Power: Nature turned Generator

The rain seems to have stopped and now you can hear the Longmire generators (6-10 am and 4-8 pm that is). It's going to take some time to put things back in order, but it seems as though the main brunt of the storm and its damage have subsided.

Sunshine Point Campground near the Nisqually Entrance was disappointed with the weather trend and left Mt. Rainier National Park for sunnier locations. The problem is that it took the main road with it. I couldn't get a visual though because the road near Kautz Creek was under 3 feet of silty debris and water. The creek must have diverted upstream and chosen a new channel. See photo above.

If you're familiar with the park, you'll notice a number of "new viewing areas" along the Nisqually to Paradise corridor next time you visit. The Nisqually River ran bank to bank and in doing so, took a massive amount of debris with it. Large trees fell, as new embankments were chiseled.

Here is another image of the westside road. See it? Neither do I. Well, 8 pm is approaching...

Tombstone Tuesday :: Brubaker Family

The Brubaker plot at South Park Cemetery, south of Columbia City on State Road 205, in Whitley County, Indiana. Photos taken in October ... Top photo, taken 10/24, is looking east and the second one, taken 10/09, is looking to the west.

In the top photo, the marker on the left is for my 2nd great grandparents, William and Malissa Joslin Brubaker. On the right is the marker for their son, Maurice Hale, whose life was cut short at the age of 24.

On the Front: BRUBAKER / CO. E 17 REG IND VOL. INF. / WILLIAM 1843-1912 / MALISSA M. JOSLIN / HIS WIFE / 1849 - 1937. On the back: BRUBAKER / G. A. R.

Hale's stone, on the front: BRUBAKER / MAURICE HALE / SON OF Wm. & M.M. / BRUBAKER / 1886 - 1910. On the back is: 1st LIEUT Co G 3rd INFTY. / I. N. G.

Durability of Unusual Finishes: Chrome Plating and Clear Powdercoat

This winter I've been riding some bikes with unusual finishes. My main ride is a clear powdercoated Brompton. There are also two chrome-plated bikes in my possession at the moment: a vintage Raleigh Tourist and a modern Bella Ciao. The idea of riding these bikes on salted winter roads has been met with some concern, and I've been asked to comment on how they are holding up.




To start with, I just want to say that chrome plating and clear powder coat are entirely different finishes, and I am by no means placing them in the same category. But the one thing they have in common is that they are unusual, which invites curiosity about their durability compared to paint.Unfortunately, I cannot address that question meaningfully. I didn't have the heart to experiment with the beautiful finishes, so I've been cleaning the bikes after every salty ride this winter. But in truth I am not sure how much this extra care is warranted.




When it comes to the chrome plated bikes, I am actually surprised by the concern for their durability. Chrome plating might be pretty, but its real purpose - as I understand it - is to make the frame more resistant to corrosion. Therefore, a chrome plated frame should require less, not more maintenance than a painted or powdercoated frame. Issues of cost aside, chrome plating should make for an excellent and entirely appropriate winter bike finish. For what it's worth, my chrome Raleigh Tourist is a 33-year-old bike that was well-ridden by its previous owner. The chromed frame shows less wear than a typical painted frame from that era, though a similar degree of component wear.




Clear powdercoat is a different story. Generally speaking, powdercoat is considered to be a more durable finish than liquid paint, which makes it a preferred choice for winter bikes. But clear powdercoat is tricky and may not be reliably rust-proof. Owners of clear-coated bikes have reported problems with corrosion. Rivendell used to offer clear-coated frames, but no longer does. Brompton at some point reformulated their raw lacquer finish to address corrosion issues. Today there are owners of clear-coated Bromptons who ride them in winter, and dealers seem to feel this is perfectly fine to do. I do not see any signs of rust on mine so far, although again - I've been cleaning it.I would notintentionally choose a clear powdercoat finish for a winter bike.




All things considered, I feel that (pigmented) powdercoat and liquid paint are more practical choices for a bike finish. Chrome plating is expensive and difficult to do properly. Clear powdercoat is reputed to be less durable.




Then again, there are bikes that do perfectly well with no finish at all. As an experiment, Henry Cutler of WorkCycles left his personal Fr8frame unpainted. For three years the bike was stored outdoors in Amsterdam's rainy saltwater climate. Over time the frame has developed a patina of surface rust, but it remains structurally fine. Go figure!

