Well the BVI to Florida trip did finally happen. We ended up sailing from BVI, to the Spanish Virgins, to the Bahamas to Cape Canaveral. I must admit, I am now a bit addicted to offshore sailing. The nighttime watches are something else.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Monday, November 09, 2009
Summer Sailing
As I was cleaning up my office today, I found these photos that someone sent to me this summer. We were sailing from Inati Bay to Bellingham. I think Steve H. took these photos. Thanks, I don’t actually have too many photos of me under sail.
Pre Game Time for the BVIs
For the past couple of weeks several of us have been preparing to move a boat from Tortola to Cape Canaveral. This boat was purchased by a friend of mine about a month ago and we are going to try and bring it back up to the Pacific Northwest via Florida (and stick it on a truck). Planing this event remotely has been kind of a bitch compounded by the fact that each of the four crew live at least on hours drive away from each other. To make things easier, we have been using Google Sites to coordinate all of our trip information - from meal planning to emergency contact information, it is all there.
My task has been setting the communications to the external world so that all of our friends and family can stay in touch.
The first trick is to figure out the medium to get all of those pesky ones and zero from the middle of the Atlantic Ocean to the internet. There are several solutions available, but for us it came down to a Satellite phone or using a Single Side Band (SSB) radio for email. The satellite phone has the advantage that it is easy to set up, you can call people on it, and you can send SMS (text) messages with it. The downside is that it is slow (2400kb) and relatively expensive (~1$/minute - 1$/15k). The SSB, on the other hand, is cheap and already installed on the boat. The disadvantage is that is is even slower (500b), complex to operate, and may not even work on this boat.
Because of the time constraints, we decided on using the satellite phone. I can get this solution working at home, with all of the benefits of the internet. The other good thing about this solution is that it gave us SMS messaging. This allows us to easily post updates to ... twitter. For about seventy cents we can text a message to twitter and easily send status update information to friends and family. Heck you can follow us right now at: http://twitter.com/indigosv.
The second way we are going to push location data out to a server called yotreps. This service was set up to help weather forecasters get a better picture of local sea conditions using boats as mobile weather bouy. You can access yotreps and our boat Indigo here and via google maps at shiptrack. The way yotrpes works is that you send them a rather cryptic email with your local conditions in it. Here is a sample entry.
My task has been setting the communications to the external world so that all of our friends and family can stay in touch.
The first trick is to figure out the medium to get all of those pesky ones and zero from the middle of the Atlantic Ocean to the internet. There are several solutions available, but for us it came down to a Satellite phone or using a Single Side Band (SSB) radio for email. The satellite phone has the advantage that it is easy to set up, you can call people on it, and you can send SMS (text) messages with it. The downside is that it is slow (2400kb) and relatively expensive (~1$/minute - 1$/15k). The SSB, on the other hand, is cheap and already installed on the boat. The disadvantage is that is is even slower (500b), complex to operate, and may not even work on this boat.
Because of the time constraints, we decided on using the satellite phone. I can get this solution working at home, with all of the benefits of the internet. The other good thing about this solution is that it gave us SMS messaging. This allows us to easily post updates to ... twitter. For about seventy cents we can text a message to twitter and easily send status update information to friends and family. Heck you can follow us right now at: http://twitter.com/indigosv.
The second way we are going to push location data out to a server called yotreps. This service was set up to help weather forecasters get a better picture of local sea conditions using boats as mobile weather bouy. You can access yotreps and our boat Indigo here and via google maps at shiptrack. The way yotrpes works is that you send them a rather cryptic email with your local conditions in it. Here is a sample entry.
YOTREPS
20/10/2009
| BOAT | WIND | SWELL | | | |
No| CALL |TIME| POSITION |Cse|Spd| | |Cld|Bar |tend|
| | UTC| Lat. Lng. | °T|Kts|Dir|Kts|Dir| Ht| % | hPa| |
---|--------|----|----------------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|----|----|
1|WDAL7LO |2215|18 26 N 64 37 W|230|0.0| NE| 3| N|0.0| 30|1011| +|
Comments:
Waiting for BJ to Buy Me
Saturday, October 31, 2009
A Diversion: BVI-> Florida
For the last couple of months, a friend of mine, BJ, has been searching for a boat to replace his Tayana 37. Finally, he found a Sceptre 41 in good shape down in the British Virgin Islands (BVI). At first this boat didn't look like it would work out because of the difficulties of transporting the boat from the BVIs to Seattle. But after a little noodling we decided that we could sail the boat from the BVIs to Florida. A month later, and a trip to the BVIs to check out the boat, the plan is finally coming to fruition. So, four of us are going to fly down the the Tortola, BVI, get the boat ready and sail her to Cape Canaveral. We have a month to do this (which sound like a lot of time, but is really kind of pressed). Along the way,we plan on visiting the Spanish Virgin Islands (in Puerto Rico) and the Bahamas. This is our planned passage:
BVI to Miami Itinerary at EveryTrail
Map created by EveryTrail: GPS Trip Sharing with Google Maps
I am going to see what I can do about posting photos and whatnot, but in the mean time I have link where you can check out the position of the boat. Shiptrack.orgBVI to Miami Itinerary at EveryTrail
Map created by EveryTrail: GPS Trip Sharing with Google Maps
Sunday, June 14, 2009
The Ubuntu Experiment
For the third time since I bought this system, the hard drive has been corrupted to a state where I can not boot the system. This time I decided to take it to the local PC gurus to see if they could find out was wrong. No luck what so ever. However, I was able to use a Ubuntu USB stick to boot the computer and access all of my files.
Windows XP is just seriously broken. If my only solution is to completely reinstall the entire OS every 3 months, then I think it is time to look for a different OS. My only caveat is that I don't really want to buy a new PC at this time. Heck my existing PC is plenty powerful. So, I have decided to go ahead and install Ubuntu on my Dell Inspiron 6000. No PC, No Mac, just pure open source. I wonder how it will go?
Windows XP is just seriously broken. If my only solution is to completely reinstall the entire OS every 3 months, then I think it is time to look for a different OS. My only caveat is that I don't really want to buy a new PC at this time. Heck my existing PC is plenty powerful. So, I have decided to go ahead and install Ubuntu on my Dell Inspiron 6000. No PC, No Mac, just pure open source. I wonder how it will go?
Saturday, May 23, 2009
A Wompin Bike Ride to Poland
Saturday
This bike riding adventure started near were I finished my last bike ride on the Czech border. For this ride, I had an almost singular goad: head across Bohemian Switzerland in the Czech Republic and bike to Poland. I have got to go to Poland!
Since Dave and Lisa went on the ride, I picked up a rental bike the night before. A kind-of hybrid city/mountain bike that seems to do well on the kind of trails that we would encounter. A new bike, a sketchy route at best, and a bag of food. It was time to go.
We left Dresden for the Czech border around 9 in the morning. It was a cool day with partly cloudy skies. The forecast called for a mostly sunny day, but I still loaded my panniers with a parka. Ya just never know. We boarded the train at Neustadt and by the time we hit the main station, the train was packed with Dresdeners heading for the mountains.
The ride took about an hour with people getting off once we hit the mountains. On the second to the last stop we disembarked and headed up stream to the ferry crossing. We didn't really plan on getting off at the second to the last stop, but somehow we did. Oh well, only another couple of kilometers to add to the trip - a nice warm up.
