Wandering through Time and Place

Exploring the world with Curtis and Peggy Mekemson
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    • Oh No… Not Another Christmas Photo

      Posted at 5:00 am by Curt Mekemson
      Dec 19th
      Oh come on, Mom. You’ve already taken a million photos of me!

      The cameras are out. It’s that time of the year. Open a present. Get your photo taken. “Hold up those socks, Joe. And smile. Aunt Tilda needs to know how much you like your gift.” Right. You know the routine. Put on deer antlers and get your photo taken. Take your photo with Grandma. She loves it. But where’s Grandpa. “How come Grandpa always has to go to the bathroom when photos are being taken Mom? He told me that photos give him gas.” And maybe it’s true. He looks like he’s got gas. 

      Peggy and I are visiting with our son Tony, his wife Cammie, and our grandkids Connor, Chris and Cooper on a pre-Christmas visit. We took a trip over to Bush Gardens yesterday. I took photos of the Chimp family for Christmas. I had my usual challenge getting anyone to smile.

      Like father like son, they always say.
      And then there was Grandpa, doing everything he could to avoid having his photo taken— including glaring at the camera. Check out the father/son pose.
      And here’s dad, giving me the look.
      A black and white family portrait. At least I had persuaded both father and son to look toward the camera at the same time. A small miracle in itself.
      And finally, maybe, just barely: a smile.

      Then there is all the stuff about table manners at Christmas. Everyone is expected to be on their best behavior. And what are the odds of that happening? I dropped over to visit with the Gorilla family to check it out.

      I’m not sure. Maybe stuffing yourself is a sign of good manners, like you really like the food.
      What are you supposed to do when your plate is crammed high?
      And what if someone adds chips? “Where’s the salsa?”
      Always worth another handful. “These darn things are addictive.” How many times have you heard that as an excuse for eating more.
      But back to the lettuce. Even Mom, the absolute guardian of good manners, seems to be spilling food down her front.
      But finally, I find some real Christmas spirit. Sharing. “Here, son. Look what I brought you. More lettuce. Merry Christmas.”

      NEXT POST: Maybe I’ll be back at Busch Garden in Florida, or on the Malecon in Puerto Vallarta, or hiking down the Pacific Crest Trail. You never know. I sure don’t. 🙂

      Posted in On the Road US | Tagged Busch Garden Florida, Chimp family, Christmas photos, Gorilla family, photography, travel blog
    • Into the Mokelumne Wilderness… South from Carson Pass on the PCT

      Posted at 11:38 am by Curt Mekemson
      Dec 8th
      Lakes, mountains, and meadows, oh my. The Mokelumne Wilderness south of Carson Pass has it all, plus streams and rivers. I took this photo of Round Top Mountain from along the Pacific Crest Trail.

      I’ve backpacked south from Carson Pass several times over the years, usually leading backpack treks following the old Tahoe Yosemite Trail. Those were the days before the present PCT route was built. I was excited to explore the new trail.

      I arrived at the trailhead a few weeks earlier than I had planned. When I came out at Chester after hiking through Lassen National Park, smoke from the massive Carr Fire near Redding was so thick that it was difficult to see a couple of hundred yards into the trees. Having empathy for my 75-year-old lungs, I decided to skip south in hopes of finding clean air to breathe. 

      Smoke from the Carr Fire on the PCT near Chester, CA

      The pass was named after the mountain man, explorer, military leader and rancher, Kit Carson. During California’s gold rush era, it had served as one of the main entrance points to California. The trail worked its way down the mountain eventually delivering its gold seeking 49ers to the small town of Diamond Springs where I was raised. The town was established when some miners from Missouri found a 20 pound nugget of gold lying on the ground and decided to stay. Which I get. As a youth wandering far and wide through the woods surrounding Diamond, I’d always dreamed of finding my own large nugget. It wasn’t to be. But I did develop a love for the outdoors, which is worth a lot more.

      Peggy dropped me off at the trailhead and waved goodbye. She had seen me off several times by now, and was more confidant that she would see me at the other end. But my lovely friend was always a bit nervous…

      Peggy waves goodbye with sincere hopes that she will greet me at Sonora Pass when and where I predicted I would come out.
      Being a sucker for roots and wood sculptures, this was the first photo I took along the trail. I hit the wrong button and my camera took several more photos, rendering each one differently. Normally, I like to stick with realistic portrayals, but I was amused with the results…
      In yellow…
      And in strange, impressionistic colors, like a Van Gough haystack.
      I took a short detour up to Frog Pond. In the past, I had always hiked by it and wanted to see what it looked like. I thought it might connect to the PCT. It didn’t, but I enjoy detours. They added lots of miles to my journey. There weren’t any  obvious croakers.
      The correct trail provided this view of Elephant Back, one of the primary landmarks of Mokelumne Wilderness.
      Another view of Elephant Back from the PCT.
      I had always hiked around the front of Elephant Back. The ‘new’ PCT took me behind it. The trail starts off making its way through Queen Anne’s Lace, a member of the parsley/wild carrot family.
      A close up of the flower with a bee providing perspective.
      Hiking on, I was reminded that I was well into summer. A granite rock provided the backdrop for this colorful grass.
      The brown grass here, which Californians insist on calling golden, provided a foreground for this photo of two snags.
      These pods on a lupine bush were also reminders of the fact that summer was winding down. They also show that lupine is a member of the pea family.
      There was still plenty of water along the trail, however, which was a fact that I appreciated given how often water was scarce along the PCT.
      And there were lots of flowers where I found water! This is rock fringe.
      And what I know as ranger’s buttons, another member of the carrot/parsley family.
      You can smell this one as you pass by. It is western pennyroyal, a member of the mint family. I always break off a leaf (it has lots) and urge people I am hiking with to sniff it and take a bite. It can also be used in making mint tea.
      Larkspur is always a challenge to photograph, but I wanted to emphasize the ‘spurs’ here, from which it gets its name.
      This daisy is known as fleabane. Pioneers believed that the bundled flowers would chase fleas out of their homes.
      And here we have greenish corn lily flowers.
      I found this half dead tree dramatic.
      Another grass, rock, and tree photo. The haze in the distance suggests that my hopes for escaping smoke were about to be thwarted. Smoke from the Carr Fire had followed me south!
      I almost tripped over this wood sculpture. Can you spot the sad owl-like face?
      My next PCT post will take us up this flower covered ridge and far beyond.
      I will also introduce you to a 65-year-old trekker who has hiked the PCT, the Appalachian Trail, and the Continental Divide Trail, giving him the right to wear a Triple Crown patch.

