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Facebookization

Why don't she write?!
Facebookization.
I've meant several times to start up again -- geez, it's been a year! But well... blogs (writing and reading) for me are huge time sucks. And Facebook is the huge time suck that I've been abusing most recently.
Note to spammers: that does not mean that you can graffiti my blog with your crummy, spammy links. I still delete those.
Anyway, I'm still alive, though parched with drought. Thinking about starting back up again, or at least posting every now and then.
The photos show something I've been obsessed with lately: I'm on a huge succulent kick, potting them up in thrift-store finds. I can't say which is more squee-inducing, finding new plants, or discovering containers that speak to me (marked way, way down).

Lake Manawa Reconnaissance

So it was in the upper 60s early afternoon, sunny, and very windy. For mid-March, I had to get out and on the bike. After all, it had been 3 weeks since my last ride. With the wind, it seemed to be a good day to check out the trail work that has been done at Lake Manawa.
The trails were underwater most of last summer - Missouri River flood waters. It was my favorite trail. Was a great place for me to ride.
I had commented that it would look that the trail system would need to be built from scratch. Recently, word was re-designing and trail work has started. A trail day was scheduled but the weather was nasty. Was some other work day while I was in Albuquerque.
Anyway, weather today was for riding in the woods (or at least trying to ride in the woods). Manawa bound.
Past the kiosk and the fence, I found the "Blue" arrow trail marker. A couple bikes have been down the new trail, leaving ruts. Except for the silt deposits, the trail looked that it just needed tread work (at least a lode of bikes riding the trail).
As I continued walking or riding my bike. I started seeing some problems with the trail. This was no longer the easiest trail in the area that I used to ride. It was not that the trail was re-designed, it was confusing. Coming out of on section, the trail changes to a "green" arrow trail. Then back into a "Blue" trail. Thought I was still on the same trail. No junction, just new difficult designation.
As I came to the old log crossing area, the new trail does not look to be sustainable. At the new ditch, the I noticed the trail becomes VERY narrow. The trail corridor width is for a black trail. There were more and more log crossings with no bypass, and I would judge at least needs black skill-level rider. Yet, I am still on the ONE trail.
At 0.9 mile, I bailed off the trail and hiked the bike up to the levee and rode the levee back to the parking lot.
Now, lest you think I am just complaining, I tried to offer helping with the trail design. I have seen some great trail designs during my travels. Lake Manawa needs lots of work (trail surface, by-passes, trail corridor). Otherwise, I will have to forget dirt riding, except for out-of-town trips. The local trail for unwinding, riding dirt, and getting into the woods, is gone for me.

Etsy Shop Open

http://www.etsy.com/shop/debbie55bailey?ref=si_shop is the address of my Etsy Shop. Check it out!

Rose Budworms

Seeing a flurry of small moths around your rose bushes? You may be on the verge of a Rose Budworm infestation. These moths aren't collecting nectar from the flowers; They're laying eggs near the flower buds.
Once the eggs hatch, tiny caterpillars (called budworms) crawl to developing flower buds and bore into the petals. They're using the petals as their food source.
The budworms create perfectly round perforations as they chew through the flower buds.
And as the petals unfurl, the caterpillar will have already moved on to another flower or pupated. The rose petals will look like they've been peppered with bird shot and you'll say to yourself, "I've worked on these roses all summer long through the brutal heat and now their flowers all look like this? Just Great."I wouldn't worry about trying to prevent this pest. They are only around for a couple of weeks so it's not worth the hassle. If you do decide to treat, use a biological product like Dipel (a.k.a Bacillis thuringiensis).
Side Note: Something I've noticed over the last few days is that they favor 'Sunny Knockout' over other types of roses. They still get into the other Knockout roses, but they are definitely more attracted to the yellow cultivar.

BBC climbs; Handa and the caves DVD available

I’ve just added a new climbing DVD to the webshop. It’s the double DVD of two BBC programmes I shot last year. The first is a re-enactment of one of the first recorded climbs in the UK; a crossing by three men from the Western Isles onto the Great Stac of Handain 1867. It was quite an experience to recreate their feat of daring and a window into a way of life now long gone. The inspiration to make a film about it came from an essay by Tom Patey in an old SMC journal, where he expressed his amazement at the strength and ingenuity of the Lewismen for rigging up a rope successfully and climbing across the huge gap to the stac. Patey himself had found the crossing desperate. To film it we had to get a 400m rope that was really thick (it weighed 45kgs) and cart it across Handa and then set it up spanning between the headlands on either side of the Stac. It was quite amazing the Lewismen thought to do it that way.
Thesecond film couldn't be more different. The huge networks of limestone caves underneaththe dales of Yorkshireand the Peak District obviously have some fantastic rock features, but they aren’t normally visited by rock climbers! Myself and Alan Cassidy went on a wee mission to see if there was good rock climbing to be had in the caves. What we found was pretty adventurous and definitely out of the ordinary. First off we climbed the a big circular chamber of Jingling Pot in Yorkshire. It went at about E3 although that obviously doesn’t do it much justice since it was running with water and totally dark. But that was just a warm up for the 4-pitch monster 7c+ we climbed in Peak Cavern - the biggest cave opening in the peak, and our route was the first free climb In the whole cave. It was quite a lucky and special experience. Both programmes are 1 hour long.
It’s in the shop here.

Our new 4 pitch 7c+ in Peak Cavern on the Extraordinary Climbs film

Paddling the Pigeon

My favorite place to paddle! I love the Pigeon River... especially when it is calm like it was the evening that I made this image. The upper Pigeon River is a wildlife paradise. Every time I venture out on the river I see at least a few different critters. Beavers are almost guaranteed, as are a few different species of waterfowl. Kingfishers are sometimes seen patrolling the banks of the river, and now and then a Moose or two will show up. I’ve even been lucky enough on more than one occasion to see a Black Bear swimming across the river! Oh, I almost forgot to mention the Otters and Muskrats! Muskrats are seldom seen, but I almost always see at least one Otter when I visit the river. I’m heading up now to spend the late afternoon and evening on the river… I wonder what I will see today?