golddog goes for a ride
Inspired by chopstick's excellent thread, I'm going to try to keep one running as well.
Fair warning, though: I am neithe
should have told Mike, I can't make this wedding but I promise I'll be at the next one.
He and Sharon are still going strong. Heard from Mike over the winter, they just bought a new house. Will have to find a reason to go over there at some point.
Super nice day out. Jumped in the Subie, and headed to Estes Park.
While up there, stopped by the Stanley Hotel, otherwise known as the Overlook.
Pulled up at Rocky Mountain National Park to get this.
The parking area near the welcome sign was full, so I went ahead a little bit and walked back.
On the way back to the car, I saw this guy.
Looks smaller in this picture. I think it was an adult male, good sized.
Went in the Fall River (US 34) entrance. Three or four cars in front of me, made the purchase and bang, inthe park, in ~10 minutes. Took a quick tour up to where it joins with Trail Ridge Road, and headed back down. Trail Ridge usually not open til ~Memorial Day. Super-dry winter out here, so it may have been open. I was starting to get hungry an (unusually for me) didn't pack a lunch, so headed back to Estes. Some stops along the way.
Came out he Trail Ridge Road (US 36) entrance, and the line of cars waiting to get in must've been close to a mile long. I guess sometimes it's good to be a local.
Foudn a decent BBQ place hear the entrance for lunch. Not awesome, but nothing bad either.
Then took the back roads back down to Boulder. Cruised through Boulder Canyon.
Carried my Sony Alpha SLR the entire way, and it never came out of the backpack. While I need to learn better how to use my phone, I'm pretty convinced it's a better camera than my actual camera. And it's an old phone--an S20+, I believe. I imagine modern phones are even better.
I did realize while climbing around the boulder in Boulder Creek that I didn't grab the lanyard I'd purchased to try to keep my phone secure. Fortunately did not have a drop.
as lois said to clark
she's a butte
I haven't been there in ~40 years, but it really looks dry.
Here's Johnny!
Nice pics!
That senior pass is a deal! I think they raised the price from when it was a genuine steal though.
nice pics!
Welcome to the thread. You are right, it was incredibly dry (I believe record-setting) this winter. Severe drought in a lot of Colorado, extreme pretty much everywhere else.
Of course, we have to have bluegrass lawns in suburbia. Grrr.
Inflated the air mattress and put up the tent today. No obvious leaks/tears. Camping season, here I come!
No particular dates or plans at this point. Probably mid-June-ish, find a day when the weather is nice and I get decent rest the night before, and down the road I go.
What kind of tent?
unteathered lifestock emotions when leaving colorful warmth of a mild aspen winter barn accurately depicted
wish you nothing but safe travails
It seems I wrote too early. Came downstairs this morning, the mattress pretty well deflated. Must have a slow (i.e., unfindable and unfixable) leak.
I was kinda considering going to a cot, so maybe this will motivate me.
Mack,
It's a Cedar Ridge Granite Falls 2 person tent. Easy set-up and tear-down. Since it's just me, plenty of room in there. Pretty decent, but nothing special. Just what I need.
Red,
Thanks for the thoughts.
Do any of your neighbors have swimming pools that you could put the mattress in to check for the leak(s)?
Or lug it into your new shower with a spray bottle of soapy water.
Perhaps invite a nice young lady to help you spot the leak???
Not that I'm aware of, Mack. Tom's idea sounds better, but I'm unlikely to pull off the key requirement.
Seems as if the thrift store had a few on the shelf when I was there last. Tomorrow's old people's day, so I'll go pick one up. If that fails, the local camping/hardware/hunting/etc store will surely be willing to help me out (for ~$150 ofc).
when the worst of life experiences is a flat inflatable mattress you should somehow pause to realize you are drinking in life one brunch mimosa at a time
Agreed, Red. Especially once one has traveled a bit (and hopefully have observed), it's amazing the things we in the developed world can find to bitch about.
Found another Coleman mattress at the thrift store. $8.11 and a short walk later, I've got it inflated and will monitor for leakage. This one had a built-in inflator, but it doesn't seem to work. I suspect the batteries that were left in there corroded the contacts. May get back to cleaning that later, but my handy hand-held inflator worked just fine.
