Well this blog title may turn into "Hug a Tree" because... I'm moving back to Oregon. Or somewhere near or around Oregon where I can find myself a decent job. When I turned 24 this summer, I had the mountains to really clear my head, and realized I'm not moving in the path I should be moving in being in Phoenix. Being unemployed for a year, along with many other things I won't get into on here, made me decide it's time. To make it short, Erik and I agreed it would be best for me to move on, do something for myself and give ourselves a chance to date other people. It will be tough, but I'm ready and excited to see where I will end up next in life. Erik and I are still great friends. After being together as long as we have I think we better be!
So here is my plan:
End of this month I'm flying back to Phoenix, where I will stay about a week to hang out with my friends down there, and to do something fun with Erik before I leave. I'll pack up my car and drive up North, through Utah where I will be visiting a ton of friends I have up there that I have never been able to make it out to see. It will be the first time I will see Utah. Then my plan is to drive East from there back to the Sierras where I just came from, to go on the Fall Horse Drive, were we herd the horses and mules 45 miles from Mammoth to Bishop, CA. That's not till the end of the month of September, so I have a lot of time to burn in Utah. Maybe see some National Parks, maybe go to CA early, we'll see. Then I'll be back in Oregon by the 1st of October. That's over 2000 miles of road tripping by myself! It will be long, but good for me. If I decide to make the trip shorter, I will just not do the horse drive and move along North through Idaho and into Eastern Oregon.
So that is what's new in my life. Well for the next month ;). Who knows where this feather will blow next.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Saturday, August 22, 2009
My summer at Reds Meadow
Yes, I know it has been forever since I last wrote, but I had a busy busy summer with slow internet so didn't even try to get into my blog to write! But I will update you on my summer and what is coming next in my life.
Summer in CA was great. Mammoth is my "home away from home" and I always have a hard time leaving it. I got maybe 4 days off total throughout the 2.5 months I was there, and worked hard enough to lose 12lbs, but it was worth it with the amazing crew I worked with, and the animals I have grown up with. The season started off with the Spring Horse Drive, where we herded all 93 animals (horses and mules) from Bishop, CA to Mammoth Lakes, a total of 45 miles. It took 3 days, where we stayed in 2 different camps. It was the most fun I had had in a long time. I stuck in the front line where people dressed to me with a mule named Emma, and the front line kept the rest of the herd from escaping ahead of us. Then people along the sides and back would keep the herd from escaping out of the sides and behind.
The rest of the summer I spent as a dayride guide for the horseback rides out of Reds Meadow. I took out 2-hour rides, half-day rides and full-day rides into the backcountry. The country is beautiful and I can never get enough of the scenery there. (Click on the pic to enlarge.)
I was able to go on one pack-trip this summer to Thousand Island Lake for 2 nights with some of my closest friends, Bryce and Jake (Bryce was the packer and Jake was the trail cook). It was nice to get out of the pack-station for a few days and camp with some pretty great people in one of the most beautiful places on Earth.
3 of the 4 of my days off I spent hiking or relaxing by a lake with a good book, but one I spent with some old friends that I worked with at Devils Postpile National Monument in 2006 (see first 2 pics below). We went to see the ghost town of Bodie, and to Convict Lake, both within 45 miles from Mammoth.
All in all I had a wonderful summer that went by far too quickly. I made some new friends I think I will be very close to for a long time, and saw things I had never been able to see before. I didn't take nearly as many pictures as planned, but alas, there is always next year.
Summer in CA was great. Mammoth is my "home away from home" and I always have a hard time leaving it. I got maybe 4 days off total throughout the 2.5 months I was there, and worked hard enough to lose 12lbs, but it was worth it with the amazing crew I worked with, and the animals I have grown up with. The season started off with the Spring Horse Drive, where we herded all 93 animals (horses and mules) from Bishop, CA to Mammoth Lakes, a total of 45 miles. It took 3 days, where we stayed in 2 different camps. It was the most fun I had had in a long time. I stuck in the front line where people dressed to me with a mule named Emma, and the front line kept the rest of the herd from escaping ahead of us. Then people along the sides and back would keep the herd from escaping out of the sides and behind.
The rest of the summer I spent as a dayride guide for the horseback rides out of Reds Meadow. I took out 2-hour rides, half-day rides and full-day rides into the backcountry. The country is beautiful and I can never get enough of the scenery there. (Click on the pic to enlarge.)
I was able to go on one pack-trip this summer to Thousand Island Lake for 2 nights with some of my closest friends, Bryce and Jake (Bryce was the packer and Jake was the trail cook). It was nice to get out of the pack-station for a few days and camp with some pretty great people in one of the most beautiful places on Earth.
3 of the 4 of my days off I spent hiking or relaxing by a lake with a good book, but one I spent with some old friends that I worked with at Devils Postpile National Monument in 2006 (see first 2 pics below). We went to see the ghost town of Bodie, and to Convict Lake, both within 45 miles from Mammoth.
All in all I had a wonderful summer that went by far too quickly. I made some new friends I think I will be very close to for a long time, and saw things I had never been able to see before. I didn't take nearly as many pictures as planned, but alas, there is always next year.
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