Gunks Routes: Something Interesting (5.7+) & The Dangler (5.10a)

(Photo: Mid-route, placing the most important piece of gear on the Dangler (5.10a).)




I usually try to climb on Veterans Day. My office is closed. Since many people don't get the holiday off the cliffs are usually empty.




This year I was supposed to climb with Gail but she had a very busy weekend and on Sunday night she backed out, telling me she was exhausted. She already had a solution figured out for me, however. She proposed I get together with another climber she knew named Marat. We'd never climbed together but we'd met briefly once at the cliff. From our brief conversation that day I gathered Marat was an experienced climber. He seemed fine to me, and if a person as careful as Gail was willing to climb with him then so was I.




Marat and I ended up having a great day together. We started with Grim-Ace Face, a pretty excellent 5.9+. But more on that later. I want to talk now about what we did afterwards.




I felt comfortable with Marat after our first few pitches, so I confessed to him a little dream of mine. I told him I wanted to climb the Dangler.




Now, I say that I "confessed" to Marat because I had this fear in the back of my mind that he would react to my little dream with scorn. You see, some very experienced and well-respected climbers think of the Dangler as a joke. They say it is too short, consisting of just three or four challenging moves. They claim it is contrived. They say it doesn't deserve the 5.10(a) rating Dick Williams bestowed upon it in 2004. (The rating has, no doubt, been adjusted upwards over the years. Todd Swain put it at 5.9 in his 1995 guidebook, and back in the 1980's the Dangler was listed (as a variation to Three Pines) in Richard DuMais' coffee-table book Shawangunk Rock Climbing as a "strenuous" 5.8.)









(Photo: The Dangler in the '80's. Taken from Richard DuMais' Shawangunk Rock Climbing (1985). You tell me, does that look like a 5.8?)




The elites' disdain for the Dangler is likely enhanced by the fact that the route presents such an attractive photo opportunity. The old-schoolers see groups of three or more climbers camping out on the GT Ledge, taking photos and whooping it up while everybody gets a turn on this little climb... it just doesn't fit with their idea of the trad experience.




Personally, I wasn't concerned about any of that. I wanted to try the climb because it looked exciting. Who wouldn't be excited by a perfect horizontal crack at the edge of a long roof, 150 feet above the ground?




The Dangler has been on my "easy" 5.10 list all year. For some reason I was sure I'd have no trouble climbing it. I thought that so long as I could place good pro I would be fine.









(Photo: Getting started on the Dangler.)




It turned out that Marat, like me, had never done the Dangler. And he was more than willing to follow me up it. But first we had to get up there.We decided that Marat would lead the neighboring climb Something Interesting (5.7+) up to the GT Ledge. Then we'd be perfectly positioned for the Dangler.




This was my first time on Something Interesting in a while, but I have led it twice before. It is a great route. The long first pitch follows an obvious slanting vertical crack up the face, all the way from the ground to the GT Ledge. As is typical of Gunks face climbs, the crack provides holds and pro, but no real crack climbing is required. The first time I led the pitch, back in , I thought it was totally cruiser. I must have really been feeling good because I couldn't even tell where the crux was supposed to be. The second time I led the climb I remember feeling tired. On that occasion I remember the crux very clearly at a bulge about 40 feet up. But on that day the whole thing felt like the crux, with several good hard moves amid the general steepness.




This time around, following Marat, I just had fun with it. I don't have much to say about it except that it is very enjoyable, with lots of nice moves. It is a sustained, long, high quality pitch.




I should add here that the second pitch of Something Interesting, which goes from the GT Ledge to the top of the cliff, is also well worth doing. It doesn't have the sustained quality of the earlier climbing, but the opening moves up to a pin and around a corner to the right are good. The easy traverse left that follows and the jug haul up the final corner are also nice. It seems that most people skip this pitch nowadays, which I think is a shame. If you reach the GT Ledge and you're not up for the Dangler, why not continue with Something Interesting instead of going down? Or better yet, move around the corner to your left and do the awesome final pitch of Anguish (5.8).









