Alamere Falls

Alamere Falls in Point Reyes National Seashore.

Fat Pony

Here is Jack and my mare, Nita having a confab about not getting enough attention. Yeah, I agree, BlackJack is over weight. All of my horses seemed to suddenly get over weight in the past month or so. No, I haven't been riding enough, or doing ground work with them. Either I don't feel like it, or it is raining, or muddy, muddy, or I am busy at my job, or cleaning pens, and making sure water buckets are clean and full. It seems there are never enough hours in the day.

Custer State Park :: Bighorn Sheep

Wednesday, August 24th - - After spending not quite five hours in Badlands National Park, and with temperatures into the 90s, I was hot and tired. Route 44 took me toward Rapid City but my destination for the night was a little to the south, Custer State Park.



As it turned out, all campsites in that park are by reservation only. However, you can call in when you get there to make a reservation. As a non-resident of South Dakota, I also had the privilege of paying an extra fee to make that reservation! In addition to that fee, the park charges $15 for an entrance pass, which is good for seven days. Most other South Dakota parks also have an entrance fee but much smaller and good for just one day. Custer Park “did away” with the daily pass last year.



Anyway, I was assigned a site at the Center Lake (I think it was) campground. It's a large park and I don't remember how many campgrounds there are, perhaps half a dozen or so. It was about four o'clock in the afternoon and I was driving on a hilly, curvy road to the campground, which was about ten miles from the entrance, when I came upon two cars stopped in the road. I could see several bighorn sheep right alongside the road and rather impatiently wished that the drivers ahead would move on so I could get close enough for a picture.



After a few minutes they did move on and I slowly drove up next to the sheep and stopped, having already put the passenger window down. I was able to get off one shot when several motorcycles came from the opposite direction and another shot as the bighorn sheep scrambled down the side of the hill and into the woods.







When I took this photo, I was a little disappointed that the sheep had turned away. However, I think it really shows the size of those horns rather nicely!





A cropped version of the above photo.

All in all, it was a rather incredible day! I'd like to return to the Badlands some time when it isn't quite so hot and take a few of the trails that I missed this time.

Flying High with the 214th

Over the past couple of days, Climbing Rangers had the opportunity to train with the US Army 214th reserve aviation brigade and their CH-47 Chinook helicopter. The 214th and the Rainier climbing rangers have been working closely together for many years and they provide us with an exceptional tool for Search and Rescue missions and we are very proud to have the opportunity to fly with them.




Throughout the climbing season rangers and the Chinook crew train together so when things get "real" everyone is up to speed with what to do. The 214th's Chinook is specially equipped for working on Rainier, with skis that make soft snow landings possible, special flooring which allows rangers to wear crampons inside the helicopter, and special rigging inside that allow rangers and rescue litters to be lowered and raised safely on the cable hoist.






Training with these guys also allows us the chance to do some great early season recon of the climbing routes on Rainier. Yesterday we got that opportunity, so check out the Route Updates page...all the major routes have been updated with aerial photos and conditions all around the mountain are looking great! Access to the more remote routes is difficult at this time, since many of the roads into the park are still being plowed out from the winters snow. The road crew has been working very hard lately and most park roads should be opening soon. If you are feeling adventurous there is nothing stopping anyone from getting to and climbing any route at this time, just plan on an extra day or two for the approach. Spring on Rainier can be some of the best climbing and skiing along with a very real wilderness experience.



See you on the Mountain.

The 39 steps

My commute.

Eagle

This is the sculpture of the bald eagle.

But now they only block the sun...

Sunday morning (August 15th) I woke up early and was just lying in my cot looking out the window when I noticed the sky getting brighter. Then when I looked toward the eastern sky it was filled with a beautiful pink and orange glow. I quickly changed clothes, grabbed the camera and walked to Land's End on the tip of the Homer Spit.

6:09 am
6:12 am
6:18 am
6:20 am
6:22 am
6:40 am
The colors began to fade as the sun started to make its appearance. I say “started” because the lower bank of clouds/fog quickly grew and the sun was hidden for yet another day.

I've cropped off the bottom portion of all photos except for one because that part didn't really add anything to the beauty and simplicity of the clouds and the colors.

The title of this post comes from the song Both Sides Now by Joni Mitchell.