Hřensko
The ferry crossing starts in Germany and deposits you into the Czech Republic at the town of Hřensko. Hřensko is a classic border town with tons of stalls selling all kinds of nick-knacks. The funny thing is that the vendors aren't even Czech. Heck, the merchandise isn't even Czech. We purchase some water and start the long climb up into České Švýcarsko National Park. This park shares a border with Germany and there are all kinds of trails criss-crossing both sides of the border. Route finding can be quite a chore as the trail marking aren't always what you expect. We had quite a few route finding issues and instead of taking the nice easy trail we end up doing a huge climb up to this small natural arch that looks out over the Czech country side. Poland is looking further away.
On Top of The Stone Arch
A Fall Here Would Really Suck
From the arch it was a major down hill to a muddy intersection somewhere in the park. After a long climb we topped a ridge and saw a small sign pointing to a pension or cabin or something. We didn't really know. It was right in the middle of the woods. So we had to check it out. I guess we could just bail on this whole Poland idea.
Lunch Stop
It turns out it was a little pension with music and food. So we stopped or lunch and ordered a sports drink and goulash.
It was time to figure out were to go next since we were so far off of our original trail. But after about half a sport drink a funny thing happened. We decided that we might be able to make it to Poland after all.
After eating our fill and with our mission firmly in mind, we started following one of the numbered bike trails that led us all over the Czech Republic. Like most bike trails it was a mixture of paved roads, dirt roads, single tracks and some hiking. The scenery was outstanding. It was amazing to glimpse into the back yards of the Bohemian houses in this small corner of the Czech Republic.
Chřibská
After the small town of Chřibská we started another big climb until we were high over the country side.
Pilgrimage Site near Jiřetín pod Jedlovou
After that we had a screaming, rocky down hill that deposited us at the base of one of the pilgrimage sites. A little exploring and then it was a fast downhill of cobblestone, single track and bike trails until we crossed back into Germany.
You immediately notice when you cross the border. Everything is neater and more organized. Ironically, the signage was worse, so our route finding became more difficult.
We continued to wind through different towns until we had about an hour to go before our 7:19pm train out of Zittau. We had to make this train, because the next train was almost two hours later. You don't want to hang out in Zittau until 9pm.
But still I had a goal, and that goal was to make it to Poland! So we pushed on and eventually found our way to the border where Germany, The Czech Republic and Poland all meet.
Almost in Poland
As I rode my bike up to the field, I could see flags for both Poland and The Czech Republic (the Germans flag was down for some reason). Almost there. Damn it! Just on the other side of the grass was a river. No playing twister on the border (unless I had a snorkel). So after a quick photo we were off, downstream to find a crossing. Luckily, we found one in a couple of km and crossed over into Poland. I made it.
Final tally: Distance - 68km; Climbed - 2100m; 3 Countries; No flats; 1 Beer.
Finally Made It!
Well, I made it to Poland, but we still had a train to catch in Zittau. It was time to head back to the train station and pick up the 7:19 pm train back to Dresden. We made the train, but one causality was dinner and another sports drink. We would have to make do with our snacks until we got back to Dresden.
Almost 7 hrs of riding (probably half of it was looking at maps) and 65 km and a ton of climbing left us tired out. Time for dinner and a big snooze.
This bike riding adventure started near were I finished my last bike ride on the Czech border. For this ride, I had an almost singular goad: head across Bohemian Switzerland in the Czech Republic and bike to Poland. I have got to go to Poland!
Since Dave and Lisa went on the ride, I picked up a rental bike the night before. A kind-of hybrid city/mountain bike that seems to do well on the kind of trails that we would encounter. A new bike, a sketchy route at best, and a bag of food. It was time to go.
We left Dresden for the Czech border around 9 in the morning. It was a cool day with partly cloudy skies. The forecast called for a mostly sunny day, but I still loaded my panniers with a parka. Ya just never know. We boarded the train at Neustadt and by the time we hit the main station, the train was packed with Dresdeners heading for the mountains.
The ride took about an hour with people getting off once we hit the mountains. On the second to the last stop we disembarked and headed up stream to the ferry crossing. We didn't really plan on getting off at the second to the last stop, but somehow we did. Oh well, only another couple of kilometers to add to the trip - a nice warm up.
Hřensko
The ferry crossing starts in Germany and deposits you into the Czech Republic at the town of Hřensko. Hřensko is a classic border town with tons of stalls selling all kinds of nick-knacks. The funny thing is that the vendors aren't even Czech. Heck, the merchandise isn't even Czech. We purchase some water and start the long climb up into České Švýcarsko National Park. This park shares a border with Germany and there are all kinds of trails criss-crossing both sides of the border. Route finding can be quite a chore as the trail marking aren't always what you expect. We had quite a few route finding issues and instead of taking the nice easy trail we end up doing a huge climb up to this small natural arch that looks out over the Czech country side. Poland is looking further away.
On Top of The Stone Arch
A Fall Here Would Really Suck
From the arch it was a major down hill to a muddy intersection somewhere in the park. After a long climb we topped a ridge and saw a small sign pointing to a pension or cabin or something. We didn't really know. It was right in the middle of the woods. So we had to check it out. I guess we could just bail on this whole Poland idea.
Lunch Stop
It turns out it was a little pension with music and food. So we stopped or lunch and ordered a sports drink and goulash.
It was time to figure out were to go next since we were so far off of our original trail. But after about half a sport drink a funny thing happened. We decided that we might be able to make it to Poland after all.
After eating our fill and with our mission firmly in mind, we started following one of the numbered bike trails that led us all over the Czech Republic. Like most bike trails it was a mixture of paved roads, dirt roads, single tracks and some hiking. The scenery was outstanding. It was amazing to glimpse into the back yards of the Bohemian houses in this small corner of the Czech Republic.
Chřibská
After the small town of Chřibská we started another big climb until we were high over the country side.
Pilgrimage Site near Jiřetín pod Jedlovou
After that we had a screaming, rocky down hill that deposited us at the base of one of the pilgrimage sites. A little exploring and then it was a fast downhill of cobblestone, single track and bike trails until we crossed back into Germany.
You immediately notice when you cross the border. Everything is neater and more organized. Ironically, the signage was worse, so our route finding became more difficult.
We continued to wind through different towns until we had about an hour to go before our 7:19pm train out of Zittau. We had to make this train, because the next train was almost two hours later. You don't want to hang out in Zittau until 9pm.
But still I had a goal, and that goal was to make it to Poland! So we pushed on and eventually found our way to the border where Germany, The Czech Republic and Poland all meet.
Almost in Poland
As I rode my bike up to the field, I could see flags for both Poland and The Czech Republic (the Germans flag was down for some reason). Almost there. Damn it! Just on the other side of the grass was a river. No playing twister on the border (unless I had a snorkel). So after a quick photo we were off, downstream to find a crossing. Luckily, we found one in a couple of km and crossed over into Poland. I made it.
Final tally: Distance - 68km; Climbed - 2100m; 3 Countries; No flats; 1 Beer.
Finally Made It!
Well, I made it to Poland, but we still had a train to catch in Zittau. It was time to head back to the train station and pick up the 7:19 pm train back to Dresden. We made the train, but one causality was dinner and another sports drink. We would have to make do with our snacks until we got back to Dresden.
Almost 7 hrs of riding (probably half of it was looking at maps) and 65 km and a ton of climbing left us tired out. Time for dinner and a big snooze.
