Staying warm generally means staying dry...

After I had made this post my buddy Daniel Harro asked I add this:



"Here is a Marmot Helium 15 degree down sleeping bag after spending three nights on Peak 11,300 in less than ideal conditions. Two things that helped get the down soaked..... 1. Their is no way to stay dry climbing through waist deep / chest deep snow for three-four days, if you were not getting wet from the snow you were sweating from the huge effort of moving upward. 2. these bags are nylon which have no water resiliency what so ever so any snow / water that touched the bags they simply absorbed. Over all a great learning experience!"











Eric Williams back at Mountain House base camp. Harro photo









Couple of thoughts come to mind on staying warm. Climbing in a wet snow storm all day will get you wet if you are dressed wrong. Or being over dressing for the conditions will get you wet from perspiration.



I've used my synthetic parka to dry my soft shell out in wet snow conditions after I got chilled on a belay. I couldn't get myself dried while stopped without added insulation. I also have used a base layer to do the approach in, knowing I would soak it and then changed to dry clothing to do the climb. That is a lighter and much warmer tactic over all for me.



The major issue of winter climbing is moisture management. Be it boots, clothing or sleeping bags. The reason it is an issue from what I have seen is people over dress for the activity level, just as likely use the wrong piece of kit or simply don't pay attention to the details like getting into a down bag with wet clothing on. Current soft shell technology in a snow storm (done it myself) is not the smart option. Doesn't matter what it is made of, wet gear is a poor insulator. You stay warm by staying dry and hydrated.



There are climbs I wouldn't take a down bag on and climbs I wouldn't take anything but a down bag on. It depends on the amount of care I can/want to dedicate to the bag and amount of space in my pack.



Some times a very light synthetic over bag is a good answer for keeping your down bag dry and being able to dry your gear at night. Put the wet gear between your down bag and the liner. But climbing into a down bag with all your wet clothing on is a sure way to soak your down bag no matter what high tech shell material the manufacturer used to keep it dry. Climb "cold" so you aren't sweating and have less clothing to dry at night. Use Synthetic insulation in bags and jackets where appropriate. Staying dry and warm is a thinking man's game that should be played 24/7 in the mtns.

Church Clock

This is the church business offices with the big clock in the top. There was a small garden in front.

The Skinny ropes?

I would prefer to use one of the modern lwt single ropes given the choice in most situations. Lots of them available these days. No surprise I am a big fan of the Beal Joker pictured above and own two of them.



But on any route I need to rappel off of I would prefer a twin or maybe a double rope. But generally a twin. I find the twin format easy enough to use on most ice routes I am doing and "safe enough". A double rope will generally add to the safety factor while adding some weight. Many of the better modern ropes will allow you to use them as a twin and a double and in some cases a twin, double and single.



But you need to play close attention to the following on all these ropes.

Falls/ Impact Force/Elongation/Extension



The down side of the skinny twin ropes now available (or at least the pair I have been using for a while now) is they are really skinny and themore common belay plates can be problematic. Too fast on steep rappels for my taste and too stretchy sometimes if loaded as a single rope.



My current twin rope system is a pair of Beal Ice Twins @ 7.7mm and 37g per meter. There are other great ropes and I have used most of them. I just happen to be on Beal at the moment. My first and more than half of them bought at retail fwiw.












I saw a few new ropes at OR this summer. Some of them held great interest for me. Enough interest that I may change a good part of my ice climbing system for some (but not all) projects.














TheEdelrid Flycatcher was one @ 6.9mm and 35g per meter. And no question the skinny winner! I comes with a specifically designed belay device...which it needs IMO. All of the ropes mentioned here need extra care on the belays and rappels. More on this rope system specifically coming up shortly.



More here on my take on ropes:

http://coldthistle.blogspot.com//03/ropes.html













Beal also has the new 7.3mm Gully @ 36gram per meter. Twin and Dbl ratings. Late Jan, 2014 delivery. 36gram per and 7.3mm? Interesting trade off on the already thin and light weight Ice Twin at 38gram per meter and 7.8mm. Another rope I will be using as a comparison to my Ice Twin when I get the chance.