(Photo: Moving out. You can see here where I messed up a little. The rope is caught around my right leg, but I am unaware of it.)




Once Marat and I were both on the GT Ledge, I moved the belay over to the right and took a good look at the Dangler. Stepping up to the horizontal crack, I placed two good cams. Then I tested out the pose I'd be adopting for the rest of the climb: I reached out and lifted myself off the ledge, getting fully horizontal and locking my left heel into the crack. It felt secure but strenuous, and having gotten the feel for it I stepped down again.




Marat suggested I could get up there, place another piece a little further out, and then step down again before really committing. Seemed like a great idea to me so I did it. Then I looked over my gear-- the cams seemed secure. I could see that more good gear would be available as I moved out the crack. I told Marat I thought we were in good shape.




"You have a three-piece anchor!" he said.




Okay, when you put it that way....




I realized all of a sudden that I had an audience. A party of three had done the route before us and they had paused in their descent to watch us. This made me nervous. I tried to ignore them. (Later they sent me all of the great photos you see here, for which I am eternally grateful. They were from California, visiting the Gunks for the week.)




It was time to go.




I'd never been on the route but of course I already knew what to do. It is hard to climb regularly in the Gunks without seeing some people do the Dangler. I had seen climbers moving out almost to the end of the crack and releasing their feet, pivoting to the right, then hooking their right foot around the final shelf and doing a pull up on good holds to get back into a standing position.




I'd also seen people protect the route rather poorly, which is completely unnecessary. The climb is extremely well-protected if you place the gear that is available. I think some people find it too strenuous to place the gear once they get fully horizontal, however, so they just run it out from the initial placements. It seems to me that doing this risks a swinging fall back into the face of the cliff, which is something I'd much rather avoid.









(Photo: In the final heel hook, getting ready for the pull up.)




When I got fully out there I didn't find it too hard to place the necessary gear. I got a great # 2 Camalot. The heel hooks were solid and I also found some useful holds for the right foot under the roof. You really need just one piece out there, and a number of different sizes would probably work. It took a little bit of hanging in there, but I was able to reach over my head and place the piece (see the photo at the top of this post). I felt really safe once I had that bomber yellow Camalot in place.




Then I let my feet release from the wall so I could swing into the pivot.




And something went terribly wrong. I found myself tangled in the rope. It was disorienting. For a second I thought I must have clipped the wrong strand. I told myself not to panic and to hang on!




It turned out my leg had simply caught the trailing strand of rope. Everything would be okay if I could just get disentangled without falling off. As I waited, hanging in there by my fingertips, Marat whipped the strand to get it loose and in a few moments I was free again. I was now at a disadvantage, however, because I was motionless, in a dead hang over the abyss. My feet were attached to nothing and time was ticking away. I needed to throw my right foot over my head and hook it on the shelf, without any swinging momentum to help me.






I could hear the crowd of onlookers cheering me on. (Thanks, guys!)




Somehow I managed it. I threw my foot over the lip and made the pull-up to get out. Despite the rope snafu I got the onsight. I Dangled-- and Tangled-- and emerged victorious.











(Photo: Finishing up.)






After I got through the crux I kept on going to the chains at the top of the cliff. I didn't think Marat would have any trouble following the route. If you feel your second might need coaching it would probably be wise to build a belay right after the crux or on the next ledge up instead of proceeding to the top.




In retrospect I wish I'd stayed near the crux so I could enjoy the show and take some photos of Marat on the route. He got through it just fine but I could hear some meaningful grunting going on! It would have been fun to watch.











(Photo: Looking back at Marat from just after the crux.)




Having done the Dangler I now say this to you: ignore the haters. This is a great route. The movement is unusual for the Gunks. The climb is not contrived; it follows a perfect natural line. And the pro is excellent. Yes the crux is short, but don't many Gunks classics have short cruxes?




