Rat Race Year Twelve

20-29 Jun 2014

New BLM sign at Woodrat launch (no bullet holes yet)

 As the title suggests, this is the 12th year that C.J. has been competing in the Rat Race at Woodrat Mountain near Medford, OR. She has been there every year, the only competitor who can say that. I attended the first one, over the Memorial Day weekend in 2002. After retiring in 2006, I have gone to each Rat Race since 2007 as a volunteer.

20 Jun, Fri - We left home around 0730, stopped for gas at Covington and Eugene Costcos, and arrived at RR HQ 1630 (after getting our RVHPA annual membership at the Ruch store ($60). At HQ C.J. registered while I attended a volunteer meeting [Julie Spiegler, last year's vol. coordinator, has decided to compete in the Race this year so will have less time to devote to keeping track of the volunteers. She has enlisted Marybeth Wells to take over some of her duties, particularly driver-coordination.] Since most of the volunteer-duties sign-up was accomplished online, the meeting was short and by 1800 C.J. and I were on our way to the yurt. The first thing we noticed was that the big cottonwood tree that had shaded the Humbug Creek pool below the yurt had fallen and knocked down some smaller trees as well. Debbie Vosevich had delayed her return to N Cal (She did not choose to fly in the RR this year) so she could prepare dinner for us, Barbara and Susan Kent. We ate on Barbara's deck and got caught up on everyone's story.

C.J. and bus driver Barry

21 Jun, Sat - Rat Race Practice Day. We went in at 0825 for a short meeting and took the school bus to launch. There was no lunch provided today. Almost all of the 160 pilots (Spring, Race and Super Clinic) were there so I volunteered to help with laying out wings for launch. After clearing the takeoff I decided not to fly and caught a ride down with Marybeth. I hung out at the HQ until C.J. got a ride back from landing backwards at Longsword. There were three (?) emergency chute deployments and a tree rescue during the day. [Reports from pilots flying at Woodrat in the week leading up to the RR indicated unusually turbulent conditions.] At 1830 there was a long, mandatory pilots meeting followed by a lasagna dinner (I served the veg. lasagna). We got back to the yurt around 2200.

22 Jun, Sun - Rat Race Day 1. We drove in early for an 0830 meeting and left on the bus to launch at 1030. I took off at 1130 and got up over launch, but the air was turbulent in places and, after trying to reach Burnt, I went to the LZ which was soarable on the south side for a few minutes; then I landed in a smooth north wind. I got a ride back to HQ with Rich, a student of Kevin's who went to Ecuador as a P-2, and Derek from Vancouver BC. I hung out at HQ and ate lunch. Then, after the second reserve deployment of the day, Paul Kunzl went to help the pilot and asked me to deliver some stuff to Ken Hudonjorgensen at Fiasco. Back at HQ I took a shower in the new outdoor facility. C.J. showed up from a good day having made most of the course. She got some help using her new Delorme inReach SE and got everything sorted out so that her location is sent out every ten minutes via satellite and she has access to her three preset messages. I talked with Gever Tulley in his and Julie's trailer about his Tinkering School, his 50 Dangerous Things  book and his launch crash leading to a minor concussion on Sat. Around 1830 C.J. and I left for the Hunter's charity dinner at Cantrall-Buckley community park [Dave Palmer declined to have it at his Fiasco winery this year.] ($40) The beef burritos, roasted corn, salad and strawberry shortcake were all very good and there was a good crowd of pilots and locals. We left as the music got loud shortly after 2000. On the way back we stopped at Teri and Geof's to use their wi-fi. [They are out of town for a few days, Barbara told us. Later we found out they had gone to Ireland, Venice and Croatia, among other places.]

Task board

23 Jun, Mon - There was another 0830 meeting (more like later 0845+). The volunteers were all recognized for our service and were given RR caps. C.J. and I rode up to launch in Barry's school bus again (as we did every day) around 1000. It was my day to help "fluff" wings on launch, first for the Super Clinic (Kari Castle, Kay Tauscher, Ken H providing instruction), then for the Race and Sprint. There was a lot of flailing on launch as conditions were windy. Pilots did not start getting high until nearly 1300. The task got changed from goal along the Little Applegate at Phils or Mule LZ to Dark Hollow and Donatos. C.J. did not fly due to the wind, and we drove down in the white "parabus". Later we had a cook-it-yourself burger at HQ, then went to Paul Murdoch's mentoring session on local winds and convergence. We returned to the yurt and sat around, talking with Barbara for a while.

