Climate Change

This was one of my professors in University.

Brilliant.

 

Atlas Shrugged

If you haven't read it and you want the quick rundown then here it is:

I expect you will see a great deal on Atlas Shrugged from me in the next bit.  I am actively engaged in the Atlas Shrugged Movie forums so there is plenty of fuel in my philosophical fire.  If you are interested hop on the forums and take a look!

Cline River... Um... Coral Creek...

It is early in the season for camping, but we have a lot of hikes planned and frankly, the summer just isn't long enough.  With that in mind we hopped into the cars on Friday and drove south to the Kootenay Plains.  Most people don't know where that is, so I have been informing people that the nearest landmark is Nordegg.  Now, if you don't know where that is I must insist you use the Google to broaden your horizons on Albertan geography.

Anyways.  South we headed, and in an hour and a half we were where we needed to be.  It was pretty easy camping as we were the only ones there.  The campground owners let us set up near some tepees and a huge fire pit and we were good to go.

The Saloon at the Campground

It might be early in the season, but the sun is out long.  We had a huge stack of firewood and we set to it.  The April eve was setting in, but our blazing fire took the edge off the cold.  There was a barbecue there that we could have used to cool our supper, but let's be honest, it is so much more hardcore if you use a fire... especially if you are cooking steaks.  We set up a low fire, tossed my grill on top, and tossed our steaks on top of that.  I cracked out my new tools (non-plastic... yes yes, we are getting smarter...) and we began cooking.  It took the fire a few minutes to get roaring, but soon it was and it took only moments before we were feasting on Alberta's finest.

 

First Camping Trip of the Season

 

The Grill

  

Camping Steaks 

 Epic.

 

Ambiance

It was an early night for us as I had somehow convinced my fellow campers that we should be up and hiking nice and early.  The night was chill, though the bazillion Mexican blankets that I liberated from Mom and Dad's house certainly seemed to help... um... thanks Mom and Dad!

 

Tepee at Dawn

 

Hike Along Cline River

We were up early(ish) and we were on our way.  The plan for the day was to hike along Cline River.  The ultimate goal (and knowedly unreasonable) was to get to some native cliff drawings deep in the bush.  We found was looked like a reasonable starting point (it was a legitimate path) and we were on our way.

Cline River... Actually... Coral Creek...

   

Coral Canyon

   

The Wilderness

 

Break Time

 

Crevice

 And that's how it went.  We followed the path until we dead ended at a canyon, and then we doubled back and followed it again (up and over).  It took some time, but we made it over and down the other side so we eventually ended up beside the creek that had been flowing through the canyon.  The trail was somewhat treacherous with the snow and mud, but it was passable.

 

Leaving Coral Canyon

For the next few hours we just hiked along merrily.  My map told me that we should be near a bridge, but we didn't see anything.  Actually, we weren't sure how far we had gone, or how far we could go.  We kept going until our path seemed to disappear and we were more or less stuck.  No doubt the path continued under the snow, but it was wet, and muddy, and there was a very good chance that we were misplaced.  I say misplaced because we weren't really lost... we knew how to get back to where we came from, we just didn't happen to know where we were at present.  Actually, with my GPS I could tell you exactly where we were... it just so happened that my GPS doesn't have a map of the backcountry and yeah...

 

The Old Bridge

   

Coral Creek

 

Debris

 

Stuck in the Snow

 

Ice

 

Escape from the Snow

Anyways.  We took our lunch in the sun and headed back for home.  En route we saw two sets of bear prints (different bears), one set of hikers (who looked like they were in better shape than us), and a whole lot of beauty.

 

The Commode

 

Icicled

 

A Muddy Bear Print

It seemed like the way back was wayyyy longer than the way in, but we did make it.  At the trail head we came across a few more hikers who asked us where we had gone.  We didn't really have a satisfactory answer for them, but when they suggested that we had hiked along Coral Creek that seemed to make sense.  Looking at my map now that makes a lot of sense, and my camera's GPS has since confirmed it.

 

The Way Back

Exhausted, we hopped into the Jeep and made our way to base.  We passed a herd of sheep on the way, and then we were back at camp.  Thank G.

Sheeps

That afternoon was quiet.  So quiet that just about all of us planned to go for a nap.  We were in our tent, just starting to doze, when Chloe said to me "there's a dog outside."  I had heard something walking around there, actually it was his tail hitting our tent, but I was not concerned.  "So?" I replied.  "So," said she, "he's eating our food!"

Some may know that my body is in pretty rough shape and when it comes to athletic feats I leave something to desired... that said, I was out of the tent faster than lightning and was accosting the predator of our supplies.  What I saw before me was an enormous St. Bernard puppy.  He was mowing down on our garbage, but when he saw me coming he took a few steps back.  Our camp was quickly mobilizing, but this puppy wasn't fooling around.  We had our food out on the picnic table, since we didn't think it would be under attack, and this puppy moved in for another run.  There was a bag of peanuts sitting nearby and he went for it.  I went for it too, but with a quick snap of his jaws the peanuts were his and my hand had retreated for fear of being removed.

