The Treehouse Blog

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.

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

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.

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.

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.