24 Jun, Tue - We didn't try too hard to get to HQ for the 0830 meeting. Good thing, because it did not begin until nearly 0900. By 0940 we were loading the buses and got to the launch early. Some pilots were already above launch so I didn't wait, and took off at 1100. I got up right away to over 4K right near launch and soon got tired of trying to share the lift. I went across to Burnt arriving below the top and found lift to get me back up to 4600 or so, crossed toward LWRAB and, after flying through sink, found lift to get me above the ridge. There was some strong lift near the copper-roofed house then more strong lift as I continued up the ridge to Rabies Ridge and then under the small cu's above Rabies Peak where I got to near 7K. No one else was near Rabies (and only one glider was on Burnt but low when I was there). I had a good view all the way to Shasta. I thought about going up the Little Applegate and started a glide to Squires Pk. There was no lift along the way and just before Squires I ran into a bit of leeside turbulence and had an asymmetric collapse big enough to turn me 180 deg. I was able to cross the Squires ridge but all I could do was slide down toward the Valley View winery (which looked like it might be too far away to make on a glide). Fortunately I caught a thermal to the south and climbed high enough that I would be able to make any of the major LZs. Since I needed to get back to HQ, I headed for Hunters as the nearest. It was a 4:1 glide and that was about all I was making. But when I reached the edge of the LZ there was plenty of lift and I had to make several turns to get down. I landed softly to the S. I got a ride back to the HQ with a pilot from NC. I hung out with Gever and his Bay Area friends Robin and ? from India. C.J. called at 1600 to report that she had made it to goal at Donatos! She had to wait for the second retrieve vehicle and didn't get back until 1700. I had a shower and rinsed out my pants and a shirt [It may not be as hot as usual, but there's plenty of sweat]. We went to Red Lily winery for a good barbecue dinner ($15, comped by Gail for volunteers). Susan K and Stephen Eigel from FL joined us and we had beer, red wine and sparkling wine ($14). C.J. and I left about 2045. Tomorrow is the pilot breakfast but rain is forecast.

G wearingthis year's RR t-shirt, Julie Spiegler

25 Jun, Wed - We drove in through some drizzle and rain about 0720 to be in time for the breakfast ($10, not free as in the past) prepared by RVHPA members led by Sam Crocker. No flying task today.There was a meeting later with a discussion about the 8 parachute deployments (and the one failed deployment - spiraled down into trees and was only slightly injured). Light rain at HQ began mid morning and there were moments of real rain. At 1100 we had  lunch and later Arnie Frankenburger talked about comp. strategy. Preacher showed slides from his trip to Nepal. Most people scattered after lunch but a group stuck around to work on their CPR certification. We stayed for dinner (chicken casserole, black bean and rice in a tortilla, and salad, $12). Around 1800 we returned to the yurt where it was still raining although it had stopped at HQ, at least for the moment.

26 Jun, Thu - Better weather. Up on launch there were several mentoring sessions as well as Arnie's daily talk and the group photo  (I think it was this day).  We could see rain and virga in the distance. Tasks were decided on and then changed. C.J.launched

and got up, whereas many did not, but she landed in the bailout (Hunters LZ). I was hanging out around HQ when Preacher said he was going up to do a tandem with 11-yr-old Bella, one of Mike and Gail's grandchildren from Arkansas (?). I volunteered to drive for him and watched them launch in pretty strong wind. Bella later said she had really liked her flight.  Dinner was a fajita and chile rellenos buffet at Las Palmas ($30 + $12). And we stopped in J-ville to get enough gas to be sure we could get back and forth from the yurt and still get to Costco on the way home ($20). [We found out that the ice cream deal is at Ray's where small Umpqua cones are only $1.]

C.J., right in front for the group photo

27 Jun, Fri- There was a little drizzle as we left Humbug but skies looked good as we got nearer to HQ. Still, we had low expectations as we rode up in the school bus due to forecasts of strong winds at upper levels. We had an early lunch of cold pulled pork served on launch, then there was a long wait for Mike to cancel the day. We went back down on the one bus that had stayed. [Even the Super clinic which had, as usual, been up on launch around 0915 had chosen not to fly and were already gone when we got to launch.] At one of the mentoring sessions a psychologist spoke about flying and competing. Ken Hudonjorgensen did a talk about "listening" to your wing and thermalling efficiently. We left around 1630 to buy some sausages and wine on our way to dinner at Dan and Marybeth's new J-ville house. Paula and Mike Steed were there also for hors d'oeurves; George (the retrieve coordinator), Brian Webb and his wife Barbara Scott joined us for dinner. We left after 2100 and got back to the yurt in the dark while Barb was aligning her telescope. Later I wandered up to the cabin deck to see the globular cluster.


28 Jun, Sat - There was only a short meeting before we rode up on the bus. I launched at 1130, climbed out and went to Woodrat Pk then back in sink and across to LW Rabies. I found lift enough to climb up the ridge to Rabies and continued to Rabies Pk. There was strong lift and I left it at just under 6K. I pointed toward Squires hoping to catch something and continue on to one of the goal fields up the Little Applegate. But there was too much sink so I turned back and landed at Longsword. After eating lunch I left a voicemail for George and a short time later had a ride back to HQ. Meanwhile C.J. had flown much of the course but could not get to Wellington and landed west of the no-land "elbow field". Barbara spotted her landing and picked her up and dropped her at Longsword. Back at HQ I told Marybeth that I could help with retrieve if they were as short-handed as it had sounded like. Fortunately I was not needed so I could get a shower and just hang out. The task was stopped when a pilot (probably a free-flier) crashed on the top of Rabies PK and did not radio that he was unhurt and would self-evacuate (apparently he also did not bundle his wing up for a long time so the pilots flying above him were sure that he was badly injured). A helicopter rescue mission was requested by Mike (I saw a Huey approaching the area about 1530). Around 1830 (?) there was the awards dinner (baked potatoes with chili and cheese sauce and salads, plus a pasta and cheese casserole. There were margaritas and, later a Raven-decorated sheet cake. The awards ceremony was between dinner and dessert with Brad Gunnuscio taking the Race first place. I picked up my last few bags of HQ garbage, C.J. said goodbye to everyone and we split.