He ate the whole bag of peanuts.
And a loaf of bread.
And two hot dog buns.
And maybe half a steak that was in the garbage...
And who knows what else.

We got the food to safety, but we had a new friend.  This was a different circumstance than just a dog snatching some food, we could clearly see his ribs and it was very likely that this dog was starving.  We got him a bucket of water and I checked to see if he belonged to the campground owners (he didn't).  We continued about our day, but no napping was had.

We had a fire again, and we had some hot dogs, but at all times someone had to be en guard, for Bernerd (Bernerd, nor Bernard... and not this had nothing to do with his being a St. Bernard... this was like that time I looked at my car and I knew that it was a Jerusalem... well, this was a Bernerd) was always watching.

Hot dogs.  S'mores.  And a surprisingly early night.

Bernerd was still around in the morning, and now that he had found a supply of food he wasn't really planning on letting go.

Our other parties packed up and headed home early, but Chloe and I stuck around a while.  Mostly, I was very slow to get up because I seemed to have contracted the plague, which I still seem to have.  I was more or less a dead man walking, so I got to things slowly.  It was just us and Bernerd and though we were packing to go we had to do something with him.

He was starving.

 

Bernerd

I am a fan of nature, but more hearted people than I preferred to take a more active role.  With about a thousand phone calls and much deliberation it was determined that a shelter in Calgary/Airdrie would take Bernerd so he didn't have to stay wild and starving in the wilderness.

With that decided I used the grill and rope and whatever was handy to create a barricade in Chloe's car so that the back seat was safely segregated from the front.  I think it was Bernerd's first car ride because he didn't seem so keen on getting in, but with a few of that morning's sausages in the back seat his hesitations went the way of the dodo.

 

Leaving Camp feat. the Plague

I took one final look at, and photo of, the devious little (ironic little) guy and he was on his way.

The Big Little Guy

I drove home, got home, and died.

I remained dead yesterday, which marked the first time I have ever missed work due to sickness, and have only regained some semblance of consciousness and humanity today.  I still have the plague, but less of it.

And oh yes, and update on dear Bernerd.  He has been adopted.  The dog people think that he is a 10 month old, pure bred, St. Bernard.  He has been renamed George Goodruff and his new family has every intention of calling him Ruff.

See... sometimes there are happy endings...

The Missing Month

So yeah... I've been busy.  Usually I try to cram in blog writing, but it turns out that I've been busy and I've been boring.  Not a great combination.  It seems to be that I am chasing down one thing or another.  First I was doing a project at work, and more recently I was studying for the National Professional Practice Exam (required to become a Professional Engineer).  The test was yesterday and now I am free.

Well... now I have a little more time.  Not much though since I have about a thousand other things on the go.  Anyways, I figure that now that I have a chance to breathe I should update you on the last month.  The truth is, I have a hard time remembering exactly what I did over the last month.  I have been very lucky however, in that my camera seems to remember for me.  So, I will go through my photos, give you a fantastic commentary, and together we will figure out what I've been doing.

It seems to start with this little guy... yep... I was in Calgary, and he was awesome.  He was a gift to the new nephew.  Before you ask, no I did not make this little dude.  It was the far more talented Chloe, and having completed his photo shoot he was given to the new nephew.

Babar?

A Happy Face

Yep... after that it looks like we went skiing... not sure how we got from Calgary to skiing but here you go!

The Lift

The Conquest Tree

I suppose I owe you some explanation on this one.  This is not a great photo, but you can see some colour in that tree that isn't the natural green of the needles or white of the snow.  Those are undergarments...  For those of you unfamiliar with ski hills, lifties generally come from all over the world (we get a lot from Australia and New Zealand).  Anyways, the lifties for the most part live on the ski hill where they have their own little world or working, skiing, partying, and whatnot.  Most lifties are also of a relatively youthful age, and as they are youthful they follow the desires of youth.  Thus, when those desires acclimate to a relationship... of sorts... conquest is had.  So, at Panorama, these lifties, when passing like ships in the night, try to snatch a pair of conquested undergarments.  Those snatched successfully make it magically into the tree.  Usually by the end of the season the tree is... well decorated... well... on a good year at least...

 

Melissa

 After that we come to Drayton Valley.  I must apologize, I was sick at the time so my voice is a little croaky, but still the photos give you an idea of where I live.  Yep... tiny hamlet surrounded by a super sketchy forest.

Special.

