Comments for Baby Boomer Ranger

Comment on One-hundred Blogs and Five Years Old by Howard

Howard — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 23:37:42 +0000

Take heart old friend, I have had setbacks in my new endeavors too (bread making: it is a hard market, even when the product is fresh).
Today I had the pleasure of retuning a “found object” to my son. He uses them or his art. The object was a rusted sardine can we found at our campsite south of Mather Pass last summer. I suppose it is only several years old, but it looks like it came from the early 1900’s.
At least the high mountains are still pretty clean.
We hiked up the San Joaquin from Muir Trail Ranch to Piute Creek and found the national park sign down and broken. The bridge was good though. From there to Evolution Valley is a climb. But only part of the way to Muir Pass. Three passes in 9 days, pretty good.

Last week I had the opportunity to go help a landowner on the Klamath locate their property, northeast of Mount Shasta. It was a very positive experience because the owners were interested and truly wanted to know what was up. We found a FS monument set in 2007 (after I left the Klamath) supported by an original bearing tree. The monument was set by a retired FS surveyor who was one of my first party chiefs on the Plumas. We walked around their property, and found all of the “cutting corners” set by International Paper in the 1960’s. I explained to them that these corenrs could be anywhere from right on to 25 or so feet off, and they got that. As we walked westerly out of the trees we came to a small bench, which looked out over a sink, and there was the mountain, bright with snow and with a few clouds floating around. The woman exclaimed,”Wow, I didn’t know we owned this!” All I could think is that no one owns this, or we all own this.

Gotta keep it going: your photos are great, i’m sorry thy were stolen.

Comment on One-hundred Blogs and Five Years Old by Cynthia Ann Whelan

Cynthia Ann Whelan — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 14:24:20 +0000

I just got 14 spam in 13 days…

Comment on We’re 206 and Striving for 216! by Howard

Howard — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 20:05:24 +0000

Well, and it is not just paperwork: it’s attitude as well. I don’t know if you noticed it, but I thought that the response from our leaders smacked strongly of “Hey, you employees, buck up! Everybody knows this is a gret place because we said it is, and you’d better get with the program!” If the employees rate the agency low it is simply because they don’t understand that we said it is actually high, and therefore it is.

Comment on Mountaintop Transformers by Howard

Howard — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 19:54:22 +0000

I’ve been to a number of lookout sites, some with the building intact, and some with only lightning-blasted remains (even while the newer installations are maintained). A piece of infrastructure that is usually not noticed at these places is the USGS triangulation station that inhabits most sites along with the putative tower. Actually, that is a little incorrect: where they are noticed they have commonly been torn out, presumably as a valuable-looking souvenir (I’ve had to replace a few). In the larger scale of things (mapping, monitoring the earth’s changing shape) they may be more important than the lookouts themselves, though less honorable, I suppose.
Another item that resides on mountaintops, and more often those without towers, are the “visitor cairns”, often consisting of a metal box containing paper and pencil, that is used by those who venture to the top to record their wraithlike passage. I met a guy last summer in Kings Canyon who claimed he had been to one that contained John Muir’s name, although one could detect a fair amount of the blowhard in his other conversation. Still it is possible.
The stories of mountaintops inhabit the margins of history, though they often loom large in mythology: certainly no one can deny their continuing attraction for some of us, whether you drive or hike there.

Comment on We’re 206 and Striving for 216! by Cindy

Cindy — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 04:14:28 +0000

You have a point. Two out of ten are actually required. The eight out of ten are made up. Fault has little to do with it. It may be “nobody’s” fault, but it exists, and the question is “who really cares?” That’s the problem. No one cares that it takes so much paperwork to get something done.
/Cindy

Comment on We’re 206 and Striving for 216! by Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 00:48:36 +0000

Hey, but some of those things aren’t the Forest Service’s fault–you’d need a passport and liability waiver to go on an expedition with any other group too!

Comment on We’re 206 and Striving for 216! by Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 00:47:17 +0000

Hey, but some of those things are the Forest Service’s fault–you’d need a passport and liability waiver to go on an expedition with any other group too!

Comment on “Caring for the Land and Serving Coffee” by Annette

Annette — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 16:26:06 +0000

Hi Cindy – I’ve worked my 40 hours this week and actually have a 3 day weekend to enjoy. Thought I’d get caught up on your blogging world. This really sounds like a cool adventure. Do you know exactly what it is you are going to be doing? I am reminded of the family I lived with in the Philippines while a Peace Corps volunteer. They had many coffee trees, and would pick the beans and spread them out on their driveway to dry in the sun. When it was time to grind them up and make real coffee, there were all kinds of goodies included: bugs, rodent turds, animal pee, etc. This was the best coffee ever. I learned really fast (my first cup) that you did not drink past the half way point, otherwise you were going to need a spoon to finish it off and have the smile of someone who chews tobacco. I hope you have a great adventure, and I’ll be looking forward to hearing all about it when you return. Behave yourself over there… Annette

Comment on Power to the People by Cindy

Cindy — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:51:27 +0000

Justin,
I am so with you! Here today – hopefully gone tomorrow.

A few years back, I started a project of getting the Sierra National Forest Communication Site Plans updated and current. My goal was to identify what was there now so future Forest Service employees can track changes to these sites and assure that the only changes are approved changes.

While visiting one of the communications sites, and hearing about how fast technology is changing, I had a daydream about a time when a Forest Service Ranger would be reviewing a Removal Plan for all those towers, dishes and wires hovering over our public lands.

When I asked the technical expert about the possibility of all this equipment becoming obsolete, he assured me that it would be around for a long time.

I though to myself, maybe a long time, but not forever! One day, maybe the National Forest skies will be filled with trees, not towers.

Comment on Moving On in a Virtual Forest Service by Cindy

Cindy — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:44:04 +0000

Ken,
Thank you for your kind words. I do need to say that I am moving on – not dying. I’m going to keep blogging about my work, about what I see and about ” Caring for the Land and Serving People.”

Also thank you for your suggestion on self publishing my book. I agree that it is a great new way to go. If you visit my photo website, on my first page I have a link to my first self published book “Water – Power – Folly.” I used Blurb and I love the results. Currently, I am collaborating with a friend to take all my “Cindy Blogs the Sierra” posts and get them in paper print using a service like lulu or Blurb. It is really exciting to have that long term, paper product to pick up an peruse at will.

So, don’t go away and I’m sure your hear more about the High Sierra Trail Crew and the Sierra National Forest.