29 Jun, Sun - C.J. and I prepared a pancake breakfast for Barb and Chris (We had had oatmeal the rest of the week). Then we cleaned and packed and left at 1000. I had a chance to say hello to Teri and Geoff who were out when I went to get our ice bottles from their freezer. [We hadn't needed to use our cooler this year since Barb had acquired a small refrigerator for the yurt.] We stopped to buy three baskets of fresh-picked strawberries ($9.50) on the way to Medford where we got gas at Costco. We were back on I-5 about 1100, got gas in Wilsonville, ran into some slow traffic around Centralia-Chehalis and were home about 1935.

Blanchard Bash 2014

6,7,8 June 2014

**Under Construction**

This year there was no earlier-scheduled Bash that got canceled due to snow or other inclement weather. In 2014 the event date was set to coincide with the DNR Trails Day so that there would be a large turnout to impress the Department of Natural Resources. Mission accomplished: of the 90 volunteers who signed in for the work party, I counted about 50 pilots and friends. Flying was good after work and got better the later it got. C.J. and I camped at Jeff and Stacy Beck's with two other A-frames and a bunch of other RVs, trailers and tents. It was a big weekend for eating as we went out Friday night to the Chuckanut Manor for the seafood and prime rib buffet, Saturday night was the big potluck, and breakfast Sunday consisted of blueberry pancakes, sausage and scrambled eggs cooked on the charcoal firepit.

6 Jun, Fri - We didn't get started until 1015 (and still forgot several items) but we made it to Burlington for gas at Costco and a stop for cash at a BofA ATM. Stacy helped us into a small spot between some of the big cedars, leaving room near the fence where we had parked the last two years for expected big rigs like Mike Daily's. Murdoch and Jan offered us a ride to the top with Sid, and, later, gave us a ride back to the Becks. It would have been nice to have an hour of soaring the way folks who launched at 1800 had but we flew earlier so that we'd have time to get cleaned up to go to dinner. We both got to thermal and climb over launch but then lost the lift and ended up with 20 minutes or less. After cleaning up and changing clothes C.J. and I drove down to Chuckanut Manor where we had reservations for 1930. We had a table for two right against a window looking out on the Bay. We ordered a drink (Porch Swing for C.J. and a dark stout from Bellingham for me) and then loaded our plates with salads, shrimp cocktail, salmon, oysters and prime rib. There was no need to be concerned that the restaurant would stop bringing out more food - the serving trays were still full when we left at 2100. To really fill (overfill) any empty spaces, the NY cheesecake and Kahlua chocolate mousse cake were irresistible. Back at Becks Jeff had kindled (read, used propane blowtorch to ignite a stack of split logs) a fire in the BBQ pit and that drew a crowd, even from the tight-knit group around Murdoch and Jan's new 1958 travel trailer. It never got cold but we were ready for bed way before the diehards left the campfire.

7 Jun, Sat - Since we were meeting the DNR at the lower trailhead at 0900 we needed to get up at a reasonable hour, fix breakfast and get on the move. We gave Janet and Joris, Blackcomb PG guides back when we flew there in the 90s, a ride. The parking lot was already full but I double parked and hoped that no one would need to leave before I did.  REI wasn't a sponsor this year but there were lots of Costco snacks for the 90 or so folks from the foot launch community plus the mountain bike, backcountry horsemen and trail runner contingents. Fifty or so of us pilots and friends went up to launch to weedwhack and generally spruce up the area. The big job was to move all the branches from the large trees that had been cut a few days prior down in front of the west launch. C.J. borrowed a hard hat and went down there while I puttered around the overlook area. We were running out of things to do about the time Matty set up to do a tandem with a DNR official. When he soared, people began to put away tools and get out the wings. C.J. and I hung out for a while then went down to the lower trailhead for the lunch. Guy and Sid were cooking up sausages and burgers on Guy's BarBeChoo,  and there were fruit salads, chips, soft drinks and fresh cookies. After lunch we went back up and C.J. flew. It didn't look all that soarable so I drove down to pick up C.J., Chris A. and John Schneebeck. We went back to launch and this time when C.J. got 100-200 ft over launch I took off also. I found the same lift to the right of the west launch and thermaled up enough to be on top of the stack for a short time. Then the lift seemed to shut off and I ended up in the LZ with only 15 min of airtime. Fortunately Beth wanted to go back up for another flight (she had driven down after Ernie flew) so I could ride up with them while C.J. and Chris went to Becks by a somewhat roundabout route with Vince. By the time I had retrieved the Sorento down the dusty road food was being brought out for the potluck and Jeff was starting to cook the chicken and salmon. There was a great assortment of tasty food - more than enough to feed everyone. Jeff and Stacy had acquired more picnic tables and patio seating this year - we didn't need our folding chairs at all. Later, just before dark, Jeff torched off the huge bonfire and there was no reason for anyone to feel chilly at all. We went to bed around 2230 but had some trouble getting to sleep because the guy parked just behind us was running his noisy truck engine on and off until after 2300.

