All My Bags Are Packed...

In a little over 24 hours I'll be making my way back to Portland, and I think the weather knows it. We've had two weeks of sunshine, and this morning I woke up in a cloud. I'd almost forgotten what those look like...hee hee.

In honor of the end of this great adventure, I thought I'd put together a list of my favorite Astrocamp experiences. I realize that these lists are usually limited to ten, but...there's too much good stuff, so you get a dozen. In no particular order...

12. Thursday Night Soccer. I haven't played soccer since junior high, but my coworkers were kind enough to invite me to join them for soccer (and good-natured enough not to ask me to leave once they saw my "skills"). We laugh. We chase the ball. And then we all go for cereal afterwards. What's not to love?

11. Fifteen Seconds of Fame. Chris Malott asked me to help with the summer QUEST Lab video. I got to whack another instructor in the head with a toolbox. Whacking this particular instructor has made me something of a celebrity around camp. :)

10. Ultimate SoCal Geology Trip. This weekend was full of so much rock nerd win. Fossils, the San Andreas Fault, a volcano, and the Deathmobile. What an awesome time! Thank you again, Milly, for all your planning.

9. Solar Cookies. We harness the power of the sun to bake cookies in a solar oven. How could this NOT be on my list?!

8. The Zipline. I love riding the zipline. I love working the zipline, especially with fun-loving characters like John, Perie and Geo. I think my favorite zipline shift was working with Gwen, Eric and Christina...what a good time!

7. I Live in a Zoo. And that's just the kids! I love the wildlife in my backyard (well, everything but the snakes). I feel like Cinderella waking up to birds singing outside my window and squirrels scampering across my roof. (Well, they sound like elephants, but I'm pretty sure they're squirrels.)

6. The Rock Wall. A year ago, I would've laughed at you if you'd suggested I would enjoy rock climbing. Goes to show what I know! It's amazing stress relief, as well as a good physical and mental challenge. And I love cheering on the kids when they climb...some of the little monkeys are waaaay better than me! I've only mastered 6 of the 10 routes on the wall, but that's not too bad for a gal who didn't know how to put on a harness before January.

5. Construction Equipment Education. Gus, my manager's three-year-old son, has invested many hours educating me on the differences between compactors, combines, bulldozers, dump trucks and I can't remember what else, often while pretending to be a dragon or dinosaur. Entertaining? You betcha! Thanks Gus!

4. Hiking. If I've got amazing views and good company, I will hike almost anything. Luckily, the trails around camp have both in spades. Whether taking the kids up May Valley, chatting with Geo down Ernie Max, or trying to keep up with Bob and Joe on Tahquitz, I've had a blast trekking the area.

3. 'Scopes. Having access to a telescope is like having the keys to infinity and beyond. Want to see the Orion Nebula? Here ya go. The Pleiades? Right there. And planets? Saturn's rings? Jupiter's stripes? A crescent of Venus? Done, done, done. The view through a telescope eyepiece is spectacular and humbling.

2. Karaoke. (You didn't really think I'd leave this off the list, did you?!) When you work hard, you need to play hard. And we do. We sing our brains out every Friday night. It doesn't even matter what you request, because you'll end up rapping with Jeff and Eric, singing 80's one-hit wonders with Laura, channeling your inner Katy Perry with Zach, belting out Disney tunes with John, Christina and Chris, and joining the huggy circle as Travis growls out "Friends In Low Places."

1. My Peeps. Not the marshmallow kind. The people I've worked, lived, played, laughed and cried with for the last five months are some of the smartest, silliest and generally wonderfullest people I've had the pleasure of meeting. Thank you for an awesome season. I wish you all the very best, and if you should ever depart SoCal and find yourself in NorOr, drop me a line!

Love you all!

SoCal Spring Adventures

Spring has finally arrived at Astrocamp! The lilacs are blooming, the black oaks are getting leafy, and my nose is tickling with all the pollen. I see almost as many lizards sunning themselves as I do squirrels scampering around. Unfortunately all this nice weather also means that the rattlesnakes will be making appearances soon, too.

We had a bit of a heat wave a couple of weekends ago, so a few of us decided to head off the mountain to La Jolla Beach to cool off. Boy, did we cool off (Mom always says "be careful what you wish for"). If I didn't know better, I would've guessed we were closer to Tillamook than San Diego! Since we were there, we all decided to run out for a quick polar bear plunge. After that, we checked out the nearby tidepools....which were AWESOME!

Forget what Hollywood says. This is the real California coast. It's *almost* as cold as the Oregon coast.
(r-l) Christina, Bobby and Bob check out life in one of the tidepools.

The Incredible Mr. Limpit....and Mrs. Limpit, Junior Limpit, Baby Limpit and the rest of the Limpit family!
Don't be crabby! Even with grey skies, the beach is awesome. :)


Cosmic phenomenal beauty....itty-bitty living space.

The following Sunday, I joined a few of the astro-experts for a Messier Marathon. **Warning: Teacher Mode commencing NOW** Messier was an 18th-century comet hunter who found a lot of other awesome things in the night sky besides comets (nebulae, star clusters, and galaxies, oh my!). A Messier Marathon is an insane attempt to stay up all night and view all 110 Messier Objects in one go.

I failed. Miserably. We started at 7:30, and I was already falling asleep on my feet by 9:15. Before I called it quits, I did get a few nice pictures of the evening sky.

The bright spot in the center left, just above the eastern horizon, is Saturn. I have really enjoyed showing the kiddos this amazing planet through the telescope, though many of them think it looks too much like the pictures in books and online to be real. 