Schona - Czech - Poland - Zittau
Widget powered by EveryTrail: GPS GeotaggingThursday, May 21, 2009
Männertag
Thursday
Holidays in Germany are always accompanied by beer - lot's of beer. And what better way to celebrate the Christian Ascension tradition than for all of the men in Germany to wander through the woods and drink lots of beer? Hence, the German holiday Männertag, or Men's Day.
In most parts of Germany this holiday is the equivalent of our Father's day (Vatertag) and has been since the middle ages. In the 19th century the custom switched gears in Berlin and became more of a man's day out or drinking day (sauftag). Today it seems that the holiday is becoming more family and festival oriented, but you still see groups of people pulling little carts through the woods loaded with all kinds of food and drink.
So with that imagery in mind we headed off to experience this strange custom. We started early with a steamboat ride down the Elba river. But then, as I was writing this article about Männertag, I decided that what happens on Männertag in German Saxony, stays in German Saxony. So if you want more details you will just have to show up next year.
Traditional Father's Day Bubble Maker
Holidays in Germany are always accompanied by beer - lot's of beer. And what better way to celebrate the Christian Ascension tradition than for all of the men in Germany to wander through the woods and drink lots of beer? Hence, the German holiday Männertag, or Men's Day.
In most parts of Germany this holiday is the equivalent of our Father's day (Vatertag) and has been since the middle ages. In the 19th century the custom switched gears in Berlin and became more of a man's day out or drinking day (sauftag). Today it seems that the holiday is becoming more family and festival oriented, but you still see groups of people pulling little carts through the woods loaded with all kinds of food and drink.
So with that imagery in mind we headed off to experience this strange custom. We started early with a steamboat ride down the Elba river. But then, as I was writing this article about Männertag, I decided that what happens on Männertag in German Saxony, stays in German Saxony. So if you want more details you will just have to show up next year.
Traditional Father's Day Bubble Maker
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
A Wompin Ride to the Czech Border
Tuesday
I had such a good time bike riding on Saturday, that I decided I needed to do it again. A while ago Dave did this ride that takes you almost to the Czech border while visiting all kinds of tiny little villages along the while. The route would involve all types of terrain, winding and twisting through the country side. Now Dave is a gadget guy. He has a lot of electronic toys, one of them being a GPS watch that he uses to keep track of his running or his bike rides. Since he had done this ride before, he thought he had the route programmed into the watch, so he loaded it up and headed off for work. This should make route finding a breeze.
After working a bit in the morning I saddled up Lisa's mountain bike. This is slightly small for me and has the added bonus of having almost no rear brakes. What better vehicle for exploring the darkest corners of East Germany? As an extra precaution I stopped by the bike shop and picked up an extra patch case since I had used up the patches from the previous day. Okay, map, patches, watch, food, water. I'm good to do. Dave suggested that I start out by taking one of the trails in the forest just North of Dresden. I thought that would be okay, since I had the watch and it basically told me where the suggested trail was.
So off I set, boldly going through the woods. Except, every now and then I would come to a big ravine that I would have to cross. Or, I would encounter a big log crossing the trail. Or, the damn trail would just disappear. I wasn't exactly lost, but I wasn't making much progress. But, I did have the watch and I was able to zig-zag my way towards the "real" trail.
After about an hour or so lost in the woods, I managed to find the route. Damn, I had only managed to make 1km on my route for an hour of work. Not a good start.
Quickly, I found the route and started heading up stream from Dresden. Now, I wasn't having a good deal of luck following the route. Often I would be hundreds of meters off course for no known reason. Luckily, I had a real map with me (Even though Dave said I didn't need a map!), and I managed to slowly make my way up the valley to the castle at Stolpen.
A Not Very Useful Sign Post Along the Way
At Durrosdorf I hit the edge of my map and had to guess my way towards Stolpen. I was a good 1km off the track at this point, but found a bike trail that went to Helmsdorf, which was the next town on the way to Stolpen.
Bird House Outside Helmsdorf
Finally, I saw. A majestic spire rising high above the country side. Uh-oh, castles are built on tall, knobby, hills. So, I put the bike in low gear and slogged up to the castle. After about twenty minutes of climbing, I made it. Time for a sports drink and lunch.
Lunch Break Next to the Castle
Stolpen
A Beer, Spargel Creme Soupe, The GPS Watch,
& The Blackberry
After a refreshing lunch it was time to figure out how to get back down the river. This was supposed to be one of the better parts of the trail. I had a fairly descent map of the trail near the Elbe river and a basic idea of how to get there by kind-of following the GPS track. By this time I had come to understand that the track was just a suggestion. It was really telling me that, "Hey, why don't you go this way for a while?" So I would, and then it would say, "Forget i t, I really mean go this way."
After Lunch View of Stolpen
Only 1k Off "Route"
After many false turns, I managed to find the National Park trail that would lead me back down to the Elbe. This was probably the best part of the trail. A nice forested downhill ride through a nice gorge with a babbling brook nearby.
The Final Part of the Trail
This trail took me to Bad Schandau which is one of the last towns before you get to the Czech Republic. From there it was just a quick and easy train ride back to Dresden and another hot meal. Well it wasn't that easy, in order to get a ticket, you have to use these automated machines. The machines are electronic and have a large British flag so that you can get instructions in English. Except that it doesn't do anything. I could figure out how to get back, but you also have to get a ticket for your bike. Now I figure that that ditching Lisa's bike would probably be good for her, but it might make her a bit pissed off at me. So I asked a train conductor how to use the machine. She couldn't barely get it to work. After five tries she was able to spit out a ticket for me and my bike.
The finally tally: 7 hrs of riding, one lunch break, one train ride, 65.7 km of trails, stairs, roads, and gullys.
I had such a good time bike riding on Saturday, that I decided I needed to do it again. A while ago Dave did this ride that takes you almost to the Czech border while visiting all kinds of tiny little villages along the while. The route would involve all types of terrain, winding and twisting through the country side. Now Dave is a gadget guy. He has a lot of electronic toys, one of them being a GPS watch that he uses to keep track of his running or his bike rides. Since he had done this ride before, he thought he had the route programmed into the watch, so he loaded it up and headed off for work. This should make route finding a breeze.
After working a bit in the morning I saddled up Lisa's mountain bike. This is slightly small for me and has the added bonus of having almost no rear brakes. What better vehicle for exploring the darkest corners of East Germany? As an extra precaution I stopped by the bike shop and picked up an extra patch case since I had used up the patches from the previous day. Okay, map, patches, watch, food, water. I'm good to do. Dave suggested that I start out by taking one of the trails in the forest just North of Dresden. I thought that would be okay, since I had the watch and it basically told me where the suggested trail was.
So off I set, boldly going through the woods. Except, every now and then I would come to a big ravine that I would have to cross. Or, I would encounter a big log crossing the trail. Or, the damn trail would just disappear. I wasn't exactly lost, but I wasn't making much progress. But, I did have the watch and I was able to zig-zag my way towards the "real" trail.
After about an hour or so lost in the woods, I managed to find the route. Damn, I had only managed to make 1km on my route for an hour of work. Not a good start.
Quickly, I found the route and started heading up stream from Dresden. Now, I wasn't having a good deal of luck following the route. Often I would be hundreds of meters off course for no known reason. Luckily, I had a real map with me (Even though Dave said I didn't need a map!), and I managed to slowly make my way up the valley to the castle at Stolpen.