8 Jun, Sun - We slept in a little later and then heated up some water for tea and cocoa. Pretty soon Jeff had a charcoal fire going and had volunteers flipping blueberry pancakes and making scrambled eggs and sausages. There was also some of the yummy fruit salad left over from lunch. Another delicious Blanchard Bash breakfast! Well before noon we returned to launch and found Jeff, Lenny and Tom Johns setting up their hang gliders. They launched and had short flights. I guess they then went to BJ with other hangies and got great flights (to 6200 ft, I heard). Mattie launched with another DNR official and managed a soaring flight from the south launch. Wayne Maxwell also got up and milked the lift for a good long flight. Pretty soon the wind clocked around and came up the west launch so everyone moved over there. Even later I went to look at the south launch and it was working again so I carried my stuff back there with C.J.'s help. Everyone was very helpful and encouraging - I was definitely in line to be the sacrificial wind dummy. And that's what happened - a good cycle got me in the air but then there was no sustaining lift at all and I had a seven-minute flight. Joelle launched after me and also had a sledder. Then there was a long wait before conditions improved. Eventually I got a ride up with local hang pilot Sean. C.J was just launching as I got to the Overlook and she found good but somewhat rough lift to 1000 ft over. I drove down and ate lunch then packed up the trailer. I left a message with C.J. and she called when she landed. The plan was to meet her at Colony road with the car and trailer. When I got there she was just arriving in a convertible sports car. It must have been after 1600 when we started home, Since there was little traffic we made good time and were home by 1730 or so. We were sorely in need of a shower and some rest but it had been a great weekend.

C.J.'s Birthday Weekend

30 May-1 Jun

Mount Blum from near Swift Creek

 The plan was to try out my new Washington State Veteran's ID Card to get free camping at state parks. We'd go early Friday so there should be lots of sites available. When we arrived and found out the reality of fair-weather spring weekends at popular camping parks like Larrabee near Bellingham, we had to make some hard choices. Fortunately the weekend turned out as good or better than the original plan.

30 May, Fri - We loaded the kayak and our flying gear and left around 1015 which put us at Larrabee State Park on Chuckanut Drive about 1230. Even before entering the gate we spotted the "camp area full" sign. We were totally astounded and drove through one of the loops - there were many vacant sites but all had "reserved" markers on them. Talking with a ranger we found out that most of the popular campground allow all sites to be reserved. We considered Bay View SP maybe 30 miles south but when I called the reservation number I found out that no same-day reservations are accepted. The ranger had suggested Cama Beach or Camano Island SPs as possibilities but they were far away from the flying at Blanchard. Also we would miss an opportunity to have a birthday dinner at Chuckanut Manor, bummer! After much discussion we decided to try Baker Lake where there were many USFS campgrounds and there would be kayaking on the lake (and have the BD dinner next week at the Blanchard Bash). Sure enough, the two CGs we looked at had plenty of sites and we found a really good one with a view of snowy Mount Blum at Swift Creek CG. (which

Mt. Blum  from our campsite

may have been once known as Baker Lake Resort.) After quickly setting up the trailer, we drove over to the boat ramp and launched our kayak. Without thinking much about it we headed north (east, actually) downwind, first paddling up the Swift Creek inlet a short distance then heading across a large bay eventually reaching Shannon Creek CG (after a pit stop at a place where hatchery fish are introduced to the lake). We went a bit farther but not quite to the end of the lake, probably about three miles, far enough that we were able to have a view of Shuksan as well as Mt. Baker. Returning was not as easy: the afternoon valley flow was strongly up lake. It wasn't quite white capping but we had to work hard to maintain 5.5kph or more (where before we had been making 7.0 easily, going downwind). Back at Swift Creek we pulled into the swimming beach just a short walk from our campsite (#39, if we ever want to reserve it) and carried our boat up rather than put it back atop the Sorento. We were pretty pooped and C.J. was happy to have a simple pre-cooked meal to prepare, but we didn't stay up too late partying.

31 May, Sat - Even though it got light early, we slept in till after 0800. Once we finished breakfast we felt

Mount Baker

recovered enough to at least think about a short paddle out to where we could see the morning light on Baker. We had carried the boat only a short ways when another camper asked if C.J. would be upset if he volunteered to carry her end of the kayak. Not a chance! We paddled straight out toward the far shore so we could look back at Baker; it was a magnificent view. Then we continued across, and south along the east bank. Once we were far enough out in the lake we also had a view of Shuksan. Most of the way the shore was steep and overgrown but about 2.5 mi down there was a flatter area and we could spot the Baker Lake Trail and maybe a place to camp. Shortly after that we met a kayaker coming from the dam who was planning to camp there. A short distance farther on, we recrossed the lake looking for a place to stop and have a snack. On this shore it was mostly marshy so we started back north until we found a nice sandy beach - an obvious boat-in campsite. After sharing a granola bar we were getting back into the boat when C.J. stepped into a deep spot and fell in the water up to her neck. We didn't have much in the way of extra clothes but fortunately (good planning) she was wearing synthetics which could be rung out and shaken mostly dry. [The fortunate part was that the day was sunny and warm and we would be paddling with the wind.] We cruised by Panorama Point CG where we saw a couple of nice sites with views. Back at the swimming beach, the same guy showed up to help us move the boat back to our site. [Really, we should have thought to bring the kayak cart with us.] After lunch and a rest we took the car a few miles back down

