The Treehouse Blog » Outdoors

The National Parks

balleman — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 17:11:41 +0000

I recently finished watching the DVD version of The National Parks: America’s Best Idea from Netflix. First of all, there were many parts that would have looked much better in HD, but alas Netflix doesn’t have the Blu-ray version. I had also been thinking this would be more of a tour of the parks, forgetting that this was a Ken Burns film. It turns out to be a thorough history of the parks, which was interesting for the most part. Trying to place yourself in the America that still had unclaimed wilderness is challenging, though I guess you can still see that in a trip to Alaska. As to whether national parks are “America’s Best Idea” … I would say that’s a massive exaggeration, but “one of the best ideas” might qualify.

I’d love to see some of these places in person!

Northwest PA Expedition

balleman — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 22:55:39 +0000

Chris and I went on a weekend expedition to northwest PA this past weekend. The first stop was Parker Dam State Park on the way north. Nothing spectacular here, but it is a nice state park about halfway on the trip. Next was the Kinzua Dam at the end of the Allegheny Reservoir – A very impressive structure, with water thundering through the gates. We then walked around the Seneca Pumped Storage Reservoir that is located on the mountain above the dam. We didn’t notice any change in water levels while there, but the huge concrete bowl is pretty cool.

We camped at Chapman State Park, but didn’t really explore there at all. It was a somewhat central location to branch out from, and had a nice modern campground.

Much of Saturday was spent at Oil Creek State Park and the surrounding area. We toured a few of the sites there, but it seems that biking would be the best way to explore here. There is a paved bike trail that follows the Oil Creek. There are slight remains of the several oil boom towns in the area and many oil wells scattered throughout the park, and a few still seem to be active. You can sometimes tell there is a nearby well by the smell. Later we went to the Tionesta Dam and its lake, then hiked to some overlooks back around Kinzua Dam, and drove up into New York, circling the Allegheny Reservoir. Probably should have looked for a tax-free gas station in the Seneca Nation, but didn’t read about that until afterwards. Did get to see the United Refinery in Warren, PA while driving by. Pretty impressive looking plumbing!

I could easily spend a week or more exploring that area, but we did OK with the time we had. Might have to plan something in that area again.

Bicycling Lessons

balleman — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 23:44:25 +0000

A few things I learned today. None of this is surprising, but there’s nothing like first-hand experience.

When on a bike ride, and considering a path that involves walking the bike on a thorny trail, over a fallen tree over a stream, and up a 15ft steep bank with guard-rail at the top, do not ignore your suspicion that the thorns will be bad for your tires.
Riding a bike with a flat tire is not sustainable, and will quickly cause the tire to come off the rim.
Pushing a bike with a tire that is not on the rim will eventually lead to the inner tube coming out, which will get stuck in things and make the bike non-pushable.
Despite Chris Barner’s insistence, generally, you can’t union two bikes together into a tandem bike.
Biking with a chest cold is tiring.

Spring is Here

balleman — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 01:57:09 +0000

The past few days were a pretty good start to the pleasant part of weather in PA. I’ve hiked more than 20 miles over the past few days – 11 with Doug on the Appalachian between Caledonia and Big Flat on Thursday, 5 with my sister around Snowy Mountain on Friday, and 7 with Chris around the Thousand Stairs on Saturday. And on top of that, I managed to get a few things done around the house, too.

Bear!

balleman — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 03:46:23 +0000

Chris and I took a hike on a dead-end road on Bower Mountain last evening. On the way back, I saw a bear crossing the road in front of us at the power line right-of-way. I brought this to Chris’s attention and we both reached for our cell phone cameras too slowly – the bear picked up a bit of speed, perhaps in response to us. We were around 200 feet away. It wasn’t totally unexpected to see a bear, but it was a first-time experience for me while on a random hike in the area.