Above all the Dangler is just an exciting good time. I had a big smile on my face for the better part of a week after doing it. I totally scraped up the back of my right leg doing the heel hook and I did not care. It was worth it. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

GRIP :: Day 2 of Classes

Tuesday - July 24th - This was our "variety" day.



First up was Tom Jones with Transcribing and Abstracting documents. I've done more than a little transcribing of wills and deeds but now realize that I haven't always been doing it quite right. The main thing is to take your time and refer to helpful references for unfamiliar terminology.



One of the recommended references was the 4th edition of Black's Law Dictionary. Why the 4th edition? Well, after that edition was published in 1967 the next and subsequent editions had to purge some of the old terminology to make room for the new! A paper copy of one of the earlier editions may be hard to come by and rather expensive. If you Google "black's law dictionary 1st edition" you'll find several online versions. This site has links to the individual pages that have been scanned, but also has a full download of the scanned version - but be aware that it is a very, very, very large download.



Abstracting documents has always been rather tough for me. It's hard to decide what to leave out, especially when the document has rather colorful spelling. But it really comes down to eliminating the non-essential terminology to get to the basic information it provides. Dr. Jones said "If in doubt, leave it in." It isn't an exact science although there are some "rules" to follow.



After a short break, Claire Bettag, talked about Archival Research highlighting the differences between an Archive and a Library and the types of collections they have. She also discussed the how you find materials in each - Libraries have Catalogs and Archives have Research Guides that define the various record groups and what they contain. Of course, there was far more to it than just that!



The first session after lunch gave us Rick Sayre on Military and Pension Records. Then Clair came back to discuss various types of Government Documents (aka "Gov Docs") and where to find them. And we got our first homework assignment... thankfully it wasn't difficult.



As if a full day of classes wasn't enough, I went to the "Google Earth" presentation by Rick and Pamela Boyer Sayre. It is pretty incredible what all can be done with it. If you have a chance to see their presentation, I highly recommend it.



And, it all begins again... another full day awaits.

SCII - conditions looking pretty ok

SCII conditons on Friday Dec. 11 - We drove to the parking area, hiked in and shot photos of the conditions. Wow, it never ceases to amaze me how fast the ice comes in here. Just the previous day I went to check conditions and there was ice, but not that much. By now I shouldn't be surprised at the amount of ice here as it is some of the biggest, earliest and most reliable ice in PA. Next weekend I'm sure the lines will be in great condition and we'll be picking our way up old favorites. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that with a little luck and some kindness from the weather I'll get an early season crack at the FFA of The Sick-le my long standing project! I first climbed it via top rope early in the 2006/2007 season after visiting climber Joel Toretti and I scoped it out from afar in late season 2005/2006. The fickle, Sick-le has been eluding me year after year. Then in Feb. after another in and out PA ice season, I was bolting the mixed section and checking the solidity. I was under the gun to get on or wait another year. I had just put a bolt in and kicked the monster to knock down the dangerous daggers near the bottom of the main sicle. A loud creak and the massive free hanging SICK-LE itself came crashing down a mere foot from my face while hanging from the rope. The decision was made for me, it was not to be climbed that season. The fall and explosion was massive and I was glad to NOT get on (crushed). Makes all that little rockfall most rock climbers experience seem trivial by far... Videographer Ray Burnsworth caught most of it on video. While a short video was edited for our personal viewing. Rayman willing, the whole spectacle will be put out for viewing after the FFA. Check out Ray's webpage to see various footage of SWPA climbing and more. http://www.wildfilmproductions.com/cinema.html

Above photo: Laura checking on our local playground of 100'-200'+ lines at SC II. The Sick-le is the last large flow on the right end.

Arthingworth fig of 8, with Oxendon tunnel

Led by Barry. With Maureen, Gordon, Eddie and me. 8 miles. Misty, then very warm.

Too much, too yellow, too smelly, too high . . .