Bunchberry

Baker Lake Road to a 1/2-mile interpretive trail called Shadow of the Sentinels. That certainly didn't wear us out so we drove down to see what the Puget Sound Energy-run Kulshan campground near the dam looked like. Same price ($18, but only $7.50 for seniors, military and ?), not as secluded, not on the lake, more of an RV camp but no electricity although there seemed to be water and sewer. We continued on and found ourselves crossing the high dam on a narrow one-lane road. A mile beyond the dam we turned around at the trailhead for the Baker Lake Trail. We didn't know how far along the road went before it was blocked by snow but we figured that even if we could drive all the way up to the old hang glider launch, the trail to Anderson Butte or Watson Lakes would be snowy. We had a pleasant dinner outside - no bugs, no bees, and mild temps.
1 Jun, Sun - Figuring that we had had enough exercise we headed for home fairly early. We stopped for gas at Costco in Burlington (3.719) and then went in to get an ice cream bar. None were available so we went over to the TV section and talked to the salesguy who showed us a Vizio M-series smart LED TV that had just become available. Since I had been looking at a cheaper E-series and this one wasn't much more expensive, we decided to get it and replace our old 21-in Panasonic CRT TV. We got some fruit as well then drove in light traffic all the way home. It was early enough that C.J. had time to work in the garden and I weed-whacked the swamp (still not dry enough to mow). Later I removed the old TV and set up the new one.

2 Jun, Mon - We had an appointment with Comcast to install our new Xfinity internet and phone service between 0800 and 1000 so we got up earlier than usual. Naturally Bob, the cable guy, didn't show up until closer to 1000. It's a good thing we were planning to also sign up for "limited basic" cable for the TV because Comcast used the coaxial cable that Dish was using so we've lost our TV for the moment. However, with the smart TV we can watch free TV shows via the internet. We've got a great deal of about $50 per month for high speed internet and phone service which includes caller ID and free long distance and a way to send text messages for free on our mobile devices with an app. That price is good for two years then it'll be much more expensive but right now it's considerably less expensive than Century Link and AT&T. Later I was all set to begin putting a new coat of stain on the deck when I found some more rotten boards and spent most of the day replacing those and doing some mowing. C.J., of course, was working in the garden.

Dud of a meteor shower/ Memorial Day weekend

23-26 May 2014

A rare crossing of earth with the path of a comet from 200 years ago was supposed to produce anything from a few meteors to a "meteor storm" on the night of 23-24 May. Our friends, Peter and Naomi Gray, invited us to watch from their Eastern Washington yard and spend the rest of the night. Since they threw in a dinner and a breakfast prepared with fresh eggs from their "lap chickens" we couldn't refuse.

The drive to Ellensburg on Memorial Weekend Friday was unsurprisingly slow from the top of Snoqualmie Pass almost to Easton. As is usually the case with these kind of slowdowns, we saw no reason for it - no accident, no construction, no gapers block, even. [Maybe it had something to do with the rain - I know that I was wondering if we were going to be able to see the sky at all, much less any meteors.] Anyway that put us at Peter and Naomi's around 1800, a half-hour late, but we weren't on any rigid schedule. There was still time to cuddle their strangely-friendly hens, meet the new chicks and have dinner and visit. Sometime before 2300 we went out behind the house and studio to an open area that was reasonably sheltered from light and stretched a tarp out to lie on. The strong winds we had had earlier had died off and the temperature had dropped to where layers of fleece felt comfortable. Unfortunately the Camelopardalid Meteor Shower was more like a trickle and we saw only two bright ones with long steaks. There were, however, a surprising number of satellites. Mars and Jupiter were also in evidence. We stayed out until after midnight which should have been the time of maximum meteors then gave it up and went in to crash on the living room futon.

Peter and Naomi made a big pan of scrambled eggs and veggies and C.J. had brought blueberry streusel muffins for breakfast. Naomi had an 0900 class on oil painting to teach and we couldn't talk Peter into skipping the chores he had planned for the day, so we were on our own for a hike. The Desert Hikes book once again had many local choices and we picked one west of Thorp, Shell Rock. The road/trail was now gated so we didn't have the option of driving the first 3/4 mile to the top of the ridge [but it was a steep, rocky road anyway with one rough, washed-out area]. At the saddle (top, at the 3/4-mile mark) we took a detour to the south to climb a bump and look down at the Manastash canyon and the Lazy F camp and retreat center (with a field big enough to land a paraglider).