      NEXT POST: For my next post, however, I will take you back to Puerto Vallarta again and some really neat art!

      Posted in On the Road US, Outdoor Adventures | Tagged adventure travel, Elephant Back in the Mokelumne Wilderness, hiking on the PCT through the Mokelumne Wilderness, Mokelumne Wilderness, photogrphy, travel vlog, writing
    • A Beautiful Lake, Fires and Trees… The PCT though Mt. Lassen National Park

      Posted at 5:00 am by Curt Mekemson
      Dec 2nd
      Hiking the PCT is tough, no question about it. But the rewards are numerous. Lower Twin Lake was one such reward. I camped beside it on my hike through Mt. Lassen National Park.

      Today, I continue my ramble along the PCT. This time I will finish off my hike through Mt. Lassen National Park. I’ve been posting on our recent trip to Puerto Vallarta. There’s plenty more there, and lots left on the PCT. I intend to continue to mix my posts to provide a variety. And, of course, I am hard at work on my book about this past summer’s adventures and other tales from my 50 years of backpacking. My goal is to have something in hand when I attend the San Francisco Writer’s Conference in mid-February. 

      Lower Twin Lake was one of those places you don’t want to leave. I was fortunate to arrive in the afternoon and experience its evening and morning beauty before having to hike on. 

      Late afternoon. I came back to camp after this photo and found a chickaree sitting on my journal. I suspect he was more interested in my food than in reading what I had to say. He scurried up a tree and proceeded to scold me for interfering with his search.
      Early morning.
      The sun comes up. Note the mist rising off the lake where the sun was hitting it. I felt it was almost magical.

      Forest fires had devastated the east side of the park and I hiked for miles through the burned out area, which isn’t unusual for the PCT in these times. Global warming and draught has taken its toll on the west from California, through Oregon and on into Washington, making forests vulnerable. The horrendous Campfire that just caused so much loss of life and property in Paradise, California is one more example. 

      Mile after mile of land looked like this on the east side of the park. Not all is bad news, however. Nature is powerful and new growth is beginning to cover the area. This growth supports a substantial wildlife population.
      I found this scene beautiful in a threatening sort of way. Dark thunder clouds hovered above drought killed trees. Thunder was rolling across the sky and lightning was striking a nearby mountain. I counted, 1001, 1002…Reaching 1007 means the lightning is a mile away. Once I barely made it through 1001. There is good reason to fear being hit by lightning. There is even more reason to fear that it may cause a fire. These trees would light up like kindling.
      I often here the argument that thinning the trees, i.e. logging, is the solution to forest fires. Mainly it is used as an excuse for more logging. But the Collins Pine Company may actually have a solution. For one, it is committed to selective cutting, leaving a  healthy forest filled with a variety of trees. It also cleans out dead debris lying on the ground and uses the wood to create energy. The debris under the trees is one of the major reasons for devastating forest fires. A group of 50 or so forestry students from the University of California was in the area studying the company’s forest management practices when I hiked through.

      I love trees. Who doesn’t. Here are some of the beauties I found on my backpack trip through Lassen.

      I had lunch under this magnificent Jeffrey Pine.
      It’s bark resembles puzzle pieces. If you put your nose next to the bark on a warm day, you will be rewarded with a delightful smell of vanilla, or possibly pineapple.
      This is one of its gorgeous cones. An easy way to tell the difference between a Jeffrey Pine and a Ponderosa pine is you can pick up a Jeffrey pinecone without pricking you hand. Not so with a Ponderosa pinecone.
      The king of pinecones grows on the the sugar pine. Some of these giants were approaching 20 inches in length. You don’t want to be standing under a sugar pine when a squirrel is harvesting its cones! Pine nuts from a sugar pine are delicious, however, and easily cracked. Ask the squirrel.
      Sugar pines reach high into the sky and have wonderfully wild limbs.
      Unlike these two fir trees that were practicing close to perfect symmetry.
      Cedars also provide forest giants.
      Here’s a view looking up at the same tree. 

      I met lots of through hikers in Lassen Park. The halfway point between Mexico and Canada is just south of the park. Hikers needed to be in the area or through it when I was there if they hoped to complete their hike during the 2018 season.

      A stone left behind by Bohemian Jess near the town of Chester marked the halfway point on the PCT.
      I met Hillbilly when Peggy dropped me off at the trailhead. She enticed him over with an apple. He lived in North Carolina near the Appalachian Mountains that gave birth to the hillbilly name, but he was far from being one. His name was Bill and he lived in Chapel Hill. Thus the name. He owned a company that installed solar farms. Bill had already hiked the Appalachian and Colorado Mountain Trails. Like me, he preferred to camp alone, away from the noise and partying of younger hikers.
      There was no chance of escaping from trekkers at Boundary Springs. (So named because it is located on the southern boundary of the Park.) It was a major source of water. These three camped next to me, so Bone came out to visit with them. They were quite amused. From left to right their trail names were Too Slippery, Bottomless, and Bodhi. Slippery and Bottomless were friends from Truckee, CA. Bodhi was a meditating type of fellow.
      Shrek, Pepper, Bessie (the cow) and Chewy were also camped within about 30 feet. So, Bone had to visit them as well. I’d found Chewy looking for a lake where there wasn’t one, even though her map and a ranger had said there was. She had followed me down to the spring to get water.

