Sheltowee Trip Report - 1

January 18, 2011 - The year has started out of the gate like a triple crown winner on 'roids and now here we sit 18 days in, looking back, wondering where all the time has gone.  Between wedding planning, projects at work and trying to maintain some resemblance of a life there hasn't been much time for anything else.  In addition to everything else my trip to hike a section of the Sheltowee Trace trail in eastern Kentucky is less than two months away.  While that may look like a distant spot on the horizon there's much planning to do before ever setting foot on the trail or placing a single quickdraw on a climbing route.  Throw in an assignment by Backpacker magazine to write about the trip and there's an extra layer of preparation that now needs to take place. 

While posting on the blog on a regular basis didn't make the cut for this year's list of resolutions, I am going to try and make an effort to write several entries before and after the trip to eastern Kentucky.  Hopefully all of you guys reading will find this at least mildly interesting... or something to read at night to help you fall asleep. 

I've posted detailed topographical maps of the portion of trail we'll be hiking.  They may be a little bit of a strain to read, but what you're looking for is the thin red line snaking it's way across each page from the bottom to top, south to north.  While the Sheltowee stretches for over 200 miles in total, our party will be hiking approximately 30 miles of it.  The portion we'll be on winds its way through Red River Gorge and Natural Bridge State Park.  The trip is planned for early March so it will most likely be colder then all else at night and hopefully somewhat comfortable during the day.  We're taking three days to hike the 30 mile section with a day at the beginning reserved for some climbing. 

Let me know if you have any questions regarding the trip and I'll do my best to keep you informed with how planning is going.   You can also find more information about the ST by visiting www.sheltoweetrace.com. 

"Rocktober Fest" - Red River Gorge, Kentucky

These pictures were taken in October at the annual Rocktober Fest hosted by the Red River Gorge Climbers Coalition.  The gorge is a Mecca for rock climbers.  Every year during the fall, hundreds of climbers make the pilgrimage to RRG to climb in the crisp, cool fall weather.  As a climber you meet people from all over the country and in some cases other parts of the world.  The "Red" has to be a destination for any climber and is seen as some of the world's best sport climbing.  These shots were taken with my Canon 40 D and most were taken with my 70 - 200mm telephoto lens.  When shooting climbing you want to zoom in tight get the details in their face and the action.  If you zoom out too wide, then you get the all too classic "butt shot" or tiny dot on the big wall while you're looking up from the bottom of the route.  
   

Big Creek Loop Backpacking Trip - GSMNP 8/21 - 8/23/2010

These are some photos from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park taken in August.  The trail we took was on the east end of the park.  It was a 23 mile loop with a stop over at the Laurel Gap Shelter.  Most of these photos were taken with my Sigma 20mm lens on a tripod.  Slow the shutter speed way down to get the misting effect with flowing water.  

  
Enjoy!

Why every couple should rock climb before getting married*

I love rock climbing.  It's exciting, technical and can be dangerous if done the wrong way.  After a recent trip to a climbing gym in Evansville with my girlfriend, Meg, we realized there are some very important reasons why every couple should climb before taking the plunge (no pun intended... ok maybe) into marriage. 

- Rock climbing requires trust.  It's tough to forget the fact that you're climbing a 50 foot wall straight up.  Humans weren't designed to be able to scale walls.  However with a lot of rope and a snug harness around your hips and waist I'm willing to overcome the urge to hug the safe ground and climb on!  The element of trust comes in when your partner (in my case Meg) belays you.  She was responsible for making sure if I suddenly stopped being one with the wall that I would not become one with the ground very soon there after.  When I made it to the top, it then took even more trust to lean back into thin air and let her lower away.  

- Rock climbing requires communication.  When you're 20 feet in the air, you want your partner to communicate what your situation looks like.  "Move to your left."  "There's a hold up and to your right."  "No, your other right!"  Without the proper communication, a lot of encouragement and a voice that projects, there would have been several walls that we would have not been able to climb.  Even with communication there still were several walls that we were unable to climb.  Note the picture of the wall with a large over-hang.  I will conquer that wall.   

- Rock climbing isn't always easy.  Sometimes you fall, other times you're too weak and tired to climb anymore.  Sometimes that weakness kicks in when you're six feet from the top and the only hand hold left in your path requires you to do a pull up with your index finger.  That's when you fight through the tough times and finish the route!

*Disclaimer: This post in no way insinuates our eagerness for marriage or that it will take place anytime in the next six months. 