C.J. found many flowers to photograph along the trail

Then we continued NW along the road through scattered ponderosa pines and lots of flowers crossing a gate onto state land. Every so often we'd head west across rocky but flower-strewn fields to the cliff edge and look down into the Manastash drainage, but the wind was so strong that it would not have been comfortable to eat lunch there. We settled on descending a slope to the east into the trees where there were ponderosa pine needles to cushion the rocks for our seat pads. Not far beyond we came to a junction; one way indicated "authorized vehicles only" by order of the Dept of fish and Wildlife. Later we found that we had gone about 2.75 miles to that point (more with the detour to the first overlook). To make a loop trip, we headed south cross-country, eventually descending into a canyon and walking along a dry stream bed until we hit another road/trail which took us to the original saddle at 3/4 miles from Manastash Road where we had left our vehicle. The GPS and mapping app on my phone were a big help in doing the XC navigation and indicated a distance of 2.77 miles back to the car from our turnaround point. C.J. says, "And as we came back to the car, a group of young folks were just coming to the trailhead. They must've seen George's Purple Heart license plate, because one of them said, "Thank you for your service, sir." I thought that was pretty cool!"

The drive home through Thorp and along Hwy 10 following the Yakima River to Cle Elum was more scenic than retracing our route on I-90, but didn't take much longer. We were home around 1700 and ready for a shower.

Sunday I was back to replacing the deck boards near the sliding glass door, a job I had started on Thursday. Too bad the new treated 2x4s are so wet that I can't stain them until we have some dry weather and they dry out a bit. I did manage to get the front yard mowed before it started raining again.

Monday is Memorial Day and appropos of that I should note that Washington State provides veterans who have at least a 30% disability an ID card which gets the holder free admission, camping and boat launch at all State parks. We first saw a hint that such a thing was available when we camped at Beebe Bridge Campground near Chelan. The fee sign included a category for disabled veterans with ID card. When I checked with the Chelan PUD, which runs that campground,  they said that I had to apply to the state. C.J. and I are looking forward to putting the state parks on our list of places to visit now that camping there will not be so expensive.

Beach'N Weekend 2014

2, 3, 4 May 2014

From the top of Steamboat Rock

The end of April had a string of days with summer-like temperatures in the lower 80s. The weekend, however, was predicted to be rainy and cold again. Not so Eastern Washington and Chelan. Unfortunately for flying, the winds kept us on the ground and and on the desert trails. Of the almost thirty pilots who braved the "breezy" forecast, many got in flights either on Friday or Sunday, with a very few sneaking in a flight between even higher gusts on Saturday.


2 May, Friday - C.J. and I finished packing the car and trailer with almost everything (I forgot my hiking backpack this time, and we both left our cameras home.) and were off at 0930. We had no trouble finding a pull-through site at Beebe Bridge PUD campground for the off-season (and senior) rate of $15/night. After setting up, filling the water tank and hooking up electricity and water, we set off for Banks Lake and Steamboat Rock. (We had already checked with Steve Wilson who had flown

Split Boulder on Steamboat Rock

earlier, and he had not recommended the conditions.) It was about 1 hr 15 min to the State Park and trailhead for Steamboat Rock. Leaving the car parked at the rest room of the Dunes campground, we walked up the wide gravel trail through a sea of mostly bright yellow arrow-leaf balsam root flowers. The next bit of trail was a scramble on steep loose rock followed by a second not-quite-as-steep scramble to a trail junction. We took the left branch leading southerly and then another left to a third climb to the high point and the southern edge of this basalt erosional remnant. A trio of hikers followed us to the viewpoint and gave us some information about where to go for even better views. [The Desert Hikes guidebook showed a loop trail but the Best Wildflowers Hikes book showed no such thing.] We set off along the edge of the 600 ft high cliff and talus until the herd path petered out and then we cut cross-country to descend to the next section of the Rock. A short climb brought us to a boulder split vertically into several pieces, an obvious landmark. From there we

Six hundred feet to the surface of Banks Lake

ran into a more defined path along the edge of the cliff with great views to the west. We could see Barker Canyon across the lake where we had launched our kayak for a couple of paddle trips in previous year. We were glad not to be paddling today in the very

Shadows at Steamboat Rock

strong winds. In fact, we we glad that we were not walking on the very edge of the cliff, and that the wind was southwest and not easterly. The trail continued more or less along the cliff edge gradually closing the loop around the southern end of the Rock and skirting the eastern side. All along the way there were lots of wildflowers, some we recognized and some that were new to us. Eventually we descended to the trail junction we had left at the top of the steep "trail". Going down was tricky and our hiking poles were put to good use. Our hike of between five and six miles had taken about four hours. Instead of driving back through Grand Coulee and Leahy to Mansfield and camp, we headed south from Steamboat Rock SP along the eastern shore of Banks Lake to Coulee City where we hoped to find a place for dinner. The one restaurant was closed and the two bars didn't look promising so we continued on arriving an hour later at camp for a good meal of marinated fish, polenta and salad.

