to Ocala NF instead. We did make it today, which was the final day at the park before it did change hands.





The employees that were working today were understandably emotional over it being the last day. One employee told us that over 300 people lost their job due to its closing. I wish we had visited this interesting place while it was in full operation, because it looked like a great place. There appeared to be animals, a water park, shows and some rides. As the website said, there is not much there at this point except the glass boat rides. The trip was worth it even with that being the only attraction. The really neat part about a glass boat is that everyone can have a front row seat.



The other neat thing is you can see just how clear the water is and just how deep the water is. It makes for a really beautiful ride.



The springs pump out 550 million gallons of water a day. It is enough to support New York City.



We saw two alligators while on the boat ride, and lots of turtles.



After our boat ride, we ate lunch there and then walked around to see the rest of the park. The rest of the park was beautiful also.





I'm so glad we did make it before it became a state park. It was nice to feel like we were a part of its history. I'm excited to see what they will do with it once it becomes a state park.

A Great Big Ball of Twine

Saturday, May 7th - - Upon leaving Lebanon, if you continue south on Kansas Highway 181 about 20 miles then turn east on Kansas Route 9 and go six miles to Cawker City you'll see it on the right just as you get into town.





“It” is the World's largest ball of twine. In 1988 it had a circumference greater than 40 feet. Another sign on the right proclaims that it was started in 1953 by Frank Stoeber and in .. it was composed of 7,801,766 feet of twine weighing in at 17,886 pounds. At the bottom of the sign is Frank's mantra Thrift + Patience = Success.



Kind of makes you wonder about some people! But then, if he was a farmer he had to do something with all of that extra twine left over from baling hay and straw! This particular ball of twine gets more twine gets added each August in a community twine-a-thon.



According to Wikipedia there are even more of these wonders of human endeavors.





Yeah, it's big.



Up close.



And again.



Downtown Cawker City.

A New Acquaintance... and a New Career?

Today I would like to share with you that I have officially become a Bicycle Photographer. As you can imagine, this translates to a life of fame and glamour - and will finally enable me to quit my dayjob and live as a full-time artiste. Okay, perhaps I am getting just a little ahead of myself. But I have recently been asked to photograph someone's bicycle collection, and I am excited to be working on this project.

A.T. (aka "somervillain") is a vintage bicycle lover who lives in the Boston area. He is an occasional commentator on this blog and a member of bikeforums. Based on the photos of my own bicycles that he has seen me post, A.T. invited me to document his and his wife's vintage collection. So far we have only done one photo session, and I post a few of the images here.

The star of these photos is A.T.'s 1950s Raleigh DL-1 Roadster - the same bicycle as the Co-Habitant's Rodney, but older and with a full chaincase, as well as dynamo-powered lighting (front and rear!).

I must say that this DL-1 is in better condition than any other I have seen, particularly the chrome parts. When I first saw this bike from a distance, my thought was that it must be a modern replica. Of course up close all the signs of wear and age are visible, but its condition is none the less terrific.

Those who like vintage Raleigh 3-speeds know how rare it is to actually have that dynamo headlight attached to the "Heron" mount and working!

Here is a close-up of the headlight, handlebars and rod levers. The roses are distracting here (roses in November?), but it's the best close-up I have of this area.

Incredibly clean and shiny rod brakes.

Front dynamo hub.

Dynamo-powered tail light mounted on the left seat stay. What a pleasure to photograph all this stuff!

Rear Sturmey Archer hub. Notice how clean it is! A.T. did all of the work on this bicycle himself, including assembling this hub - remarkable!

Vintage Brooks B66 saddle, NOS Roadster saddlebag, rear rack.

Here is the entire bicycle again, from the non-chaindrive side. I should explain that I can't take digital photography seriously (as opposed to film photography), and therefore own no professional digital equipment. These photos were all taken with my tiny point-and-shoot camera. I could have done a much better job with proper equipment. Any suggestions? But there I go, getting ahead of myself again.