      Here are a few other photos to wrap up my trip through this section of the PCT.

      A snag and a thunderhead.
      A closer look at the thunderhead.
      I found this fungus growing on a sawed log interesting.
      What the fungus looked like up close.
      A bee hung out among some thistles.
      A bear left his claw sign for me to see…
      You know you are in a National or State Park when walkways are built across swampy areas.
      This meadow reminded me that summer was nearing its end. So I will stop here for the day.

      NEXT POST: A very strange pelican. And some iguanas.

      Posted in MisAdventures, National Parks, On the Road US, Outdoor Adventures | Tagged adventure travel, Bessie, Bodhi, Bottomless, Collins Pine Company, Hiking the PCT at 75, Mt. Lassen National Park, Pepper, photography, though hikers Hillbilly, Too Slippery, travel blog
    • The Natchez Trace: A Bicyclist’s Paradise… The 10,000 Mile North American Bicycle Tour

      Posted at 5:00 am by Curt Mekemson
      Nov 19th

      The Natchez Trace between Natchez and Jackson Mississippi.

      I don’t think there is a place along the Natchez Trace that isn’t beautiful. I traveled on it for 370 miles of its 450 mile length.

      This is my fourth post introducing new followers to the type of tales they can find in my blog. Way back in 1989, I did a solo 10,000 mile bicycle tour of North America. While the journey predated blogging, Peggy and I retraced my route three years ago. Traveling out of California, we crossed the US following a southern route, went up the east coast into Canada, headed back west through Canada to Minnesota, and then finished our tour following a northern route back to California. This is a chance to visit much of North America and hear tales about my bike trek. Want more: Here’s a post from Canada. Scroll forward or backward for the rest of the story:  https://wandering-through-time-and-place.com/2016/09/28/

      A large, yellow mutt came wagging his way into my camp. I’d unpacked my gear, set up my tent, and taken off my shoes and socks. My toes were celebrating their freedom.

      “Well hello big fellow,” I said to the dog, glad for the company. He sat down beside me and worked his head under my hand, demanding that I scratch behind his ears. Then I was required to pet the rest of him. I had just worked my way down to his tail when he rolled over and insisted on equal treatment for his tummy.

      I provided an initial scratch but my coffee water had started boiling. “Priorities,” I told him, “the petting zoo is closed.” Apparently this meant it was play time. He leapt up, grabbed one of my socks, and bounced off about 15 feet.  “Hey! Bring that back,” I urged. Fat chance. He put the sock down, backed off a couple of feet, and started barking.

      I finished pouring the hot water into my coffee filter and got up, tiredly, to retrieve my sock. It had been an 80-mile day and I really didn’t want to play ‘chase the dog around the yard.’ I pretended that I didn’t care, that I wasn’t going for the sock, and that I was terribly interested in a large bullfrog that had taken up residence in the swimming pool. The pool hadn’t been cleaned since the previous summer. It made a great pond.

      The dog didn’t buy it. He dashed in, grabbed the sock and ran off across the yard. “Okay, you win,” I declared while picking up a stick. “How about a game of chase the stick?” The dog cocked his head and increased his wags per second. I tossed the stick and off he dashed, leaving my sock behind. I quickly bare-footed it across the lawn and grabbed my sock.

      “Ha, ha, Mr. Dog,” I called after him while waving the sock about enticingly. To compensate my new friend for his loss, I played tug-of-war with the stick. We growled at each other appropriately, all in good fun.

      It was early to bed. I had completed my trip from Alexandria by biking through the city of Natchez and was now camped about a mile from the beginning of the Natchez Trace.  I was eager to get up the next morning and start my 370-mile journey up the fabled Parkway through Mississippi and Alabama into Tennessee. As I zipped up my tent, the big yellow mutt did three dog turns outside the door and plopped down, making me wonder where his home was. I was hardly in a position to adopt a pet. Besides, he was well fed and wearing a dog tag.

      My last memory before going to sleep was of the bullfrog singing to his lady-love. “Chug-a-rum, chug-a-rum, chug-a-rum.”

      Downtown Natchez, Mississippi.

      Peggy and I drove through Natchez on a Sunday morning and pretty much had the historic section of the downtown to ourselves.

      Historic building with balcony in Natchez, Mississippi.

      This historic building in Natchez came with an attractive balcony.

      Downtown Natchez, Mississippi on a quiet Sunday.

      The colors captured my attention here.

      Old lamp posts adorn the historic part of Natchez.

      Old lamp posts adorn the historic part of Natchez.

      The city is known for its antebellum mansions.

      The city is known for its antebellum mansions.

      St. Mary's Catholic Church in downtown Natchez, Mississippi.

      St. Mary’s Catholic Church was busy with its Sunday service so I didn’t go inside.

      St. Mary's Catholic Church is located in downtown Natchez, Mississippi.

      It was quite impressive from the outside, however.

      Natchez has an interesting history. Once the site of a major Native American village, its initial contact with Europeans goes all the way back to Hernando de Soto in the mid 1500s. He wandered through the area searching for gold to steal, the primary occupation of Spanish Conquistadores. By the 1700s the French had entered the area followed by the British, the Spanish again, and finally, in 1795, the Americans. Native groups in the region included the Natchez, Chickasaw, Yazoo, Cherokee, and Creek, as well as the Choctaw further to the north.