Petzl has a new 7.7mm twin. Sorry unsure what the weight was on the Petzl. I would suspect it is close to the Beals offerings. Mammut has at least onetwin @ 42grams per meter.











" Monster Ropes by Metolius are
7.8mm and 38g/m and a double or twin. They are a contender."



Thanks Brian!



I should have more infoon all these ropes shortly.









Trangowith a 8.1 that is both a twin and a double @ 42gramsper meter. Theyarea very clean set of ropes and available now.



No doubt I missed a few of the new "skinny ropes". But things keeping getting lighter and more fragile...truly "race parts" in gear these days.



Problem is..high performance "race parts" fail in a spectacular fashion. And cost a lot in $ to maintain. Ask anyone who races cars.The twins in particular are not "beginners" ropes IMO.With the current technology I thinkwe are pushing the envelope on ropes. Sometimes, in some places/circumstances bigger and heavier might just be better and much safer. I know it is always cheaper.



I like soloing on ice. Take a look at these ropes yourself. Decide for yourself just how close you are to soloing.



But you really need to check the ratings (Falls/ Impact Force/Elongation/Extension)on all these ropes to see if they are appropriate for your own use. YMMV

Black-Eyed Susan

Black-Eyed Susan, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

Minnesota has some great prairie wildflowers. This black-eyed susan was out in a field of daisies near St. Paul. Minnesota is a nice place to visit - when it's warm!

The Estate of John Rupert :: Executors Bond

The will of John Rupert, dated October 17, 1828 was admitted to probate in Columbiana County, Ohio in August of 1831. The Executors Bond was signed on August 22, 1831.





Executors Bond. Estate of John Rupart. Packet 1439. Family History Library microfilm 2032592.

The Executors Bond was a preprinted form. Information that was handwritten into the form is shown below in bold-face type.

Know all men by these presents, that Conrod Yerion, David Ehrhart, Samuel Meek & Benj Stackhouse of the County of Columbiana, Ohio, are held and firmly bound unto the State of Ohi in the sum of Two Hundred Dollars, to which payment well and truly to be made unto the said State of Ohio, we bind ourselves, our heirs, executors and administrators and every of them jointly and severally firmly by these presents,



Signed and sealed this 22d day of August eighteen hundred and thirty one



THE CONDITIONS OF THIS OBLIGATION IS SUCH, that if the above named Conrod Yarion & David Erhart, Executors of the will Administrator of all and singular the goods, chattels, rights, credits, monies and effects of John Ruppart late of said County, deceased, shall faithfully perform the duties required of them as such Administrator Executors by law, and shall administer agreeably to the statutes of Ohio in such cases made and provided, then this obligation to be void and of none effect, otherwise to remain in full force and virtue in law.



Conrod Yarion David Ehrhart Benjamin Stackhouse Saml Meek

Shop Bench

This bench was outside one shop door and looked like it was worth taking a picture of.

Tropical Flavor

The bright colors of this Heliconia can surely cure the winter blues.

Climbing Muscles? Perhaps

When I began to do long hilly rides, I acquired a nemesis: the Mysterious Pain. This pain would get me even when my legs were strong and my energy levels were high. It would get me when least expected, ruining countless rides and limiting my progress.




I have never experienced anything quite like it before. It wasn't so much of a pain even, as an alarming sensation of seizing, not so much in my lower back as below it. If you draw an imaginary horizontal line perpendicular to the top of the butt crack, the sensation was along that line, in two distinct spots on the left and right, symmetrical.




The first time I experienced it in earnest was during a 100 mile overnight ride to Maineearly last summer. It came on around mile 70 and was so debilitating I had to stop on the side of the road and stretch every 10 miles to keep going.