A Not Very Useful Sign Post Along the Way
At Durrosdorf I hit the edge of my map and had to guess my way towards Stolpen. I was a good 1km off the track at this point, but found a bike trail that went to Helmsdorf, which was the next town on the way to Stolpen.
Bird House Outside Helmsdorf
Finally, I saw. A majestic spire rising high above the country side. Uh-oh, castles are built on tall, knobby, hills. So, I put the bike in low gear and slogged up to the castle. After about twenty minutes of climbing, I made it. Time for a sports drink and lunch.
Lunch Break Next to the Castle
Stolpen
A Beer, Spargel Creme Soupe, The GPS Watch,
& The Blackberry
After a refreshing lunch it was time to figure out how to get back down the river. This was supposed to be one of the better parts of the trail. I had a fairly descent map of the trail near the Elbe river and a basic idea of how to get there by kind-of following the GPS track. By this time I had come to understand that the track was just a suggestion. It was really telling me that, "Hey, why don't you go this way for a while?" So I would, and then it would say, "Forget i t, I really mean go this way."
After Lunch View of Stolpen
Only 1k Off "Route"
After many false turns, I managed to find the National Park trail that would lead me back down to the Elbe. This was probably the best part of the trail. A nice forested downhill ride through a nice gorge with a babbling brook nearby.
The Final Part of the Trail
This trail took me to Bad Schandau which is one of the last towns before you get to the Czech Republic. From there it was just a quick and easy train ride back to Dresden and another hot meal. Well it wasn't that easy, in order to get a ticket, you have to use these automated machines. The machines are electronic and have a large British flag so that you can get instructions in English. Except that it doesn't do anything. I could figure out how to get back, but you also have to get a ticket for your bike. Now I figure that that ditching Lisa's bike would probably be good for her, but it might make her a bit pissed off at me. So I asked a train conductor how to use the machine. She couldn't barely get it to work. After five tries she was able to spit out a ticket for me and my bike.
The finally tally: 7 hrs of riding, one lunch break, one train ride, 65.7 km of trails, stairs, roads, and gullys.
Dresden to Stolpen to Bad Schandau
Widget powered by EveryTrail: GPS GeotaggingMonday, May 18, 2009
Out and about in Dresden
Monday
I had to work this morning but I finally was able to get out for a bit. I had a nice lunch in front of the church in the main plaza and wandered around a bit. Mostly a mellow day.
Local Art in Dresden
Near the Train Station
I had to work this morning but I finally was able to get out for a bit. I had a nice lunch in front of the church in the main plaza and wandered around a bit. Mostly a mellow day.
Local Art in Dresden
Near the Train Station
Sunday, May 17, 2009
A Much Mellower Ride Along the Elbe
Sunday
Today's ride was much more mellow than Saturday's ride. Today we took the path upstream along the Elbe river. Nice and flat and sunny. Mostly Just Pictures Today.
Almost like Holland
Along The Elbe
A Quick Stop for Lunch and a Sports Drink
Dresden
The Beach
Today's ride was much more mellow than Saturday's ride. Today we took the path upstream along the Elbe river. Nice and flat and sunny. Mostly Just Pictures Today.
Almost like Holland
Along The Elbe
A Quick Stop for Lunch and a Sports Drink
Dresden
The Beach
A Wompin Bike Ride Through Former East Gemany
Saturday
The day started out grey and rainy with the promise of better things to come. The decision was made to delay the start from 9:00 to around 10:30. With a slight mist in the air (your basic Bellingham day), we headed off on a bicycle tour of the surrounding country side.
We started off crossing the Elbe and heading out through an old industrial part of town.
Ingo & Dave
The paths that we took were a combination of bike paths, roads, single track, stairs, rocky ledges, and everything in between. The first 100m climb was to an overlook of the Weiseritz river outside of Dresden.
Old Factory
After wandering around some more small towns we ended up in Rabenau. From there we took a dirt path that followed an old narrow gauge steam line that followed the river. Sometime the trail would get really steep and we would have to do a bit of hiking.
The grade continued for quite a while and deposited us high over Dresden in these gorgeous hills.
Soon after this we had a couple of big hill climbs and then a big rocky downhill that resulted in a big old flat tire for me. Luckily, we had all of the goodies required to fix the flat and soon we were bumping along down the road. This was especially challenging since I really didn't have brakes. It made the downhills really interesting. After a couple of more hill climbs (about 3000' total by now) we ended up at a little Biergarten for lunch. From here it was all down hill to the next stop. After a quick 5k downhill run on the road we ended up at the Weesenstein castle.
It had a nice little beer cellar that had been renovated to look like it dig back in 1860. This, of course, required another stop for a sports drink. Biking is hard work.
Feeling refreshed we headed out for the final 25k back to Dresden. It was late and we were nourished so we were moving fast. But the adventure wasn't over. We had to cross the river on a local ferry.
Then it was only another 15km or so back to the flat. A quick shower and then a quick dinner at a nice little Italian place.
It was a gorgeous, so we walked to Neustadt to grab a late night beer at a Munich styled beer hall. We were able to sit outside and watch all of the people wander by.
More Photos
The day started out grey and rainy with the promise of better things to come. The decision was made to delay the start from 9:00 to around 10:30. With a slight mist in the air (your basic Bellingham day), we headed off on a bicycle tour of the surrounding country side.
We started off crossing the Elbe and heading out through an old industrial part of town.
Ingo & Dave
The paths that we took were a combination of bike paths, roads, single track, stairs, rocky ledges, and everything in between. The first 100m climb was to an overlook of the Weiseritz river outside of Dresden.
Old Factory
After wandering around some more small towns we ended up in Rabenau. From there we took a dirt path that followed an old narrow gauge steam line that followed the river. Sometime the trail would get really steep and we would have to do a bit of hiking.
The grade continued for quite a while and deposited us high over Dresden in these gorgeous hills.
Soon after this we had a couple of big hill climbs and then a big rocky downhill that resulted in a big old flat tire for me. Luckily, we had all of the goodies required to fix the flat and soon we were bumping along down the road. This was especially challenging since I really didn't have brakes. It made the downhills really interesting. After a couple of more hill climbs (about 3000' total by now) we ended up at a little Biergarten for lunch. From here it was all down hill to the next stop. After a quick 5k downhill run on the road we ended up at the Weesenstein castle.
It had a nice little beer cellar that had been renovated to look like it dig back in 1860. This, of course, required another stop for a sports drink. Biking is hard work.
Feeling refreshed we headed out for the final 25k back to Dresden. It was late and we were nourished so we were moving fast. But the adventure wasn't over. We had to cross the river on a local ferry.
Then it was only another 15km or so back to the flat. A quick shower and then a quick dinner at a nice little Italian place.
It was a gorgeous, so we walked to Neustadt to grab a late night beer at a Munich styled beer hall. We were able to sit outside and watch all of the people wander by.
More Photos
Dresden to Rabanau to Maxen
Widget powered by EveryTrail: GPS GeotaggingFriday, May 15, 2009
Arriving in Dresden
Thursday
I arrived in Frankfurt a little ahead of schedule and a little spacey. My internal clock was hovering around 2am while locally it was about 11am. The flight was nice and uneventful and I even managed to sleep a bit. The route takes you way north, almost to the arctic circle, so the sky glowed orange for most of the evening.
