Cabin Pictures, August/September 2008

The fridge

Newest addition to our Bald Eagle family

Bear protection while out and about
Blueberries
Digging new hole for outhouse, about 2.5 ft down, started digging up bones and jaw in a layer of burned materials. Turned out to be a caribou. How old do you think those bones are, buried under 2.5 feet of dirt and tundra??

Coming in for landing on the lake
So long, Beav
The trail to the cabin

I'm Here, somewhere

Just thought I'd check in for a minute. Yes, I'm here and alive, barely.

Still working on the house

Still no kitchen

Still no sunshine

but now add snow on the mountain tops and the National Enquirer trying to interview anyone who has ever spoke with the Flavors of the month. Crazy.

I hope to get some photos posted tomorrow but no promises. Not enough hours in my day. I just haven't had time.

I'm leaving

But I will be back in a week!
Heading out into the wild, to no electricity, people, running water. To a land of outhouses, bald eagles, grayling, bears, blueberries, caribou, freshest air ever and no light pollution, lynx, salmon, grayjays, lake trout, wind, water and big open skies. Where everything is harder but more peacful.
I will be bringing some of my homebrew beers and a few from D Rock (sent them up from Colorado) to enjoy as well as a few of the last Sweet Eddies, blueberry bock, Jamaica Mon and German Hef. I will drink one while fishing for beautifully colored graylings, while floating around on the lake hoping to catch a lake trout as big as my arm, while picking blueberries, after hiking though tundra following caribou and while relaxing in the evening watching the sunset and feeling the cool biting autumn air and a final beer while waiting on the beach for the bush float plane to pick us up and carry us back to civilization. I won't return to the cabin again until the middle of winter when the world is white and temps get down to forty below zero.

Here the label I made for my Blueberry Bock

And the finished product! Pretty good, very mild blueberry flavor in there somewhere



Life is good at the cabin.

Riding to work is soon going to be finished. It's getting dark in the mornings, not to mention cold...oh yeah, it's been cold every morning every day this summer.

Still working on home repairs, no kitchen yet but sheetrock is going back up!!!

I will post pictures when I get back.

My new Flower Baskets

Hanging on my bike shop

Beer Heaven! Christmas came early! Contents of the care package sent by brewing buddy D Rock from Colorado. None of these beers are available in Alaska, so this is very special. He even included 2 of his own brews, Granny Gear Pale Ale and Agave Whisperer Wit. I have these hidden away in my bike shop fridge. The Lost Boys had better STAY AWAY FROM MY BEER! I think I will lock the shop up.

I will be rationing these, one beer at at time. Where do I start first???? I am intreged by the Agave Whisperer Wit. Maybe that will be the starting point.

We have ripped out our kitchen, dining and living room. We live in a barn, these area's were the grain bins once upon a time. None of our floors are level, they sloped down so the grain would go down the 4 shutes. We finished building and sold the Big Lake house and I *finally* get to have some remodeling and refurbishing done. I ordered cabinets the other day. I'm so stoked, barns have no closets so we have been very creative over the years when it comes to storage. When this is finished up, I will have a pantry and plenty of cabinet space for all my junk. It will really be nice to have a place to put everything. I had NO IDEA how expensive cabinets were. Mindblowing. But I found some that I like which won't break the bank.

In the meantime, I have no kitchen,stove, oven, sink, dining table, etc. We have a temp living room in the hallway. We moved the fridge and microwave downstairs. Using paper plates and not cooking anything except on the grill, microwave and crock pot. So far so good, but I miss a sink with running water.

Riding is finished, except commuting to work, until this is finished up. All spare time is being put into this place. The weather continues to be very hit or miss, mostly miss. This summer is a loss.

We are heading out to our cabin the 1st week of Sept. Still issues with flying out game on the bush plane. Still the stupid law that won't allow game to be brought out on anything which weighs over 1500 lbs. This allows only 4-wheeler to get the game out. Which is a HUGE undertaking in Alaska's backcountry - boggy ground, streams, wilderness. The area our cabin is in doesn't have "riding trails". It's wilderness. The idea is that if you can afford to use anything over 1500 to transport your game, then you have enough money and don't need to hunt. Still stupid thinking. We hire a bush plane to fly us in and out of our cabin for $400 and usually have a friend along who shares the cost. So it costs us $about $350 with the tip for the pilot. 4-wheelers cost $5000 easy. I can't afford to buy two 4-wheelers but I can afford to hire a plane once a year. This situation really bothers me. I have been living off of moose and caribou my entire life and Fish and Game rules won't let me fly my game out. When we had to start buying commercial beef, I got nauseated everytime I smelled or ate it. Ground beef especially has a bad smell to it, like a barnyard. Yuck.

