Count-down to Katahdin!!!

I've wanted to hike this peak for almost 8 years now. It's about 5.5 hours to get there from Boston. We tried last year and the fog/ weather conditions were a bit much... especially above treeline... but we're going back!!! Here's a quick preview of the trail, which we hope will be a bit dryer this time.

Charcoal Toothpaste...

So there's a charcoal toothpaste product in asia! I stumbled upon this site and laughed so hard at the comments. I don't consider myself a "hard core camper" but I have brushed my teeth with charcoal from a cooled fire... multiple times. I still bring a toothbrush and paste, but I love the stunned reaction people give you when they see you actually do this. Rarely has anyone joined in, but that's ok. You'd be surprised at how well it works and how clean your teeth feel, and you can feel a bit more connected with the aborigines...

...Camping anyone?


http://www.weirdasianews.com/2007/11/03/black-charcoal-toothpaste/


**By the way, I could attach pictures to illustrate, but they are a bit freaky so I'll work on some this summer and maybe do a follow up tribute to my carefully selected website address... invented by Mark Bangerter who witnessed the charcoal tooth-brushing 1st hand on a camping trip in Acadia a few years ago.

Tour of the Gila

Today I attended my first bike race ever... stage 4 of The Tour of the Gila in Silver City, NM... amazing! Racers rode 40 laps (just over 40 miles) around downtown Silver. Among the racers were greats such as Lance Armstrong, Levi Leipheimer and Floyd Landis.

The racers come so fast that it's a challenge to pick out individual riders. Fortunately for us they have 40 laps. It's really a great spectator event and made for a very inspiring day.

Tomorrow they ride 105.7 miles through the Gila Mountains gaining 9,360 feet. Our spectators guide refers to the race as 'the climber's race' or 'the toughest one-day race in America'. Since I don't follow the sport of cycling, and can be a bit out of touch with these things, I'd never heard of this race, but I'm happy my friends invited me along. Such a fabulous day. Thanks Jerra and Chris!

See next 2 posts for pics of White Sands...

White Sands (continued)... I just can't get over this place

The Ultimate Sand box Playground/ Natl Park!!!

I went to White Sands National Park yesterday with a friend. Unbelievably amazing destination! Crazy fun! Gorgeous! I'm a huge fan. These pics don't do it justice (of course). If you come to visit, we're definitely going here... only 1 hour away. Looks like snow, but so much warmer. We can hike, sled, jump off the dunes, somersault, run down, picnic, etc. There's some back country hiking, but I need to dust off my orienteering skills before I wander off to camp among some shifting dunes.

Not my house

These are all located on the Dripping Springs hike. There was a hotel up there back in the day, so people could escape the city. The 1st picture is the hotel, the forth picture is the stables. The 3rd is a sanatorium from not-sure-which-year for individuals with TB. They're trying to restore some of the buildings, but the structure in pic 2 may be a bit beyond salvage. Still, it looks cool. Well, I'm off the blog for now. I just posted a ton of posts, so hopefully you can get a peek into my life here. Sometime I'll post pictures of my apartment... but not today. Have a fabulous week!

Dripping Springs

These pics were taken on a hike up to Dripping Springs... which is the 2nd picture. You probably can't really see the springs, because it pretty much is just dripping. Some of the pictures I took because there was snow. Down in the valley, there's almost never snow, although apparently this is the wettest winter people around here can remember in a long time. We've had snow about twice I think. But we've had some rain too - not a lot, but we've had some. In the last picture you can see a city below in the valley. I'm not sure if my neighborhood is visible, but that's Las Cruces. That's where I hang my hat... just below the Organ mountains (not visible).

The move

If you look at the dates you'll see that the red rock pictures were taken earlier (on my move down to Las Cruces). They were right off the freeway. A scenic drive. The 1st picture is an ongoing fascination with my new environment. Imagine the panoramic view... but I think you can get the point.

Somewhere near Hatch, NM around Christmas time

These are taken from an old church in the area. I wish I had a cool story to tell you about it, but I don't know the history. Still, it's cool looking. My friend felt I should have a pic of me on Facebook (maybe I don't have any), so she took this one... a little posed. It's won't make Fb, but I guess it's ok for the blog. This was around Christmas time. Notice the light jacket. I won't be shoveling snow this year (yeah!)

Mesilla

Billy the Kid was sentenced to hang in the square of Mesilla back in the day. He got away... and was later killed. The 1st pic is a great little book store off the main square. I like it... then some pecan groves nearby. It's also a trail along an irrigation ditch. Apparently once you find the canals, you can run them from one end of the city to the other and some of them stretch to El Paso. I haven't spent much time on them. They're flat, but there's plenty of places to get good hills around here. The Antiques shop is just picturesque Southwest. I haven't been inside, I just like the cacti.

Wide open spaces

It's quite unexpected that I'm here in NM and I still do not know how long I'll stay. But, since I am here, it's a great opportunity to explore a place that I likely would not otherwise consider.

These pictures were taken on my drive from Roswell to Edgewood. I grew up in Colorado, but after so much time in Boston and elsewhere, I still get fascinated by so much open space... no houses, no trees, just cholla (?) cactus and a lot of sky. It's pretty. Different, but pretty.

Roswell

New Car

Bought in December. It was in this car that I re-learned how to drive when you are not in Boston. For those of you still in Boston, you need to know that when you leave traffic laws are much more than suggestions and they really do expect that you follow the speed limit... a very slow one I might add. I'm still irritated about my 2 ridiculous speeding tickets within 4 days of each other. It's a relief to now have NM plates. Now I can drive like I'm retired, taking my time and hopefully avoid taking some driving course in order to keep my license, should I get ticket #3 in this year (which happens to still have 10+ months).

I wanted a break yesterday, so I went up Smithfield canyon with a friend. The runner is not me, but I wish it was. I consider this place a hidden gem.

Snow in September

Snow on the mountains in September. It won't stick, and the cold won't stay but it's an obnoxious reminder that winter's right around the corner. Green canyon is 4 miles from Brett's house so Danielle, Tyler and I went hiking on Monday. I may have gained 3 pounds on that hike with all the rocks and sticks that Tyler let me carry for him. He has a lot of energy, but believe it or not, he does get tired.