Christmas Cards

My mother and I made our own Christmas cards this year. I printed one of my 50,000 fonts I downloaded; Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.




This is frame for the cards, then we block printed a Christmas Tree on the front of the cards.




I later took glitter fairy dust on the face of the card and enclosed a photo of me on Mt. St. Helens with a caption: Francisco decided to follow in his Great Aunt Olive's footsteps and joined the Mazamas. They're a wonderful organization with lots to teach him. He hopes to climb Mt. Hood in 2011 or the next year. This photo is his first summit to Mt. St. Helens on September 5, 2010. This was fun and economical.

Tree Planting with the Mazamas at Salmon River Trail 11/13/2010

Last weekend I planted trees with the Mazamas up at Salmon River Trail. There is a Conservation group inside of the Mazams and this was one of there events.

I leaned quite a bit about the salmon and what we can do to help the bring the salmon numbers back to where they can be fished.

A fish biologist and the Sandy River Basin Watershed Council led the tree planting. We met up at Zig Zag Ranger Station and then took a drive up to the Salmon River Road. This was a road that the Forest Service decommissioned. The Forest Service is realizing that some of the logging roads are too many to maintain and there use has been limited so they decided to take out the roads and decommission them.






This is one of those roads, and the Forest Service is making a trail out of it. We planted Douglas Fir , and took out some Sword Ferns from the side of the road the replaced them around the trail.

Harvest Century 10/09/2010

I did the Harvest Century in Hillsboro on Saturday. I volunteered with the set-up and registration and then got to ride for free. I did the 45 mile ride, which was perfect because it rained the whole ride.





Self portrait while riding in the rain.





The ride was mostly flat, but wet. I'm gonna get some waterproof socks.

Canby Ferry - 10/4/2010

I did a fifty mile bike ride yesterday! It is maybe a longest bike ride I've done and it was had some up hills to do too. I start off from my house and went south on 17th and went to Milwaukie.





I took River Road up to Oregon City. That was a little up hill at the very beginning.





From Oregon City I took 5th ave. to Linn, and then jumped on Central Point Rd. This was even more up hill.





Central Point Rd. took me into Canby. It was a beautiful road with farms, and orchards. I saw horses, cows, sheep, chickens. There were no bike lanes past Oregon City, but there wasn't much traffic.





I took Central Point Rd. to New Era road to 12th Ave. and into Canby.





I then took the Canby Ferry over the Willamette River towards West Linn.





I took Mountain Rd. straight up hill and went I got to the top of Mountain Rd. there was a cute miniature town, it was called Tizzy Town.





Then was real up hill battle up Pete's Mountain Rd. the road is little bit under 1000 feet, but I don't have a lot a up hill experience so I was happy to get to the top.





Then at was down hill and I went threw West Linn on Willamette Falls Dr. and over the Oregon City Bridge.





Then I through Oregon City and back on River Road to Milwaukie and then on 17th ave. to home. Jon Storm park was named for a volunteer who died volunteering during Arbor Day. Am happy I did this trip, it is a first real trip I have taken by bike and it get's me ready for the Harvest Century which is coming up on this weekend.

South Sister Summit

I went on my second Mazamas hike to the summit on South Sister on Sunday 09/26.



Broken Top



Mt. Bachelor



Me at the summit, it was extremely windy. North and middle sisters are in the background.



My mazams group led by Bruce who is up front.

Marine Drive Part 2 - 09/21/2010

I've start a second blog called The Wheel which chronicles my biking experiences but I posted this one here as well.



I did the Marine Drive route again with my camera and I went farther. I went Clinton to Woodward and on past 82nd. To Division and then the I-205 and over towards Sandy then to Marine Drive.



Marine Drive to me past the airport,



past the Expo Center



then all the way to Kelly Point Park.



Then back on Marine Drive and the Smith and Bybee Lakes Wildlife Area I saw a wasp nest there



Then to the Pennisula Crossing to Interstate then took Spingwater Corridor at the Broadway Bride then up Division towards home.

Mt. St. Helens Summit

Labor Day weekends I summitted Mt. St. Helens. I am hoping to join the Mazamas, they are a climbing group out of Portland, Oregon. They have been around for over a hundred years. My great, great, aunt Olive was a Mazama. One of their membership requirements is to summit a glaciated peak. Mt. St. Helens is probably one of the easiest peaks to climb for a beginner.

I hope to join them next year and take BCEP, Basic Climbing Education Program to prepare students physically and mentally to be safe team members on Mazamas “A” and “B” level climbs, and to provide a foundation for continuing mountaineering education and experience.