      As for the Natchez Trace, its beginning goes back 10,000 years and was probably tied to buffalo travelling along ridges doing buffalo things. Since these broad, heavy animals make good trails (think of them as early day bulldozers), Native Americans were soon using the routes for trade and travel between large communities.

      The next stage in the Trace’s evolution was brought about by river trade in the late 1700s and early 1800s. Kaintucks, boatmen from the Ohio and Mississippi River Valleys, loaded flatboats with merchandise and paddled downstream to Natchez or New Orleans where they made handsome profits for their goods. The challenge was that you don’t row a boat up the mighty Mississippi. The boatmen had to hike or ride horses home. They sold their boats as lumber and made their way back to Nashville via the Natchez Trace

      It was an adventure. There is a reason why the Trace became known as The Devil’s Backbone. It was crawling with highway men eager to separate the Kaintucks from their newly earned wealth. And that assumes that they could even get their money out of Natchez where cheap whiskey cost a fortune, hot love was based on cold cash, and cut-throats came by the bushel.

      The development of steamboats in the 1820s changed things dramatically. These boats with their large, steam-driven paddle wheels could travel upriver. Boatman no longer had to hike or ride horses back to Nashville while fighting off thieves.  Gradually, people stopped using the Trace and it faded from memory.  But not totally.

      In 1903, the Mississippi chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution took on a project of placing markers along the original route. In 1918 the precursor to the Natchez Trace Association was created with the rallying cry of “Pave the Trace!” Work on the Parkway was started in 1937 and in 1938 it became a unit of the National Park system.

      When I rode my bike out of Natchez in the spring of 1989, the Trace was mainly complete and had become something of a bicyclists’ paradise. (Today it is considered one of the top ten bike rides in America.)   To start with, there was no commercial traffic. No 18 wheelers would be whizzing by me. Nor were there any commercial properties or billboards, just lots of beautiful woods and small farms. Campgrounds and restrooms were located conveniently along the way.  Frequent rest stops featured local history. I was free to ride along and enjoy the scenery.

      But I did have two responsibilities. The first was to persuade the large, yellow mutt that he wasn’t going with me. It started with a discussion in camp that I thought he had understood. Where I was going was dangerous for doggies. It was dangerous enough for me. About a mile from camp I chanced to look back, there he was, about 50 yards back. I stopped and waited for him to catch up, all a waggle. “No!” I said forcefully. “You cannot go. Go Home!” The tail stopped wagging. Two sad brown eyes accused me of horrendous deeds. Ever so slowly, he turned around and started back, tail between his legs. I felt terrible.

      The second chore was more pleasant— rescuing baby turtles. Bunches were migrating across the Trace outside of Natchez. Each time I came on a crowd, I would stop, climb off my bike, and give the little tykes a lift across the pavement. I knew that there would be more coming along behind but I must have transported at least a hundred,undoubtedly saving them from being run over.

      Following are several photos of the Trace from Natchez to Jackson, Mississippi that I took during the route review Peggy and I did this past spring.  In my next blog we will make a slight detour to the town of Philadelphia, Mississippi where a good friend lives and then head up the Trace to Tupelo and visit with Elvis.

      Views along the Trace were constantly changing from being forested to open.

      Views along the Trace were constantly changing from being forested to open.

      Pine trees became common around Jackson, Mississippi.

      Pine trees became common around Jackson, Mississippi.

      Rich farmlands border some of the Trace.

      Rich farmlands border some of the Trace.

      There are a number of barns.

      There are a number of barns.

      These trees had yet to leaf out.

      These trees were just beginning to leaf out. I enjoyed the silhouettes they created.

      Numerous exhibits featuring the history of the Trace provide interesting breaks along the way.

      Numerous exhibits featuring the history of the Trace provide interesting breaks along the way.

      A number of the stops, like this one, include original sections of the trail.

      A number of the stops, like this one, include original sections of the trail.

      The Park has also rebuilt traditional fences that the pioneers who lived along the Trace would have built.

      The Park has also rebuilt traditional fences similar to ones that the pioneers who lived along the Trace would have built.

      A final view of the Trace for today. Many more will be included in my next three blogs.

      A final view of the Trace for today. Many more will be included in my next three blogs.

       

       

      Posted in Memoirs, National Parks, On the Road US, Outdoor Adventures | Tagged adventure travel, Bicycling in Mississippi, Bicycling the Natchez Trace, Natchez Mississippi, Natchez Trace, North America Bike Tour, photography, travel, writing
    • The Beautiful Temples of Black Rock City… A Burning Man Experience

      Posted at 5:00 am by Curt Mekemson
      Nov 16th

      This is the Temple of Promise from Burning Man 2015, a simple and beautiful structure designed to capture the early morning sun.

       

      This is the second in my series of introducing new followers to the type of posts they can expect to find on my blog. Since I’ve been going to Burning Man since 2004, there are numerous posts on the annual event that takes place annually in the Nevada desert. Over the years, my primary focus has been on the art, but I touch on all aspects of the event. Here, I take a look at the beautiful temples that are built each year and then burned at the end of the event. If you would like to see more of my posts on this unique extravaganza, go to mu Burning Man category on the right, click on it, and scroll down. Enjoy!

      Census figures from Burning Man show that 71% of the participants claim to have no formal religious affiliation. Given this, it might seem strange that a temple is one of the major structures built in Black Rock City each year. But there is another factor at work here; over 50% of Burners claim that they are spiritual. While they may not adhere to any particular religious doctrine, they believe that they are part of a whole that is beyond any individual’s existence. Or, at least, that’s how I interpret being spiritual. It’s how I feel.