After a three hour layover in Frankfurt we boarded the bus that drove us to the plane. This bus ride takes forever. I think it might have been shorter just to drive to Dresden. After boarding the plane, I zonked out. Next thing I knew we were in Dresden, I had my bags and Dave was there to pick me up.
We drove back to their pad and I took about an hour nap. Then, in order to really cure the jet lag, we took off for a mountain bike ride in a local park. Dave gave me the "death bike without brakes" to ride. Some of the downhill runs got particularly interesting. Especially the one through the sandy trail which ended up with me taking a bit of a spill. Like all bike rides in Germany, we eventually ended up at a local Biergarten to rehydrate. This garden was on the Elbe river and had a Dixie land band playing. The sun was out. It was warm. I had a beer. Very nice indeed.
After the beer, we headed back to town along the river to another Biergarten to meet Lisa. Today was the start of the Dixieland jazz festival and all of the riverboats (about 15 or so) were decorated and had Dixieland bands playing on them. While we drank our beer, all of the boats passed by on their way upstream.
After a quick change of clothes at their apartment, we headed back across the river to a Tapas place. While we were there all of the jazz boats returned and then they started a fireworks show. Not a bad first night.
Dresden w/ Jazz Steamboats at Dock
Friday
I slept pretty well considering the timezone difference. Dave and Lisa headed off to work and I decided to work for a bit.
During lunch, Dave came back and we tried to pick up a bike to rent. All of the bikes had already been rented out. Crazy. I guess we should have made reservations. This was not a complete disaster since Dave had a couple of bikes that mostly fit. Next stop a lunch at a local Thai place. It is interesting to eat ethnic food in different counties. The food is always modified to reflect the local taste. So the same dish in the US or Germany or France has a distinctive local flavor. I ended up eating a curry dish that I often get in Bellingham. A little waterier, saltier, and not as spicy. But, overall very good.
I had this great plan to head out for a bike ride after lunch, but the whole jet lag thing got to me and I had to seriously snooze. No worries though, the snooze was only about an hour or so. I hitched up the pony (actually a late model Specialized mountain bike), and headed down the river to Meisen. Okay, I didn't actually ride to Meisen, but I did meander down the bike path, checking out the local sites. One of the most interesting features are all of the "Beach" bars along the river. The concept is simple: take several tons of sand, some umbrellas, a couple of volleyball nets; mix with sun, coconut oil, and tropical drinks; and voila you have an recipe for a great place to hang out on a sunny day. I think I will have to try it out later in the week. I wonder if they have WiFi?
That night we went to a 40th Birthday for a friend of Dave and Lisa's. It was situated in an old church not far from their flat. In Germany the birthday boy or girl throws their own party. This party was quite large. They had sekt for the guests when they arrived and plenty of wine and food. One wall had a large projection of a feather on it (that matched the invitation) that didn't change the entire time. I kind of expected a slideshow or something. On the alter there was a piano and a bunch of blankets for all of the kids.
The party started with the host giving some speach (in German) and then playing the piano for two hours. Some of the compositions were his and some where covers. He never even paused between the songs, so I'm not sure what we were listening to. We were able to chat with some of Dave and Lisa's friend that went to Octoberfest with last year.
About 10pm I was getting pretty hungry, so we walked down the street to a Czech place. I had this interesting pork steak with a lemon-cream sauce and cranberries. Sounds like a strange combination, but it was really pretty darn good.
After that, snooze time.
I arrived in Frankfurt a little ahead of schedule and a little spacey. My internal clock was hovering around 2am while locally it was about 11am. The flight was nice and uneventful and I even managed to sleep a bit. The route takes you way north, almost to the arctic circle, so the sky glowed orange for most of the evening.
After a three hour layover in Frankfurt we boarded the bus that drove us to the plane. This bus ride takes forever. I think it might have been shorter just to drive to Dresden. After boarding the plane, I zonked out. Next thing I knew we were in Dresden, I had my bags and Dave was there to pick me up.
We drove back to their pad and I took about an hour nap. Then, in order to really cure the jet lag, we took off for a mountain bike ride in a local park. Dave gave me the "death bike without brakes" to ride. Some of the downhill runs got particularly interesting. Especially the one through the sandy trail which ended up with me taking a bit of a spill. Like all bike rides in Germany, we eventually ended up at a local Biergarten to rehydrate. This garden was on the Elbe river and had a Dixie land band playing. The sun was out. It was warm. I had a beer. Very nice indeed.
After the beer, we headed back to town along the river to another Biergarten to meet Lisa. Today was the start of the Dixieland jazz festival and all of the riverboats (about 15 or so) were decorated and had Dixieland bands playing on them. While we drank our beer, all of the boats passed by on their way upstream.
After a quick change of clothes at their apartment, we headed back across the river to a Tapas place. While we were there all of the jazz boats returned and then they started a fireworks show. Not a bad first night.
Dresden w/ Jazz Steamboats at Dock
Friday
I slept pretty well considering the timezone difference. Dave and Lisa headed off to work and I decided to work for a bit.
During lunch, Dave came back and we tried to pick up a bike to rent. All of the bikes had already been rented out. Crazy. I guess we should have made reservations. This was not a complete disaster since Dave had a couple of bikes that mostly fit. Next stop a lunch at a local Thai place. It is interesting to eat ethnic food in different counties. The food is always modified to reflect the local taste. So the same dish in the US or Germany or France has a distinctive local flavor. I ended up eating a curry dish that I often get in Bellingham. A little waterier, saltier, and not as spicy. But, overall very good.
I had this great plan to head out for a bike ride after lunch, but the whole jet lag thing got to me and I had to seriously snooze. No worries though, the snooze was only about an hour or so. I hitched up the pony (actually a late model Specialized mountain bike), and headed down the river to Meisen. Okay, I didn't actually ride to Meisen, but I did meander down the bike path, checking out the local sites. One of the most interesting features are all of the "Beach" bars along the river. The concept is simple: take several tons of sand, some umbrellas, a couple of volleyball nets; mix with sun, coconut oil, and tropical drinks; and voila you have an recipe for a great place to hang out on a sunny day. I think I will have to try it out later in the week. I wonder if they have WiFi?
That night we went to a 40th Birthday for a friend of Dave and Lisa's. It was situated in an old church not far from their flat. In Germany the birthday boy or girl throws their own party. This party was quite large. They had sekt for the guests when they arrived and plenty of wine and food. One wall had a large projection of a feather on it (that matched the invitation) that didn't change the entire time. I kind of expected a slideshow or something. On the alter there was a piano and a bunch of blankets for all of the kids.
The party started with the host giving some speach (in German) and then playing the piano for two hours. Some of the compositions were his and some where covers. He never even paused between the songs, so I'm not sure what we were listening to. We were able to chat with some of Dave and Lisa's friend that went to Octoberfest with last year.
About 10pm I was getting pretty hungry, so we walked down the street to a Czech place. I had this interesting pork steak with a lemon-cream sauce and cranberries. Sounds like a strange combination, but it was really pretty darn good.
After that, snooze time.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
On the road again to Dresden
It is always amazing how little time it takes to transport ones self halfway around the world. I just boarded the bus that will take me to SEATAC Then to Frankfurt and then to Dresden. So quick, yet somehow it seems like it takes forever.
Andy
Andy
Saturday, May 09, 2009
Banished to Blain ... Again!