A few have already asked me about the location in these photos. All I can say, is that it is my secret magical bike photography spot, and the same "nice" neighborhood discussed in this post. It is ridiculously scenic and resembles England, which is why I thought the vintage Raleigh would look especially at home against this backdrop. I hope you enjoyed the photos of this magnificent bicycle and thank you A.T. for the permission to post these. Additional pictures of this bicycle can be viewed here.

If you have questions about this Raleigh DL-1, please contact the knowledgeable and friendly somervillain.

The Deer's View

Later, after the deer had gone - where ever they go - I wondered up to where they had been and took a photo of their view. You can see it was a long way from the house which is alm ost hid behind trees and a grape view. To the right is an old barn that has been converted to a garage, and to the left is Jim's workshop.

Gunks Routes: The Last Will Be First (5.6)

(Photo: A view of climbers on the High Exposure buttress from high on the first pitch of The Last Will Be First (5.6).)



So you had your heart set on climbing High Exposure (5.6+)... but you arrived at the base of the climb to find it stacked three-deep with parties waiting to get started?



Well, don't waste your whole day waiting below the cliff.



Go hit The Last Will Be First (5.6) instead. It features high-quality moves all the way from the bottom of the cliff to the very top. It is in my opinion harder than High E and more sustained in its difficulty and its quality. I climbed it for the second time in early December with Liz and I was struck by how great it is, from start to finish. I think it is a contender for three stars, though I understand why Dick Williams gives it only two. It has no single standout moment, like the swing out onto the face on pitch two of High E, or the move over the big roof on Shockley's.



But it has something different: consistent fun. I think only Madame G's rivals The Last Will Be First when it comes to great continuous 5.6 climbing.



The first pitch is outstanding. After the initial easy moves up a slab to an obvious crack, you'll find never-ending steep climbing on good rock with good pro. Nice move follows nice move and then you hit the crux, where you'll bust it over a rooflet and up to the top of a shallow left-facing corner. Then you escape right from the corner and past a dead tree to the final good moves up to the GT Ledge. 160 feet of goodness. I can't think of another pitch of 5.6 in the Gunks that is so long and sustained at the grade.





(Photo: Liz almost finished with pitch one.)



When you arrive on the GT Ledge, you'll see a set of rap bolts off a ways to climber's left. I'd recommend against belaying from these bolts, as they do not put you in the best position from which to start pitch two. Instead you should build a gear belay in the cliff behind the ledge, just a step or two left from where you top out after pitch one.



Dick describes pitch two as beginning at the first left-facing corner, about 20 feet to the left of where you emerge from pitch one. I think it is actually less than 20 feet, and there are two corners right next to each other. You want the closer, shallower one. I was confused by Dick's instructions the first time I did The Last Will Be First and ended up going a little too far to the left, coming closer to the second pitch of Unholy Wick by mistake. What I actually did was an unnamed variation between the two climbs. Perhaps this was a first ascent? I can call it The Last Will Be Unholy (5.6). I thought my new variation was fun and well-protected.



I realized I was off-route afterwards, when I looked at the topo photo in the back of the guidebook. In this instance the photo is more helpful than the description. I also have a photo of my own that should help you make sure you don't suffer from the same confusion I had the first time around.





(Photo: Going the wrong way on pitch two of The Last Will Be First (5.6). The actual route is the yellow line on the far right. Click on the photo to enlarge and see the captions for the lines approximating the correct positions of the routes in this part of the cliff.)



In early December when I did the route for the second time I did the correct pitch two. Don't go as far left as I am in the above photo. Instead go up at the first, shallower left-facing corner, heading straight up about ten or fifteen feet thenheading diagonally upleft to the break in the little overhang.





(Photo: Looking down the correct pitch two of The Last Will Be First, from just above the crux overhang.)



The second pitch is not as sustained as pitch one. Itfeatures face climbing up and left to a small crux overhang that is cleared at the notch. The pro is good but it's a little spaced as you head left from the corner to the overhang. Great pro is available at the crux.



Once above the overhang the climb joins Ken's Blind Hole (5.6) to the finish. Straight up a shallow dihedral to a fun, easy traverse beneath overhangs to the right along a big horizontal. This leads to an exit at the top at a set of belay/rappel bolts.





