Wandering Washington…

I drove to Sprague, WA, last weekend to visit my family and took some pictures along the way.

I stopped for a leg stretch at the Ginko Petrified Forest State Park. The park was established back in the 1930’s when petrified wood was discovered by workers building the Vantage bridge. As you walk the trail you find stone enclosures built by the Civilian Conservation Corps housing the petrified logs. The petrified wood is what remains of water saturated logs that were at the bottome of a lake during the Ginko Lava Flow. The lava coverered the logs, but could not burn them, and so over time the minerals in the surrounding lava replaced the organic matter, leaving behind logs of stone.

Wild petrified log held in captivity at the Ginko Petrified Forest State Park, Vantage, Washington. January 2022.

As I was trying to count the rings on one of the logs the thought struck me that the enclosure was probably made from stones picked up off the ground near the log, which means they were probably part of the Ginko Flow. That means the stones surrounding the log are actually younger than the log itself. I don’t know why that stuck me as such an odd thought, that stone could be younger than wood, even petrified wood, but it flipped the illusion of permanence on it’s head for a moment.

Basalt columns in vicinity of Vantage, WA, January 2022.

New Year’s Theme

Staircase of the Multnomah Country Central Library, Portland, Oregon.

I’ve never been big on New Year’s goals. The tradition has always seemed like a recipe for disaster and disappointment. So it was refreshing to read an article by Niklas Göke (HERE) where he advocates against setting goals, and rather for setting a theme for your next year. Göke believes that a theme gives you the ability to remain in the moment rather than rather than focused on some future plan, while still evaluating your actions against a single standard.

My transition out of the military is looming, and I still have no idea what I want to be when I grow up, which made candidates like Transition, Grow, Don’t Panic, and Discover the focus of a lot of thought. I finally settled on Explore, from the latin “explorare” to search out, to examine or evaluate, to discover by touch, to surgically examine a wound in detail. This is the year to examine and evaluate which parts of me I wish to keep when I leave the Army. This is the year to examine things by touch and feel. And, as I get ready to (hopefully) move to Alaska, this is the year to do some old fashioned exploration of the North (sans frostbite).

The picture is from the staircase of the Multnomah County Central Library in Portland, Ore. I took the picture while I was down there last weekend, and didn’t realize my theme for this year was in the picture until I was processing it. Serendipity? Or perhaps I was being influenced by what I saw through the viewfinder. Either way, if you ever get the opportunity to visit the Central Library it’s worth the time.

Nerding Out

I’m a nerd. This is one of the fundamental facts of my existence. When confronted by any new experience my initial question is “do I have a book for that?” So, as I prepare to hike the PCT in a few years, one of the first things I did was check Amazon for guidebooks. I’m sure you’ll be shocked to discover that there is an abundance of information on the route, tales of people’s trails, maps, and instructions on how to through-hike in general. A slim blue book stood out to me, “Pacific Crest Trials” by Zach Davis and Carly Moree. It describes itself as “a psychological and emotional guide to successfully thru-hiking the Pacific Crest Trail.” Sounded like exactly what I needed. There are exercises in the book. I am going to work through all of them, and if the results are interesting I will write about it here.

Pacific Crest Trail in 1165 days

This seems like an odd week to announce this, but truthfully I made the decision a few weeks ago, and then remembered this morning that I have a blog. Strange what working from home will do to your creative juices (on anything BUT work). I have made the decision that I am going to hike the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) when I retire from the Army. In 1165 days I plan to step onto the trail in Washington, wave at Canadia, and hike until I can urinate on the wall between the U.S. and Mexico. Then I’ll go get tacos, LOTS of tacos.

Right now I am still on the edge of the planning stages. What I know is that doing a Southbound (SOBO) hike is considered slightly harder, there will be snow, and that it will take me 5-6 months. Much, much more to follow. I will share my planning thoughts and process here as I am able. No decision yet as to whether I will share on trail, still have a few years to figure that out. I’m open to thoughts and advice, if you’ve done a SOBO or know someone who has, please reach out to me.

Trip Report: Duckabush river to Five Mile Camp, 11/23/19

Started at 0830, finished at 1300. Total distance ended up being about 11 miles with 1400 ft of elevation gain.

We had a cold and foggy start, 33 degrees when we got out of the car. Once we were on trail we warmed up pretty quickly. The trail runs at a very slight incline for about three miles. I remarked to J. that we had picked a ridiculously easy hike for the day, about five minutes later we hit the switchbacks. The view from the top of the switchbacks was worth the sweat, fog below and clouds above with a clear band of blue sky in-between.

View East from the top of the switchbacks. Duckabush 11/23/19.

Once through the switchbacks we started downhill again. From the switchbacks to Five Mile Camp we encountered several downed trees across the trail. No apparent hazards, and not hard to circumnavigate, but still a gentle reminder that the landscape is constantly in flux.

The number and varieties of mushrooms alongside the trail continues to amaze me. We spotted several beautiful Turkey Tail specimens, and once I was looking the neon orange of Witches Butter jumped out at me from nearly every downed tree near the trail.

Mysterious Mushrooms. Duckabush 11/23/19.

Five Mile Camp looks like a charming and peaceful spot to spend the night. There were 2-3 fire pits and easy access to fresh water from the river. The sky had cleared up by the time we started back to the car, sending intense rays of godlight between the trees. We passed a few groups on the way down, and several dogs. The trail can be tight in some places and make it difficult for dogs to pass each other.

J. at the river by Five Mile Camp. Duckabush 11/23/19

Introductions are in order

“If it’s true that every seven years each cell in your body dies and is replaced, then I have truly inherited my life from a dead man; and the misdeeds of those times have been forgiven, and are buried with his bones.”

― Neil Gaiman

This is my first swing at this type of re-invention, I’m curious to see where it takes me. I’m Chris, and I’m here to tell you about the things I love. Strap in for this ride and you may see:

Poetry
Recipes
Ruminations on geography
Trail reports
Photography
Some truly strange stuff

Don’t know what I’m doing, but I’m here, and I am.