I think I write this post every couple of months. Today we are taking our boat to Blaine again. "Blain?" you ask, " Why would you move your boat there?" Yeah, good question. It turns our that our permanent moorage is in Blaine and our transfer request to Bellingham will take years. Bottom line is that there is a shortage of 40' moorages in Bellingham, and those that they have are amongst the cheapest in the state. Supply and demand. There you go, econ 101. However, I'm not sure that anyone that works at the port had that class.
There could be alternative theory. The port creates an artificial demand to justify the creation of a new marina. "Look voters," they say. "We have a waiting list of ten years. We need a new Marina." I agree. But why can't they manage the resources that they have now? Well I is one of the two theories.
Did I mention that we are going to Blaine?
The trip was actually pretty darn nice. We started around 11am to catch the flood tide. The wind was out of the west and we had a nice sail the whole way. Sunny, fair breezes and awesome scenery. It doesn't get better than that.
There could be alternative theory. The port creates an artificial demand to justify the creation of a new marina. "Look voters," they say. "We have a waiting list of ten years. We need a new Marina." I agree. But why can't they manage the resources that they have now? Well I is one of the two theories.
Did I mention that we are going to Blaine?
The trip was actually pretty darn nice. We started around 11am to catch the flood tide. The wind was out of the west and we had a nice sail the whole way. Sunny, fair breezes and awesome scenery. It doesn't get better than that.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Spring Cleaning
Boats Decay - constantly. The constant motion of the wind, tide and waves causes boats to disintegrate at an alarming rate.
When I first bought my boat, I had high ambitions to install all kinds of cool electronics gizmos on her. After all, we do what we know, and electrical engineers, which I am, like electrical gizmos. I was going to install a cool stereo with cockpit speakers and maybe a flat screen TV plus a cool chartplotter. And what about that wireless NMEA repeater I was going to design? That was five years ago.
Since I purchased her, I have been fighting a never ending battle against entropy. I've replaced the head (yuck) and replaced the head discharge hose (really yuck). I've replaced batteries, chargers, bits of wire, pins, flares, sails, rigging, furlers, zincs, raw water strainers and hot water heaters. I even manage to scratch one item off my wish list and replaced my busted stereo. All in all, I have a list of 127 items that I've futzed with.
In May of 2007 I quit updating the list. It's not that I've quit doing projects, I've just quit keeping track of them. I mean, what's the point when the list is infinite and growing? I was once stripping old varnish off of my bow sprit at the dock, and this couple walks by. She says to her companion, "I would just love to own a boat. I would just lie around and read all day." Sure.
Each year I've been trying to do a non-maintenance project. Last year I installed a furnace (which is awesome - it has really extended the boating season). During this process, I finally installed a circuit breaker for the windlass. Only I didn't hook it up (got busy) until this year when I started my annual spring boat projects. Now these projects have a little more urgency. My insurance company required me to get a boat survey. A boat survey is where you pay a guy to tell you all of the things that you already know are wrong with your boat. Then the insurance company sends you a nice note telling you that you really ought to fix the items on the survey or you won't be covered. You have two months. This may seem like a long time, but how big of a dent can you make in an infinite list in two months? Most of the items in the survey list are not on my list. Items such as #12: No Bell - required for vessels of 12 meters or more. Okay, my boat isn't over 12 meters, so what is the problem? Or how about #13 - No Day Shape. For those that don't know, a sailboat is required to fly a conical day shape, apex downward when under power (72 COLREGS Rule 30) & a vessel at anchor shall exhibit where it can be seen an all-round white light or one ball. I don't know about you, but I have never seen either of these shapes outside of a coast guard rule book. Next time you are at the book store, check out your sailing magazine. See any day shapes. And why is this a condition of insurance?
I digress though.
This year's non-maintenance project was to hook up the hot water heater to the engine. Imagine nice hot showers while at anchor. I did hook up the heater and found yet another problem - a broken motor mount. No one else noticed it, and I suspect it is more important than that inverted cone. After I fix that, I'm going to work on those speakers.
When I first bought my boat, I had high ambitions to install all kinds of cool electronics gizmos on her. After all, we do what we know, and electrical engineers, which I am, like electrical gizmos. I was going to install a cool stereo with cockpit speakers and maybe a flat screen TV plus a cool chartplotter. And what about that wireless NMEA repeater I was going to design? That was five years ago.
Since I purchased her, I have been fighting a never ending battle against entropy. I've replaced the head (yuck) and replaced the head discharge hose (really yuck). I've replaced batteries, chargers, bits of wire, pins, flares, sails, rigging, furlers, zincs, raw water strainers and hot water heaters. I even manage to scratch one item off my wish list and replaced my busted stereo. All in all, I have a list of 127 items that I've futzed with.
In May of 2007 I quit updating the list. It's not that I've quit doing projects, I've just quit keeping track of them. I mean, what's the point when the list is infinite and growing? I was once stripping old varnish off of my bow sprit at the dock, and this couple walks by. She says to her companion, "I would just love to own a boat. I would just lie around and read all day." Sure.
Each year I've been trying to do a non-maintenance project. Last year I installed a furnace (which is awesome - it has really extended the boating season). During this process, I finally installed a circuit breaker for the windlass. Only I didn't hook it up (got busy) until this year when I started my annual spring boat projects. Now these projects have a little more urgency. My insurance company required me to get a boat survey. A boat survey is where you pay a guy to tell you all of the things that you already know are wrong with your boat. Then the insurance company sends you a nice note telling you that you really ought to fix the items on the survey or you won't be covered. You have two months. This may seem like a long time, but how big of a dent can you make in an infinite list in two months? Most of the items in the survey list are not on my list. Items such as #12: No Bell - required for vessels of 12 meters or more. Okay, my boat isn't over 12 meters, so what is the problem? Or how about #13 - No Day Shape. For those that don't know, a sailboat is required to fly a conical day shape, apex downward when under power (72 COLREGS Rule 30) & a vessel at anchor shall exhibit where it can be seen an all-round white light or one ball. I don't know about you, but I have never seen either of these shapes outside of a coast guard rule book. Next time you are at the book store, check out your sailing magazine. See any day shapes. And why is this a condition of insurance?
I digress though.
This year's non-maintenance project was to hook up the hot water heater to the engine. Imagine nice hot showers while at anchor. I did hook up the heater and found yet another problem - a broken motor mount. No one else noticed it, and I suspect it is more important than that inverted cone. After I fix that, I'm going to work on those speakers.
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| From 2009_03_20 - Boat Works |
Monday, March 02, 2009
Back on the Mainland
Sunday
Luckily, Kathy felt quite a bit better Sunday morning. She was able to snooze out by the pool while I was able to snorkel out on the reefs just in front of the resort. Finally I got to see a couple of nice turtles. The would come to the surface every so often for air and then just dive down and crunch in the little critters on the bottom. They just hang out there for quite a while. I guess I was out snorkeling for a bit, because when I came in I was freezing! Now I know what the hot tub is for. I went out a snorkeled once more and saw more turtles. Kathy just hung out and recovered.
That evening we walked down to the Four Season's hotel to check out the scene there. We didn't hang out long and instead headed back and had a lite dinner at Humuhumunukunukuapuaa (named after the state fish) - say that ten times fast. Afterwards, we headed back to the Marriott and hung out and checked out the stars.