I Got the Elbow Blues

(Photo: Elbows.)



Just a week ago last Thursday, I was feeling like I'd settled into a reasonably good place from which to start the season.



There were a bunch of new problems on the "Highball Wall" at Brooklyn Boulders. I love seeing the new problems. I know we are just talking about the gym, and that it isn't a big deal. But I always get a little bit excited when I see a wall full of new routes. Judging from the ridiculous crowds that always surround the new problems, I'm not the only one who feels this way. True to past trends, the newly set wall was utterly mobbed last Thursday.



I jumped in, despite the crowds.



After speeding through many of the easier climbs I was feeling pretty good. I made quick work of a couple of the V5's and then with a little bit of concentrated effort I sent a V6. This was by no means a great accomplishment. Anyone can do it. But for me it was not a trivial thing. All winter long I've been trying to get myself into a new mindset in which I think of every V5 as a climb I will send (as opposed to a project for some other day) and every V6 as a climb I can do with some work (as opposed to a climb reserved for someone better than me).



As I finished the V6 and dropped to the floor I heard an onlooker say "that was awesome." It took a second for it to sink in that this person was talking about me! I wasn't accustomed to hearing such exclamations about me. And it's true, it was a little bit awesome. I'd never scoped out a V6 and put it all together so quickly before. A year or two ago I might have been that same onlooker, thinking the same thing, in effect saying "that looks so hard, it is surely out of my league."



But now with the new mindset I was approaching just about any climb as if I might be able to do it.



And maybe this approach was working.



Or maybe this was just an easy V6.



Afterwards I sat down and watched a very strong climber tackle a V9+. This problem involved a series of long reaches between awful slopers. He'd been working the route for a while and shortly after my victory on the V6 he finally sent the V9+. He was ecstatic about it, and with good reason. The climb looked terribly terribly hard, much too difficult for even my new hard-charging persona to consider attempting.



I listened as he talked to another super-strong climber.



"I must have been here for six hours yesterday," he said. "My tendons feel like they could explode at any moment."



The other climber gave him a concerned look. "Do you use ice?" he asked. "I ice my arms after every hard session."



I wondered if this made sense. I'd read conflicting advice about using ice. In any event I empathized with these super-climbers with the sore tendons, because I was growing more than a little bit worried about my own.



Over the last few months I'd gradually noticed that my elbows seemed to be sore a lot. There would be some pain on the inside (medial) edge of both elbows when I warmed up, and then the soreness would go away while I climbed, only to return later at random times. Sometimes the elbows would throb while I lay in bed at night, or while I sat at my desk at work. It was more of an occasional annoyance than an impediment to climbing. I was concerned, but not enough to do much of anything about it.



Until recently, that is. As the outdoor climbing season approached and the problem seemed to be getting worse, I looked to the Internet for answers. I soon found a nice piece by Dr. Julian Saunders, the sports doctor who writes for Rock & Ice Magazine. In the article he describes my recent symptoms pretty much exactly and says they suggest a condition called tendonosis, a degeneration of the tendon cell at the elbow.



Dr. Saunders prescribes some exercises with a barbell to strengthen the tendons. It seemed like a reasonable approach to me so I ordered a set of barbells. I hoped that if I followed Dr. Saunders' program the problem would gradually disappear over time. The best part of the doctor's advice, from my perspective, was that he said nothing at all about taking a break from climbing. The last thing I wanted to do was to stop climbing. The season was just about to begin. I was already planning to go to the Gunks with Gail on March 10, when it was supposed to be 50 degrees in New Paltz.



While I was at it I decided to order a massage tool called The Stick. I came across a testimonial to its effectiveness for sore elbows and decided it might also help.



But I didn't get a chance to start either of these new therapies. Before my packages arrived I realized I had a new, more severe elbow problem.



I went back to Brooklyn Boulders on Sunday, just a few days after my little V6 triumph. As I warmed up I gradually realized my right elbow was sore in a new way. I really felt it when I pulled on holds and the pain wasn't going away as I warmed up. There was something wrong. Eventually I abandoned the session and went home.



Where did this new injury come from? I have no idea.



Once I was aware of the pain, I noticed I was feeling it all the time. It hurt to yank open the refrigerator, or to squeeze a water bottle. I detected noticeable swelling on my arm near the elbow right where the pain was. This was bad, worse than just tendonosis. I feared I must have torn something, somehow.



