Wild, Wild, West

Well we finally nailed the trip I had been scheming for some time. Two weeks in Utah and Colorado. The first week was spent kayaking Canyonlands National Park and the second was spent mountain biking various epic mountain trails.

For the Kayak part, my son, Jake and I drove our vehicles west. We were joined by Jill and Jeff, two fellow SKOAC kayak buddies. I had the Trailblazer with the SKOAC trailer and 4 kayaks and Jake had his Jetta TDI. We had a fabulous trip just getting there. We met and stayed with Jill’s friends, hiked, 

 

 

 

 

hit a brew pub and saw Brandi Carlisle at Red Rocks. From there we traveled through the Rockies to pick up Jan at the Grand Junction airport.

Then our bigger adventure began. Tex’s Riverways shuttled us to the top of Canyonlands National Park. They dropped us in at the Mineral Bottoms on the Green River. We spent the next 5 days paddling and floating the river on down to the Colorado River. We saw a good amount of wild life and the like with fresh cat prints on our sand bar the night Jake slept out under the stars. Floating the canyons of the Green river was quite a sight. The outfitter cautioned us about the wind and we did get some sand blasting at times. It was also hot, with 105 in the shade and 84 in the water. We spent some quality lounging time in the water. Spotting Anasazi cliff dwelling on the cliff as we floated by was quite a thrill. When we got to the Colorado R., Tex’s jet boat came to pick us up. They strapped our boats to the upper rack and jetted us at 35 mph up the Colorado. Kayak Pictures.

The kayakers all headed home and three mountain bike buddies, Mike, Matt and Joe joined me at Fruta CO. We biked Fruta, Moab’s Slick Rock, Phil’s World in Cortez CO and spent a number of days biking the epic Durango area. My cousin Mike put us up for the week and Mike and Meg were fabulous hosts. We did two - two car shuttle rides where we put one car at the lower elevation and the other hauled us all to the top of the mountain. We did Hermosa/Dutch creek and Engineer Mountain with this method. We spent one day at Mesa Verde doing the tourist thing and saw some serious cliff dwellings. Mtb Pictures.

QOD: The Creative Adult is the Child that survived. Ursula K. Le Guin

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Sept 2012, Slice and Dice

Late posting of previous work: With the help of my bro n law, Jim we got the next kayak out of Chequamegon forest (actually, the family's north forty section of the Chequamegon National Forest). Jim brought up his new four wheeler and that worked quite well to get the two smaller Cedars out of the tall trees but the big log, destined to be the next kayak was a little more than she could handle.

We used a come-a-long to slowly drag the log from where she was laying for the last year. We put small rollers under the log for easier rolling and used 3-4 chains to lash trees to hook the come a long to. We had to drag the log 100 yards to get to the point where we could reach the chains with the old Toyota pickup. It took two runs with the Toyota to get the log up from behind the shit house to the top of the lawn. We dragged the log under a tall Maple, lifted one end with the come a long and backed the boat trailer under the log. My 17 ft fiberglass Four Winns weighs quite a bit so it's trailer should have been able to handle it quite well but I was still very nervous. I was sweating it during every one of the 245 miles back to Mpls.

I was pretty proud to use my own chain saw lumber mill to make Jan's kayak but I was determined to not waste so much wood this time. I went onto the WoodMizer web site and also did a Craig's List search for people who owned band saw lumber mills. I found one guy who called me after I had the tree already cut up and said that his minimum was $210 and would charge $0.50/mile from St. Cloud. I found two other guys who could not handle a 25 ft log but the guy who did the cutting only charged me $49 for the whole log. I gave him a good tip.

The WoodMizer was gas powered and computer controlled. It took the WoodMizer only 35 seconds to cut the 22 ft length and it barely left any saw dust! I had him cut the boards a full 1 inch to leave some room for plaining but it cut so smooth the boards hardly need any it. If you are interested, leave me a note and I'll gladly give you his details. He can bring the saw mill to your site to do the plaining.