Enough of that. I am looking forward to the cabin! I can't wait to get there!

Active Wildlife

Not much weekend riding, we are ripping out our kitchen and living room to remodel so all free time is going towards this project. I haven't yet figured out how to survive without a kitchen. I guess I will be washing dishes in the bathroom sink and cooking on the BBQ grill and microwave. Anticipating living this way for 2 fun filled months. oh yeah...

I continue to ride to work, it's really nice to have a smooth, clean path to ride on. And it continues to be cold and rainy. I'm wet just as often as dry and still continue to wear my helmet liner and wool jersey, full leggings, jacket and gloves.

My daugher and her husband went fishing down towards Kenai and were joined by this little grizzly bear. It is pretty small, makes me wonder if it is big enough to survive the winter on it's own.

Also, this is a great video of baby twin moose playing in a sprinkler

Weekend in Hope and Whittier

We spent the weekend in Hope and then Whittier. Nice weather in Hope, major rain in Whittier.

Hiked up a mountain at Hope, so not much riding as our legs were pretty pooped. In this picture, we are in a very vertical spot. I found a little ledge to sit on but was still hanging on to the tree a little so I didn't slide down the mountain. I wasn't able to get a photo due to vertigo-inducing heights. I don't really like heights.



Lots of glaciers at Whittier.


Last photo is McHugh Creek - this is where I had my 16th birthday party! I always was an outdoors girl. This is one of my all-time favorite places. I am sad to see how it has been "civilized".

The Path is CLEAN!

I sent an email to the State maintenance guys telling them that I was going to give public testimony at the Governor's Council on Disabilities (held at my office last week). I was going to report how the lack of maintenance of the bike paths presents a barrier to people with disabilities from using the paths.

I actually got an email back from 2 of them! Never have I had a response in 4 years I have been dealing with this issue. NEVER! Needless to say, I was quite surprised to get 2 responses.

The first email was from the Superintendent here in Palmer, who said the path would be cleaned off by "this afternoon" (Monday).

And it was.

2 sad parts to this story: 1) summer is half over,
2) I'm working in Anchorage still so I haven't been able to ride to work.

I was thinking how great it will be to ride on the path, without feeling like I'm going to crash as my tires slip around in deep sand, or how I won't have to ride on the edge of the highway, both with and against traffic, and how riding mile after mile of bone rattling gravel won't be missed. I then realized I haven't really enjoyed riding to work this year. When I think of it, it's got a negative feel to it. I don't like that negativity so I'm looking forward to getting in some ride time where I'm not fighting just to stay upright.

BTW, Anchorage is really getting into the bike scene! Cyclist are everywhere! When is the Valley going to wake up???

Here is the latest label for my beer, a blueberry bock. Should be ready to drink in about 2 or so weeks.

Sweet Eddy Honey Witbier

Thanks to Old Man for the idea! I can't wait to try it in a few weeks!

Super DOT of AK

Last Friday, I had the day off. I was near the State of AK DOT office so I decided to "drop on in" for a chat about the bike paths.

Just so happens that the "super" was there. His name is Kurt.

Kurt was a very nice guy, but nervous. He asked me is I was "Sharon". Obviously, Sharon has been chewing his ass about the bike paths also.

Poor, poor guy (NOT).

He let me know that yes, he totally understands and sympathizes with the plight of the local bike path users. And he agrees they are in desperate need of cleaning. Things are so out of his control, he doesn't have the funding nor the equipment (but he's trying to get it). If only he had photos of the poor state of conditions, then he could go to his super's and convince them the need is desperate.

Well HELLO! I JUST happened to have my camera on me WITH photos! He gulps. I download them for him. He then says it will be taken care of the 1st week of July.

OK, I'm holding him to it. I tell him I'm still going to the papers, his name and our conversation will be written about and he WILL see me again if the paths aren't cleared off.

My overall impression? He's feeding me a line of big ol' BS.

Ok, bring it on. I'm not going away.