Cowan’s Gap

balleman — Tue, 17 Oct 2006 00:33:05 +0000

This past weekend I went camping at Cowan’s Gap with Doug and family. The somewhat colder than normal weather wasn’t much of an issue, with the furnace in Doug’s pop-up camper keeping temperatures comfortable throughout the nights. Activities included walking up to the overlook, past the remnants of a landslide. I had been up there some years ago, during an excursion from Rhodes Grove. We also walked the Three Mile Trail, which also had some nice views, but was somewhat of a misnomer at about a mile and a half in length (“round trip” excuses notwithstanding). And I would be remiss not to mention a few fire-related incidents that lead (separately) to an eighth inch hole in my jacket, and some molten boot tread for Doug’s father-in-law.

Indoor Evening

balleman — Fri, 26 Aug 2005 00:13:56 +0000

The weather this week has been just great. And I’ve even had the opportunity to take advantage of it. Sunday, I had a family picnic which I used as an excuse for a rather long hike up and down a mountain.

On Tuesday evening, Chris and I walked a 2.5 mile stretch of the Tuscarora Trail that runs along the top of a mountain. Of course, it got dark, the flashlight wasn’t where it was supposed to be, and the return trip was rather interesting. No broken limbs, but lots of scratches and such. This wasn’t your nice dirt road kind of trail either – just rocks and the occasional blaze for much of the trail. The cell phone provided a good deal of light towards the end, despite accidentally calling Tim.

On Wednesday, Ian and I hiked (on a trail that was like a dirt road) almost 9 miles. It was pretty dark at the end, but a lot nicer than stumbling over rocks. It was one of the few times I was with Ian this summer, so we had the chance to catch up on all of the happenings since the Spring semester.

Now, Doug’s turn should probably be next… but I haven’t decided on the appropriate successor to last summer’s infamous pipeline hike

Laboring a bit on Labor Day Weekend

balleman — Tue, 07 Sep 2004 00:27:47 +0000

Getting some stuff done this labor day, or trying to. Washed and vacuumed the car, swapped out the radio for the one from Chris’s car (now I have a working tape deck, woo!), put a tarp over part of the treehouse’s roof (need to put another one there, too), and so forth. This wasn’t all I did though. We had a breakfast picnic for Katelyn’s birthday on Sunday morning (she’ll be 16…) and today I went hiking on the Tuscarora Trail near Cowan’s Gap state park. The view from the overlook was rather dismal, given that it was all fog/cloud, no vista. It did rain a bit on me on the return trip. I took a different route home… and guess what was along the side of the road? No, not a rattlesnake. A coax repeater hut! In a forested area near state forest land! An expedition will be planned shortly, I’m sure.

Third for the Season

balleman — Sat, 28 Aug 2004 03:15:55 +0000

Well, that makes the third rattlesnake I’ve seen this year, and this time, there are pictures. Chris and I walked up to the Gunter Valley Dam tonight, and this was on the bridge over the spillway. The road now bears the signs and rules of the State Forest Service, which probably means that they now own it.

Minor Adventure

balleman — Mon, 23 Aug 2004 02:12:41 +0000

Maybe Doug’s right about pipelines… Walking down the some one we did that night, only this time in the opposite direction and in daylight, I encountered two rattlesnakes (yes, one rattled), and had a little slip-and-fall resulting in a stiff hand and a sprained (that is, hopefully not broken toe. Other than that, it was a pretty enjoyable hike. The mountain vistas were quite clear, giving an opportunity for the new camera to hopefully show its worth.

Other than that, not too much happening. Still sorting things from the LAN party. Also reading… Chris lent me his Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide, and I’ve been reading it, uncovering many references I’ve heard elsewhere. Realizing that no work on NetMRG has really happened this summer, I’ve also started hacking at that…

School is looming ahead, only next week at this point. Pam (the math department secretary at Ship) added me to the class I was hoping to get into, which should bring me to a 14-credit semester. Things are still looking on-track for a Spring ‘05 graduation. I still need to do the math on my schedule, see if Ian and I have any lunch overlaps, and plan the rest of my time.