      Whatever Burners believe, there is no doubt that visiting the temple can be a spiritual experience. In addition to being a place of beauty, as I hope the photos in this post show, the Temple is a place where 10,000’s of messages are left honoring loved ones who have passed on, asking forgiveness and expressing thanks. At the end of the week, the Temple is burned and the messages drift off into the air or, the Heavens if you prefer, giving a sense of peace to those who have left them.

      Part of a larger structure, this temple was built in 2007 and was known as the Temple of Forgiveness.

      This was the 2008 Temple. (Photo by Ken Lake.)

      The curving wood on top of the Fire of Fires Temple reflected flames shooting into the sky. Note the intricate detail on the side panels.

      A close up.

      The Fire of Fires Temple at night. (Photo by Don Green.)

      The Temple of Flux represented the constant change we experience in life. It can be seen as waves or as sand dunes. This photo was taken from the Man. The Center Camp Cafe, the Man, and the Temple are always in a direct line. The buildings on the other side represented a city.

      Tom likes to get up early in the morning for his photography. He captured this photo of the Temple of Juno at sunrise. (Photo by Tom Lovering.)

      Here’s another. (Photo by Tom Lovering.)

      A later photo by me showing detail of the Temple of Juno.

      The Temple of Whollyness resembled a Pyramid.

      This large stone structure was inside the Temple of Whollyness.

      The Temple of Grace was built for the 2014 Burning Man.

      I liked this shot I caught of its spire under butter milk skies.

      The Temple of Grace at night. (Photo by Don Green.)

      Another photo of the Temple of Promise. I had taken Tom’s advice and rolled out early to capture these photos.

      As the sun came up, Burners grabbed each other’s hands and formed a large circle around the Temple. The act was totally spontaneous.

      A black and white I created.

      Inside the Temple.

      As I mentioned, thousands of messages are placed on the walls. By Saturday, there is little room to write on left within reach.

      I found this message left behind honoring Uno Hogan quite touching. I think you will as well. It is quite typical of messages found in the temple.

      And this message humorous but sincerely meant!

      The Temples are always burned on Sunday night, the last night at Burning Man, in a solemn and moving ceremony with the thousands of messages sent skyward. This is the Temple of Juno.

      A note on the photographers: All photos that I include in the Burning Man blogs are taken by Peggy, me, or members of the Horse Bone Tribe— all close friends who have traveled and adventured with us down through the years.

      NEXT BLOGS:

      Monday: Back to Bandon on the coast of Oregon.

      Wednesday: I begin my story of how Bone was found.

      Friday: I continue my exploration of the unique and beautiful structures at Burning Man.

       

      Posted in Burning Man, On the Road US | Tagged Black Rock City, Burning Man, photography, the temples of Burning Man, travel blog
    • An Active Volcano and an Interesting Bush… Hiking the PCT through Mt. Lassen National Park

      Posted at 11:57 am by Curt Mekemson
      Nov 7th
      The Pacific Crest Trail wanders along the east side of Lassen National Park and provides limited views of the mountain. I took this photo from the PCT south of the park boundary.

      Section N of the PCT includes Mt. Lassen National Park. This series includes portions of the trail leading into and out of the Park as well as the Park. Unfortunately, the PCT passes through the eastern side of Lassen and misses some of the Park’s more impressive features. I was lucky to have Peggy exploring the Park from the road while I hiked the trail, so this post will feature photographs from both of us.

      In 1988, I led a backpack trek in Mt. Lassen National Park to honor my old friend Orvis Agee. His family lived near the mountain and he had been working outside on the family ranch when it erupted on May 22, 1915. He was an impressionable 12-year-old. Fifty-eight years later when Orvis joined me on the first hundred-mile backpack trip I led in 1974, the memory was still fresh in his mind.

      By the end of that trek, Orvis had become an inspiration for me on what older people can accomplish— and a friend. He proved that an active lifestyle doesn’t have to end at 60, or 70, or even 80, assuming you are healthy. In 1980, Orvis took me to the top of the top of the nearby 14,180 foot Mt. Shasta, a mountain he had climbed many times starting at age 60. He made his 30th and final ascent at 85. He went on his last backpack trek with me at 87! Peggy was along on that week-long expedition. We had just started our relationship and it was her first long distant trek. Given how much I enjoyed backpacking and liked Peggy, I really wanted her to enjoy the experience. I figured that hiking with Orvis would help. It did. As she noted to me later, “It’s really hard to complain when an 87-year-old cheerfully hikes down the trail beside you and sings “Wake Up Little Buttercup” to you in the morning.” Indeed.

      Mt. Lassen sits near the southern end of the Cascade Range, a volcanic chain of mountains that reaches from Northern California into British Columbia. It is one of only two mountains that erupted in the contiguous United States during the 20th Century. Mt. St. Helens was the other. (I flew over Mt. St. Helens shortly after it had erupted and was amazed by the devastation.) Lassen, still active, serves as a laboratory for volcanologists and is closely monitored. Oceanic plates diving under the continents and islands around the Pacific Ocean assure continuing volcanic activity, not only for Lassen, but for volcanos all around the Pacific Rim.