Monday
The next morning we had a little morning beach time, packed up and headed back to the airport. The flight back was uneventful, with a little turbulence at the beginning. The only downside is that we arrived at 11 pm in Seattle. Of course, that was only 9 pm Maui time, so it wasn't too bad. I was pretty darn tired when we rolled into the house at 1:30 am.
Luckily, Kathy felt quite a bit better Sunday morning. She was able to snooze out by the pool while I was able to snorkel out on the reefs just in front of the resort. Finally I got to see a couple of nice turtles. The would come to the surface every so often for air and then just dive down and crunch in the little critters on the bottom. They just hang out there for quite a while. I guess I was out snorkeling for a bit, because when I came in I was freezing! Now I know what the hot tub is for. I went out a snorkeled once more and saw more turtles. Kathy just hung out and recovered.
That evening we walked down to the Four Season's hotel to check out the scene there. We didn't hang out long and instead headed back and had a lite dinner at Humuhumunukunukuapuaa (named after the state fish) - say that ten times fast. Afterwards, we headed back to the Marriott and hung out and checked out the stars.
HumuhumunukunukuapuaaMonday
The next morning we had a little morning beach time, packed up and headed back to the airport. The flight back was uneventful, with a little turbulence at the beginning. The only downside is that we arrived at 11 pm in Seattle. Of course, that was only 9 pm Maui time, so it wasn't too bad. I was pretty darn tired when we rolled into the house at 1:30 am.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
The Road "from" Hanna.
Saturday
Everyone always calls it the road to Hana, but if you are already in Hana that seems like the wrong name. Doesn't it?
This morning Kathy woke up early with something resembling food poisoning. We are not sure what she has, since we both ate the same meals yesterday. The bummer is that we had to check out of our hotel by 11 am and she could barely move. I tried to see if we could stay an extra day, but they were booked solid. Our initial plan was to get up early and see the sites along the drive. This plan was not working out since Kathy was in pretty bad shape. The road from Hanna is not the best highway to travel on if your stomach is queasy. I had a plan though. It involved stopping often so that we could see some sites and Kathy could get a break from the twisty road. The first stop was Waianapanapa State Park. It has some really nice hikes to several natural arches and blow holes. One of the hikes takes you to these lava caves with crystal clear pools that you can go for a swim if you like. I met an old local dude there that was playing his flute in the cave. There are definitely some characters on this island.
The next several stops along the twisty road involved stunning views of the ocean and one spectacular waterfall after another. Now this road is famous for being all twisty and bendy, but after our trip out on the "original" road to Hanna, this one seemed a bit tame.
For our last two nights I scored a smoking deal at the Marriott. I didn't take any photos, but you can see what it looks like here. Kathy wanted some pool time; however, I'm not sure that is going to work out for her. We did get her checked in and tucked into bed. Hopefully, she will be able to lay by the pool tomorrow. I think that would beat the crap out of the hotel room. Most days that we have been here, laying out in the hotel would have been a pretty good gig since we have had nice ocean view rooms. It figures that the day we need to hunker down, the room is not ideal. As for me, I'm sitting outside watching the moon drinking a Hoegarden - on tap, non the less. Dave, you would be proud.
Everyone always calls it the road to Hana, but if you are already in Hana that seems like the wrong name. Doesn't it?
This morning Kathy woke up early with something resembling food poisoning. We are not sure what she has, since we both ate the same meals yesterday. The bummer is that we had to check out of our hotel by 11 am and she could barely move. I tried to see if we could stay an extra day, but they were booked solid. Our initial plan was to get up early and see the sites along the drive. This plan was not working out since Kathy was in pretty bad shape. The road from Hanna is not the best highway to travel on if your stomach is queasy. I had a plan though. It involved stopping often so that we could see some sites and Kathy could get a break from the twisty road. The first stop was Waianapanapa State Park. It has some really nice hikes to several natural arches and blow holes. One of the hikes takes you to these lava caves with crystal clear pools that you can go for a swim if you like. I met an old local dude there that was playing his flute in the cave. There are definitely some characters on this island.
The next several stops along the twisty road involved stunning views of the ocean and one spectacular waterfall after another. Now this road is famous for being all twisty and bendy, but after our trip out on the "original" road to Hanna, this one seemed a bit tame.
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| From 2009_02_20 - Maui |
For our last two nights I scored a smoking deal at the Marriott. I didn't take any photos, but you can see what it looks like here. Kathy wanted some pool time; however, I'm not sure that is going to work out for her. We did get her checked in and tucked into bed. Hopefully, she will be able to lay by the pool tomorrow. I think that would beat the crap out of the hotel room. Most days that we have been here, laying out in the hotel would have been a pretty good gig since we have had nice ocean view rooms. It figures that the day we need to hunker down, the room is not ideal. As for me, I'm sitting outside watching the moon drinking a Hoegarden - on tap, non the less. Dave, you would be proud.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Sushi?
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Kathy Pace Brown
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Top of the World
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Kathy Pace Brown
The Long and Winding Road
Thursday
Hmm, it really is Thursday as I write this. I've almost caught up. Usually I have been doing this a day or two later whenever I get time. When we were in Eastern Europe last fall, I was actually able to write while we were on the train. Now, there really isn't a train and I notice that I just don't seem to have as much time. Tonight is different as you will soon see.
We stayed at the Paia Inn for two whole nights, so you can imagine that it was time to get the heck out of dodge and check out some place new. First stop is the top of Maui, to the top of Haleakala, whether it is erupting or not. I have to say, it is impressive up there and quite chilly compared to the beaches below. What can I say about it? It is tall. It has old lava flows. It has a bunch of white telescopes on the summit. Why are they white? Do they really get that hot up there? I think a nice beige might be nicer. My recommendations. Get a cabin up there and stay over night. You and 12 of your friends can stay in the cabin for $75. The cabins have heat, pots, pans, & a roof. What else do you need? Or if you don't want to stay overnight, hike from the top of the crater to the lower looks out. It is about a 12 mile hike. Very cool.
The drive has several million switchbacks, and because I really like switch backs, we picked today to drive to Hana - on the east side of Maui. And because we are extra crazy, we decided to take the small beater road on the south side - the Pi'ilani highway. It is more like goat track than a highway.
The Good Section of the Pi'liani Highway
Looks Like Wyoming - Except for the Ocean Part
It takes a good two hours to drive to Hana along this road. It is slow going with many one lane bridges and narrow ledges. Parts of the road are so close to the water, you get spray from the waves.
Hana is a sleepy little town on the east side of Maui. It makes a nice contrast to all of the mega resorts on the rest of the island. We ended up picking up a one bedroom condo for two nights. We picked up another place on the water with an ocean view. It is really nice to be able to listen to the ocean roaring all night.
There are not many places to eat (or buy food, or do anything for that manner) in Hana. One of the few things to do is visit the Hotel Hana. They usually have some locals playing at the bar. often you can see the locals come out for Hula. Okay, we didn't get to see any locals dancing, bit we heard some good music.
Note - I really didn't come close to finish this post on Thursday. I finally got it done on Sunday, for reason's that will become clear.
Hmm, it really is Thursday as I write this. I've almost caught up. Usually I have been doing this a day or two later whenever I get time. When we were in Eastern Europe last fall, I was actually able to write while we were on the train. Now, there really isn't a train and I notice that I just don't seem to have as much time. Tonight is different as you will soon see.
