Getting Outdoors

This Independence Day weekend was filled with adventure, business, family, and enjoying outdoor time...

In addition to some fishing time on Friday, hanging with cousins, household chores, we spent some family time in the outdoors the balance of the weekend.

On Saturday, I woke and picked up Tim Theule for a quick ride at Lopez. It was a great time together and perfect weather for a pedal in the mountains. Quickly following, the family drove to SLO to enjoy a hike to Bishops peak for a kid and parent trek to the top. It was a beautiful walk and the kids did fantastic. We bolted home to prepare a taco meal for some out of town cousins who were in town for a weekend of camping at Lopez and participating in the bike race. More on that later.

The family on the trek downward...

On Sunday, I woke early to watch Josh Roy (my first cousin Jennifer's son) race the crit downtown. I returned mid morning to pack and get in the truck for a mountain drive over High Mountain Road. The trip was a real treat and the kids were filled with experiences in the outdoors including sighting wildlife, mountain landscapes, and the High Mountain Look Out Station. As a kid I was fascinated with visiting distant mountain top Look Out stations and always understood the reasons for these facilities. It clearly appears that the fire look out operations have now been replaced with closures or other uses. In this case, the High Mountain location has replaced fire watch with scientific Condor watching and reserve staff. It was different, but also and exciting experience for the kids. I recall certain life safety devices such as chairs with glass insulators for lightning protection. Well, they are still equipped. We had a great visit and some Cal Poly students gave us the tour of the surroundings at High Mountain.

Family shot of all of us at High Mountain Look Out Station. We are standing in front of a life sized painting of an adult Condor. They have massive wing spans!

The look out is equipped with needs for on site residence which included important chairs fitted with glass insulated feet in case of a lightning strike. There is risk with being at the top of the mountain... I recall these same chairs over 30 years ago in the high Sierra Nevada!

My beautiful wife with a beautiful backdrop. High Mountain sits approximately 3190 feet above seal level directly north of Lopez Lake. Note lake in the background adjacent to Jenn's face. The pass in the mountain silhouette is the dam opening at Lopez. Very cool panoramic from this location and very worth the visit...

Showed the kids teamwork in hiking/trekking, compass declination and triangulation, recoginzing different geology/geography and much more than video games and sitting behind the boob tube will ever do!

Very thankful for these special times with the family.