      Peggy, who was driving along the road through the park, had closer views of the mountain than I did. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
      She planned on hiking to the top of the mountain but was concerned that she might miss me coming out at Chester. I promised her we would climb the mountain for her 70th birthday. The trail up is visible on the lower right. I climbed the mountain the year I led the Trek through the park. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
      This photo of the mountain was taken when Peggy and I had visited the park earlier.
      As was this impressionistic reflection shot.
      I really liked this meadow shot that Peggy caught. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
      Mt. Lassen sits in the caldera of was once a much larger Mt. Tahama. The large rock points toward what was once the edge of the mountain. Picture a line following the ridge and stretching off to the left. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
      The power of the 1915 eruption was such that it blew out huge boulders and started a major a avalanche that carried boulders like these far from the volcano. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
      A number of other geologic features common to volcanic areas, such as this boiling mud pot at the Sulphur Works, are located in the park. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
      This colorful hill was located above the mud pot at the Sulphur Works. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

      I found the Manzanita roots along the PCT near Mt. Lassen strange enough to feature on my Halloween post. Today, I want to focus on the rest of the plant. I was raised in what is known as the chaparral belt of the Sierra foothills where manzanita is common. As kids, we went on outings to gather the large mushrooms that grew under the bushes in a symbiotic relationship with their roots. It was like a treasure hunt.We’d bring the mushrooms home, slice them up, and then dry them on the woodstove that heated our house. My mother then added them to a number of dishes like spaghetti and beef stroganoff where they contributed their unique flavor and texture.

      Our property in Southern Oregon also includes a number of manzanita bushes, but I have yet to find mushrooms under them. One of the bushes grows just outside our backdoor. Deer like to bed down near it, which seems a little strange since it features a deer skull. Peggy had found a dead deer on the road near our house, victim of an unfortunate encounter with a car. She decided that it would be interesting to cut off its head, bring it up to our yard, and let nature (translate maggots) clean it off. (Think of it as a scientific experiment.) When I had appeared reluctant to carry out the chore, she had persuaded a deer-hunting neighbor to do it, paying him with a can of beer and a Peggy-smile.

      Our manzanita brush with the deer skull. Note the smooth bark.
      The deer I disturbed when I went outside to take a photo of the bush and skull. She was not happy with me interrupting her snooze.
      Ripe manzanita berries covered the bush. These are quite edible. (I consumed many as a kid for their sweet taste.) Judging from the berry-filled scat in our neighborhood, the local fox population is enjoying the berries now.
      When I hiked the PCT through the Mt. Lassen area, the berries were still green. It’s easy to see how manzanita, which means little apple, got its name.

      The plant is sturdy and can be quite beautiful with its entangled limbs and smooth, skin-like bark. It is often used in decorations. I found the dead bushes along the PCT l particularly striking.

      A dead bush draped across a boulder rendered in black and white.
      A dead bush set off by live manzanita.
      I will conclude today’s post with this rather dramatic bush.

      Peggy and I are on our way to Mexico for three weeks, so my posts on the trip down the PCT will be put on hold until I return. My plan is to feature some older posts, which will give followers a perspective on the variety of subjects they can find on my blog that I have covered over the past ten years.

      Posted in MisAdventures, National Parks, On the Road US | Tagged Hiking down the PCT at 75, Hiking on the PCT through Mt. Lassen National Park, Mt. Lassen National Park, photograpy, travel blog, writing
    • Growl! Mmmm. Me Like Carpenter Ants… Bears along the PCT in Mt. Lassen National Park

      Posted at 4:39 pm by Curt Mekemson
      Nov 2nd
      Peggy was lucky to be on the scene when a large sow tore apart a log searching for carpenter ants in Mt. Lassen National Park. Claws firmly sunk into the rotting log, she used her weight to rip help open the dead tree. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

      I began seeing a lot of bear sign as I hiked along the Pacific Crest Trail through Mt. Lassen National Park. There were the usual large piles of poop and trees had the tell-tale claw marks of bears chatting with other bears. The trees also provided bears with a great back rub. The effort helps remove winter coats and I’m pretty sure feels as good as it does to us when we get out back rubbed or scratched. It also provides the opportunity to leave a scent mark behind, a sort of personal wilderness want ad. “Large male seeks one night stand with attractive female. Don’t expect me to stick around and help raise the kids. In fact, I might eat them.” Doesn’t seem like the ideal qualities you would want in a mate, but it seems to work.

      I also found a number of rotting logs torn apart along the trail. Black bears have a real taste for carpenter ants. “Sweet meat,” like my students of long ago in West Africa used to say about termites. And maybe carpenter ants are sweet. While they are known for tunneling through wood with all the enthusiasm of a chainsaw, they don’t actually eat the wood. They are dairy farmers. They raise and milk aphids for the sugary honey-dew they secrete by stroking them with their antennae.  “Come on sweetie, give it up.” Naturally they eat other things, like dead insects. They will surround the bug, suck out its juices and then return to their nest with full tummies to share. I read that they sometimes carry the head with them. (I can see them marching in and placing it at the feet of the queen. I wonder if they have a trophy room.) Like other ants, they inevitably find the shortest path back to their nest and mark the path with pheromones which other ants can follow. Big bugs can attract lots of ants, which means more pheromones, which means more ants. It can become quite the mob scene.

      Carpenter ants build amazing labyrinths in dead trees. (Or possibly your house.) If I had to build a maze, I think I would hire these guys to plan it out.
      They don’t eat the wood, however. They carefully dump it outside as the ant on the right is doing. More ants can be seen in the crevice to the left and right of the ant. (My nephew Jay Dallen took this photo on his iPhone when we were hiking from Etna Summit to Castle Crags.)
      I found this log torn apart by a bear as I hiked down the PCT through Mt. Lassen National Park. Off to the right you can see a pile of sawdust that the ants have deposited. Normally a pile of sawdust like this would suggest that somebody has been working with a saw. 
      Here’s another log I found along the trail that had been opened up by a bear. These guys go after a log like a six-year-old goes after a Christmas present.

      But back to the bears. I dearly wanted to see a bear tearing into a carpenter ant nest.  I didn’t even see a bear. Peggy who was driving around the park and checking out hiking trails while I was making my way along the PCT, had much more luck. She not only saw a mom and her cubs, she saw them ripping into a carpenter ant nest and took photos. When the bear and her cubs finished their meal, and started walking toward her, she made a rapid retreat to our small RV! Smart woman.