Mystery pains are a source of fascination to cyclists, and I talked about mine with a slew of local riders. At the time the consensus was that I had increased my milage too quickly and hadn't the upper body strength to handle it. So I spent the rest of the summer sticking to sub-100K rides, but doing them with more frequency to build up strength and muscle tone. I am not sure this had any effect. It may have worked subtly, but at the time I felt somewhat stagnant and dispirited. I wanted, very badly, to do longer rides. And I felt strong; my legs would seldom get tired on a bike. But this strange pain/ seizing sensation was like a brick wall I kept hitting:No sooner would I attempt a long ride with lots of climbing, it would return.




This Spring I began riding more than ever. Short rides, long rides, paved rides, dirt rides, club rides, brevets... I thought I was riding a lot before, but now I was practically living on my bike. Disappointingly, the mystery pain was still there - though I'd now learned to manage it with strategically timed stops and stretching. On the 200K brevet, I'd pull over on the side of the road every so many miles so that I could bend over backwards and do some quick twists before continuing. That was all it took to stop the discomfort for the next so many miles, so stopping was better than not stopping: If I did nothing about it and continued riding it would only slow me down.




Having witnessed this riding next to me on the 200K, my friend Pamela suggested that the problem could be insufficiently developed "climbing muscles" - something she herself had experienced at one time. Rather than related to distance, the discomfort could be brought on by long stretches of climbing - which are of course more likely to occur on long distance rides.




There were other suggestions from riding companions at this time: That my gears were too high. That my saddle was too hard. That my position on the bike was too aggressive. And that climbing seated was the real issue.




At that point I decided to take an aggressive approach and try everything. The suggestion that my roadbike position was causing the discomfort worried me, because I otherwise found it so comfortable. But a few strategic rides helped me eliminate that as the cause: I was able to bring about the same pain on more upright bikes (even my Brompton) if I used higher gears when climbing for a prolonged period of time. So gearing had a lot more to do with it than position. I now also knew for certain that the source of the problem wasn't the long distance, but the long, repeated climbs. In Ireland I found that I could bring about the pain within as little as 20 miles, if they were "quality miles" with respect to elevation gain.




In short, the climbing muscles diagnosis seemed the most probable. But how to develop them? I was not willing to go to the gym to work on my "core," and so far just continuing to ride the way I'd been wasn't helping.




Staying in Ireland took care of the problem. Here I did not continue to ride the way I'd been, but, with some guidance, began to do more focused riding - both faster and with more climbing - on a more or less daily basis. I learned how to use gears more efficiently. And I also finally learned how to stand out of the saddleand began practicing that every ride.




One result of all this has been a subtle, but significant transformation to my body within a very short time period. The changes to my legs did not surprise me - after all, that is what we expect from cycling. But I did not expect the changes to my midriff. My abdomen has gone flat and there are these weird thin horizontal muscles wrapping around the sides of my torso, front and back - where the "love handles" used to be,if you will. I have never had muscle definition in this area before, and it all looks and feels absolutely bizarre, as if my body isn't really mine.But existential analyses aside, whatever's happened it has solved the mystery pain problem. No more. It's just gone - regardless of whether I climb standing or seated, in a low gear or high. Just to make sure, this past week I've made it a point to do hilly rides without getting out of the saddle at all, like in the old days (meaning entire months ago). But that seizing sensation below the lower back is now just a memory.




So... climbing muscles. What are they exactly? I imagine some combination of abdominal and lower back muscles. For some they might be naturally well developed. For most they are probably average. And for some, like myself, they could be underdeveloped - requiring lots of work to get up to par. Happily, I love riding and doing this "work." And I love it that this limitation is finally gone.

Yard sale!

