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The quest to 10,000ft

Wed, 29 Jun 2011 00:24:17 -0700

This past weekend I took Christy and we went on a hike to Mt. Baldy.

A little bit about Mt. Baldy: It is officially known as Mount San Antonio but most local residents call it Mt. Baldy. It is southern california’s 3rd tallest mountain (The other two are San Gorgornio and San Jacinto). It sits at 10,068ft and is the bald looking mountain you see from the valley. It is an iconic mountain and I would definitely recommend hiking if you haven’t done so already.

Back to my trail report. We left LA around 6am and got to the Manker flats trail head at 830. There were a lot of cars park that morning, I knew this was a popular hike but I didn’t expect a Disneyland-sized crowd. I start to unpack my daypack to make sure I have everything I needed. I packed an extra fleece sweater, extra sock, ten essentials, trail map, an osprey bladder with 3 liters of water and frozen gatorade in my nalgene. Lots of sunscreen and my REI Staff hiking poles. I had an extra 1 liter nalgene bottle I was going to bring with me but I decided against it because of the weight. This would come back to bite me later one.

Making sure I have what I need

The white gate

We started out hike at the gate on Manker Road. An easy fireroad that takes you 1 mile to the junction. It was a nice clear day out. A little cool in the shade but we knew it would be hot once the sun went overhead. The trail to the peak is about 3.3 miles long and the first 2.5 miles of the trail is known as the Ski Hut Trail. There is a small green ski hut that was built back in the 50’s and can be still seen on the trail today.

The peak we are headed to in the upper left hand corner.

Indian Paintbrush

The trail meanders for several miles until we reached the ski hut. This was a good area for use to take a break and get some food in our system. We could see how steep the 2nd half of the trail was going to be. We knew this would be an uphill battle.

Made it to the ski hut

The steep part begins

After the ski hut section we noticed that we were slowing down. We were taking a lot more breaks. The elevation probably at about 8000ft and this is what was getting to us. But we trudged on, climbing up switchback after switchback. We reached the top of the switchback at around 9300ft. This would be a good spot for a break. We could see that the trail was not getting any easier. We both started to feel more fatigued and were afraid we couldn’t go any further.

Crowded day, steep trail. When does it end.

Once we reached the top of the 2nd switchback we were done. We were probably at 9700 ft when we decided it wouldn’t be safe to go no further. Nothing gets you more down when you’re 300 feet from the summit. We felt defeated but there was no time to sulk, I knew we should start hiking down to lower elevation.

Our peak for the day

Going down was even more tough than going up. We now have gravity helping us down and this was proving to be difficult for our knees. The trail was also very loose so that made it even more precarious when going down. We slipped and fell many times down the trail. Our legs were starting to tighten up from all the hiking we did and our pace slowed to almost half. It was a slow crawl going back down but at least we were feeling better. After about 3 hours of going downhill we made it back to the gate. Relieved for the hike to be done. The best feeling is taking off your hiking boots and putting on some sandals.

We’ll be back again…

So my goal for the summer is to bag the three 10,000ft peaks in SoCal. A doable goal but will I have time for it….

Back

Wed, 11 May 2011 22:17:34 -0700

Am I making a return? I don’t think anyone cares.

Maybe Ill post a couple things later.

Photo

Fri, 04 Mar 2011 13:52:58 -0800

littlemanmcleod: Sea Otters hold hands whilst sleeping so they...

Wed, 02 Feb 2011 19:42:36 -0800

littlemanmcleod:

Sea Otters hold hands whilst sleeping so they don’t drift away from each other.

Audio

Wed, 02 Feb 2011 06:48:56 -0800

Feeling much better.

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 19:18:31 -0800

So we a meeting today for all first years with their advisors. It was mainly to see how things were going and if we had any questions. I now am more confident about my program and what I will have to be doing for the next year and a half.

At the end of our first year we have a research report in which we will spend 6 weeks over summer to explore an idea in my area of study and formulate a simple research paper out of it. After we submit our paper, it is graded by our advisor and they determine if we are a “Master’s Pass” or “PhD Pass”. With my current standing on all of this, I will be fine with a “Master Pass”.

Our second year will consist of our advanced elective courses. We have to take a minimum of three and there is no max. So with my emphasis on Ocean Biogeochemisty, I will be taking a lot more ecology and ocean classes to further my knowledge. If I stick with my Master’s route, I will be doing a Master thesis and will be done at the end of my 2nd year.

So as of today, I will be doing a Master’s plan. Just two more years of school and I will be done. I feel relieved to have a plan on what I will be doing for grad school. Finding a research topic will be my next challenge.

Time to head to the ocean and come up with some ideas.

As one of my advisors said “Grad school isn’t about doing what your advisors tell you, its about coming up with your own ideas”

Whyyyy!

Mon, 10 Jan 2011 23:15:22 -0800

Whyyyy!

If Ke$ha goes on a tour to the UK does she become Ke£ha?

Tue, 04 Jan 2011 18:00:34 -0800

clandreth:

52 Tapes

Tue, 04 Jan 2011 08:48:50 -0800

52 Tapes:

Created by someone making a track for each week for a year. Some good songs on here.

Stay on one side of the road.

Mon, 13 Dec 2010 00:01:09 -0800

Stay on one side of the road.

Good nite all.

Fri, 10 Dec 2010 00:12:51 -0800

Good nite all.

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship,..."

Thu, 09 Dec 2010 21:47:08 -0800

“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects”

- Robert Heinlein

"The raindrop never feels responsible for the flood."

Thu, 09 Dec 2010 21:45:11 -0800

“The raindrop never feels responsible for the flood.”

Perspective…

Wed, 01 Dec 2010 01:21:31 -0800

Perspective…

Video

Wed, 01 Dec 2010 00:04:28 -0800

"You may not be her first, her last, or her only. She loved before she may love again. But if she..."

Tue, 09 Nov 2010 15:46:35 -0800

“You may not be her first, her last, or her only. She loved before she may love again. But if she loves you now, what else matters? She’s not perfect - you aren’t either, and the two of you may never be perfect together but if she can make you laugh, cause you to think twice, and admit to being human and making mistakes, hold onto her and give her the most you can. She may not be thinking about you every second of the day, but she will give you a part of her that she knows you can break - her heart. So don’t hurt her, don’t change her, don’t analyze and don’t expect more than she can give. Smile when she makes you happy, let her know when she makes you mad, and miss her when she’s not there.”

- Bob Marley

Criticism

Tue, 26 Oct 2010 21:36:55 -0700

I hate to hear it but I need to. It shows the flaws I need to work on.

Winter is just around the corner.

Sat, 23 Oct 2010 21:10:40 -0700

Winter is just around the corner.

fangstr: Keep reaching for the stars!

Sat, 23 Oct 2010 18:24:59 -0700

fangstr:

Keep reaching for the stars!

carlosl824: October Rain 2010 - UC Irvine I miss UCI. Thanks...

Thu, 21 Oct 2010 09:06:33 -0700

carlosl824:

October Rain 2010 - UC Irvine

I miss UCI. Thanks for showing me this, Salmon!