4 May, Sat - after a relaxed breakfast of pancakes with plum jam, we drove up to Lakeside Park to register for the fly-in with Lori Lawson. There were only about ten names on the list at that time, but more signed up later. Although we had seen three or four paragliders flying - most to the Chelan Falls soccer field rather than to the beach at Lakeside, we had decided that the winds were too strong to consider flying. Desert Hikes had several more hikes that were not too far away and Lori told us about some new trails right in the Chelan area. We decided to go for a hike in Moses Coulee near Jameson Lake, a nature preserve centered on Dusty Hills Falls (Dutch Henry Draw), about four miles north of US 2.  [On the way we drove through Waterville which must be the county seat of Douglas County. The courthouse is there as well as a museum and a hotel, and Shockers Snack Shop (the local high school team is "the shockers").] Unlike Steamboat

Dusty Hills "Falls"

Rock, there weren't many wildflowers and there was no climb at all. Dusty Hills Falls was not roaring or even flowing - dripping water was feeding a small pond at the base, fouled by cow pies. We headed south along a cattle trail which kind of disappeared in the forest of head-high sagebrush. Eventually we crossed the dry McCarteney Creek (all the dripping water must have percolated into the sandy soil) and came out into a meadow that looked to have been formed by a long-ago fire burning off the sagebrush. Another half hour of walking took us to a cleft in the wall of the coulee and a good, scenic lunch spot. We returned on the west side of the dry creek and found the trail much more defined. Back at the car we turned north to visit Jameson Lake, a long, narrow lake populated by somnolent fisherfolk in folding chairs and small boats. There appears to be a large DNR dry-camping area beyond the resort's RV park. It was pretty empty on this May weekend. On the way back to camp via McNeil canyon, we spotted the Jorgensens and followers at the old gravel pit/training hill and stopped to say hi. Later we heard that the wind was too crossed to be good for training. Back at camp we took showers while it was nice and warm and then rested until it was time to go

Pool below falls

back to Lakeside for the pizza feed. [When we got back to camp I noticed that the towbar was missing its 5/8 in. pin and was starting to pull loose. We stopped at Walmart to get a replacement on the way to

Spotlanding on the Lakeside beach

Lakeside. Did someone steal our pin? Did the safety pin get pulled off somehow?] Lori had ordered ten pizzas from Valerie's (after getting the "We're too busy to be helpful" feeling at Local Myth) and received eleven so there was plenty to go around. In the wind, the pizzas didn't stay hot very long - the usual problem in early May. Lori had also provided a nice Caesar salad, and watermelon as well as bottled water. We stuck around until 1930 then went back to the trailer to read and rest.

4 May, Sun - While we were eating breakfast we saw three paragliders flying down to the soccer field and one soaring. Since we had no idea how many more might be flying on the Lake side, we didn't waste too much time. Still we had to pack up the trailer and haul it up to the park where we found a place to park on the right side of the road. Rather than disconnect and drive up we asked Lenny Baron if we could ride up with him and he came back to pick us up after he dropped his son and friends off at the junkyard to hike to the top. It was pretty chilly and breezy on top and I pulled my flightsuit on over my fleece jacket. We watched a few people take off and the  hangs were doing fine but the paras had rough going as they flew through the rotor right off launch. We both decided not to fly as did Kevin White who we drove down with. Gene Beaver, Mark Rogers (a new pilot, student of Steve W) and Steve Wilson. When we arrived at Lakeside we found that Steve had landed in the lake, Ron had landed in shallow water and other folks had also found big sink just before landing and barely made it to shore. Mark had gone to the soccer field, Gene had flown across the lake to his lodging near the city park. C.J. and I hung out with the other pilots and had lunch before leaving around 1420. We ran into rain on the way to Wenatchee and more rain on and off the rest of the way home. It was still raining lightly in North Bend (around 1650) but we got unloaded and the trailer inside before it started raining harder.

Gas Explosion in North Bend

25 April 2014

The (former) Pizza Place, center, Last Cuts East barber shop, left, and the remains of a small strip mall

C.J. and I were awakened at about 0330 by an enormous blast that shook the whole house. C.J. was thinking "explosion" while I was stuck on "earthquake". A quick walk through the house showed a few teddy bears dislodged from the west-facing window sill and a framed needlepoint fallen off the wall. I was looking toward Mt. Si and trying to see if there had been a landslide. After determining that a tree had not fallen on the house we went back to bed to the accompaniment of distant sirens and, C.J. said, helicopters.

In the morning C.J. found out from our neighbor that what we had heard and felt had been the result of an explosion in the old Pizza Place which had been closed for a few years and was being renovated. It is about  third of a mile from our house. Midmorning we walked over there to see what the area looked like. Almost the whole QFC parking lot was cordoned off with "police line" tape and covered with chunks of insulation and building parts. The main street, North Bend Way, was closed just east of the post office all the way to the new roundabout to provide access for the fire and rescue trucks. [Only two people had injuries as a result of the flying debris, a remarkably minor number of victims for such a huge explosion.] The Pizza Place was totally gone with no sign of fire, but the barber shop, once, long ago, a Triple XXX Root Beer Drive-in, was burned rather than blown up. Part of the strip mall was still standing but leaning away from the obvious blast center. On the opposite side of North Bend Way (south) the apartment buildings showed broken sliding glass doors and the plywood siding blown out in places. We didn't walk down as far as the Red Oak nursing home (where the two injuries occurred) or to Les Schwab tires but later saw photos of the destruction of the big overhead doors at Les Schwab. Around 1500 I returned while on an errand to the post office and also looked at the apartment building where Dan Heath used to live. Almost all of the garage doors facing the blast were taped with red X's or had been replaced by sheets of particle board. Tracked construction machinery was just beginning to dig through the rubble, and the QFC parking lot was open again as a street sweeper cleaned it up.

