It was a strange first half of the summer in Oakridge. Between the rain, more rain, hurting my knee and selling my Subaru it was a busy time in some ways, but slow and not bike centered in other more frustrating ways. However, to put the cart before the horse in the title, let me…
The Road to Happiness Starts With a New Bike
Hello from Oakridge, Oregon! It has been a wild ride and since I don’t have wifi at home writing a blog post has fallen low on the priority list. Following a semester of teaching I had a great drive up to Oregon, stopping to see several friends along the way. It is pouring rain yet…
A Celebration of Love: April 26, 2022
On April 26, 2022, our three year dating anniversary, Jesse and I were joined by a small group of friends on the mountains above Santa Barbara. We pledged a lifetime of love, compassion, and understanding in tandem at La Cumbre Peak in Los Padres National Forest. When we first arrived it was overcast and quite…
Update Through Pictures
Life has been high speed lately! I’m teaching, my foot has been improving (incrementally) , and we have been busy in the garden. Though really that barely begins to describe all the things requiring our attention lately. Today is no exception, so please accept this series of photos as a brief update! One of the…
Previously Unexplored Corners in Our Backyard
Last weekend was a long holiday weekend so Jesse and I wanted to get out of town for a small adventure. My irritated back from the previous week seemed to be under control and while my foot still didn’t seem ready for much hiking or rugged mountain biking, it DID seem ready for a dirt…
This Body. Four Weeks. And Memory Lane.
The sun was setting. I put music in my ears and continued to pedal into the darkness. I had been pedaling since 5am, a time of day during which my water hose had froze within minutes. In March 2014 I had recently started bikepacking with the goal of racing the Tour Divide (TD) that summer….
Patience.
It’s come to my attention that I don’t always do a very good job of keeping people up to date with my life details, instead just dropping comments about my current life events in a blog post without following through with details or a wrap-up. First, let me say to the reader that then asks…
When Plan C turns into Plan D…
Baja Mexico, Central Arizona, Southern Arizona, and still a trip cut short. Months ago Jesse and I started planning an exciting car-free bikepacking trip to Baja. We had train tickets from Santa Barbara to San Diego where we would then start pedaling the Baja Divide route for about 300 miles before taking a bus back…
My Life Feels Like a Country Song
You know: my dog died, my wife left me, and my truck won’t start. Or something like that. None of those things have actually happened to me, but the last week has been particularly trying and emotional. The past week also perhaps marked the most socialization and close contact we have had with other humans…
Leaning In To The Long Dark Nights
Over the long Thanksgiving weekend Jesse and I wanted to explore somewhere new, but also not drive too far. About a 40 minute drive from here is Happy Canyon Road which leads deep into the Los Padres. I’ve been to the end of the road several times for hiking. The road ends in a Wilderness…