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 inclines.  The views are some of the best.  Only drawback is having I15 so close.  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 Winter Camp

This past weekend, T774 took another trip up to the Laguna Mountains.  We go there a lot since it is 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.

Year End Books

Got a few more books in over the holiday season.

• Blood Lure (Anna Pigeon Mysteries Book 9) by Nevada Barr - great wilderness tension until the end, lame ending
• Hunting Season (Anna Pigeon Mysteries Book 10) by Nevada Barr - I enjoyed the characters in this Barr mystery
• Flashback (Anna Pigeon Mysteries Book 11) by Nevada Barr - my favorite Barr book is this two-for-one mystery
• American Front (The Great War, Book 1) by Harry Turtledove - 2nd in the series, much better than the first
• The Richest Man in Babylon: With Study Guide by George S. Clason - financial wisdom as told by a group of Babylonians, classic

Post New Years Weekend

• Hikes, including Twin Peaks in Poway which is a great alternative to Cowles
• Putting away the Christmas decorations
• FCL Kickoff party and weekend

Christmas in Baltimore

• Tombola with the neighbors - Bengt won the big prize
• House projects with Kevin
• Bowling with Uncle Steve and Aunt Mary at Mustang Alley's
• Walking the crazy dogs
• Many games: Apples to Apples, What the Face, Cards Against Humanity, Say Anything, Spy Alley, Elephants or Ants, Telestrations, Pit, Stoner Fluxx, Hit or Miss, Charades, Loaded Questions and last but least, Yahtzee!
• Murder mystery dinner
• New Year's Eve party

Weekend Hike

The family went on a nice Sunday hike at Hellhole Canyon County Preserve east of Valley Center.  The weather was perfect.  I can see how this hike would be miserable in the heat since there is very little cover.  We did one of the lower loops but I want to come back and do the high loop.

SkyNet is Coming

It is good be a robot.

Big Waves and Double Rainbows

A glorious post-rainstorm weekend.  Bengt also had another robotics day.

Double rainbow in Encinitas

Waves at Swamis

Robot Weekend

• Bengt went to FFL scrimmage at Rock Academy to meet up with his team to start on their robot prototype.  We walked around Liberty Station while the kids did their work and visited the NTC Commander's museum.
• Family hike at Pipe (haven't been there in a long time)
• Checked out the Swami's tidepools (haven't been there in a long time as well)

T774 Colorado River Trek - Hoover Dam to Willow Beach

Two years after our last river trip, the troop headed out to the desert for another trip down the Colorado.  This time, the plan was to put in at Hoover Dam and float to Willow Beach camping at Arizona Hot Springs.  The total float miles was only 12 so a bit shorter than last time.  However, there is lots more to do along the river this time.
We drove up Saturday to Willow Springs to rendezvous and camp for the night.  The campground was very nice with good sites, showers and all the amenities.  The scouts immediately headed to the hills to run around after the long 6 hour drive.
We woke up at 5a in order to meet Jerkwater near the dam at 7a.  Everyone ate quickly, packed up and we all drove to the parking lot at the Hacienda hotel along the 93.  We needed to be there on time since the dam launches are very restricted for security reasons.  The launch site was right below the dam, just down river from some of the output tunnels.  Due to the low water of the river, the launch was very rocky and it was hard to get the canoes and gear all positioned.  But we all got on the water without any issues!  We started paddling and quickly came to the first stop, Sauna Cave.  The "cave" was a small grotto that had some heated spring water coming out of it and it made some steam to look like a sauna.  I wasn't aware of the geothermal activity in the area but we would see more of it as we traveled.  The next big stop was Boy Scout Canyon.  It had a nice sandbar to land at and we explored the heated stream that formed the canyon.  Someone had placed sandbags to form pools that were pretty neat.  We also saw the first of the amoeba warning signs!  We got to our campsite at Arizona Hot Springs pretty easily since it was only 4 miles from the dam.  We pulled up our canoes onto the beach and setup camp.  There was another troop already there but we found plenty of space.  Later in the day, an outdoor group from UCSB came upstream and setup camp as well.  We did some more exploring up the canyon and found a ladder to help us up to one set of pools.  The water got hotter the higher up the canyon you went.  The last pool was so hot I had to run through it!  Everyone ate dinner and hit the sack.
I woke up at dawn after one of my best nights sleeping ever!  I think it was the sandy ground.  As we packed our tents, one of the adults found a scorpion underneath theirs!  We got on the water around 9:30a and started for our 8 mile day.  Paddling started out fine but the wind picked up pretty quick and we made slow time for a few miles.  We stopped for lunch at a big sandbar and wondered if we would make it to the takeout point in time for our 2p deadline.  Bengt switched with another younger scout you was having some difficulty.  Thankfully, the wind died down and we made good time past the gauging station, Emerald cave and the old fish hatchery.  We got to Willow Beach right at two to clean and load the canoes on the trailers.  It was a pretty quick ride back to the hotel parking lot.  From there, we quickly gathering our gear and everyone scattered for the long drive home.