We stayed at the Paia Inn for two whole nights, so you can imagine that it was time to get the heck out of dodge and check out some place new. First stop is the top of Maui, to the top of Haleakala, whether it is erupting or not. I have to say, it is impressive up there and quite chilly compared to the beaches below. What can I say about it? It is tall. It has old lava flows. It has a bunch of white telescopes on the summit. Why are they white? Do they really get that hot up there? I think a nice beige might be nicer. My recommendations. Get a cabin up there and stay over night. You and 12 of your friends can stay in the cabin for $75. The cabins have heat, pots, pans, & a roof. What else do you need? Or if you don't want to stay overnight, hike from the top of the crater to the lower looks out. It is about a 12 mile hike. Very cool.
The drive has several million switchbacks, and because I really like switch backs, we picked today to drive to Hana - on the east side of Maui. And because we are extra crazy, we decided to take the small beater road on the south side - the Pi'ilani highway. It is more like goat track than a highway.
The Good Section of the Pi'liani Highway
Looks Like Wyoming - Except for the Ocean Part
Hana is a sleepy little town on the east side of Maui. It makes a nice contrast to all of the mega resorts on the rest of the island. We ended up picking up a one bedroom condo for two nights. We picked up another place on the water with an ocean view. It is really nice to be able to listen to the ocean roaring all night.
There are not many places to eat (or buy food, or do anything for that manner) in Hana. One of the few things to do is visit the Hotel Hana. They usually have some locals playing at the bar. often you can see the locals come out for Hula. Okay, we didn't get to see any locals dancing, bit we heard some good music.
Note - I really didn't come close to finish this post on Thursday. I finally got it done on Sunday, for reason's that will become clear.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Slackness Prevails
Tuesday
Okay, I admit it, I am getting slacker with these updates. But I have good reasons. First, I can't type worth a crap since I busted my finger surfing those knarly rips on the north shore :-) Second, I've just been too busy & third, it may have something to do with all of the Mai Tais I've been sampling.
Hmm, where to start. After my personal pity party about my finger (you have know idea how many times I just retyped this last sentence ... stupid finger), we checked out of our hotel and headed up to Paia. Paia is a funky hippy surfing town on the north shore. It is home to a mixture of counter culture drop outs and Gen X (or maybe Y or Z) hard core surfers and windsurfers. The weather is not as mellow as southern Maui, but that is the way they like it. We stayed at a funky little place called the Paia Inn, which came complete with a Granite counter kitchen and a iPod clock radio. The owner is an interior designer and everything was well thought out, including the private path to the beach adorned with your very own tiki palls. But we didn't stay there long and head out to the wind surfer beach to watch some of these guys practice. It was blowing 20+ knots and these guys were doing their stuff. We got to see a couple of flips and other crazy things.
It looked like a hell of a lot of fun.
The main reason to head to Paia is that it was close to the Maui Arts Center. This is where Jimmy Buffet was playing tonight and we were not interested in driving to far. Our friend Teressa drove down from Lahaina to meet us for the concert and after heading to the local Mexican place for an early dinner and some Margaritas (after all it is Jimmy Buffet), we headed to the concert. The weather was threatening to rain on us a bit, but with a couple of offerings to the tiki gods, we were able to abate the rains. Teressa was able to get us seats pretty close to the front.
Thye had a special place set aside where you could get a drink or two, but they kept on running out of Margaritas. The bartender gal said that they didn't expect to sell so many Margs. Hello. Thjis is a Jimmy Buffet concert. Anyway, they ended up running out of mixer, but had plenty of tequila, so they ended up serving tequila a lime. Overall, I think that was probably one of the best concerts I have been too. He ended up playing most of the songs that I like best (except for Jolly Mon) and he definitely wasn't mailing it in.
After the concert was over, Teressa ended up staying at our pad to avoid the drive back to Lahania. The next morning we all slept in and hunkered down a bit to avoid the rain. Ahh, the rain. It does rain here in Hawaii, especially on the North shore, and we ended up getting a pretty good storm with wind gusts up to 45 kts. The windsurfers loved it, and were out in full force. Kathy and I ended up donning our rain gear and went hiking up in the mountains. Reminded me a bit of Bellingham in the summer, except it was a bit warmer. That afternoon, we went down to the kite surfing beach to watch some of the guys (and gals) do trick. I had big plans to take kite surfing lessons, but was thwarted because of my stupid lame-ass finger. These guys are pretty amazing.
That night I followed my brothers suggestion and went to Mama's Fish House for dinner. Way over priced, but worth it. The food, ambiance and location are as good as it gets. Definitely worth a trip if you are in Maui.
Okay, I admit it, I am getting slacker with these updates. But I have good reasons. First, I can't type worth a crap since I busted my finger surfing those knarly rips on the north shore :-) Second, I've just been too busy & third, it may have something to do with all of the Mai Tais I've been sampling.
Hmm, where to start. After my personal pity party about my finger (you have know idea how many times I just retyped this last sentence ... stupid finger), we checked out of our hotel and headed up to Paia. Paia is a funky hippy surfing town on the north shore. It is home to a mixture of counter culture drop outs and Gen X (or maybe Y or Z) hard core surfers and windsurfers. The weather is not as mellow as southern Maui, but that is the way they like it. We stayed at a funky little place called the Paia Inn, which came complete with a Granite counter kitchen and a iPod clock radio. The owner is an interior designer and everything was well thought out, including the private path to the beach adorned with your very own tiki palls. But we didn't stay there long and head out to the wind surfer beach to watch some of these guys practice. It was blowing 20+ knots and these guys were doing their stuff. We got to see a couple of flips and other crazy things.
It looked like a hell of a lot of fun.
The main reason to head to Paia is that it was close to the Maui Arts Center. This is where Jimmy Buffet was playing tonight and we were not interested in driving to far. Our friend Teressa drove down from Lahaina to meet us for the concert and after heading to the local Mexican place for an early dinner and some Margaritas (after all it is Jimmy Buffet), we headed to the concert. The weather was threatening to rain on us a bit, but with a couple of offerings to the tiki gods, we were able to abate the rains. Teressa was able to get us seats pretty close to the front.
Thye had a special place set aside where you could get a drink or two, but they kept on running out of Margaritas. The bartender gal said that they didn't expect to sell so many Margs. Hello. Thjis is a Jimmy Buffet concert. Anyway, they ended up running out of mixer, but had plenty of tequila, so they ended up serving tequila a lime. Overall, I think that was probably one of the best concerts I have been too. He ended up playing most of the songs that I like best (except for Jolly Mon) and he definitely wasn't mailing it in.
After the concert was over, Teressa ended up staying at our pad to avoid the drive back to Lahania. The next morning we all slept in and hunkered down a bit to avoid the rain. Ahh, the rain. It does rain here in Hawaii, especially on the North shore, and we ended up getting a pretty good storm with wind gusts up to 45 kts. The windsurfers loved it, and were out in full force. Kathy and I ended up donning our rain gear and went hiking up in the mountains. Reminded me a bit of Bellingham in the summer, except it was a bit warmer. That afternoon, we went down to the kite surfing beach to watch some of the guys (and gals) do trick. I had big plans to take kite surfing lessons, but was thwarted because of my stupid lame-ass finger. These guys are pretty amazing.
That night I followed my brothers suggestion and went to Mama's Fish House for dinner. Way over priced, but worth it. The food, ambiance and location are as good as it gets. Definitely worth a trip if you are in Maui.
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