Minuteman Bikeway

The Co-Habitant and I finally took Marianne and Miles to the Minuteman Bikeway. The Minuteman Bikeway is an 11 mile paved bike trail that runs from the edge of Cambridge, Mass., through Arlington and Lexington, ending in Bedford.

The trail was built along the old Boston-Maine railroad line, which you can see a glimpse of in Bedford. This train car has been converted into a cafe serving hot dogs and ice cream to hungry cyclists.

What I loved most about the Minuteman Bikeway is the abundance of shade! I am one of those persons who burns horribly and gets instant heatstroke at the mere whisper of direct sunlight in temperatures over 75F. A bike trail that runs almost entirely under overarching trees is a rare blessing. I can come here at any time of day and do a 22-mile loop without falling into a heat-induced delirium!

What I did not love so much, is that the trail interrupts for road intersections. The cars were courteous, but still I dream of an endless bike trail without interruptions -- Is there an American version of the Danube Cycling Path?

I was warned that going on the Minuteman on weekends was not a good idea, as it gets congested with slow-moving families and joggers. But we went mid-day on a Saturday, and didn't find it too bad. Certainly less crowded than the Charles River Trail.

Conveniently, there are several cafes and grocery shops, and two bike shops along the trail. Pictured above is the Bike Stop, selling lots of nice used bikes in addition to new ones, as well as cold drinks and snacks.

And at the end of the trail is the Bikeway Source, selling new bicycles, athletic bike clothing and many accessories, including some neat grocery panniers made of bamboo. We were told by the employees that after the Bikeway ends in Bedford, there is an unpaved dirt trail that continues all the way to Concord. It is accessible by mountain bike, but only during dry weather conditions, turning swamplike when it rains.

The Minuteman Bikeway is a scenic 22-mile round trip trail that is useful for pros and accessible to beginners. Riding Marianne was great fun and the longish ride made me a lot more comfortable with handling her. The most difficult part was cycling to the start of the trail from our house, in busy traffic through Somerville. Those who live around Boston know that this area is not ideal if you are not 100% steady on your bike! As I've mentioned earlier, I am not comfortable riding a road bike in traffic yet, so this was a challenge. The Co-Habitant gallantly made it easier by riding and signaling in a way that made us both visible. I probably could not do it alone at this point. One step at a time!

Ward Creek Falls

Ward Creek drops over a cliff near Lake Tahoe.

Yosemite Falls

Monday, April 30th - -







The morning light contrasts sharply with that of late afternoon. The row of trees on the far bank of the river are the same trees that were in yesterday's photo.






Upper Yosemite Falls.





Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls.


Even though the campgrounds were full, there didn't seem to be many people out and about. Traffic was light and it was easy finding a place to park so that I could simply walk around the meadows in the valley and soak up the views.



On a previous visit in July .. I was able to visit Glacier Point (the road was still closed this time) and got soaked at Bridalveil Falls. This time I decided to walk to the base of Lower Yosemite Falls. The trail was nearly deserted, it was very quiet and peaceful - except for the roar of the water which got louder with every step along the path.






There was a hint of a rainbow at the bottom of the falls.




Out on the middle of the footbridge, the mist from the falls was the strongest as was the blowing wind. I got wet, but nothing like at Bridalveil Falls.







A dramatic view of both falls, which is somewhat deceiving as it looks as though the Upper fall is immediately above the Lower fall. But looking at the third photo above, you can see that there is a considerable offset between the two waterfalls. As always, double-click on the photos to view a larger version, then click again to get the full size.



In addition to the road to Glacier Point being closed, Tioga Road (Highway 120 through the park) was also closed so a visit to Tuolumne Meadows was out of the question. As much as I would have liked to do the hike that takes you to the top of Yosemite Falls, I didn't think my legs could handle the rugged, wet trail. Instead, I simply walked around the valley, had a picnic lunch next to the river, and enjoyed a wonderful, leisurely day.

In The Rain

This is how it looked when we parked to let the rain let up as it was raining extreamly hard. This is the Jemez Pueblo Visitors Center where we buy fry bread to eat. You can just barely see one of the remadas on the right edge of the photo where they put out their food items and cook the fry bread in big pans of hot greese over wood fires.

Black Diamond's Fusion 2

I intentionally stay away from writing too much on ice tools. I am very specific in my likes and dislikes and obviously swayed by them. It isn't fair to to allow my prejudice to blanketly sway people too far on ice tool choices.