In Arthingworth, take Oxenden Rd and follow to the end, where it is possible to park. Take footpath on right hand side, next to houses and follow field boundaries - two shortish fields with a very big one in the middle. The path goes from the left hand side of the hedge to the right. Just after the boundary in the fourth field, he path crosses diagonally to the right and up hill past Round Spinney, then at the next boundary turns slightly to the right, and cuts across a field to the road. There is a trig point (146 m) just to our left.








Cross the road (following the Midshires Way) . This is soon joined by the Jurassic and Macmillan Ways. The path leads towards Braybrooke, whose church is clearly visible.





We leave the Jurassic etc Ways, when they turn to the right. We turn off to the left. The footpath is clearly marked.




At his point we walked for a considerable distance through the yellow lurgy rapeseed flowers. Finally we arrived, with some relief, at the Brampton Valley Way, where we turned right and followed the route almost into Market Harborough.




A left turn along the main road took us to a convenient bench for a snack, then we turned left again onto a footpath which brought us via a field with a couple of horses, back to the point where we joined the BVW. (This is part of the figure of eight).

On the border - between Northants and Leics.

Turn right along the Brampton Valley Way, through the Oxenden Tunnel - really a torch is not a bad idea as the surface is a bit muddy and uneven. Continue along the BVW until you reach the turning to Arthingworth - to the left. Follow the track/road back to the start of the walk.

The 2 Hour Commute

For the past week I have been spending every day at Mike Flanigan's workshop in semi-rural Holliston, MA. The place is 25 miles from my house and I decided to experiment with getting there by bike. This took about 2 hours, which is a pretty long commute. I then tried using other modes of transportation. To my surprise, the trip ended up being the same in duration. Here is a comparison:




Somerville-Holliston, via Roadbike (a loaded Rawland):

I left the house at 6:30am. The route I planned was a direct one, which I figured would be low traffic this early in the morning. And it was, for the first, suburban leg of the trip. After that I expected the road to get even nicer, as it grew more rural. What I did not count on, was that it would also become narrower and busier. Riding through Wellesley, Natick and Sherborn via Rt 16 in the morning was terrifying; I would not recommend it. The winding road is one lane in each direction with no shoulder. Lots of trucks drive at high speeds. I tried to stay calm, kept my line, and hoped for the best - but I would not repeat this trip intentionally. There are alternative routes that are longer and hillier, but safer. Once I entered Holliston, things improved and the last mile of the trip was pretty nice. I arrived 2 hours after I left the house, including a coffee stop along the way.






Somerville-Holliston, via Brompton + Train:

I left the house at 6:30am and cycled to the closest T-Station. From there I took the subway to South Station in Boston and the commuter rail to Framingham. The commuter train takes about 40 minutes. There is WiFi, and I used it to check my email. I disembarked in Framingham, and from there it was another 6 miles to my destination. I cycled on the main road again, simply because I had no time for a more circuitous route. This road actually wasn't too bad, save for one chaotic stripmall-esque intersection, which I walked across. There are a couple of climbs on the way, but they felt fine in my bike's lowest gear. I arrived at Mike's shop 2 hours after I left the house.






Somerville-Holliston, via Train + Car:

When a snowstorm descended upon us, Mike suggested I take the train without my bike, and he would pick me up at the station in his van. Weakened from all the sawing and filing I'd been doing, I wimped out and did just that. I left the house at 6:30am and walked to the T station, then took the subway and commuter rail to Framingham. The train was late and slower than usual, as tends to happen in bad weather. When I arrived, Mike picked me up in his warm and cozy van. There was some commuter traffic on the drive from the station to his workshop. We arrived over 2 hours after I left the house.Later, I spoke to an acquaintance who commutes from Holliston to Somerville by car. In theory, the drive should take about an hour. But in practice, the traffic in the morning and evening is so bad that it takes at least an hour and a half each way, sometimes longer.