Here's a couple of old favorites...Venus (r, just between the trees) and Orion in the western sky.

That brings us to my most recent adventure....Expedition Tahquitz Peak, Take 2. I succeeded in rounding up a couple of hiking buddies (as well as a ride up the forest service road to the actual trail head), and yesterday we kicked that mountain's booty!! With an 8.2 miles round trip, and a 2,000' elevation gain from the trail head (finishing at 8,800'), this is definitely the hardest hike I've ever done.






My hiking companions Joe and Bob pondering the meaning of life and the existence of the universe...or maybe just when we should stop for a snack.

 

This strange-but-lovely flower is called Sarcodes. Evidently it's a parasitic high desert plant that thrives on the fungi hanging out on tree roots...um, eewww.

Good day, Sunshine! It was a little overcast, but these cheery little flowers lined part of the trail.

Bob sez: I got this, guys. You go on ahead, and I'll hold these rocks up.

We had an amazing 360 degree view from the top. Here's a peek from the peak looking south toward Gardner Valley and Lake Hemet.

This is a cloud. This particular cloud snowed on us as we approached the top. Rude? Why yes, yes it was, especially considering all three of us were in shorts and tee shirts.

I'm in the home stretch of this grand adventure. Less than three weeks, and I'll be back in Portland for good. As much as I'll miss this, I'm looking forward to being with friends, family, and humidity once again.

Girl Gone Portland

Holy cabooses! Has it really been two weeks since I was home? Sorry it took me so long to post pictures from my visit in Portland.

As part of my amazing birthday date, Jeff took me to OMSI to check out the "Art of the Brick" exhibit, and it was awesome! We're now planning to do some LEGO art this summer...hee hee.

My favorite art medium...out of Jeff's new favorite art medium.

Now, these are space LEGOs!

Is this a game of peek-a-boo gone wrong, or a scene out of Aliens?

Awwww....

On the Monday after Easter, I spent a girls' day with my mom. Since the tulips weren't cooperating for a proper photo safari, we decided to hit the Japanese garden to check out the cherry blossoms.

I love the sand garden...

...and the koi pond and waterfall.

Then there was this weird-o. :) I guess they just let all types wander in.

I'm loving my time at Astrocamp, but there are a lot of things (and people!) I miss about Portland. I've got about a month left in this adventure until I'm home for good. XOXO

Balboa Park Adventures

"Where are we going?"
"Balboa Park. There are a bunch of museums and gardens there. And the zoo."
"Boa Park?"
"No, not like the snake. BALboa."
"Alboa?"
"NO! Balboa...like Rocky. Rocky Balboa."
"Oh! Balboa! Got it."

Thus began our Thursday adventure in San Diego. After dropping Meredith off to visit her aunt and uncle, Joe, Bob and I headed up to Balboa Park. After a bit of aimless wandering through the sculpture garden, we decided we should grab a bite to eat. From there, we visited the lily ponds, the Timken Museum, the Museum of Photographic Arts, and the cactus garden. There were so many interesting options, I really believe that Balboa Park is where they invented the phrase "So little time and so much to do."

Reflections of Duck & Verdigris

Column of the Spreckles Organ Pavillion

At the lily pond, (l-r) Joe and Bob tried to commune with the locals.

I don't think the koi were very impressed.

Ducks hanging out in the irises.

And then I just kinda went crazy in the cactus garden...

And speaking of crazy, these two hummingbirds were driving each other nuts...


As things closed up in the park, we decided to head to the Gaslamp Quarter, conveniently located near where we had to rendezvous with Meredith. We stopped for some FroYo, and I did a little shopping in the Betty Page boutique (Awesomest. Dress. Ever.).

I hope you enjoy the pictures. I will be taking a short break from the ol' blog-aroo while I'm back in Portland for a visit next week.

Trekking Tahquitz

This entry began at our Wednesday Night Espresso & Internet Cafe Colloquium (rather than the staff library). Coffee coffee coffee! Blog blog blog!

Anyhoo, I was free on Tuesday so I decided to take a hike...literally. I'd heard that the hike to Tahquitz Peak was beautiful, challenging, and long, so I figured it would be just the thing.

The Goal: The fire look-out atop Tahquitz, some 3000' above Astrocamp.

I was told the trailhead would be easy to find...head out like I was going to Ernie Max, hang a right on the forest service road, and then the trail would be right there. They neglected to mention that "right there" is about a mile, and the road is up, 1000' up, all the way. And this is not the trail head I wanted.

After 45 minutes on the forest service road, I finally came around the back side of the hill that flanks my thoughtful spot on the May Valley trail.

Lo and behold, the South Ridge Trail!

Only four miles to my goal. Four miles and another 2000' elevation gain.

The switchbacks and ever-increasing elevation along the trail gave me great views of the surrounding valleys. Here's Lake Hemet.

A bird's eye view of Astrocamp. The white rectangle in the middle of the shot is the gym and swimming pool.

The heart of Idyllwild. Bottom left is the grocery store, center is The Fort and the coffee shop.

Of course there were other lovely things along the trail. I love the rock jumbles around here...

At one switchback the rocks created a window.

Well, naturally I had to take a peek at was was beyond the window. Surprise! It's a tree.

This tree looked like it was meandering along the trail, too.

As I stopped for a snack, I noticed this pair of trees. The small one almost looked like a bonsai.

While I stopped for lunch, it occurred to me that my legs had turned to jello. Without a hiking buddy to talk me out of backing down, I decided to head for home without reaching the top of Tahquitz. Still, I did cover a lot of ground. My best guess for my finish is the green arrow:

Not too shabby, if I do say so myself.