I have been doing this stuff long enough to realise if you know what you are doing that almost anygood club with a big nail through it will get you up most anyice.



Youdon't have to climb hardby today's standards to know the difference. (and I don't climb that hard) But I know what I like and why and why I don't like other tools. I continually get surprised by my judgement of the cosmetics.



Case in point. The Petzl Nomic (old or new) looks to have been almost perfectly cloned by the now last year's version of the Green Machine, Black Diamond's Fusion.



Pictured are a Fusion (the Green Machine) and a last year's Nomic over layed.



While they are close there are subtle and meaningful differences. Which most will readily recognise climbing on either tool and making a comparison.



To no one's surprisewho worked on the Black Diamond design effort, the new Fusion was not, even given the hammer and removable spike,an all around tool. Its performance on pure ice could be better. The Nomic, as much as it might appear not to be (with no spike and no hammer), works well on ice and on hard mixed.



Black Diamond, to their credit, has from the beginningmarketed the Fusion as an expert's tool for modern mixed. Petzl did the same thing on the Nomic as well, and missed a wide audience at first. Black Diamond in this case was well advised to "stick" withtheir plan. I get asked more often about the Fusion than any other tool..."how do I makeit climb ice better."



Obviously the Fusion will climb ice, as hard of ice as it comes these days. But if you are capable of climbing that kind of ice you aren't asking me how to "fix" a Fusion.



Where the Fusion really shines is on hard mixed. No surprise as two of the guys intimatly involed in the design work were Roger Strong and Raphael Slawinski. Bothare known internationally for their abilities on hard mixed.





Raphael Slawinski









Roj.....Roger Strong.





So when some one asks me what I think of a Fusion as a intermediate's ice tool I suggest they look else where. But if you want to really push your mixed climbing the Fusion is a shoo in. One of the best no question.



I can argue the pick angle and pick design with the best of them. But when it comes to hooking hard thin moves (which I can't do btw) I know what worksand why. One of the major advantages of the new Fusion over most anything else currently, is the rigid,hydroformed shaft. No or less flex in the shaft means less pick shift, ie,movement and angle change.



Again to no one's surprise, I literally can feel the flex and bending of the shaft with every pick set on some of my favorite tools. I know the limitations of that flexand address it accordingly by using it on terrain where it isn't going to matter. Great idea but poorly done in over all design for the intended audience.



The hydro forming is great technology and way ahead of everyone else in the game but if I was a BD athelete I'd be asking for the next generation of Fusion with a *carbon fiber* shaft :)



No question here it is the INDIAN not the arrow....but a bad arrow will miss the mark no matter how good the Indian.





Markus Bendler won the first two Ice Climbing World Cups this winter - with the new Fusions!

Josh Warton has won three consecutive Ouray Comps on Fusions....2 on the Original orange Fusion and the last and I think the most imopressive win on the Green Machine..the newest Fusion.









If you are capable, the Fusionis a scalpel. Just thought a great design, done specifically for one reason in the climbing community,when so few things are, should get the credit it isdue.

A Visitor to My Campsite

Wednesday July 20, .. - - After leaving Guilford Lake and Columbiana County I leisurely drove north and west through Ohio, stopping for the night at Maumee Bay State Park a few miles east of Toledo. The temperature started out in the mid 70s and continued to climb all day long. I thought of just continuing with driving but I had already been on the road for eight hours. I was able to select my campsite at Maumee Bay State Park and found one that had a little bit of shade. It helped. A little. But the 100 degree temperature and high humidity made it very uncomfortable.



Very briefly, I thought about joining the crowds at the beach but it would have meant having to leave the van closed up in the open sun. I just didn't think it was worth it. A nice breeze would make its appearance every now and then and as the sun made its way across the sky, the shade lengthened in the campsite cooling the area off just a little.



At one point I noticed something on the picnic table nearby. I couldn't quite make out what it was and it stayed there for quite some time. Eventually, I got up and took a look and saw what it was and grabbed the camera.







Go ahead, double-click on the image to view a larger version. You know you want to. The wings are pretty amazing, so thin and delicate.



The dragonfly patiently waited while I moved in closer and closer with the camera. Finally, after half a dozen shots it jumped up, landed on my hand for an instant and was off to explore its own little universe. It was doing its job well – that of eating mosquitoes and other small bugs – so I wasn't bothered too much by them.