      When mom had finished tearing open the log, she was joined by her two cubs. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
      One of the cubs snacked on a few ants while mom patiently watched. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
      They then let mom have her fill. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
      It even appeared that they were standing guard. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
      They finished their feast and then started walking toward where Peggy was taking photographs. She decided it was time to get back in the van! (Quick photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

      When it comes to food, a black bear is an Omnivore’s omnivore,an opportunistic eater that consumes everything from insects to plants to carrion to any fresh meat it catches— although the latter rarely includes humans. As one of my trekking friends used to say, “If bears wanted to eat people, they’d move into towns where there are lots of people to eat.”  Bears, like other members of the animal kingdom, have learned that puny humans are nasty animals with a penchant for killing; they are best to be avoided. They have developed a taste for human food, however. Trash cans are a frequent target. We know. Our property in Southern Oregon backs up to a million acres of national forest. There are lots of bears. Once, one attacked the heavy Weber grill that lives on our back porch and turned it over.  As it came crashing down, my daughter, who was sleeping in the bedroom next to the porch, screamed,“Curtis!” It’s an appeal for help I’d heard before. Bears are also fond of backpacker’s food.

      They would occasionally drop by our camp for a bite when I was leading hundred-mile backpack trips up and down the Sierra’s in the 70s, 80s and 90s, especially when I was any where in the vicinity of Yosemite. It wasn’t unusual for a trekker to yell my name on his or her first sighting of a bear up close. I spent a lot of time teaching people how to chase bears out of camp and hang their food in trees so the bears wouldn’t get it. We weren’t always successful.  The food bag is supposed to be at least 12 feet up in the air and 9 feet out from the tree hanging from a limb that is just large enough to hold your food. Otherwise, Mom might send her kids up to crawl out the limb and chew through the rope. One food bag is counterbalanced with another food bag and no ropes are left dangling. Bears are smart and I am convinced that they have a university near Yosemite where they teach their cubs how to outsmart backpackers.

      Today, there are bear canisters that are made of heavy duty plastic or carbon that are theoretically bear proof. They are tested by filling them with strong smelling goodies and tossing them into the cage of a hungry bear that has developed a taste for backpacking food. If the canister survives for an hour, it is given the seal of approval. Now days, when you backpack through Yosemite National Park or down the John Muir Trail, you are required to carry one. Just recently, the same policy was adopted for Mt. Lassen National Park. So, I was carrying one.

      The good news about canisters is that they work. Bears are broken of the habit of eating backpackers’ food and go back to eating much healthier food, like maggots and ants. Backpackers are given the peace of mind of knowing that they will be able to make breakfast, lunch and dinner the next day. The bad news is that the canisters are heavy and awkward. They add two to four pounds of weight and are hard to fit into a pack along with other essential equipment. While the folks in charge of protecting our wildlands and their inhabitants would like to see backpackers use canisters all the time, it won’t happen until these problems are addressed.

      NEXT POST on hiking the Pacific Crest Trail through Mt. Lassen National Park: When the mountain blew its top, there is more to manzanita than scary roots, and a gorgeous lake struts its stuff.

      Posted in MisAdventures, National Parks, On the Road US, Outdoor Adventures | Tagged Adventure Travel Blog, bears eating ants, bears eating carpenter ants, bears in Mt. Lassen National Park, food bears eat, hiking the PCT through Lassen National Park, Mt. Lassen National Park, travel blog, writing
    • Mt. Lassen National Park— A Spooky Kind of Place along the PCT… Happy Halloween

      Posted at 5:00 am by Curt Mekemson
      Oct 27th
      What’s more scary than a spooky face staring at you from the ground? Imagine your flashlight picking this up at night when you are out in the woods alone? For the more scientifically inclined among you, this is a manzanita root.

      I hardly imagined that backpacking through Mt. Lassen National Park on my hike down the Pacific Coast Trail this summer would provide me with inspiration for my annual Halloween post— but I had never had an up-close-and-personal encounter with manzanita roots. Trail crews, rerouting the PCT as it approached the Park from the north, had dug up the roots and left them beside the path. 

      I often include photos of faces from nature in my blog. And most of these are a bit on the strange side. (“Like you,” I am sure my wife Peggy would point out.) Maybe. My imagination works overtime when I am out in the woods and I can’t resist pulling out my camera when I spot eyes staring back at me from trees, rocks and clouds. They appeal to the animist in me. Plus they are an excuse to stop on long, tough hiking days.

      In addition to the roots, I’ve included a couple of other photos from Lassen with Halloween potential and a few other ‘faces’ from my three month backpack trip. Some of these I have included before. Enjoy!

      Imagine, if you will, clawed fingers reaching up from the grave, ready to grab unsuspecting hikers.
      Dark, vacant eyes staring at you are stock in trade for horror film flicks.
      More eyes. Maybe the skull of that silent killer of the night: The owl.
      Scrooge McDuck’s nemesis, the ghost duck of Halloween past.

      Dead trees are also mood setters for Halloween and horror movies. Here are a couple of many I captured in Lassen.

      A lone. dead tree standing on the horizon with grasping fingers is an excellent place to plant a grave.
      Scary music, dark, threatening skies, and dead trees: a perfect combination for Halloween night. What monster lurks in the shadows, prepared to leap out from behind a tree, and carry you off to a world filled with zombies and blood thirsty vampires.

      And to conclude today’s post for Halloween, a few photos from other faces along the trail, some of which I have included before.

      A large eye and a silent scream suggests I frightened this woodland creature peering out at me while half hidden. Am I that scary?
      Not so scary but somehow threatening.
      And finally, this rather grotesque character with his pointed head, dark eyes, skinny nose and large jowls. Vey scary indeed!