Cold War Quotes

This makes the Cold War seem almost nostalgic.

Sierra Club ABDSP Backpack

After trying to get a PCT hike together, I ended up on a Sierra Club overnight to Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.  This event was in the far eastern part of the park that I have been to, Fish Creek.
I woke up early on Saturday and headed out to Ramona for the first checkpoint.  We then headed along 78 past Julian, down the Banner Grade, past Scissors Crossing to Ocotillo Wells where we gathered again.  We then head down Split Mt. Road to the Fish Creek wash turnoff.  After a very short drive into the wash, we parked off the road.  There was a quick briefing while we got our stuff together.  The camp was only about a mile from the cars.  We got to camp and setup.  We then headed on a dayhike around the ridge that we were camped up against.
We headed around the hill and at the north end, we headed up to the peak.  There was a benchmark named "Cerro" at the top.  We then headed along the ridge to the old strontium mine at the southern end.  On the way back to camp, we stopped by the cars to pick up some cleaning supplies.  We then proceeded to dismantle and clean up several fire rings.  We packed out a lot of cans, bottles, charcoal and other trash.  We later found out that particular piece of land isn't owned by the park yet!  Hopefully they will obtain it soon. After the hike, there was a great gathering for dinner and a "campfire" using a homemade candle.  The night was very nice, not too hot or cold nor too breezy.
We woke up, broke camp and made coffee.  The plan was to do another dayhike, but I had to head back home.  When we got to the cars, we ran into a bighorn sheep study.  They were catching the ewes using a helicopter, then bringing them down for tests.  It is not everyday you see a bighorn sheep hanging beneath a helicopter!
The ride back was wonderful.  There was little traffic and the weather was cool until I got past Ramona.

Cerro benchmark.

Cowboy camping next to a sheltering bush.

It is hard to see the sheep handing under the chopper.

Sheep inspection station.

Books and More

• Liberty Falling (Anna Pigeon Mysteries Book 7) by Nevada Barr - somewhat prophetic plot given what happened two years after this was published in another Neveda Barr mystery
• Deep South (Anna Pigeon Mysteries Book 8) by Nevada Barr - the most contemporary of the Barr books thus far with its TV-like plotline
• Choose Yourself! by James Altucher - I really like Altucher and this is his best work I have read so far
• History of the English Language by Seth Lerer - only listened to the first volume; interesting but not riveting
• The Art of War by Andrew Wilson- interesting look at the classic Chinese text
• Great Debate: Advocates and Opponents of the American Constitution by Thomas Pangle - some good topics about the debates surrounding the US Constitution but it was often hard to discern quotes and commentary
• Day Hikes and Overnights on the PCT - fabulous book with awesome maps
• How Few Remain (Southern Victory) by Harry Turtledove - interesting alternative history book; a bit tedious at times but good enough to continue on with the series
• The Royal Wulff Murders: A Novel (Sean Stranahan Mysteries Book 1) by Keith McCafferty - great mystery by a Field & Stream author

Early Birthday Weekend

• On Saturday, my parents came down with some early birthday pie!  We played Fluxx, then went to a family photo shoot at Terramar Beach.  I can't wait to see the results. Then we had lunch at Pizza Port Carlsbad.  It was a very fun day.
• On Sunday Jyoti and I went to Balboa Park.  It was very crowded due to a Halloween event but we parked on the west side and had a nice walk over Cabrillo Bridge.  There was a UCLA alumni event where we met great people.  We also visited the Timkin Museum.  I loved the 60's vintage architecture along with the art.  I wanted to go to the San Diego History Center for the Pacific Powerhouse exhibit.  It was pretty interesting but had some odd errors in some of the photos and captions.  Lastly, we went to the Museum of Art's Gauguin to Warhol exhibit which was fantastic.
  
  
  
  

Family Weekend

• Biking in Mission Bay - Bengt ran over some thorns and got several leaks in each tire
• Long walk on beach
• Two St. A's dinner parties