A few new things if you are in the market and the right size... Baruntse size 43.5, TRAB skimo race bindings, couple pair of skisand some shells and insulation.....among other things.



http://coldthistletools.blogspot.com//03/yard-sale.html



Gotta pay for those new toys to review some how ;-)

Thoughts on Bar-End Shifters

When I was getting my first new roadbike in spring , I had it built up with bar-end shifters. This decision was arrived at via a process of elimination. I had ridden a couple of vintage roadbikes before with very limited success and found the classic downtube shifters too challenging. I had also tried to test ride some modern roadbikes and found their combination brake/shifter levers ("brifters") to be so uncomfortable that I had trouble using the brakes. Other cyclists I knew recommended bar-ends - an older style that had grown popular again in recent years. Rivendell - the manufacturer of the road frame I was having built up - was also strongly recommending this setup. And so that is what I went with.






A bar-end shifter is exactly what it sounds like: a gear-changing lever installed at the end of the handlebar. There are different styles. Some are longer, others are shorter. Some are friction, others are indexed. I have tried a few now on different bikes, and my favourite remains what I went with originally: Silver friction shifters. The length and shape make them easier for me to operate than other models; I get more leverage. I find the friction mode easy and intuitive to use, and I like the control it gives me. If a gear is imperfectly adjusted, I can simply move it a tiny bit manually. I can also shift multiple gears at a time quite easily.






The shorter, indexable Shimano bar-ends are another popular choice for this style of shifters. The Co-Habitant uses them on his bikes and loves them. But personally I find them more effortful and less comfortable to use that the Silvers.






Over the time I rode with bar-end shifters, I was more or less fine with them. I was able to switch gears and I was able to install the brake levers I liked, since they were independent from the shifters. But I did find two things about the shifters less than ideal. One was that they required me to dramatically change my hand position(s) on the bars in order to switch gears. I got better and quicker at this over time, but nonetheless I was never "in love" with the process. The other issue was that when stopped or off the bike the shifters would often poke me and give me bruises. But both of these points seemed relatively minor at the time, and I was not considering a different lever setup.





My switch to combination levers was a product of accidental discovery. I was discussing test riding a Seven roadbike with the staff of the Ride Studio Cafe, and all their demo models were set up with modern brifter-type levers. I told them about my inability to brake using brifters when I attempted to ride other modern roadbikes. Rob Vandermark asked which specific makes and models I'd tried. It had not occurred to me until then that this could make a real difference. I'd tried quite a few, all of them by Shimano and SRAM. Rob looked at the Tektro short reach brake levers on my own bike, and suggested I try Campagnolo; apparently the shape is very similar. And so it was. I test rode a demo bike with Campagnolo ergo shifters and it was as if my brain became integrated with them immediately. I resisted making a rash decision to make the switch on my own bike, but a couple of months later I finally did switch and have not looked back.






So what do I think of bar-end shifters in retrospect... Pretty much the same thing as before. I have no desire to "bash" them or to proclaim the superiority of brifters; it is really a matter of individual preference. I still like bar-ends and I am fine riding a roadbike set up with them. I especially love the friction mode. If given a choice of models, my favourites are the Silvers; they feel great in my hands. I imagine that bar-ends are well suited for those who prefer their shifters to be separate from their brake levers, who wish to have the option of friction shifting, and who have no problems moving their hands to the edges of the drops swiftly and efficiently when they need to change gears. I am sure there are other contexts in which bar-ends are the preferred choice, and those who have things to add on the subject are welcome to chime in. To me, bar-ends will always be associated with my first road cycling experiences, and I retain a fondness for them despite having switched to another system.

Rutland Round 5 - Normanton to Clipsham

With Marta. Fine, sunny, but cold to start with. Some mud underfoot. Luckily I remembered the way through Clipsham Quarry. Only other small problem was on the way to Tickencote where we missed a turn to the right, but were able to correct easily. Lunch at The Plough in Great Casterton. 14 miles including walk to Yew Tree Avenue.

An early morning shot before leaving one car here

The first two miles from Normanton Car Park on Rutland Water were very simple - follow the yellow brick road, well, the tarmac path, past the café, past Normanton church and the back entrance to the Normanton Park Hotel, and carry on across the dam. Blue sky, blue water, and a chilly north wind. A few cyclists, loads of sheep and the guys inflating those see-through balloons you can be strapped in to roll down the grassy slope behind the dam.



