Drug Test Falsification

I guess isn't just pure science that goes into these drugs.

Weekend Activities

• Caught an advanced screening of Haiti 10 with a live performance from Victor Wooten.  We went to see the film and didn't realize how prominent a musician Victor Wooten is.  Good movie showing the hope that exists in Haiti today.
• Walks around town with Sophie.  Chased lots of squirrels at San Elijo campground.
• Jaya had softball tryouts
• Bengt had a robotics party

PCT Kickoff!

I have started my section hike of the Pacific Crest Trail!
My goal is to eventually hike the entire 2650 miles in order.  I don't have a ending date in mind but the sooner the better.  My basic plan is to do the southern California sections (A-F) in long weekends (3-4 days).  As I get farther north, the trips will get longer and longer.
My wife was cool enough to drive me out there on Saturday morning.  We dropped my car off at Desert View Picnic Area in the Lagunas and we both drove to the border.  Getting there was easier than I thought as it very close to Campo.  There was another hiker already there being dropped off and he started hiking while we checked out the monument.  After some pix I soon took off.  It was fast going in the nice weather and level terrain.  In about a couple miles, I caught up to the hiker that left before me.  His name was Tim and he is doing two weeks on trail which should get him up past Big Bear.  Hopefully he doesn't get hit by any weather.  I continued trucking along weaving my way among private lands, roads and open country. At about the halfway mark (10 miles) I took my lunch break and talked with hikers Josh and Jason.  Soon after lunch, I got to Hauser Canyon.  The first part is a steep path heading down and then an equally steep trail heading back out. The canyon was hot and pretty ugly so this was my least favorite section of trail so far.  After Hauser Canyon, it was a few miles of rolling terrain until dropping down in Lake Moreno.  I checked into the hiker site then walked to the store for some coffee and chocolate. I had a light dinner then chatted with Tim before going to bed early.  Thankfully generators are not allowed at Lake Moreno, but I tried my earplugs and they worked great.  I did miss the sounds of the wilderness though.
The next morning I woke up around 6 and was on the trail at 6:30.  It was pretty chilly but only my hands were cold as I started out.  The trail to Boulder Oaks was pretty nice and might be a good one for the scouts.  The next 10 miles were hot and not very interesting, especially since I had hiked much of it before.  It got noticeably nicer once I hit the pines of the Lagunas.  I arrived at the parking lot around 3pm.  I did a total of 42.6 trail miles this segment.
One of my goals for these first trips is to get a handle on my blister situation.  I am working on various shoe/sock/tape/break combinations to see what gives the best results.  For this trip, I am using my waterproof hiking shoes (Merrell Moab WP low cut) with nylon liners and my wicking thin socks.  I also was going to try boots-off breaks during the day to air dry my feet.  That system worked pretty well.  I did get blisters on the balls of my feet between my big and second toes on each foot.  But they weren't too bad and didn't slow me down.  I think in the future, I will try more boots-off breaks.  Also, my next set of hiking shoes will not be waterproof so they are more breathable.
Next up is the rest of section A, Lagunas to Warner Springs (~67 miles).

Perfect Encinitas Weekend

The weather was perfect his weekend in Encinitas!  I finally had a regular 9/80 Friday off and took advantage of the cool overcast to hit Bernardo Summit.  This is now one of my favorite trails.  The hike is strenuous but not overly so; some parts are really steep but others are nice easy incline.  The views are some of the best.  Only drawback is I15.  Also, the new SDRP website is much improved.

Jyoti and I took a great walk on the beach at Cardiff.  We stopped for lunch at Bull Taco and saw some migrating whales from the bluff-top views.

Bernardo Summit looking South

Bernardo Summit looking Southeast

Bernardo Summit looking East

Bernardo Summit looking North

Encinitas Winter

The View from Bull Taco Cardiff

Job News

After 13+ years with the same manager, my team is breaking up and heading in different directions.  Most of them are heading to another campus in a totally different part of the company.  I am staying at the same campus but in a different division.  It is a bit sad that I won't be working with Curtis after so long.  We had a good run on lots of different programs.  But with the latest rounds of company reorganizations and industry changes, we couldn't keep the band together.
For Jyoti, she started back at Qualcomm for semi-full time project.  One benefit is that we get to carpool twice a week.  It is a good time to be together and talk.  Hopefully they will see the benefit of Lean Six Sigma and expand the program, especially given their recent quality issues.

T774 Winer Camp

This past weekend, T774 took another trip up to the Laguna Mountains.  We go there a lot since it close and provides great forest terrain.  We also hope for snow but in San Diego, it is a total gamble if you are going get any and this weekend turned out to be summer-like.
After driving up Saturday morning, the scouts got camp setup.  There was some confusion about tenting and patrols.  Hopefully they learned to stick to the plan to avoid that in the future.  We laid out an orienteering course and did some other advancement.  The days are short, so it was a quick day.
The night ended up getting to 30.  This was good since we wanted to get the scouts exposed to some colder temperatures.  Nobody complained!
The next morning, we broke camp and did a quick hike out to Big Laguna.
Another good, low-key camp.

Weekend Activites

• Finally cleared out some junk with a trip to the dump
• Hiked Del Dios Preserve - since it is really a road not a trail, it not a great track, although some of the views are spectacular
• Visited Balboa Park on a sprinkly day - viewed the Tehachapi layout at the San Diego Model Railroad Museum; first time visit to the Japanese Friendship Garden; caught the organ concert for the first time as well; went to the American Visions exhibit at the Museum of Art.