Bears Are No Joke

This is why we now carry a gun when we ride. This is right in Anchorage, a few miles from my parents home, right behind the high school I graduated from. I pray for the girl and her family.

http://www.adn.com/bearattacks/story/450061.html

Things I haven't done this Summer while biking

1) Worn shorts

2) Worn short sleeves

3) gone without gloves

4) Mountain biked more than 1 time

6) Road on a nice, clean bikepath that isn't full of sand, gravel, glass, garbage, feces

7) Had much positive to say about State of AK Dept of Transportation (still fighting, going to the

newspapers with photos, going to take my snow shovel this weekend and shovel paths

myself - grrr)

8) Gone without a helmet liner in the morning

9) Been able to avoid almost get splattered by little old ladies who can't make up their mind if they are turning or not

10) last but not least...Crashed.

Check out the Quike

Those Aussies are on a mission

I wish them best of luck

http://www.steppebysteppe.com.au/

Success and Tragedy on the Path this Week

I'm starting this post off with a beautiful, calming photo of the lake I pass on my ride to work.

I'm still fighting the State of Ak and City of Wasilla about sweeping off the bike paths. I have been passing out the local State of AK maintenance phone # to anyone who will say they will call to complain about the road sand and gravel and I have continued to email the guy in Anchorage, also asking them to do SOMETHING about the corner of Parks on-ramp and Seward Meridian where the bike path and road join right at the corner at the bottom of a long, large hill - putting me in a head on trajectory with vehicles cutting the corner and driving into the bike path. I told all of them I was taking pictures and would start emailing whoever I could about the conditions as well as writing letter to the editor and talking with the local radio station.

All last week there were little improvements here and there. Part of the worst of the bike path was swept off, but not all - they would just stop right in the middle-living a 6 inch berm of sand leading into the remaining 100 feet of 3 inches of sand...go figure. They slowly got the hill and corner swept off. Then I was riding home yesterday and they actually put down a stripe of paint to show the edge of the road, giving vehicles an indicator of the shoulder of the road and the bike path. I also was ready to put up a boycott of the coffee shop who kept putting their sign in the middle of the bike path. I asked them to move it and finally the State TOLD them to move it off the path. Here are before and after photos.

The berm left behind

The sign in the path

View coming down the hill to the corner of my complaints. This is after they swept off the path..sort of.

At the bottom, where did the path go and how do I continue on the the left, where the path is supposed to be? This truck and all other vehicles cut the corner into the bike path. The road sand made control and stopping pretty difficult before it was swept off.

Now, after the paint! Vehicles still cut the corner but at least there is some sort of indicator where the lane ends/shoulder begins

I'm still fighting with the City of Wasilla and the State of AK over this next section on the bridge over Cottonwood Creek. Neither Wasilla nor the State will take responsibility for this section, which I almost wipe out on every day, the sand is really bad. This is the tragedy which happened on my way home Tuesday. Notice how much sand is on the path.

1st I flatted so I was running about a half an hour late out of Wasilla. Got that fixed and then came upon this scene. The baby is brand new and was hit. The mom was pretty upset, lots of sirens blaring, people honking. Moose kill by kicking and stomping, they can be very dangerous, especially mother moose protecting babies. The baby did not survive. The troopers carry fireworks and shot them near the mom to get her away then they drug the baby off the edge of the road, only about 15 ft from the bike path. I wasn't too sure about riding past with the mom moose still there so the troopers kept the traffic stopped and had me ride up the shoulder of the road against on-coming traffic until I was past the bridge and back on the path. It was very, very sad.

Later Fish and Game moved the baby.

Not the best week of commuting. But today, the weather is actually sunny..things are looking up.

Ahhhh...Weekends, Camping, Canoes, Bikes, Beer

Yes, it is safe to say I live for weekends. I work to support my playing on the weekends.

Capt'n Balance, the dog and I went camping last weekend. The 1st mountain biking ride of he year. I'm out of shape and worn out. I think the stress of the new job is sucking some of the energy and motivation out of me. But I am confident I will adjust and it will all become the norm. We also rented a canoe and went paddling around the lakes. There is a canoe trail from lake to lake. It's a nice activity, but wore out my shoulders and arms, which effect the mountain bike ride the next day. But I was outside, in the daylight if not sunlight...the plus with the wind is it blows away all the bugs. I need a vacation...I sure wish I could somehow figure out how to take an entire summer off work.

My new Fishing hat, I should catch some whoppers with this baby.

The weather is still cold. The temps barely creep up into the 60's but the wind sucks any warmth right out. And it has been blowing, hard, just about every single day.