The kayak is now under my shed roof, sitting on blocks with wood strips separating the planks. I hope to start work on my last boat next August.

QOD: From the book: Tour de France by Graham Watson: About a week after my return to England, I was going smoothly  at a fair pace to the top of Highgate West Hill, that evil little pimple whose gradient sprang to mind in the first ramp of l’Alpe d’Huez, when a paunchy, oldish man on the far pavement yells: “Push harder on the pedals.” No hint of a smile or cheer of encouragement. In France they shout – pedestrians or cyclists, it make no difference – Allez’ Courage!

The Epic 2012 Sauna Tour

It was a fabulous all around trip. A great experience.
More details to follow.

Pics

12-Feb-2012, My New Avatar

This space reserved for the discussion on my bitch'n avatar.

Third Time's a Charm

Not that I have any regrets with the first two yaks. The first kayak plan was chosen to get the biggest boat, that would hold the most gear and allow me to go on longer expeditions. Savor Diem. The plans were from One Ocean and they were of the Cape Ann Expedition. I can't say enough about the great web site that Vaclav Stejskal created for the benefit of all. He teaches boat building, tests materials, recommends material supplier, etc. If you buy the plans he has ever more details on building a fine craft.


The boat I built for Jan definitely needed to be smaller. For this I wanted to try a different company so I went with Guillemot and bought the plans for the Guillemot S. The S plans create a boat that is very stable and can keep me from getting too nervous when Jan or my daughters get in to tall seas.

The next one will be more a model of speed, agility and efficiency (at least I will have to learn how to pack more efficiently). I have not bought plans yet but I'm thinking that the Gillemot Night Heron.

The boat building for number III started on 11-Nov-2011 when we went to the family cabin and cut down a few White Cedar trees. I was looking for one tree (first Picture) that would do it but the best tree was going to be hung up by another tree (second picture-with my son Jake, at the saw). We actually had to cut a third tree down to get the trees to fall. There was more dry rot in the center of the trees than I would have like but not much you can do about that. Between three trees and maybe this time using a band saw lumber mill, I might get enough good boards. Last time I used a chain saw lumber mill I made for my dad's 20" Homelite chain saw. It worked well but wasted a lot of wood.

QOD: That which we persist in doing becomes easier, not that the task itself has become easier, but that our ability to perform it has improved. Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882).

Colorado 2011 Catch and Release Hunt

Had a fabulous Elk Hunt for two weeks in Colorado. I got into more Elk than in any of my previous trips. The high (and low) of the trip was calling in a nice size Bull, standing broadside at 30 yrds and then throwing an arrow over his back. The only explanation I can come up with was that I grabbed the 50 yd pin instead of the 30 yrd pin. I later removed the 50 and 60 yd pins from my bow.

Other Highs and Lows

- The next day, being surrounded by 7+ Elk with the heard bull's basting-bugle, echoing throughout the valley as he came my way. Calling didn't bring the heard in but one satellite bull circled way around me and then winded me at 18 yds.

- Another day, stalked another (or the same) group of Elk, that had a bull calling until 11:30AM but the swirling winds did me in.
- Snow at 10k ft

- Camping for 7 days at 10,250 ft. Three trips to the spike camp: 2 days, 3 days and 2 days. I Love that Exped down filled air mattress, slept like a baby.

- 11 Trucks at the trail head but none found their way to me so I had my camping/hunting area all to myself.

- Leaving my tent and some gear, not fearing for someone messing with it, but when I arrived, I found one of the free range cattle standing ON my tent. I got hoof prints 3' up the side of the rain fly. No damage though.

- Awesome mountain bike trail: Phil's World near Cortez Colorado, with a mile or two of great blasting down hill roller coasters and jumps running down a draw. Also hit the Lunch Trails south of Grand Junction.

- Getting 24.7 mpg with the Trailblazer.

- Meeting Eddie Howard again. A guy who has gotten 18 Elk and has been hunting 34 yrs in this area. Stopped into his condo that he rented for the month and compared hunting stories.