If I had to deal with this commute on a regular basis, I think my preferred mode of transport would be train + Brompton. This would allow me to remain self-reliant, to carry a huge amount of stuff in my front bag, and to get some work done on the train while still squeezing in 12 miles of riding in the course of the day. Every so often it would also be nice to do the roadbike trip, but it would mean setting off even earlier in order to do the longer, safer route. Driving for 1.5+ hours in a car each way would be my least preferred method, but might nonetheless be necessary in winter: I am not tough enough to cycle on those hilly, narrow rural roads in snow and ice, especially in the dark.




A 25 mile commute is not abnormal in North America; in fact it is probably fairly typical. It's hard to believe that 7 years ago I was doing it myself, spending hours a day in my car.Doing it by bike would have been unimaginable back then, an absurdity. Now? Well, to tell the truth, it did not feel normal commuting for that long on a bike. But neither did it feel normal any other way. It's just too long of a ride/drive to be doing twice a day, every day, out of necessity, in all weather conditions. That's my take on the 2 hour commute. I am grateful to not have one these days.

Old Church Sign

This sign my the Old Town Church told about it's 200th Birthday. 1793 - 1993.

Spring Lightning

Last night saw the first lightning storm of the year come over Grand Portage Bay... at least, the first one that produced lightning strong enough to photograph. These images were captured from the beach in front of my house on Grand Portage Bay at about 1:30 a.m.

Sharing Space with Pedestrians

As cyclists, when we are not sharing the roads with cars we often share space with pedestrians: mixed use paths (MUPs), off road trails, certain types of crossings, even the road itself in areas with no sidewalks. To new cyclists this usually seems like a safer option to riding in traffic, but they soon learn that mixing with pedestrians presents its own challenges. People on foot move differently than those on a bike and their behaviour can be difficult to predict. Compared to cyclists, pedestrians are less likely to keep a consistent line of travel and more likely to make unexpected stops, which makes passing them tricky. Children make sudden u-turns. Dog walkers let their canines loose. Couples shove each other playfully across the path. Joggers zig-zag obliviously with their headphones on. Even seemingly predictable walkers moving at a steady pace can stop without warning if they get a phone call or notice something interesting.These things happen.




A local woman new to bicycling once told me she was hurt and baffled to discover how much pedestrians, whom she had considered allies, dislike cyclists - not only failing to apologise, but inevitably blaming her for the near-collisions they cause. (I can certainly relate: Just earlier this week a man whose undisciplined dog lunged at my wheel as I passed them cursed at me for not being "more careful.") I think the reason for this is simply that we, as cyclists, are perceived as more aggressive because we are operating machines and moving faster than walking speed. Despite whose fault an incident is, we are seen as the dangerous ones.




It doesn't help matters that pedestrians might not hear a cyclist's approach, or might not know how to react even when they do. In my 4th year of riding in Boston now, I have still not found an ideal way to gently warn those on foot of my presence. If I ring my bell, they might freeze or panic. If I say "on your left" they might instinctively jumpto the left. If I say "excuse me" they might misinterpret this to mean "get out of my way" and get offended. And if I say nothing at all and don't ring a bell, they might move into my line of travel at the exact moment I try to pass them. No solution is guaranteed to work.




When sharing space with pedestrians, I have now simply learned to accept the inherent unpredictability of it; the need for vigilance and reduced speed. Iexpect inconsistency, especially when children are involved. Ipass carefully and never assume my approach is heard or understood. I am mindful of dogs even if they appear to be on a short leash (those things are sometimes expandable). When in doubt, I slow to a crawl or stop altogether. And I do not enter into altercations: If a pedestrian at fault fails to apologise or even shouts at me, I just let it go.While these incidents can be frustrating, I try to keep in mind that as a cyclist I am the fast and scary one; I am the one who is operating a machine.




When I voiced this philosophy to the woman who'd complained of being disliked by pedestrians, she pointed out that cyclists are no less vulnerable in a collision and therefore such a distinction is unfair. Maybe so, but I don't think it's a matter of fairness. I suspect that pedestrians' response to cyclists as "fast machines, therefore dangerous" is a visceral one. Should parents be taken to task for not supervising their children and allowing them to run across the path? Should dog walkers be reported for not obeying the leashing laws? Maybe, but on some level that seems petty to me and I just don't see it making a real difference. The only reasonable solution, in my view, is to separate the infrastructure and not group pedestrians and cyclists together. Until then, we must make do with what is available, cycling responsibly and cautiously in the shared space.