Instead of going through the gate at the end of the dam path, we followed the field edge round, almost turning back on ourselves. We walked along the edge of the wooded area, and shortly after a couple of trig points, or similar objects, there was a stile on our left which led into a field. We spotted the Rutland Way signs for the first time today - and on the stile.

Ten out of ten for clarity!

The signs were easy to follow from this point, leading over fields and through some woodland, until the path emerged into Nook Lane in Empingham. Nook Lane leads to the main A 606. We crossed over to walk past the White Horse pub and along the road through the village. The church was down a small road to the right as we walked straight on.



Just after the end of the village, very soon after Mill Lane, the footpath goes away from the road, up through a short stretch of woodland - Chapel Spinney. A little further along the road after the turn there's a convenient bench for our first stop of the day - a little chilly in the shade, so we didn't linger longer than the few minutes needed to top up the caffeine level.



The path came out of the trees into sunshine and continued along the top edge of several fields. Empingham was now a cluster of houses and the church behind us. We passed a spinney on the right, and continued to follow the path. There may be a waymarker that we missed, but we fought our way thorugh an overgrown section and came out on the concrete path leading towards Tickencote Lodge Farm. We had just walked round the two sides of a triangle instead of the hypotenuse - give or take the accuracy of the right angles.

Tickencote Lodge Farm

We turned right and walked down the track until we met the Rutland Round waymarker pointing back to where we should have walked. Close by was a stile into the next field of recently cut hay, which we crossed diagonally (just south of east) to the next yellow post just before another farm house.



We followed the signs round the house and on to a small road north east for a short distance, before entering a couple of fields and walking in the same direction, the turning slightly to the right.

Tractor tedding hay near Tickencote

We crossed another small road towards Tickencote Hall, and had to brave this signposted danger:








He seemed to be dozing in the shade and showed no interest in us.

Looking towards Tickencote Hall

The path goes past the church of St Peter, which is small but impressive. It was restored at the end of the eighteenth century, but is considered a fine example of a Norman church.

The vaulting

The chancel arch

The East End of the church

We walked through the village to a sign and short section of path which crosses a field, then emerges on to a road near the OK Diner, then goes under the A1 and into Great Casterton. The Plough Inn is right on the route and provided an adequate, though not perfect lunch, with exceptionally friendly service from its new landlord.



Chatter, imperfect map-reading and inattention to the book's instructions almost set us off on the wrong road after lunch - and all on fruit juice at that.



You need to walk along to the junction with the Pickworth road, and turn left past the primary school - or take the narrow lane between houses just before the school sign on the main road. In any case take the road out of Great Casterton past the school and walk along this for a good mile until you reach Mounts Lodge Farm. Opposite here a bridleway leads to the left - almost due west. The path was pretty muddy - puddle-dodging skills honed while you walk.



After a few hundred yards, at the end of the first very big field, we turned right along a grassy track. We continued along this, ignoring any tracks to the right or left, and made our way more or less north towards Pickworth. The signing around here is pretty poor. Just opposite the point where the path meets the road is this medieval arch.

Photograph from 24.11.

The arch, on private land is all that remains of a church from the 12th, 13th or 14th century.

The remains of a lime-kiln, where John Clare worked for a while as a lime-burner. - 18.11.

The lime-kiln is also on private land, and almost invisible in the summer.

We turned left along the road, and walked past the first footpath sign near Manor Farm, and past the limekiln, to find the path we needed, which goes off to the right at a bend in the road. Time for another coffee-break, before tackling the remaining three or four miles.



The path is wide and clear, and we had no trouble finding the point where we turned right across a field towards a strip of woodland marked as Little Sutie on the map. Through this was where I had wandered last time i walked here. The map shows the path diverging slightly from the wood on the right hand side. This time we followed the edge more closely and we found the path through the quarry with no difficulty. Once at the quarry the bridle way is clearly posted.