Pictures

QOD: "What if we choose the wrong religon? Each week we just make God madder and madder." Matt Groening (1954-)

Later/SavorDiem/Lg

The Newbie Weekend

It was a fabulous weekend for new members of the; Paddled Superior Club. For Jan, it was her 4 time paddling and camping on the big water, for Sebra, it was her third time on the water, first time camping and for Maria it was the first for both.

Maria, Matt, Jan and I car pooled up on Thurs and camped at the Herbster beach side CG on Thurs PM. The next day, Breakfast at Bayfield and then we paddled past the sea stack on Basswood to Hermit for a lunch break on the warm pebble beach. Swimming started immediately. Then we headed to camp site No. 20 on Stockton Is. Great Beach as was shown by the number of boats moored there. Sebra and Aras joined us about 9:30 PM. I liked the beach especially the neighbors clothing optional program.

The next day it was off to Oak site 2 near the dock, the rangers station and the group site with the Boy Scouts. Still a great site. Did get some rain but that didn't stop Aras and Sebra from hiking to the other group site. On Sunday Maria and Matt got in an early run to the cliffs on the north side of the island.

Sunday morning we paddled across to the main land to visit Sebra's Buddy's parents land. They own 80 acres along the shore and shared some interesting details about the land, the neighbors and the area.

We had great smooth water, bright sun and evening fires both nights. A fabulous trip for getting an intro to Superior and the islands. The trip went too fast but maybe left some yearning for a return.

See Links to Photos:
Aras Photos

Jan & Lloyd's

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QOD: You don't get anything clean without getting something else dirty. Cecil Baxter

Molly's Epic Adventure

Molly, winning her Environmental Science degree from NDSU, was deserving a adventure. Lake Superior and the Circle Tour supplied such an adventure. We started on 23-May, late in the day and made it to Split Rock State Park. This is a place where my ~70 yr old dad wanted to jump the fence when we stopped one time on the way to the BWCA many years ago (roll reversal, I talked him out of it). After sunrise and tea on the shore, Molly and I paddled under the lighthouse to get a view that the paying crowd could not enjoy.
The next night we made it to Sleeping Giant Provincial park but at $50 for permits, we opted for a private campground at Nippigon. This staged us for our outing at Rossport, to Healey Island. We stopped at Quarry Island on the way and hiked the trail to the top, a great trek and view. The winds were predicted to be 20 knots the next day but we lucked out and the wind and waves behaved.
The Provincial Park prices drove us to cruse through Canada (still a fabulous visual experience) and head to Mackinac Island which was a fun tourist trek. We camped at St. Ignas, Straits St Park which gave us an excellent view of the bridge. Molly mentioned that if we paddled through the bridge we would be hitting 3 of the 5 great lakes. Molly and I scared each other; me, when I paddled by myself through the bridge and "disappeared" and Molly when I turned back and she was not waiting where I expected. All was well.
The last stop was Little Sand Bay. The winds the next day did not favor the Sand Island caves but were excellent for the Meyers Beach sea caves. These caves were a first for both of us and I was glad to share the experience with her. 1,523 miles and I believe we had an excellent adventure.

See all photos

QOD: There are those who make things happen, There are those who watch things happen, and there are those who say, "What just happened?". Unknown.

Spring Fling 2011

Fabulous weekend on the lake. Some tall waves made the trip to the caves quite exciting, especially for the pro's who were temping fate by running through the caves in that tall stuff. I'd write more but it's time to pack two boats and on to Miss Molly's Epic Post College Circle Tour Adventure.

https://picasaweb.google.com/lkeleny/SKOACSpringFling2011?authkey=Gv1sRgCOSf0pbkoLmR2wE##

Later/SavorDiem/Lg

SsssNo !!!

