Well, That Was Dumb.
My last week before I retired, I decided to ride the moto to work. People expected it of me and I enjoy the ride. It was December, with temperatures down around 15f (-9.4c). I suited up and went out to the garage. The bike had been plugged into a tender, so the...
Good Afternoon
5/27/25 3:30 80f (26.6c) Clear sky, warm breeze. Mike and I went up the mountain to have a look around. Found coral mushrooms, shaggy manes, and a handful of morels at between 3000 and 4000' under mixed conifers. ...
Mardingtop 25L Backpack M6347A
For years my EDC was a Wolfman tankbag. When I was still working, I kept it filled with maps and tools and fuses for my moto, emergency kit, knife, a roll of T.P. and my lunch. I could leave straight from work for the woods when the notion took me. When that bag wore...
Voyagers
Having discovered Disappearing Lake was full and the road free of snow, four of us loaded up our boats and headed into the woods for an adventure. Five of us, if you count Walter Dawg, and really, you must. He has been an integral member of the team from day...
In Search of Disappearing Lake
Every winter South Prairie floods, forming a chain of connected lakes or impoundments covering many acres. For a brief, miraculous moment there exists the Pacific Northwest equivalent of a bayou. You can kayak between towering cottonwoods and...
Good Morning
3/16/26 5:30 38F (3.3C) Calm, cloudy, dark. There is no breeze on the ground. Overhead, the clouds part here and there to reveal a few scattered stars before shuttering them again. A dog yips at the farm across the way. Walter runs to the fence and...
Good Morning
3/15/26 5:30 22F (-5.5C) Dark, calm, and cold. The city lights and a thin, hazy overcast hide the stars. Andy and Susan are still sleeping. Dave, Kel, and Mom went home yesterday, after Gail's service. It has been a bittersweet visit. Gail's loss hit...
Good Morning
3/14/26 5:15 33F (0.5C) Cloudy, dark. It's stopped snowing. It was just a little above freezing and snowing when we arrived at Spokane yesterday afternoon and still snowing when we went to bed . The snow was wet, so little accumulation and the main...
Good Morning
Friday the thirteenth, March, 2026 5:30 50F (10C) The rain has stopped. It is dark and windy. Overhead strong west winds send the clouds racing by patches of stars. On the ground, blustery gusts grumble through the bare oaks making the trees...
Good Morning
3/12/26 5:45 45F (6.66C) Still raining like a cow pissing on a flat rock. Very dark. Very wet. No wind.
Broth
Waste not, want not. Take every opportunity to turn left overs and the scraps from carving meat into broth and stock. The turkey carcass after Thanksgiving, the bone from a roast or that steak, wings, scraps, what’s left over from that deli rotisserie chicken...
Rueben Handpie
Last camping trip, we made reubens in the pie irons. They were fabulous! Ingredients rye bread oil, butter, or lard thin sliced corned beef 1 small can sauerkraut horseradish sauce Swiss cheese We preheated the pie irons over hot coals while assembling...
Roasted Pepper and Eggs
Amy found a recipe for roast pepper and eggs in Backpacker Magazine. I think the original recipe called for doing all the prep at home, but since we were car camping, Amy did it in camp. It was simple and made a wonderful breakfast. Ingredients: Yellow or Red Bell...
Spam Pudgies
Dave was a little skeptical of the lunch menu- Spam pudgie sandwiches cooked in the pie irons. Straight from the can, Spam is unappealing, pallid, pink and soft. The prevailing flavor is salt. Heated, it darkens, becoming almost brown. The texture gets firmer, even...
Kentucky Mule
I don't care for vodka, so never acquired a taste for Moscow Mules. Bourbon, however, is an entirely different story. In camp or on the back porch, the Kentucky Mule is sure to refresh. Go ahead, have another. You deserve it. Ingredients 1 oz bourbon-I...