(Photo: Liz at the finishing traverse on pitch two.)



While it isn't as sustained as the first pitch, pitch two offers good variety: face climbing, then a small overhang, then an entertaining traverse. Definitely well worth doing, and a fitting finish to a really nice climb.

Wordless Wednesday :: Another Icelandic Sunset

Near Keflavik, Iceland. Summer of 1973.Copyright © 1973/.. by Rebeckah R. Wiseman

Double Portrait - Robison Family

Inspired by Tim Agazio's family portrait with pictures in the picture, I thought I'd share this one from my grandmother's files (though his is much more interesting!).

It shows Lucy Strait Robison and her husband, Henry Robison Jr. The pictures on the wall are of their daughters Ella and Ida. The photo of Ida has what looks like a lace cloth draped over one corner - Ida passed away on November 22, 1899 at the age of 27. The picture isn't dated but it would have to be early 1900s since Henry died December 7, 1904 and Lucy passed away on January 26, 1907.

What is of most value to me about this picture though is the caption that was written on the back. "Uncle Henry and Aunt Lucy Robison my angle Mothers brother" - "Malissa" - and upside down "My uncle & aunt Henry & Lucy Robison"

"Malissa" is Malissa Joslin Brubaker, my 2nd great grandmother, and this is the only "link" we currently have to the parents of her mother Lydia Robison who married Lysander Price Joslin.

The parents of Henry and Lydia Robison were Henry and Anna Robison. The death record for Henry Jr. gives his mother's maiden name as McMorron.Henry Sr. and Anna came to Whitley County, Indiana between 1840 and 1850 from Champaign County, Ohio. The will of Henry Sr. dated August 8, 1851 only lists three children: Eliza Jane, Henry, and Emily but census records indicate there may have been five children; the two older children were married at the time of Henry's death, probably in 1852. Anna "disappears" after the sale of their land in August 1855. More research (a lot more) is needed on this family!

Home in 50mm

Saturday. I'm exhausted from a hard week at work. Sandra and I have been out for coffee, and to a Gemfest in Nambour. We bought a beautiful 9crt gold ring set with three untreated sapphires from the miner himself.



Early afternoon and I have to find an activity to stop myself from going climbing.

Challenge: Photograph our house with one lens only. Easy choice; 50mm.





Sandra always has flowers in the house, dead or alive.









Javanese day bed.

Table - recycled timber made by Sandra's brother Ray.





Old round table we've had forever.

Art: Peter K. O'Brien, my brother, oil/wax/oil paint/petrol/sand and canvas on canvas. c 1969





The bookshelf Ray and I built for our old mud brick house, painfully relocated. Never again.





So many things from so many places. Printing block from India, Tjantings from Java.










Our dear friend Jenny, no longer with us, made this Ganesh, gold painted.










Saraswati keeps and eye on the phone. My favourite knife is the Shun, folded Japanese steel.





We sleep here. The Buddha reclines. The bedroom is separated from the rest of the house.





Sandra's collection of True Religion jeans. Mine are G-Star.





Versace, DVF, Hermes,





Pearls and beads from all over the world.




















Sandra pads around the house making things and just looking beautiful.





















Afternoon sunlight illuminates the cobwebs on the stool that Ray made from discarded wood.





Museum collections in every corner. We never quite achieved minimalism.






My Sitar, now unused, I studied when I was a teenager. Ravi Shankar was my idol.













Take in the detail.

A collection of all the Christmas cards that Sandra has made.





Shells, bells, clocks.





Things on top of things, filled with things. All of them beautiful.





Sandra makes intricate blankets for every baby born to family, relatives, friends.



Quiet afternoon sun.








Climbers, I couldn't do it. I went out for a climb at Tinbeerwah. Having a crag a few minutes away is just too tempting.

When I return it's getting dark, Sandra is still making things. The Singer treadle machine is 110 years old.

A blanket for our Niece's new baby.














The very legendary Mike Law, AKA The "Claw" arrives in the morning to go climbing.

That's a nice thing to think about tonight.

I should have been in bed hours ago.






jj