      HAPPY HALLOWEEN FROM PEGGY AND ME.

      Next Post: Back to hiking through Lassen National Park on the PCT. 

      Posted in National Parks, On the Road US, Outdoor Adventures | Tagged adventure travel, Hiking on the PCT at 75, photography, travel blog, writing
    • Fall Colors at Lithia Park in Southern Oregon… and the BSBC

      Posted at 7:48 pm by Curt Mekemson
      Oct 23rd
      In Southern Oregon, it is hard to beat Ashland’s Lithia Park for fall colors. 

      It’s that time when I like to do a post on the fall colors around our home in Southern Oregon. This year, Peggy and I, along with members of the Bigger Sacramento Book Club, drove over to Lithia Park in Ashland for a picnic.

      The Bigger Sacramento Book Club at Lithia Park.

      The BSBC was created in the late 80s by my friend Ken Lake and was soon composed of five couples. The same couples belong today but ‘Bigger Sacramento’ now includes Southern Oregon, the Bay Area, and France as well as Sacramento! This year marks our 30th Anniversary. Each fall, the BSBC visits our house for a three day retreat. 

      We chose to visit Ashland because our book, Meet Your Baker by Ellie Alexander, is based in the town. Lithia Park, it turns out, was awash in fall colors. After lunch, we walked into town to visit the Mix Bakery in honor of the book and wandered up to the Bloomsbury Bookstore, which is always a delight and makes a pleasant outing for a book club. 

      The Duck Pond backs up to the outdoor theater for Ashland’s world famous Shakespeare Festival. The roof can be seen through brightly colored trees.
      Reflected fall colors surrounded this duck crossing the pond like an Impressionist painting. Monet would have been jealous.
      I think the majority of trees in the park must have been chosen for their fall colors as the following photos illustrate.
      A bridge across Lithia Creek.
      Looking down into the creek.
      The Mix Bakery was used by Ellie Alexander as the model for her Ashland Bakery in her series. I found the reflections in the window fun. 
      Mouth watering goodies are found inside…
      Along with fresh bread.
      The town, as well as Lithia Park, was filled with fall color
      Walking up to the Bloomsbury Bookstore took us past the iconic Ashland Hotel, which hosts an annual chocolate festival guaranteed to get Peggy excited.
      Walking past a store window, I spotted this cat, apparently fascinated with an insect that had landed on the window…
      Which provided the opportunity for this close-up.
      I’ll close today with a photo from our front yard. Our white oaks don’t have quite the color of the trees in Lithia park, but they are definitely looking like fall.

      NEXT POST: It’s back to my hike down the PCT and a stroll through Lassen National Park.

      Posted in On the Road US | Tagged Ashland Oregon, fall colors in Southern Oregon, Lithia Park in Ashland Oregon, photography, travel blog
    • Backpacking up Mountains in 100 Degree Plus Weather from Castle Crags to Burney Falls on the PCT

      Posted at 8:33 pm by Curt Mekemson
      Oct 16th

      I thought a lot about the cool water of Burney Falls as I backpacked the second half of my trip from Castle Crags to the falls. Temperatures were in the 90s and then surpassed 100! (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

      The Pacific Crest Trail from Castle Crags to Burney Falls is known for being hot in the summer. I was hoping to avoid such weather. No such luck. At least it waited until my last three days to break 100 F (37.7 C). Then it became a scorcher. Many through-hikers chose to hike early in the morning and late in the evening, hiding out during the hot part of the day. But I trudged on. I needed full days to make it out when I told Peggy I would. Following are a few photos from the trail. 

      Having climbed 10-12 miles to get out of the McCloud River Canyon, I was treated to views of Grizzly Peak. Billowing cumulous clouds spoke of the coming heat.
      Similar clouds were hanging over Mt. Shasta. This would be one of my last views of the spectacular mountain. I had been enjoying it and photographing it since I had began my trek at Mt. Ashland.
      Appropriately, I found some Shasta Daisies beside the trail.
      Much of my time over the next three days would be spent hiking ridges with great views into the canyons. This is Devil’s Canyon. My guess is that the person who named it tried to hike out on a 110 degree F day. Don’t let the pretty trees fool you; it’s Dante’s Inferno! (grin)
      I was now hiking through the volcanic Cascade Mountain Range that runs from Northern California to the Canadian Border. I would be treated to numerous views of volcanic landscapes, such as this eroded lava.
      I was intrigued by these volcanic rocks that were outlined on the ridge.
      And these. They looked like a small village.
      A fir tree helped set this rock off.
      Flowers, such as this Indian Paint Brush, helped take my mind off the heat and long days.
      As did  this striking fellow.
      I also found some strange manzanita roots to entertain myself with. (There will be a lot more in my next post on Lassen National Park.)
      As always, there were interesting through-hikers to stop and chat with. This couple, Smile and Hamster, had found a phone signal and were signing up for fall college courses in Germany.
      I’ve already introduced Popcorn! with an exclamation point the end of her trail name. She’s the one who suggested to me that rubbing pine needles all over your clothes made a great deodorant. 
      Patch was carrying a message from Peggy, letting me know that she had changed the location where she would meet me. Peggy had bribed him with food. (grin) 12 more through hikers would give me the same message. Peggy was making sure I wouldn’t miss her!
      On the third day, I concluded my 15 miles by 2 PM. Peggy was waiting and had as many tales to tell as I did. That evening she shared the photos that she had taken, including this one of Burney Falls. I’ll conclude here. My next post will take us into Lassen National Park.
      Posted in On the Road US, Outdoor Adventures | Tagged Burney Falls, Hiking on the PCT at 75, McCloud River, photography, travel adventure, travel blog
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