What's a nice way to put it?Duncan started climbing a long time ago, and he wasn't a kid.
By the time Duncan wasdispatching hard routes a lot of todays rock stars were still choking on Leggo.
All those years add up to a depth of climbing experience.
The Man of Steel graced Coolum Cave for an elegant send of "Spoonman" 28
Duncan regards "Spoonman" 28as a benchmark route at the grade.
Perfect tension and position.
The "Thank God" horn that marks the end of the crux sequence.
Control and power, and the signature red chalk bag.
Lisa Louise Cooke and Craig Manson
The map below is from the Indiana DNR (Department of Natural Resources). The outlined area encompasses the Crooked Lake Nature Preserve. As always, click on the images to see a larger version. The dotted line on the right is State Road 9 and the dotted line along the bottom is County Road 600N.
A mowed path meanders along the south and east sides of the meadow. It enters the woods on the north side, weaving in and out several times before emerging into the meadow once again on the west side. This first view is looking to the northeast (from the west side of the trail).
Exit Glacier. So close, yet so far away.
Two miles from the glacier the road was barricaded and a Ranger was directing traffic to the nearby trail parking lot. She said that there had been a tremendous amount of rain the past month over the glacier. It had gotten over 12 inches of rain on each of two different days! The glacier deposits silt in the river and as water comes down it carves new channels to get through that silt.
The Alaska Railroad runs between the highway and Turnagain Arm.
To the Southeast.
And the Southwest.
And the West.
Fantastic!
Sarah had to make a stop at the Dona Ana courthouse where there was a beaded horse she wanted me to see. But first as soon as we got there I saw palm trees. First palm trees I had seen in about 10 years. The drought has taken it's tole on the palms as did a very hard freeze last spring. I had seen were lots of the palms hadn't survived but these had done well here. This is the biggest, fanciest county courthouse I have ever seen. The one where I live is very small and looks to be over a hundred years old. Makes me wonder how Dona Ana County can afford this new building.
When I was a child my mom always wanted to know what kind of bird it was that made a noise that, to her, sounded as if it was saying 'come here, come here'. Since she thought it sounded like it was saying that I have always thought so, too. We could always hear the bird but could never get a good look at one. Usually we only hear this bird when we would go camping, or hiking in the mountains or desert. Since we have moved to the Tumbleweed Crossing I have discovered what the bird is. It is the Ash-throated Flycatcher. There are lots of different flycatcher birds all over the world and several different kinds in the US. All are similar and I didn't know what the proper name for our kind of flycatcher was until recently when I finally found it on the internet. These interesting little birds are kind-of built like a swallow only larger. They are mostly grayish on back, wings, head, and tail, but have a dull yellowish color to their belly area. Males and females look alike. They disappear in the fall and winter. I assume they migrate south probably to somewhere in Mexico. But the come here to nest. I usually have one or two pairs near my house each summer. They usually build their nests in a cholla cactus just on the edge of our property but this year they built in a cottonwood tree next to the horse pens, and hay shed. Every time I walk by it they fly off yelling 'come here, come here'. But return quickly and watch what I am doing as I feed, water, or pet horses. I had seen the nest before I knew which bird was using it. I had thought it might be an English sparrow nest as it had so many pieces of string, paper, tumbleweed sticks, and a piece of cloth in it. It was a couple of days before I actually saw a flycatcher on it which can't be seen in the photo of the nest. I welcome all flycatchers as they eat lots and lots and lots of flying insects especially flies which is where they get their name. I have seen them perched on a tree or power line and suddenly fly down to scoop up an unseen insect and then back to their perch they go. They will do this over and over. They come in to the water I keep in hubcaps in the back yard each evening.