**The pictures posted in this blog were taken on my cell phone camera at 'Vertical Excape' in Evansville.  If you'd ever like to go, let me know! :-D

Life Lessons from a Beagle

You never really appreciate what you have in life until it's almost taken away from you.  I've learned that lesson on several occasions over the past few months.  The most recent this past weekend when my 15 year old beagle had a seizure.  In the hours following her episode I did a lot of thinking and realized there were several life lessons to be learned from my beloved beagle.

Lesson #1: Don't take anything for granted.

Life is too short.  Enjoy the time you have with the ones you love.  There will come a time when they will not be there to call on for comfort and support.  If you have the opportunity to do something fun and exciting or maybe just take a nice walk around the block, do it!  You never want to say "I wish I had..." but instead "I'm glad I did."

Lesson #2: Embrace life.

Every morning at five minutes til six my beagle would declare it was time to wake up.  With a nice, long howl she would tell me she wanted breakfast... even if I was not interested in the same thing.  Sometimes I put the pillow over my head and turned over.  On other occasions I turned up my radio and tried to ignore her persistent demands. On Monday morning, I wasn't sure if that familiar wake up call would come.  When the sun came up and six a.m. rolled around there it was, the howl that for so long I had tried to ignore!  It was a little weak, as anyone would be after suffering such a traumatic event, but it was there none the less!  Instead of ignoring her demands I couldn't get to her aid quick enough.  She may have been weak and hurting but she was ready to face the day! 

"Bring it on world," my beagle howled.  "I'm ready for whatever you've got!" 

A little dazed she raced down the hall ready for a full bowl of breakfast.  On this Monday, one bowl wasn't enough... she wanted two.  She climbed up and down the stairs outside, ready to embrace life.

Lesson #3: Take it one day at a time.

As I worry about at the future holds for my little beagle, this piece of advice comes from my girlfriend. 

"She's old, some days will be good and others will be bad.  Take it one day at a time."

In life sometimes we need to slow down and not worry about what's going to happen next week, next month or even next year.  Take it one day at a time and some will be good and others not so good.

Lesson #4: Never under estimate the power of a nap!

On the night of my beagle's episode, she looked dazed, confused and scared.  Walking in circles, I thought her end was near.  However, putting her in a nice quiet place with the lights out and the sun down... she took a nap.  12 hours later, she awoke a much fresher beagle.  No matter how big the challenge or how bad the problem... never under estimate the power of a nap. 

Fresh snow & a typewriter

Here are a few pictures taken over the past week.  The first set was snapped in the early hours of January 31st after five inches of snow had fallen over Owensboro.  I took these pictures using my 20mm and 50 mm lenses.  I discovered real fast how difficult it is to take pictures when you're bundled up with temperatures in the low 20s.  It's hard to keep your lenses clean and the feeling in your fingers.  A trick to taking landscape photographs of snow.  Black and white pops more.  Colors aren't usually as brilliant in winter so you can really make your pictures pop by transforming them into B&W.

This next group of pictures was taken of my awesome new typewriter!  This fine machine is a birthday present from my wonderful girlfriend who completely surprised me with it!  It's a Royal Quiet Deluxe Portable typewriter, circa 1940.  I had to snap some low light pictures of it.  It's easy to grab a good picture when you have subject matter like this.  I left most of these in color because I think the colors add to the vintage look. 

Feed back is always welcome!  Enjoy!

Second and Daviess... Owensboro, Kentucky.

I've been anxious to take some pictures at night with a low shutter speed and a tri-pod.  Despite the cold weather and mounds of house work piling up at my apartment I decided Friday night would be the night.  I used all three of my lenses for this experiement and my shutter was set some where between five seconds and 1/4 a second.  My camera was set on a two second timer to eliminate camera shake from pushing the trigger.  I managed to take the last one hand held... not really sure how I did that.   

 

I wasn't too impressed with how these came out, but it could just be the lack of traffic and surroundings.  I'm very happy with the colors on some of them.  I don't think I ever realized how colorful the front of the Creme' is!  Great for pictures... and they serve a pretty awesome cup of coffee too!  (There's my shameless plug.)

The Best of Rosine, Kentucky

If you've never been to Rosine, Kentucky you're missing out on some good ol' Kentucky culture.  In the heart of Ohio County near the spot bluegrass music was born the music lives on every Friday night.  It's a great place to go and enjoy the culture of Kentucky and relax while others pick on the fiddle or banjo.  You'll find groups playing in the signature Rosine barn or just in the parking lot with their friends from the office. 

 

I took these pictures during a visit to Rosine.  My goal was to get some great shots without using my flash.  However the challenge being... it was already dark.  I tried to use available light, including a Coke machine and the light on top the barn. Take a look and let me know what you think.