Same area from a different angle

Closer view of the barber shop

Frostbite 2014

18 Apr - 20 Apr

T-shirt design by Jim Tibbs

It looks like this is becoming our traditional first "camping" trip of the season. Not that we are the only ones forgoing the dubious comforts of a tent for the solid walls of a trailer or RV. It was particularly pleasant to have a place to get out of the weather this weekend as it rained on and off most of Saturday. Tina and Larry and the usual volunteers rigged up a newly-purchased tent over the registration/buffet tables, erected a tarp to cover the barbecue grill, and built a tarp-covered log framework over the flatbed trailer designed for the musicians. Luckily Sunday, Easter morning, dawned dry and gradually cleared to provide soarable conditions later in the day.

18 April, Fri - Since it had been rainy on Thursday we didn't put the glider on or even the ladder rack until the morning. The trailer was still in the garage but it was pretty much ready to go - just some food to put in the refrigerator and we were set to hook up and pull away. Probably because we hadn't moved the trailer out of the garage, we had to drive the car onto one of 2x6s to raise the hitch enough to get the trailer jack wheel off. In the rush to be off by 0900 I forgot to load the collapsible water container, so we would have to rely on the water in the tank for the whole weekend. We made a gas stop at Covington and stopped at the Alder Lake CG to use their rest room. That put us down at Dog by 1115 or so. After setting up and saying hello to everyone we drove to the top in Chris and Christine's big pickup. While the wind in the LZ had been west (I think), the north launch was being used on the summit. Since there was room, I set up and launched as soon as possible. I tried going east since there was some east-cross in the wind. No luck, so I went back around to the west side and slowly worked down to the LZ for about fifteen minutes - better than most. C.J. got her flight with a good launch and landing on her Falcon. Later I went up again and tried twice to launch in no-wind conditions without success. I tried to drive JJ's Subaru down but couldn't get the key to turn. We hung out around the LZ and our Aliner the rest of the day, had soup, salad and bread for dinner at the picnic tables that Dave and Diane Auman had brought (along with a ton of firewood, an ATV, the flatbed trailer, and his Chalet). When we finally went to bed, we used the down comforter and two fleece blankets - it was chilly but not below freezing.

19 April, Sat - We didn't even go up to launch but other people did and some even flew (How else could Jasmine Himes have gotten ten flights over the course of the weekend...and win the (kingposted-glider) spotlanding contest?). While it was windy mostly from the east in the LZ, at launch people were launching in calm conditions. Steve Alford flew and landed just before a strong gust front struck and C.J. helped him hold his glider down and pack it up in the wind and rain. We had a hot lunch but were ready for the potluck dinner with burgers and sausage. There were lots of desserts so C.J.'s chocolate peanut butter cake did not get eaten up (until Sunday when we put it out again, much to my dismay). The weather was undecided with showers and dry spells. The bonfire helped keep people from wandering back to their own campers but after a while I had had enough of the wet, wind and noise and spent the rest of the evening reading (Oops, there's another thing I forgot; now that I have a 12-volt outlet and my old inverter installed I need to remember the charging cord for the Nook). On the flatbed Scott had placed his drumset and must have invited fellow drummers to give them a workout. There were a few folks with acoustic guitars but we missed having Paul and Val Gallagher around.

20 April, Sun - After a lazy morning, we drove up with Chris and Christine again and I got a short flight. The hang gliders were being really considerate about leaving a place for paragliders to launch behind the north ramp. C.J. must have waited a little while because when she called me after she landed she had flown for 40 min and had gotten to 3800 ft from the 2150' launch.

C.J. taking off from the Dog Mtn north launch

photo by Christine Nidd

 One of the reasons I didn't wait around was that on the ride up C.J. noticed that she was missing her left hearing aid. When I got on the ground after my (nine-minute) flight and packed up, I went right over to the back of the car where C.J. had pulled off her sweatshirt, shook it out and found the hearing aid on the ground. I noticed that people were starting to soar so I snagged a ride to the top and after two failures to get my forward-launch over my head, I tried a reverse inflation and got off. Justin was circling and climbing right out in front of the north launch and I hit lift even before I had reached his position. It was a slow climb but I got up over launch in the drift from the north. I worked the north face and the clearcut, then the west face with Dave Little in his rigid. Finally I got over 3000' and I went off to explore first trying to go to Elk but turning back at the far shore when I saw that Dave had not found any lift there, then to the north a bit farther than the old north field. On my return to Dog I was below launch and could not get back up so I went out and landed. Neither of my landings were on the bullseye so I wasn't in the running for the PG spotlanding trophy. I think Bryan Bright from Eatonville won it. [There were only five PGers present:  me, Bryan, Brent Taylor from Yelm, Dave and Diana. Kathy and Kim stopped by Fri evening to say they had gotten to 6k at Bremer and flown to a point east of the Morton airport.]. C.J. thought conditions looked good enough for a second flight so I drove her up and she got another short flight. By now it was after 1700 and volunteers were dismantling the shelters and packing up. I lowered the roof on the trailer while C.J. broke her glider down, and then we pulled out for home shortly after 1800, arriving about 2015.