In between wiping the sweat (and it was sweat, not simply perspiration) off my brow (and elsewhere) I sipped a tall glass of a cool beverage and waited out the sweltering night, hoping that the next night would be just a little cooler! The temp when I crawled into the van for the night at 10:30 pm was 96 degrees. When I got up the next morning at 6:30 am it was 84 degrees. It was a rather uncomfortable night, to say the least. Not complaining. Just saying ;-)

Joslin Family :: 1860 Federal Census

The 1860 Federal Census for Whitley County shows Abigal [sic] Joslin and Lysander Joslin, both on page 80, residing in Troy Township.

Abigal [sic], in dwelling 576, is listed as age 50 and born in Ohio. In her household are Joseph Joslin, age 25, born in Ohio and Lucicia Joslin, age 17, born in Indiana.

Joseph Joslin is also enumerated in the household of Price Goodrich (dwelling 577, page 80). In this census entry Joseph is 26 years old, born in Ohio.


In Dwelling 580 we find the household of Lysander P. Joslin. He is a 35 year old farmer with a personal estate valued at $475 and born in Ohio. Unless I missed some records, Lysander still owned the land he purchased from his father in 1841 and from Edwin in 1851 and Joseph in 1853. I have the record from when he sold the land to Nicodemas Coleman in October 1866. So why didn't Lysander have a valuation listed for his real estate? Note that Knickademus Coleman, a 22 year old Master Wagon Maker resides in the household listed before Abigail. Not that it makes any difference but I thought it was interesting ;-)

Listed in the household with Lysander were his wife, 34 year old Lydia, who was born in Ohio; John G. Conner, a 21 year old laborer who was born in Germany; and seven children, all born in Indiana: Analiza, 15; Melissa M., 11; Luther, 8; Roxey, 6; John, 4; Minerva, 1; and a male Infant, 2 months old [this would be Andrew who was born on May 30th].


Notably absent in 1860 is Abigail's husband, James Joslin. We do not know if he died between 1850-1860 or if he simply went somewhere else. The cemeteries were read by members of the Genealogical Society of Whitley County between 1996 and .. and there is no marker for James. There were several earlier cemetery publications and no entry was found for James in those books either. A check of the estate and probate packets turned up nothing for James. Mary Lucicia was only 17 in 1860 but there is no guardianship record for her. There would be no death record for James since the county did not begin recording deaths until about 1882. Various and numerous searches for James (he was born about 1796 in Canada or Vermont) have been done in the 1860 census index for 'all' states and have been for naught. James is not residing with any of his other (presumed) children.

• Fanny, with her husband, Joseph Shoemaker and seven children, are living in Fremont Township, Page County, Iowa (page 968).
• Edwin (found as Edwn Josslyn) is living in the Town of Hanna , Henry County, Illinois (page 952) with his wife Sarah and three children.
• Emily and her husband, John Long, and son Edwin, are living a few miles north of Abigail and Lysander in Washington Township , Noble County, Indiana (page 9).

Love Bike!

We stopped by DBC City Bikes (formerly the Dutch Bicycle Company) in Somerville, Mass. to see if they had some bike parts we were after. In the showroom, among many other things we saw this:

Yes, you guessed it: "Love Bike"! Clearly I had to photograph and share such a masterpiece on this magical day created for us by the greeting card industry.

This is the entire bike in its glory.

I imagine the handles next to the seats (love seats?) are for steering. The lovers are meant to share a bell. Magnificent! The Love Bike is for sale, but Dan (owner of DBC City Bikes) cautions that one should view it "as a sculpture," because as a bicycle it is not very efficient. Efficiet schmefficient! Just imagining this beauty rolling along Mass. Ave., taking the lane and being honked at by bewildered drivers, brings a smile to my face.

We saw more fun things at DBC City Bikes, but they can't possibly follow in the footsteps of the Love Bike, so I will report on them later.

Happy Hour at Karen and Tom's

As we were discussing when people are heading out tonight, I had a talk with some people about how sad they were at the thought of leaving. We had a nice talk about how our pickleball family really does make this place "home" for us.



I know I've said it time and time again here, but I love our pickleball friends. They are some of the most special and rare friends we have ever had. They just tend to be the neatest, most kind-hearted and interesting people as a whole.



As always, we had tons of fun with them tonight.



The food was fabulous! Tom made pulled pork and it was incredible.





We were even honored with music by Garth and Rosemary. Rosemary has written two songs, the RV song and the Pickleball song. Both were awesome!