My understanding is new inflatable mattresses are much better than what was available even 10-15 years ago and also much easier to inflate. I’d look into a new one but won’t find one for $8.
Yeah, I go once, maybe twice/summer. So if I can get one year out of a thrift-store mattress, it's good.
Though, as mentioned, I could see the day coming before long where getting up and down is too difficult and I find a cot. Or a camper.
Not really travel (well, I guess I did go to Boulder). Last night played a small tournament at a friend's up there. I think we had 14 or 15. I'd guess I'm top-half, maybe top-quarter of the field when I play well.
Dealt late Friday night, didn't sleep well. Was pretty tired, so I knew it would be one bullet and home. It's cheap re-buys, so the chips were flying.
Moved from 15K to 40K at the first break (5 levels). Made some nice plays and decent folds.
After break, had a couple tough hands. Got it in with the best hand both times, but opponents had big draws and got there. Pretty pleased with my play overall given that I was worn down.
Neighbors are taking their granddaughter on an Alaskan cruise next week (apparently this is a tradition when the kids' kids turn 16), and back a week from Wednesday. I've done some light packing and list-making, anticipating taking off sometime after their return.
Started putting some stuff in the Subie. Thinking about a Tuesday or Wednesday take-off. Scheduled to deal Monday night, so depends how long that goes/how well I sleep.
Had a strange night at the bar-poker league last night. We play 3 20-minute rounds, break, then 4 15-minute rounds, break, then finish out.
While winning only four hands in the first two hours, managed to spin up 36K to 83K. Weird, got shoved into after I 4-bet Aces (V just was ready to go). Earlier, flopped top set, turned quads with JJ and got quite a lot of action.
Stumbled that up to 125K by the time we coalesced for the final table. Probably third in chips, but that meant I had 12.5 blinds. Didn't run so well at final table. Misplayed one hand which sent me down. Finished ninth of ~34. Still had a good time, fun folks.
Made breakfast burritos, now in freezer. Tomorrow is stop mail & pay taxes at the PO, do some laundry, final packing with the intention of leaving Tuesday.
As mentioned, dealing Monday night. I should be the second out, so it shouldn't be a late night. If I don't sleep well or whatever, take off Wednesday. NBD either way.
How long is the drive from there to Anchorage? When should we expect you?
may i help provide some gold direction?
Spoiler
Spoiler
I actually drove the Alaska Highway in 2000. Up and back in two weeks. Caught a really bad cold on the way out in the Yukon, so it was pretty much "turn around and go back." It took me two weeks.
A couple of tales from that adventure. First, some background.
At that time, I was driving my late father's F150. Kinda beat up (the paint never was right, even when he was alive). He died in 1989, it sat for a couple years cuz my mother "knew someone who wanted it.". (Sigh. Somebody probably asked what she was going to do with it, which is the same as showing interest). Don't remember for sure, but I'd guess it was a early 90s model. I had it a while before moving out here.
1) Literally upon crossing the border into AK, the fuel gauge went haywire. It flicked back and forth, then went and stayed at zero. Fortunately, I both had dual tanks, and a good idea how far I could go on a fill, so watched the odometer. There was one spot on the way back, somewhere in Yukon or northern BC, where I missed a fuel stop. Good thing I had duals then.
2) Had literally just turned around at Tok, about 18 miles into the return. Hear a train whistle, looking around--"where are the tracks out in the Alaskan wilderness?" When the truck started pulling to the right, I realized it was a flat. Fortunately had brought a full-size spare, so switched it up and was able to get going. Everything held together the rest of the way.
I think that trip killed it. I drove it another ~1.5 years, but just around town. Then traded to the Ranger in 2002, which has been good to me.
I've never seen the Pirates movies, but I assume from those images, Captain Sparrow is a wanderer who's never really sure where he's going. That fits me pretty well. I have a vague notion of things to see and a direction to head, but not timetable or reservations. Just kinda going "that way."
I can't find the clip, but it's kinda like at the end of Star Trek II: indulge yourself, Mr. Sulu.