Devils Claw Wild Flower

Each summer I get a couple of these Devils Claw Wild Flowers. They are more common in other areas of the Southwest states than here, so I try to keep some of the seeds to replant. This is the leaves and blossom on one.

The Rewards of a Closer Look

There are bicycles that strike you as unique from the first glance, and then there are those that sneak up on you. When Ed showed me the rando bike he'd put together from a refurbished Miyata frameset, it seemed like a nice enough classic build. Fenders, racks, leather, twine. But on closer inspection,all sorts of curious features emerged.






First I noticed the unusual front rack mount. A small DIY bracket at the front curled under and bolted onto the fender.






Initially I assumed this was to add extra stability to the rack. But then I realised the real function of this bracket - in addition to another one extending from the fork crown - was to hold up the fender. Or, more accurately, the front part of the fender.






I had seen split fenders before, but what struck me about these was how subtle they were, how utterly integrated into the overall design of the bike. The split was something I noticed only after my eye led me to it as it moved from one end of the rack to the other.






The tires are 700Cx28mm Gran Compe ENE Ciclo (brown, with tan sidewalls) and Ed was determined to make them fit along with the fenders. The split accomplishes this despite the lack of sufficient clearances under the brake bridge and fork crown.






Both the front and rear racks were recycled from older bikes, and I noticed that the rear one was stamped "Jim Blackburn." This prompted me to look into the history of Blackburn Racks, and indeed they were once called by the name of the founder. The vintage racks - now quite sought after - used a single bracket design to connect to the brake bridge, whereas the Blackburns in current production use a two bracket design to connect to seat stay braze-ons. I also found an interesting article describing Jim Blackburn's contributions to research in weight distribution for loaded touring.






The components seemed like a random mix, until Ed explained that he was going for a Suntour-inspired build: mostly vintage Japanese (but no Shimano), with some modern VO and Dia Compe sprinkled in. While such a thing would never have occurred to me, gathering components that made sense within this paradigm had been an important part of putting the bike together, a game he'd enjoyed playing.






The more we talked about the bike, the more of these things I discovered. Subtle details, hidden meanings. What looked like "just" a nice bicycle at first glance became fascinatingly personal.And that's the thing about bikes. We don't really know what they mean, or represent to the owner. We don't know what the story behind each one is, until we ask. Maybe that's why I still can't seem to walk past a bicycle without a closer look, or at least a second glance.

Berry Creek Falls

Berry Creek Falls, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

This is Berry Creek Falls, a 70-foot waterfall in Big Basin Redwoods State Park. The falls are surrounded by huge, majestic redwoods. An amazing place.

Pike Run Dry Tooling

The small outcrops at Pike Run work great for dry tooling

East coast ice climbing has had another dismal week. Above average temperatures and rain are preventing the ice climbing season from getting underway. Locally we've had 40 degree rainy days with evening temps hovering around freezing. Yesterday Laura and I had some time to get out climbing and didn't want the lack of ice this season ruin our motivation. With possible rain in the forecast, we decided to hit a small local spot for some dry tooling. We decided to head over to Pike Run for some dry tool investigation. Pike Run is predominantly a bouldering area with a few 25' outcrops that offer a little top roped climbing. I installed a few bolt anchors on top of the outcrops in 2000 to help lessen the impact of anchoring off the small trees at the top. For those that don't know, I used to own a climbing shop and guide service located about 5 minutes down the road in Donegal. Pike Run offered folks a place to climb very close to my shop. Much to my surprise Pike Run is still being used on a regular basis.

Tim checking out the Citronella Cave V4 to V6

Laura getting ready to give it a go...