This is the third year in a row of awesome snow. The testimony is Murphy Hanranan Park. This park is only open for cross country skiing if there is good snow. There is good snow. I love this park and today did not disappoint. I also love the new hours...open to 10PM !!! For all of the years I've lived in the frozen north and tried to get our for exercise near the Winter Solstice, daylight is not always an option. Being chase by rangers, when all I want to do is get out side and burn some calories, is no fun.

With the new hours I got in one glorious daylight ski on outer loop and two inner loops after sundown. Quite a rush in the dark. I think maybe next time I'll bring a light. If you want an adrenal rush and can handle some hills (up and down) I would highly recommend this 3R Park.

EnJoy!
QOD: Never put off until tomorrow what you can do the day after tomorrow. Mark Twain (1835-1910)

Tonight I Rode Behind a Fixie

Tonight, I rode behind a fixie, a full-on fixed gear bike. He had to stand on the back side stoke of the peddles to slow down before going into the tunnel & lagoon between Calhoun and Isles. He made a left and i took the scenic route up the North arm of Isles. I met up with him again at Thoe and 55. Although most fixies leave me in the dust I slowly built some distance on the guy...but I also had some distance to go so I better back off.
What’s with all of the fixies. Pulled up on a guy three weeks ago on a single speed. At least he had a free wheel and brakes. When the riding broke into conversation it didn’t take long to determine he was NOT from south Mpls… England! Really, I was just there last week. I was scouting for bicycling opportunities and saw a number of single speeders and quite a number of riders on the road. Not bad for a chilled fall day.
Enough of this, how about some pictures. …Yes, in going backwards chronologically from here... I was riding a bike but she was a British Bike and her name was Bonnie. Triumph Bonneville T100, a 865 cc machine that didn’t seem British [Sorry but I owned one]. To start with we went exploring. An easy compass was following the Thames. although driving on the left side of the road and round abouts at the same time was FUN. I forgot to GPS mark my hotel so finding my way back to the hotel on a Saturday night through the labyrinth of London was a challenge. Again, I had the Thames to dissect the city but where from there? The only map I had was 1.5” Tall x 1.5” Wide.
On Sunday I got up at 6:30 AM to head to the cost, the south coast of England. I made it to a race track/hobby airport and then to the Brighton Peer. After that it was up the coast towards the white cliffs of Dover. So where was it that “The White Cliff’s of Dover” written down that we have heard of this before?

QOD: If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail. Abraham Maslow (1908-1970)

Ruddering Around II

Bro-In-Law, Jim was in town so of course there was more boat building to be had. With the help of Matt and Express Composites, I got to do some real vacuum bagging. I did a small vac bag project for one of my paddles previously but borrowing Matt's vac pump and supplies from EC I was making a project that really sucked. The rudder bag held it's vac without the pump cycling which was great to see. The vac on Jim's back rest had a small leak and the pump would cycle once every 15-20 min but it still worked quite well.

We also got out on the water on Sunday 15-Mar. The Miss R. was moving quite fast so our upstream paddle took 10 times longer than our down stream paddle. Great warm day to be on the water. I had to squeeze into Jan's boat and Jim used mine.

QOD: Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength. Eric Hoffer (1902-1983)

Graduation Pictures

Stats:

BOAT
Plans - Guillemot "S"
Length - 16 ft
Beam - 20 in
Draft - 3.7 in
Weight - 47 lbs
Wood - White Cedar from norther Wisc Cedar tree & Aromatic (red) Cedar.
Structure - Wood Core, Fiberglass & Epoxy inner and outer layer.

PADDLE
Plans - None [ok, come clean] Ok, pulled a pattern from a rental from MW Mountaineering
Length - 227 cm (89.5 in)
Weight - 860 gm (29 oz)
Feather - 60 deg
Shaft - Western Red Cedar
Blades - Glass, Veneer, Carbon, Shaft, Carbon, Kevlar Tip

QOD [Found in my dads shop in the basement on Waunoan Way]: Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you. Carl Sandburg (1878-1967)

And May the Best Man Win

Well, I got knocked off of my high horse. I got 2nd place at the MN State Fair. This threw me for a loop and as I was heading out for my vacation I was thinking of all sorts of excuses: The guy just built a beauty model; No lift handles; No rudder (spring loaded or otherwise); No fancy hatch latches; No rudder pedals; yadayadayada.