So I went to the doctor. I got a referral from my GP and luckily could get an appointment to see a specialist within the week. I met with him yesterday. He seems like a good guy, young and smart; understanding of the climbing mindset. I told him the whole story and he agreed with Dr. Saunders' diagnosis. He took an x-ray (which looked fine) and did his own examination. He made me an appointment to have an MRI done so we could get a better sense of the damage. He strongly suggested I stop climbing, at least for a few weeks while we sort out how bad the immediate trauma to my elbow is and start some physical therapy.



I am really bummed out.



And the MRI this morning didn't help matters. Have you ever had an MRI? This was my first. I imagine the procedure would be bad enough if you could lie on your back. Even in that relatively comfortable position, the experience of sliding into that narrow tube and remaining perfectly still as the machine screams like an invading alien army for half an hour would be enough to induce existential terror. Add to this nightmarish scenario a position on your stomach with the bad arm outstretched, the other one pinned to your side, both arms falling asleep... and you get the picture. Not fun.



I still hope to have a climbing season. Maybe in a few weeks I can get back to it, taking it easy. I haven't been climbing outside since November and I am as desperate as a man can be to get out there. But I want to be smart and give myself the best chance to heal. I have a climbing trip planned to Squamish in June and I really want to be able to go. I must take care of myself until then.



I will keep you posted.



Getting old is a drag.

Blue Gourd Vase

Phend-Fisher Family Reunion Ledger (1933)

Aug 28 - 1933

24th Anual reunion of Phend & Fisher Family was held at home of Henry Phend Aug 28 - 1933 Columbia City Ind

The Oficiers were
Pres Henry Phend
Mrs James Shaw
Sec & Treas. Cecil Phend

A basket dinner was enjoyed by all and after visiting for some time the business of the day was transacted

New officiers Elected were
Pres Henry Phend
Mrs James Shaw
Sec & Treas Cecil Phend

Sec. report was read and approved. The program committee presented the entertains for the after noon
Madyln Phend & Parents sang a song

[page 2]
Keith Phend gave several numbers on his guitar
Mrs Cecil Phend and daughter rendered organ duet
Short talks were given by Rev McCoy & Henry Phend
Playlet was then given "Wife Wanted"

Money left in Treas after expences & Collection
$3.42 in Treasure
1.75 Expences for Cards
1.50 [left in treasury]


The Phend-Fisher families gathered for a reunion in Northern Indiana almost annually from 1909 until 1943. The events of the day were recorded in an old ledger book. Spelling has been retained as it was in the original though some punctuation and paragraph breaks have been added. To view all articles in this series click on the "Phend-Fisher Reunion Ledger" label at the bottom of this post.

Tombstone Tuesday :: Perry and Retha Wiseman

Lakeview Cemetery, Larwill, Whitley County, Indiana

WISEMAN
RETHA J. / 1917-1989
PERRY M. / 1906-1968
PERRY M WISEMAN
INDIANA
CPL CO B 17 TANK BN
WORLD WAR II
AUG 3 1906 JULY 6 1968

Photographs taken July 31, ...
Copyright © .. by Rebeckah R. Wiseman
Perry Martin Comfort Wiseman was the first-born child of Elsie Shuder and Charles Wilson Wiseman. My father, Jack William Wiseman, was the youngest of their eight children, born in January 1924.

Uncle Perry's obituary was published in the Warsaw Times Union on July 9, 1968.

Perry M. Wiseman, 61, of Blue Lake, R1 Churubusco, died of complications at 4:30 a.m. today in the St. Joseph Hospital, Fort Wayne, where he had been admitted on Sunday.

Born August 3, 1906 in Tippecanoe Twp., Kosciusko County, Mr. Wiseman was the son of Charles W. and Elsie (Shuder) Wiseman. He spent his formative years in the Barbee Lakes Community and served in the US Army during WWII. On February 6, 1954 he united in marriage with Retha Juanita Wallace who survives. He had been an employee of the Weatherhead Company in Columbia City for several years.

In addition to his widow, he is survived by 3 brothers; Leslie, R2 South Whitley; Emery, R1 Warsaw; Jack, North Webster; and 2 sisters, Mrs. Walter Tobias and Mrs. Carl Conrad, both of Nappanee.