The bike paths are still in very bad condition. I called the Dept of Transportation maintenance and was blown off, like every year. I emailed Jack Fullerton (jack_fullerton@dot.state.ak.us), the Chief of Maintenance and Operations for the State of Ak Central Region, as I have in the past when the local guys blew me off. Normally Jack gets the job done very quickly. But this year, nothing has happened nor have I had any response from ANYONE from my phone calls.

I'm getting pretty annoyed. Due to the gas prices ($4.16 gallon reg gasoline), there are more riders than ever...and the path conditions are worse than ever. And we don't have a very good public transportation system here. One little bus line which struggles and is too underfunded to have good coverage.

If there are any other local Valley people who read this blog, please email Mr. Fullerton and nicely request the paths along the Parks Hwy frontage road from the Trunk Road Park and Ride all the way into Wasilla, ending at the Palmer-Wasilla Hwy, to be swept off. I actually think it will take a plow to get all the road sand and gravel off.

Yesterday, while riding past Sears at Seward Meridian, the guy who runs the espresso shop was getting his portable sign to put away for the evening. He has decided to put it right in the middle of the bike path....which looks just like the ditch because it's so covered with road sand and gravel. He couldn't tell where the ditch was and where the path was so he just picked the flattest spot. Yep, it's that bad. I'm going to take my camera and start emailing pictures, maybe even write a letter to the Editor or maybe Tim (Bicycles and Icicles) can get a Daily New plug in for the sad state of the bike paths in the Valley.

I'm going to do another plug for my Mr. Beer. I have been sampling the honey amber ale and it is REALLY good. Definitely one to do again. I have a name for it, in honor of a Mr. Beer guy named Law Dawg. This batch is christened "Law Dawg Amber Ale". I will work on a label this weekend. The Mr. Beer guys are pretty cool. I'm glad to be part of their group (http://www.mrbeerfans.com/).

Lots of stuff going on this weekend so I won't be posting and I am really praying for good weather...please, we need some warmth and no wind. Have a great weekend everyone.

It's Still Cold

The weather is cold...COLD! My morning commutes are cold...mid 30's, not counting wind chill. I am still wearing my cold weather clothing, gloves and helmet liner, which still haven't been warm enough some mornings.

The afternoons sort of reach up to 60, add the wind chill and it drops back down to 40 degrees. Some brave leaves have come out of the trees but some are still waiting for warmth before they make their appearance.

It snowed on the mountains this weekend. Here is a sunset shot taken at 11:30 pm last night.

I finally filled up my gas tank and was shocked that gas is now $4.06. It's still climbing, I'm told.

The state maintained bike path I ride on is covered with an inch or more of road sand. State maintained means it not maintained at all. I called the Dept of Transportation last week, only to be blown off, just like every year. So tomorrow, it's it's not swept off, I will send off my annual email to the director, just like I have done for the last 3 years. Every time I email the director, the path is cleaned off the very next day. I just wish the state would figure it out, especially with the high gas prices, there are a lot more people riding bikes.

Highlights of last week's commute: The mailman squirted me with a lawn sprinkler as I was riding past, he was moving it and didn't know I was riding on the path right next to him. Wet legs on a cold morning...but it was sort of funny, gave me a chuckle. After a few years of no corners on the sidewalks/bike paths the City of Wasilla is FINALLY putting in the corners! They were ripped out awhile back in order to put up new street lights and never replaced until now. It's really nice that the sidewalk/path doesn't just end with a 4 inch drop offs anymore. I see 2 elderly gentlemen walking their dog every morning...but I don't think they have ever seen me even one time. They are always looking down at the dog...as if waiting for it to do it's thing.

I bought my daughter a bike and a kid trailer for the baby. I'm fixing up her old bike for her husband so they will all be ready to ride. Anchorage has a lot of nice (maintained) paths they are close to. I think they can put the baby in her car seat and put it in the trailer. It would be great if they got into riding.

I'm not digging my new job right now.

Capt'n Balance surprised me with a way early birthday present - bicycle bathrobe and pj's. He says it's an early gift but I really think it is related to a motorcycle that is just sitting in the barn.

I have started a new batch of beer today, a red ale. I'm still drinking the Whiter Shade of Pale Ale (REALLY GOOD), slowly, so it will last. I have a honey pale ale lagering and the red ale fermenting. I have a smack pack of wheat yeast growing and will start a bath of german Hef in a day or 2 when the smack pack is ready.