In the end, I concluded that the best man had won. He built a very fine boat and even built a shrine to it (a nicely designed, stained and varnish stand). To my detriment, I supplied a stand: sections of an old desk that I was in the process of dismantling for the trash.

Then, this week I called the MN State Fair cuz I didn't get a score with my prize money for 2nd place, $ 6.00 (First Place gets $8.00). They said that they would mail me the results. "Well, what did I get"? "A, you got 99 out f 100". "OK, what did the other guy get"? "He got 99.5". ... I got no complaints. Picture is Daughter Robyn and me in front of the booth at the State Fair. If you saw the display, my boat was the white one, White Cedar.

QOD: An alcoholic is someone you don't like who drinks as much as you do. Dylan Thomas (1914-1953)

Colorado Elk Hunt 2009

Well the Elk proved to be smarter than me but it was not for lack of trying. Greg and I scoured the mountains from one end of the county to the other but to no avail. My cuz Mike was successful with his High Country Mule tag. He had horses which took him to close to the tree line and he climbed the rest to get the Mulie shown. Mike applied 7 years to get his tag and worked hard at getting his Deer.

Other Highlight/Details:
> Two weeks with no one commanding my time other than me with an extensive menu of fabulous things to do.
> Meeting Mikes G-Friend Meg and her boy Adam.
> Car camping in the mountains; 3:00 AM wakeup call; mountain biking in 5.3 miles in the moon light, … twice.
> Listening to a bull in the deep draw bellering all day long (but when I came back in the afternoon to put a stalk on, he was down at the bottom of the draw)
> Playing Cat and Mouse with a bull for part of a morning
> Lunch on a precipice at 11,600 ft over a couple of valleys and great mountain peaks
> Getting two fluorescent lights installed in Mike’s kitchen.
> The scenic route home through Silverton (just in time to see the train) and the mountains leading into Gunnison

QOD: Wanting to be someone you are not is a waste of the person you are. Kurt Cobain (1967-1994).

Let's Start The Wave

Post Rossport Addendum: So there was this wave,... about 150 yards off shore... it would show up about every 5 minutes and get our attention by rising up about 5 ft and crashing its white cap on the surrounding water.

Jan was fishing from shore and needed her lure unstuck so I hopped into the boat and rescued the lure. I paddled over to the next island and up and down our island but being somewhat of an Adrenalin junkie, on the way back the attraction of the wave was too much.

The wave was a reaction to the swells that were coming off of the big part of the lake. When an extra-big set of 3 or 4 swells would show up, so would this wave. It was about 150 yrds off of the point at the end of our bay. I paddled up close to it and watched. I tried to get as close as possible but not too close. The exact spot of the wave was somewhat nebulous but after a while I could see the some turbulence from the rock that was creating it.

Playing with the wave was quite a rush because it would not come at me the same way every time. Sometimes the main part of the wave would rise up but a side wave would attack at a slight angle. If I get this opportunity some time in the future, I think that I'll practice my reaction and bracing by backing up the wave and see if I can stay up right or see if the bad boy can knock me over. I definitely found about this "sneaking up from behind" subject on last years May Day trip.

QOD: Those who dream by day are cognizant of the many things which escape those who dream only by night. Edgar Allen Poe (1809-1849)

And Splash: Rosssport 2009

Major scramble before the scheduled trip to Rossport. Although the location was one of a few possibilities, timing was not! Pre-Flight Check: Secure seat and straps for back, Check; Silicone in Bulkheads, Check; Gasket Hatches, Check; Solder and assemble Hatch Turnbuckles, Check; Install Front Tow Loop, Check; Fabricate Foot Peg Slides, Check; Make and install Foot Pegs (scratch that, steal Lloyd's), Check; Attach Rudder Cables, Check; Make Rudder Lift Tee Handle and Install, (Scratch that, we'll lift and secure manually); Pre-Trip paddle and a tweak to the rudder cables, Check; Form one more blade, Form paddle shaft, Epoxy and carbon fiber bond both blades to shaft; Check; Pack for Trip, Check;... Blast Off