Final rites will be conducted at 2 pm Thursday at the Smith Funeral Home in Columbia City. Rev. Chester Reed will officiate and interment will be in the Lakeview cemetery at Larwill. Friends may call at the funeral home after 2 pm Wednesday.

Aunt Retha's obituary was published May 1, 1989 in the Warsaw Times Union.

Retha J. Wiseman, 72, formerly of 840 Plantation Drive, Columbia City, died in Meadowhaven Nursing Home in Butler, Indiana on Saturday April 29, 1989. She was born January 25, 1917, in Richland Township, Whitley county, to William and Georgia L. Cummins Rindfusz. She married Perry Wiseman, who died July 8, 1968. She was a 1935 graduate of Larwill High School and moved to Columbia City in 1968. She was retired from Dana Weatherhead Division in Columbia City. She was also a member of the Pioneer Club and the Quarter Century Club.

Survivors include one niece, Nedra Budd, Pleasant Lane; one brother-in-law, Wheeler Rager, Pierceton; two great-nephews; and three great-nieces. Two sisters preceded her in death.

Services will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday in Smith & Sons Funeral Home, Columbia City with the Rev. Joseph Smith officiating. Burial will be in Lakeview cemetery, Larwill.

Mt. Olympus, Blue Glacier

We made the long drive up to the northwest corner of the state to climb Mt. Olympus. It is located deep in the Hoh Rain Forest. The climb involves a round trip hike of 45 miles with an elevation gain of 8,000'.



There were huge, moss covered Douglas Fir, Cedar, Spruce and Hemlock trees everywhere.



Elk Lake at the 15 mile mark.





This cable ladder was put in place to help climbers cross an avalanche chute just before the camp at Glacier Meadows.





The Blue Glacier as seen from the lateral moraine. The true summit is the farthest peak in the middle of the picture. Snow Dome is on the right.





Doug and Dave on the summit in our rain gear. It rained for about an hour when we first started up the glacier. We had traveled and hiked way to far to turn around because of rain! The sun even came out later that morning.



The view from the summit looking down on Snow Dome and the Blue Glacier.






The lower part of the glacier is a square mile of hard ice. It is covered with hundreds of small icy streams. They usually disappear into a hole or crevasse on the glacier.



It would have been easy to spend an entire day there exploring that part of the mountain. We had to walk on the high spots to stay dry.




We made our way back down the moraine to Glacier Meadows where the biting flies convinced us to start the hike out to the car. The next day, we stopped at the beach for a while and then started the long drive home. It was nice to accomplish another climb that had been on our "to do" list for a while.

On Top of the World

My sister, Jan, who was my guide on this trip could not have prepared me for what I was going to see at Hurricane Ridge. I guess that is why she didn't try. We came around a turn in the road and there it was. There was this huge open meadow surrounded by high mountains that still had snow on them. (Again remember it is August.) The grass and trees were so green, emerald green. The mountains were the light to dark majestic blues you think of only when you have seen distant mountains. The white snows, and glaciers on the blues were pure whites.
Although Hurricane Ridge is know for bad weather days full of rain, fog, snow and especially wind, we were there on one of those perfect weather days. It was a bit cool and we did need our light jackets, but the sky was a brilliant shade of blue with just a few small white fluffy clouds. There was now wind, rain, fog, or snow. It made me feel as if I was standing on top of the world.

New Paint

The paint on the siding on the house had been sand blasted until it was back to the orginal gray color so we painted it.

A view

Another nice view from the seating area behind the gift shop

Evening at Horseshoe Bay

Last night Roger (http://www.rogernordstromphoto.blogspot.com/) and I went down to Horseshoe Bay to shoot the sunset. I've been trying to show him some new areas along the lake that he hasn't seen yet. Horseshoe Bay can be a fun place to shoot, depending on the conditions. This evening when we were there the lake was smooth as glass, which is always nice to have when making images of the lake. At the entrance to the bay there is this nice, photogenic pile of rocks that I had fun shooting. I used my graduated neutral-density filters on the image above and the one below to help balance the exposure between the dark foreground and the brighter sky. Using the filters also helped bring out the detail in the underwater rocks in the foreground.