We have been watching "The Alaska Experiment" occasionally. It sort of pisses me off. Especially when these fools decided to hike 40 miles through the wilderness in 4 days, in the winter. They run out of food, barely make it and now will rely of the others to feed them and supply them with enough food to get back to their own cabin. We are just astounded that some will not go outside to relieve themselves, or figure out how to store food when it's 30 something degrees outside, or even how to get water. Oh well. Put me in a desert situation and I would be in major trouble.

I hope everyone had a great Memorial holiday - send warm thoughts my way!

The new Bike

I have finally gotten a picture of my new road bike, the replacement of the Kona Zing. It's not on the same level as the Zing but I am starting to bond with it. Being a women's specific model, it fits me better than the Zing did, much to my surprise. My wrist don't hurt near as much and I feel more secure because I can reach and grip the hoods and brake levers better, the Zing's levers were really just too big for my smaller hands. I sort of poopawed the whole women's specific sizing thing but now I'm a believer. And no, the computer will not stay there on the top tube, it's there only because the bike has been on the trainer, the sensor is on the rear tire.

It has lower end components but they are working just fine, smooth and snappy. The brakes suck, however, I will be upgrading them, maybe also the wheels. For now, I have replaced the brake shoes and that made a big difference. I will be replacing the seatpost.

The bike is much pinker in true color. The first comment my mom made when she saw it was "Wow, that's a PINK bike!" I've come to like the pink. Some of the women's cycling forums really put pink down. My new philosophy is that only real women can ride a pink bike with lower end components. Women can throw more smack than men. Yep, it's true.

The wind has been blowing hard and I hate riding in wind more than any other weather condition, so this last week I did not ride to work. Work has also been extra stressful and lots of overtime, plus I will have to start working in Eagle River and Anchorage. Ahhhggg. That is 2 lost hours of my day due to driving time. My external family appears to have lost their marbles so they are all fired until they can find them again.

Anyone want to buy a motorcycle? Capt'n Balance was looking to buy a motorcycle a few weeks ago to zip back and forth to work, but it sold before he got to look at it. I checked Craigslist last week and found this nice yahama, street legal, that I though would be perfect. I bought it, got a good deal (I think..I don't know anything about motorcycles) and brought it home as a surprise for the Capt'n. Well, turns out he doesn't want a motorcycle anymore. So he is fired also.

Now I have this motorcycle. I have no interest in riding it, I don't know how to anyway. The funny part of it all is Bikeboy. He has spotted an opportunity to maybe score a motorcycle. I can see he is just quivering inside, his eyes wide and hopeful, a dreamy smile on his face, when he asks me what I'm going to do with it. He doesn't have much bargining power at this point, due to less than steller grades and a high cell phone bill.

I let him ride it this afternoon. Maybe I can use the motorcycle as an object of motivation. As long as he can also show me he is responsible enough to ride a motorcycle on the roads and not get hurt. If not, he's fired too.

So enough bitching. I really need a bike ride to burn out all the bad juju and sunshine, beer and music to sooth the soul. I'm hoping to go for a long, long ride this weekend.

It's finally starting to green up and sort of looks like Spring. When spring comes, it's almost like I breath a mental sigh of relief, even though I love winter. It's good to have a break from icy roads, chopping wood, keeping the wood stove burning, huge heating bills.

I started riding to work last week. The mornings are still very cold, averaging around 35 degrees. There is still ice on the lake that I ride past and the wind is usually blowing icy air off of it. The bike paths are in crappy shape and haven't been swept off, inches of road sand and rocks in some places. But it's really nice to be riding again.

I have only had one encounter so far with drivers knowing right-of-way rules of the road, I wasn't sure if the lady was going to suddenly gun her big SUV and run me over or if she was actually going to stop. Since I'm typing this, it's obvious that she stopped.

I have noticed that when people do this, they usually pretend like it didn't happen; avoid eye contact, no friendly or apologetic or "oops" type of signals, just sitting there looking off with a scowl on their faces. When I screw up, I always try to make eye contact and offer a "sorry" type of signal. Manners. But that's just me.

We were in Anchorage over the weekend. This moose was in no hurry to cross the street. Traffic was backed up as the moose mosied along.

Flocks of Canadian geese are everywhere. So are the eagles, preying on the geese. The other day the sky was filled with hundreds and hundreds of freaked out geese, 3 Bald eagles were on the hunt. It was quite a sight.