---Monday: Late start getting out of town so camp at Judge "Whatever" park NE of Grand Maris. Car camping so crab legs and hash browns for supper. Nice hiking trails. ---Tuesday: Camping Permits and Fishing Licenses for Jan (too damn expensive for me to join on in), Check with Superior Outfitters at Rossport on details of the Islands and pick up his place mat map, His suggestion: Camp at Sand Bay on Wilson Island (great suggestion), and Launch. Winds out of the South so the trip was mostly sheltered from the winds by the islands and ... YES! the bay was unoccupied!. Great sandy beach, bay and camp site. --- Wednesday: Slept in late, Hung around the bay and Jan threw all the lures we had at the fish from shore but not takers. ---Thursday: Head for the Light House on Battle Island. Winds from the west and the storm clouds diverted us to the Harry Island Hilton. Fabulous place. Started raining so we headed inside. Played 25 hands of Kings Corners and lit a fire in the stove to warm up and dry off. Wonderful! After about 3 hrs it was time to leave and just like that, the rain subsided. Trolled for fish on the way back but again no takers. ---Friday: Jan's back was bothering her from before the trip so we headed home 1/2 day early. Winds were to be out of the North but they were coming at us from the NW. By the time we got going late morning there were white caps and had some 2 to 2.5 footer in them. Jan was a real trooper and pushed on to our landing without hesitation. Would have liked to hike the lookout at Quarry Island but that and the light house will give us something to go after next time. Friday Evening was spend at Grand Marias at the Shoreline Hotel. And the Blue Waters Cafe gave me the Blue Cheese Burger and fries that I had a serious hankering for.

Great trip! I'm glad that the new boat and Jan's command of it, went very well. I had a wonderful birthday sipping coffee in the lawn chair on the sandy beach. My first wife Jan and I are coming up on our 30th, and we are still having fun together.

Pictures: Pre-Trip picture, Having a Happy Birthday, Cards at the Hilton.

QOD: You can get everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want. Zig Ziglar

Have a Seat Besides Your Own

The seat and back form was covered with two to three layers of fiberglass and then varnished. Shown is the nylon fabric covering the seat and back. Next up is the foot pegs, cables and rudder detials.

QOD: They can do all because they think they can. Virgil (70 BC - 19 BC)

Back-Up Now.

. I did make a plug for a mold and I intended on making a mold and molding a carbon fiber back rest but I figured that shaping a wood form would be faster. The mold would have been an investment for the next kayak that I will be building but, oh well, Tempus Fugit!

. The before and after pictures of the back rest looks like I'm wasting a lot of wood but it really wasn't that much wood and it was left over wood from the six-quarter rough sawn cedar trim boards that I used as decoration in the stucco on the house. The last picture is of the back rest and the seat form. I will reinforce with fiberglass and cover with ballistic nylon (left over hockey boot fabric).

QOD: After all, it is those who have a deep and real inner life who are best able to deal with the irritating details of outer life. Evelyn Underhill.

Side Job / Labor of Love

One of the many diversions to the yak is the Keleny cabin roof. She be needing some attention for quite some time. The multiple layers covering the multiple layers that get damaged each year as people chop the ice that forms as ice dams, badly needed to be replaced. A new steel roof should do just the trick.

Nobody knows how old the old log cabin is but it was a loggers cabin many moons ago. We did find a set of instructions on how to flash a chimney that might have had a 1932 date code. We pulled off 4 layers of tar paper and rolled roofing and one layer of shingles.

Picture of the roof, down to the boards. Click on the picture to see an enlarged view and more details!

QOD: Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration. Thomas A. Edison (1847-1921)