Laura on our 3rd climb

Enjoying the new opportunities

The approach trail has had some impressive work done to it. Someone also went as far as to build landings at the bottom of the Tower outcrop at the descent trail. My hat is off to those ambitious folks that took the effort to help maintain this local climbing resource. The rock at Pike Run is sandstone. Its coarse, not nearly as compact and solid as the sandstone located in most places on Chestnut Ridge. The outcrops at Pike Run offer some great dry tool options. Laura and I had a great time exploring and trying out some lines. We climbed 3 lines overall taking laps on each several times. The moves varied from easier M3/4 to M8 with the climbing being somewhat technical and not as straight forward as it looks from the ground. Rounded and sloping are the norm with a few usable cracks here and there. It was nice to revisit and take a serious thrashing at an area I haven't climbed in a few years. I'm sure we'll be back to pump ourselves silly soon enough.

Laura practicing climbing in ice boots without tools

On a non climbing note:

On the way home from Pike Run we were pleasantly surprised to see a pair of Northern Goshawks near Acme Dam on county line road. One was actively hunting and perching while the other perched the whole time far off on a field edged by forest. It will be interesting to see if they are herewintering or passing through to other territory. Goshawks are our largest accipiter and are irregular visitors to our region. They live in the colder, northern climates of Canada during summer and migrate south for the winter. The Goshawk is related to our summer resident Sharp-Shinned and Coopers hawks. Here's a photo we shot of one perched on a dead snag.

Northern Goshawk Accipiter gentilis

near Acme Dam, Dec. 16,

Christmas Décor Downsized

Denise Olson at Moultrie Creek has invited the Genea-Bloggers to participate in a Christmas tour to help celebrate the season!

Although I don't put up a lot of decorations (actually, almost none) for the holidays, I do have a small table-top tree. When we moved from our house in .. the Christmas decorations went with my mother, except for a couple of items. My apartment isn't very big and since I'm trying to downsize "stuff" I haven't purchased any decorations other than that little tree along with the ornaments, lights, etc. that adorn it. The tree sits on my dining room table (which is seldom used for actually dining!) and brightens up that corner of the room.

The Angel on top of the tree and the Santa stocking on the wall are two of the decorations I brought with me from the house. I also have a small collection of snowmen that adorn a few spots on end tables and some of them hang on the branches of the Christmas tree. It's not much, but it satisfies my needs.



As far as Christmases past, well, turns out we didn't take pictures of the house after decorating it. There are a few pictures that show the decorations in the background, but they don't show it very well. Mom always went a bit overboard with the lights and tinsel and stuff. Now, her apartment is smaller than mine and she has covered every available space with some kind of ornamentation! Perhaps the sparseness of my decorations are a reaction to her exuberance.

Paddling the Pigeon

My favorite place to paddle! I love the Pigeon River... especially when it is calm like it was the evening that I made this image. The upper Pigeon River is a wildlife paradise. Every time I venture out on the river I see at least a few different critters. Beavers are almost guaranteed, as are a few different species of waterfowl. Kingfishers are sometimes seen patrolling the banks of the river, and now and then a Moose or two will show up. I’ve even been lucky enough on more than one occasion to see a Black Bear swimming across the river! Oh, I almost forgot to mention the Otters and Muskrats! Muskrats are seldom seen, but I almost always see at least one Otter when I visit the river. I’m heading up now to spend the late afternoon and evening on the river… I wonder what I will see today?

Heart Rate monitors?

Before jumping to conclusions read below




"Just double your heart rate once a day for 30 minutes!"



It is what one of my climbing partners tells the initiated to this day.

And so help methat has to be one of thedumbest remarks ever :-)

No matter if it is 30 minutes or 3 hours.



My resting heart rate even today is generally 40/42. It is creeping up from my 20's when it had been in the high 30s. I hit the mid 90s just walking my bike from the garage to the street, bathroom to desk. 190+ in a hard physical short term effort, gasping for breath.








This is a 48 minute 2000' gain, uphilleffort




So for most normal human beings doubling your heart rate means NOTHING!



