Payday!
So I totally got paid the other day. Woohoo! I got about $450 or so, which was nice to have since I was eating soup and PB and J every day lol. I had a first aid/cpr class this week, too, so that broke up some of the Goshawk Call monotony. After the first aid class and a short hike of goshawk calls on Grayback Ridge, I went to a few bike stores and picked up some wanted/needed parts for my bike. I've been running the same chain and cassette (rear cogs) for the last 3 years (bought them in the good ole summer of 05) and they were about ready for replacing. The chain, especially, since it was very gunked up from the stupid lube I bought in las vegas (which was total absolute junk). Anyways, I ended up buying a new cassette (the NEW 2008 Shimano XT cassette) and a new chain (the top of the line SRAM one), as well as a new front rotor, some new (GOOD) chain lube and a chain tool to break off the old chain. Oh, and I also got a book of all the best trails in the area.
Aside from getting paid, the only other real excitement in my life was almost getting mauled by a mother black bear the other day. We ended up between her and her two cubs (a week or two old) and it was pretty scary for a few seconds. We were hiking along (Zach and I) when we saw the two cubs go up a tree right to our left and then heard the mother crashing through the forest towards us to our right. We got out the bear spray and backed out of there, going over a huge hill and around. We watched the cubs climb out of the tree from a good distance away and they ran off into the woods. Whew. I think I saw another bear yesterday, but I'm not sure. We were doing a goshawk call on top of this little hillside and I heard something big moving through the woods off to the right. I looked but didn't see anything. I figured it was an elk or something so we went back to the calls when I heard it again. I looked over and this time I saw something large (as in, larger than a raccoon) and black jump about 2 feet out of a tree to the ground (which was over the hill and out of my view). Figuring it was a bear, I got up and looked over the hill to see if I could confirm it, but it was already gone. Not sure what it was, but I dunno what else it could've been (Sasquatch?).
As far as news goes, that's about it. Life is still pretty sweet here in Teton county. I'm gonna get paid again on Friday so I think I might try to drop the bomb on the helmet cam I've been looking at for a couple years (the reason I bought my new camcorder last year). That will make mountain biking all the more sweeter. I can't wait to try out some of the trails in that book I bought.
As for this weekend, I think I'm gonna try to do a little climbing tomorrow. Either going for:
Gros Peak (11,180 feet)
Sleeping Indian (11,239 feet)
Jackson Peak (the pyramid shaped one) at 10,741 feet.
All of the high mountains (the tetons and the Winds) are covered in tons of snow still. Without snow travel gear (ice axe, crampons etc) I will get no where lol. I'm gonna wait till July or August before I give them a shot.
Ok that is all for now, perhaps I'll update again on Tuesday as to how the climb went!
Aside from getting paid, the only other real excitement in my life was almost getting mauled by a mother black bear the other day. We ended up between her and her two cubs (a week or two old) and it was pretty scary for a few seconds. We were hiking along (Zach and I) when we saw the two cubs go up a tree right to our left and then heard the mother crashing through the forest towards us to our right. We got out the bear spray and backed out of there, going over a huge hill and around. We watched the cubs climb out of the tree from a good distance away and they ran off into the woods. Whew. I think I saw another bear yesterday, but I'm not sure. We were doing a goshawk call on top of this little hillside and I heard something big moving through the woods off to the right. I looked but didn't see anything. I figured it was an elk or something so we went back to the calls when I heard it again. I looked over and this time I saw something large (as in, larger than a raccoon) and black jump about 2 feet out of a tree to the ground (which was over the hill and out of my view). Figuring it was a bear, I got up and looked over the hill to see if I could confirm it, but it was already gone. Not sure what it was, but I dunno what else it could've been (Sasquatch?).
As far as news goes, that's about it. Life is still pretty sweet here in Teton county. I'm gonna get paid again on Friday so I think I might try to drop the bomb on the helmet cam I've been looking at for a couple years (the reason I bought my new camcorder last year). That will make mountain biking all the more sweeter. I can't wait to try out some of the trails in that book I bought.
As for this weekend, I think I'm gonna try to do a little climbing tomorrow. Either going for:
Gros Peak (11,180 feet)
Sleeping Indian (11,239 feet)
Jackson Peak (the pyramid shaped one) at 10,741 feet.
All of the high mountains (the tetons and the Winds) are covered in tons of snow still. Without snow travel gear (ice axe, crampons etc) I will get no where lol. I'm gonna wait till July or August before I give them a shot.
Ok that is all for now, perhaps I'll update again on Tuesday as to how the climb went!