It was a wonderful time with some of our "chosen" family.



Living the life in sunny Florida!

New Petzl Quark?

New Quark buried in Neve with a lwt C-T adze.





Hardly new now as the first tools showed up here in the States back in Oct/Nov. of . The issues with the new Nomic and Ergo appeared and for one reason or another even the unaffected Quarks weren't available in large numbers again until mid Feb. . I played with a pair at the Bozeman Icefest. But wasn't able to get my own pair until the week before I left for Chamonix in late March.For may folks in the warmer parts of the USthe ice season was winding down by that time.the tools were available again. Hard to justify new tools at full price at the tail end of your season not knowing what will be available next year.

(I don't know ofanything new coming along for -)



More than a few waiting for the new Nomic. The Nomic may be worth the wait for some but easy to over look the more durable and likely a better all around tool, theQuark. Many will have a the option of even more/better choicesfor their own use by having the new all around Quark and the even more technical (than the Nomic) new Ergo available.



The new Quark is certainly built in the Nomic's image. The handle contours are very close and most importantly the aluminum heads are exactly the same profiles.



You have to look back at the original Quark to make a good comparison. Petzl has changed more than just the head of the tool. But changing the head made a new hammer and a new adze required on the newest tool. Even the picks were changed. Making them nowT rated instead of B rated in bothversions, the new ICE and New DRY. Add to that you get a slightly deeper pick angle on the newest Quark.







Below: pictured isthe new pick angle on the top over lay. The new pick is slightly steeper, may be 2 degrees.. Middle is the newestICEpicktip profile. The DRY versionis the same tip profile. The bottom picture is the older Cascade Nomic pick profile.





So as you can see, it aint your old Quark. The new Quark with a hammerweights in at 588g or 528g with no hammmer. The old Quark with a hammer installed is 682g.









With the new Quark that includes a second higher grip in both over all weights. With after market hammers and adzes available for the new Quark and the additional factory movable second grip the new Quark has a lot of options.



The newest Petzl factory hammer on the left on a new Quark. The C-T hammer on a original styleNomic right.Weights vary from 30g for the low profile C-T hamemr to 60g for the Petzl hammer.







The other improvement that Petzl made on thenew tool is a full size carabiner hole in the spike to clip umbilicals into. Big improvement.



This one ofmy personal Quarks, with fixed trigger for high daggering, a rubber grip wrapand a C-T hammer installed. Lots of options on how you set this tool up. And an incredibly versatile tool on any terrain. The Adze in the opening photo is its mate.



Snow slogs...





Used here to good effect onhard technical dry tooling. Jack Roberts on a bolted M7+ @ adry tooling area in France.

I have climbed with the Nomic almost exclusively since it became available. The Quark before that. Abandoning every other tool in my quiver sometimes to my detriment. Only the new Ergo has swayed me untilnow. The new Quark has taken the majority of technical advantages of the Nomic and added them to a more vestal shaft of the older Quark. All the while giving you a majority of the Nomic'sadvantages in one form or another (the moving slider grip) while offering some additional advantages on less technical ground. The new Quark is one of the few tools imo that rivalsand generally betters the original Nomic as a truly all around tool.

Hard not to be pleased with the newest Quark. For many the Quark will be a better (and more appreciated) all around tool.

Seems a lot like this one, just done upa little better:-)

Notes After 40 Miles

Apparently I can go on a 40 mile ride just several days after having gone on a 36 mile ride, with shorter (12 mile) rides in between. This gives me hope that I may be able to handle consecutive longer-mile days soon.

If I pace myself, I never get out of breath and experience only anaerobic (leg muscle) strain. Oddly, cycling reminds me of yoga and pilates in this regard, which I used to do in my twenties. I had never made that connection before.

I am absolutely fine without padded cycling shorts for 40 miles. But next time I will remember to pack warmer clothes, even if it's hot when I set off.

This one was surprising: Cycling long distance is more tiring for me with a partner than alone. The Co-Habitant and I seem to have different cycling rhythms. He may disagree with this, but my impression is that he starts out going as fast as he can, then slows down when he grows tired. I am the opposite: I start slow, then gradually gain energy and speed up as the ride progresses. Still, cycling together is of course more interesting.

Cycling to a beautiful and meaningful destination is highly motivating; the feeling of exploring holds my interest. I think I am ready for 50 miles. But where to?