It still means nothing even if you actually know what your resting heart rate is!



Helps to know that your heart rate number are personal, yours alone.And they have very little or nothing to do with your age. My maximum heat rate by those that are suppose to know is 160BPM. And seemingly "they"don't know shit! Or at least aren't telling us much!



http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/PhysicalActivity/Target-Heart-Rates_UCM_434341_Article.jsp



160BPM is hardly a difficult an effort for me running. Even less so on the bike.



The above 231 number on my bike computer?



The 231 MHR on my bike computer is in error. Simply a bad chest strap connection. I know that because I have seenmy actual MHR incontinued testing, long term over severaldecades. Testing? Or at least the number very close tomy MHR, which is 194 running. A beat or two lesson the bike andless than that swimming.



In straight talk...a 190HR for me, hurts. But in a good way. I know it is a hard work out and I also know I can't hold that HR for long.Sitting here at my desk, on a good day, well rested and well hydrated while typing? My average HR is 46bpm. That I can hold as long as I eat,drink and keep my body temperature stable :) Today it is up to 50 after two days previousof moderately hard work outs. Which I feel this morning. Ageing does slow recovery time.







I have a personal connection to HR monitors that I've mentioned previous. I'll get to that again eventually.



For the most part, when Ihave "trained", and I use that term loosely, it was at what ever maximum I could muster. There was no long slow efforts. There were just efforts...as hard as I could go as long as I could go. Stupid way to train. Almost as dumb as the "double your heart rate method".....almost.



Endurance efforts just meant getting it done. Getting something "big" done climbing wise was as much luck with the nutrition as it was my "training". Thankfully for most reading this that has changed. Not so much for my buddy and doubling his HR. But he has never trained that way, anyway :)



There is a ton of info out there for better/smarter training using a HR monitor. If that kind of thing interests you check it out. Eventually for most it turns into Perceived Effort anyway. HR generally matches that effort. But not always, which is where things start to get really interesting for me. And why a HR monitor makes sense if you want to train smart.



http://exercise.about.com/cs/fitnesstools/l/blperceivedexer.htm



I've been a big fan of Polar products for a decade or more. But I have used Mio in the past as well. Just recently been testing the newest Mio Alpha.









Party line below:



"MIO Alpha Strapless Heart Rate Monitor




The world of strapless, continuous heart rate monitoring has changed. Introducing: the MIO Alpha. This MIO strapless heart rate monitor is the world�s first strapless, continuous heart rate monitor that offers chest-strap free monitoring right from your wrist. Using groundbreaking optical sensor technology, the MIO Alpha gives you user-settable heart rate training options and monitoring like never before. Use your favorite fitness apps to track GPS, distance, speed, and pace, and take your workout to the next level.



The MIO Alpha offers long battery life, able to charge in just under an hour, and offer 8-10 hours of continuous monitoring. When you�re not training, shut off the HR feature and wear as a sleek daily watch for up to 2 to 3 weeks before needing another charge.



The MIO delivers monitoring at performance speeds, so you never have to slow down or modify your workout to get accurate tracking. Finally � untether yourself from chest straps and train in comfort at top performance speed with the MIO Alpha strapless heart rate watch."



I've been using one on and off for a week now. Not having a chest strap is a cool thing. Limited information is not. More to come on the Mio Alpha'stechnology.














And if all else fails...sure, "double your heart rate" every day ;)



Some titles I found useful on HR Monitors and their use:



http://thesallyedwardscompany.com/sallyedwards/books-by-sally-edwards.php



and



Joe Friel's2006 edition Precision Heart Rate Training

Attach of the Birds

Everyonce in a while we have a big flock of blackbirds come in to water.

Smokey Sun Photos

The photos were taken the other night when the Albuquerque, and Rio Rancho areas were filled with smoke from the Whitewater/Baldy fire in the Gila national forest which is a little over 300 miles from us. I would rather it hadn't come over us. but since it did I took some photos.