Clipsham Quarry 24 Nov

The path from the quarry towards Clipsham provided a few earlyish blackberries today. No problems following the route from here as for most of the way it runs between hedges, and the village is clearly visible.



We walked along the Castle Bytham road for about a mile to get back to the Yew Tree Avenue. Fourteen miles on the clock today.

Tombstone Tuesday :: Parkison Family

The Parkison plot in the Masonic Section, Greenhill Cemetery, Columbia City, Indiana. The large stone in the center is for George and Sarah Parkison. On the left is the marker for one of their sons, Benjamin F. Parkison.

Sarah Foster Parkison is my 3rd great grandmother. Born on May 14, 1818 in Perry County, Ohio she was the daughter of Benjamin Foster and Margaret "Peggy" Myers. Sarah's brother, Eli, was born December 28, 1819. I don't know for sure when their mother died, but on September 27, 1821 their father married Peggy's sister, Anna Maria "Mary" Myers. Benjamin and Mary Foster had eleven children between the years 1822 and 1843.

On November 20, 1843 Sarah Foster gave birth to a son, William Brubaker, who became my 2nd great grandfather. Born out of wedlock, his father was John Brubaker. On March 28, 1849 Sarah was married to George Thomas Parkison and two years later they moved to Thorncreek Township in Whitley County, Indiana. At that time the family consisted of William and his half-brother Jacob Henry Parkison. (William and Jacob would later marry sisters, Malissa and Roxie Joslin.) Sarah and George would have three more children, all born in Whitley County: Mary E. Parkison, Benjamin Foster Parkison, and George Washington Parkison.

GEORGE T. PARKISON / DIED JUNE 27, 1902 / AGED 81 Y. 10 M. 15 D. / SARAH - WIFE OF G. T. PARKISON / DIED APR. 24, 1904 / AGED 85 Y. 11 M. 10 D.

BENJAMIN F. / Son of / G. T. & S. PARKISON / DIED / Apr. 27, 1873. / AGED 19 Ys. 11 M. 15 D.

All Photographs taken October 20, .. by Rebeckah R. Wiseman.

Small Horse

This is one of my smallest horses in my collection. This colt is only about 1 inch tall and is china. I have 3 blue horses on a wheel that came out of a cracker Jacks box that are only about 1/4 of an inch tall each that are the smallest I have. I couldn't locate them for this photo shot.

Rab in the rain? The RAB Cirrus Wind-Top

Truth is I spend a lot of time in the rain. I live in the foot hills of the Cascades for crimney sake. It is to be expected. And if I sort out the time spent, more of itis in my office thanoutdoors this time of year. Thankfully with the 22 of Dec close at hand! We all have are own crosses to bare. My buddy was commenting on howcold it wasskate skiing in and out of Moraine Lake last week. While I was running in the rain @ 36F degrees.



Cold is cold. But good gear can limit the suffering.





Which is why this quick blog. I like being surprised by good gear.



An hour run in a heavy rain at 36 degrees is a good test of one's will to get out of the house (at least for me) and of the gear. Not much gear involved. Gloves which I seldom, almost never, run in. But it was cold enough I kept them on the entire time. I used a simple lwt fleece liner glove. My favorite Lopren running socks, Nike flats, a pair of Paradox tights, a Performance hooded jersey and my RABCirrus Top. The less you use likely the better you'll want it to be.



An hour later my jersey was still dry. I was still warm and sweat wasstill running off me. Jacket was totally soaked, (as is everything exceptmy core) but the fabric still had water beading up on its surface. I am dry for the most part under neath and not wet or coldfrom the rain or the effort. Much to my surprise I didn't suffer much. And I hadn't expected much of the Cirrus in the conditions. The actualresults rather pleasant by comparison.



How cool is that?