Behind Rocky Rapids

Best of of These I've Seen All Day

A Snowy Bridge

Top and Bottom

Treehouse

Striations

Back to Calgary... I get around eh?  Anyways... these are one of Mom's favourite flowers.  They bloom like once a year and they give off a very strong scent... as well as drippy sap that gets all over the carpet.  If we are lucky we get to enjoy this flower for a few days before Dad will sneak in and cut it down.  That really is a touchy subject, so it is probably better that the flowers weren't cut down prematurely this year...

 

Calgary Flowers

 

A Mixed Bloom

Off to Bella Vista.  This was an interesting situation.  Mom has some light up fake tree things at the entrance to BV.  They do add a certain something, but this was the most interesting that they have ever looked.  We pulled up one weekend and noticed that one of the trees had been... re-located.  It appears that in the late winter food is pretty scarce.  So scarce that the deer decided that this green tree looked like easy pickings.  They seemed to have gotten pretty far, but when the cord got stuck they seemed to have reconsidered this venture.  I'm not sure if the tree was stuck by the cord, or if the deer figured out that the tree wasn't the good eating they were expecting, but either way... the tree had been re-located and my guts ached with laughter.

The Dragged Tree

In the Morning Light

Elk

An Icy Morning

The Herd

Drayton Valley again, but this time the hike wasn't at Rocky Rapids, it was down by the North Saskatchewan River.  There were some good things about this walk... and some bad things.  Good thing... I got out of the house.  Good thing... company on the walk was good.  Bad thing... the snow was up to my knees.  Bad thing... the snow could not support my weight.  Very bad thing... my shoes are holey... very holey...

It is a beautiful area, though it is somber and forlorn in the winter.  There wasn't a spark of colour to be found, and the leave-less trees were like the claws of the Earth reaching skyward.  Eerie... but peaceful.  Serene.  We walked, got snow in our shoes, tripped on hazards hidden beneath the snow, and we examined winter life.  No leaves, no colour there, but still... there is always life.

The Gloom

Life

Pheonix

 

Floating Moss

Some of you may remember that whenst crossing Canada we picked up a few trees along the way...  The winter seems to have been hard and there have certainly been some losses... but... but... life will find a way, and so some have lived, and waking in the spring they are beginning to flourish!

Fresh Needles

A Canadian Forest

 

Spring!

My next set of pictures is from work.  You know how you see those pumpjacks all over the place (for those of you in Alberta)?  Well, the rod that goes into the ground is called the polish rod, and in this case... ours broke.  These are the pieces of the rod, and this is one of my typical wellsites.  There is definitely a certain kind of beauty in these remote areas (and this one certainly is not that remote).  I can see why there is appeal to an operating position.  To drive around day after day with nothing but nature around you... that is my kind of job.

Broken Polish Rod

The Other Half

Wellhead Feat. Broken Polish Rod

Pumpjack

A Typical Day of an Operator

Since this polish rod was broken we were no longer able to produce oil from this well.  So... I called in a Rig.  This is how an oil well gets fixed (for those of you who don't know).

The Arriving Rig

Rigging In

Removing the Horses Head

An Unknown Visitor

The Rig

Bottom Hole Pump

Breakup

Tubing

Back in Calgary... again... I guess this was an uneventful trip... in general... but... there are always opportunities to witness great beauty, no matter where you are.  All it is is a matter of being in the right place at the right time... and so I was.

Calgary Cacti

The Rare Bloom

To Bella Vista again... wow, my gas bill must be crazy!  This going over a month or two on a high level could be revolutionary for my budgeting!  Anyways, since we were there we were doing the general fun stuff.  But more fun is getting people into antiquated weapons that provide them with few practical skills but hella fun.  That's what we did.  We took Mom's bow (from her grade 6 or 9 graduation), my string, and the quiver of arrows and we headed down to the field.  We didn't have a target set up, which is good, because you can't miss if you aren't aiming for anything; but, there was an open field where we could fire away.  Some people had fired before and were rusty, while for others it was their first time.  Either way, fun was had by all... and now I need to buy a target and more arrows.

Learning to Shoot

The First Shot

Awe

How Its Done

First Shot (Movie)

A Natural

On the archery note... we later wanted to see if we could clear the road if we fired from the balcony.  The answer is yes, you can clear the road, and also that you ought not aim for the field because like usual, my arrows ended up in the swamp.  Eff.

 

Full Moon

 A full moon, and an Easter morning.  The photos didn't turn out perfectly, but the memories did.  Tatertots was pretty good at finding eggs, but he didn't seem to get the point of an Easter egg hunt...  Uncle Ryan was hoarding the eggs he found, while Tayden kept giving them away... I will admit, I was the recipient of an egg or two... I dread the day that he figures out that he is supposed to keep them and not share them!

 

An Egg!

Look Over There

 

For You Uncle!

So I'm caught up, even if it wasn't the most in depth blog.  I am still super busy, but it looks like I am about to get considerable less boring.  It is camping season... and we are starting this weekend.  Ye haw, Kootenay Plains here we come!