Advertised as a wind shell by RAB but good in enough for some rain if you can keep moving and the DWR is new enough I suspect:) I am beginning to really appreciate this one. More to it than meets the eye. Side pockets that serve as vents for one. Great fleece backed "collar" if you zip it up and leave the hood down as I normally do running, even when it is pouring out. But nice to have an option that works so well. Great color choice forthose required high visibility days. Simple elastic cuffs. Well under 5oz. Not every lwt shell is created equal. The Cirus is better than most.












The Cirrus Wind-Top,full zip version.



Using the same Pertex Quantum 15 Denier fabric as the
Pull-On

the Wind-Top also features an under-helmet hood and 2
zipped

hand-warmer pockets.Designed for fast and light use the
Cirrus

Wind-Top is a fully featured jacket that can be used over layers

to
create a warm and windproof clothing system yet weighs in at

just 120g /
4ozThe Cirrus Wind Top is ideal for adventure racers,

mountain marathons,
fell runners, mountain bikers, or even for

super lightweight alpine style
ascents on rock where wind proof

protection is
required.



Sizes: S - XXL

Weight:
120g / 4oz (4.6oz for my Large)



$110 retail



More here on shells



http://coldthistle.blogspot.com//10/super-light-wind-shells.html

Pine Tree on Ridge

Suspended World

Suspended World, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

Taken back when the grass was green and the rain was falling. There will be no rain here for at least 2 more months, probably 3 months. Fortunately for California, the National Weather Service is predicting El Niño for the coming winter, which means above-average rainfall!

Joshua Tree National Park

It was on March 17th that I arrived at Joshua Tree National Park in Southern California, seeking some warmer weather. I wasn't disappointed though a few of the nights were a bit on the chilly side. Coming in on the southern side off of Interstate 10, east of Indio, I entered the park just as the visitor center was closing. The Cottonwood Spring Campground was just down the road a ways and it was there that I spent the night.

The next morning I stopped at the visitor center to get a map of the park and information on some of the trails. Half a mile from the campground was the trail to Cottonwood Spring. It was an easy walk along a gravely path and dry sandy stream. Arriving at the stream, there was simply a sign identifying the place where the Spring had been. Rather anti-climatic but it was a nice walk; the sun was shining and there was a nice breeze.

There were several other trails in the area but the southern part of the park, to me at least, wasn't all that interesting. So I hit the road and headed north where the Joshua Trees and the Jumbo Rocks were located.

Along the way there were a few things to see – the Cholla Garden and Ocotillo Forest.

The Cholla Garden was planted by Mother Nature. You do see the Cholla in other areas of the park but usually just a few hanging out together. Here in the garden they grow in abundance.

The cholla also have incredibly sharp, hooked needles that are difficult and painful to extract if you happen to get one stuck on you. I was very, very careful walking through that garden!

The Ocotillo are interesting also. They can get quite tall, this one was about 15 feet high. Much of the year it looks like a bunch of spiny dead sticks. But after it rains, the Ocotillo is covered with very small leaves. Like other deciduous trees, the Ocotillo loses it's leaves but not due to the changes in the season. Rather, for the Ocotillo, the leaves fall when there is no water. The long stems are often used for fencing material and for walking sticks.

The bright red flowers of the Ocotillo appear on the tips of the stems in spring and summer.

A “tube” of Ocotillo flowers.

Phend-Fisher Family Reunion Ledger (1936)

The 27th Annual Phend & Fisher reunion was held at Nappanee Aug 30th 1936

It was moved and seconded to have the reunion at the same place next year.

Officers elected were
Pres. Henry Phend
Sec & Tr Bob Bechtel

1935 Bal 2.00
out for cards 1.60
[balance] .40
collection 2.28
[balance] 2.68
For Pavillion 2.50
Bal[ance] .18

The Phend-Fisher families gathered for a reunion in Northern Indiana almost annually from 1909 until 1943. The events of the day were recorded in an old ledger book. Spelling has been retained as it was in the original though some punctuation and paragraph breaks have been added. To view all articles in this series click on the "Phend-Fisher Reunion Ledger" label at the bottom of this post.