treelights: SATURDAY MORNING SNOWFALL

best books

Michael Pollan: The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals
A delicious read, for anyone who has ever considered health, environmentalism, or ethics in making a conscious choice about the food he or she eats.
Jon R. Luoma: Hidden Forest : Biography of an Ecosystem
Back in Oregon, tramping through the rainy forests of the coast, I remember reading this fascinating book about the life of the forest. Its secrets and stories unfold very much like the events in the life of a very great old person: a hero, a saint, a tireless worker, a quietly devoted family member, an uncommonly marvelous individual. This is the Pacific Northwest rainforest. One of my favorite parts was the story of how life re-established itself on the barren slopes of Mount Saint Helens within weeks of the eruption in 1980 that killed everything in its path. I love the categories of description and analysis in this volume, and also the big concepts about what an old growth forest is and does, which Jon Luoma so skillfully weaves together. (*****)
Edward R. Tufte: Envisioning Information
The discovery of this book occurred on a summer evening at the home of a fellow graduate student in architecture at the University of Oregon in Eugene. Like many of our peers he was intellectually gifted, creative, idealistic, passionate about architecture and design, and ... eccentric. I knew from the moment I saw this book on his shelf that it was a pearl I would need to obtain for myself, and hopefully, pass on to others who love to wander in the country of graphic information design. (*****)
Paul Roberts: The End of Oil
A must-read for all of us whose daily lives and future are collectively tied to the fate of the energy economy. See related entries beginning 6 March 2006, with links to the author's web site and an interview published in Mother Jones magazine in 2004. (*****)
Daniel Helminiak: What The Bible Really Says About Homosexuality
In this brief and readable book, Helminiak takes a thoughtful look at the Biblical scriptures invoked by Christians who feel that homosexuality is sinful and against God's will. In doing so he takes on the larger issue of how people read scripture. For gay people coming from strong religious backgrounds or struggling with issues of faith, or who simply take relgion seriously, this is an important book to read. Christians struggling with the issue of homosexuality would also be advised to look again at the scriptures - with an open mind - using insights gained from this book. A former Roman Catholic priest, Daniel Helminiak is currently a practicing psychotherapist and educator at the Pittsburgh Pastoral Institute in Pittsburgh, PA. (*****)
george lakoff: don't think of an elephant
A professor of Cognitive Science and Liguistics at UC Berkeley, George Lakoff wants to teach us "how conservatives think" - and how framing ideas and promoting an overarching moral vision have enabled them to dominate government and the current social and political discourse in this country. If the liberal-progressive movements want to regain political influence, win on issues, and provide a meaningful counterbalance to conservative power, they are going to have to learn the lessons of this book - lessons conservatives learned a long time ago - and get busy. Very busy. See my post "Crisis = Danger + Opportunity" for related material. This book is a must-read.. (*****)
italo calvino: invisible cities
As an introduction to the term, every student in my graduate architecture studio received the assignment of analyzing one of italo calvino's city stories and representing it as a conceptual model. This little book is so engagingly analytical and thought-provoking. It looks at the city as a series of collective experiences, each of them illustrating a particular aspect of the city from a phenomenological standpoint. The stories, it turns out, are all about one particular city, one which is uniquely celebrated, famous, and centuries-old. Can you guess which one it is? (*****)
Mary Oliver: New and Selected Poems
If your life is getting you down, or you feel cynical about politics, or you wonder if you're just wasting time, or you have lost the ability to see beauty and purpose in things, then go read some of Mary Oliver's poems immediately and find yourself in love with life again. First, read "Wild Geese" on page 110, which everybody quotes because it speaks to people so clearly and directly. But don't miss her other masterpieces, including "Morning Poem," (page 106) which I once heard read aloud during a morning service at the First Congregational Church in Boulder, Colorado by Rev. Martie McMane. It was such a morning, and such a poem, to restore my soul: ...each pond with its blazing lilies / is a prayer heard and answered / lavishly, / every morning, ... Go read the whole thing now. And then every other poem in the book. (*****)
John Boswell: Christianity, Social Tolerance, and Homosexuality : Gay People in Western Europe from the Beginning of the Christian Era to the Fourteenth Century
For a scholarly tome this is really a great read, and it's a must-read for gay people and anyone else who wants to understand where homophobia came from in our Western culture, and how it got so entrenched in mainstream Christianity, and how it developed alongside other manifestations of social intolerance against women, Jews, religious and intellectual dissidents, the poor, and Muslims. One important causative factor Boswell identified, which seems so relevant today: " ... the rise of absolute government ... a sedulous quest for intellectual and institutional uniformity and corporatism throughout Europe."
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.: Crimes Against Nature
Excerpt: "These elected governments used the provocation of terrorist attacks, continual wars, and invocations of patriotism and homeland security to privatize the commons, tame the press, muzzle criticism by opponents, and turn government over to ccorporate control. 'It is always a simple matter to drag the people along,' noted Hitler's sidekick, Hermann Goering, ' ...All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the peacemakers for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country.'" (*****)

path lights sources

Edward R. Tufte: Envisioning Information
The discovery of this book occurred on a summer evening at the home of a fellow graduate student in architecture at the University of Oregon in Eugene. Like many of our peers he was intellectually gifted, creative, idealistic, passionate about architecture and design, and ... eccentric. I knew from the moment I saw this book on his shelf that it was a pearl I would need to obtain for myself, and hopefully, pass on to others who love to wander in the country of graphic design.
C. P. Cavafy: C. P. Cavafy: Collected Poems
The works of the poet C.P. Cavafy(1863 - 1933) are not always my favorite - he wrote in Greek and so many of his poems are painfully passionate expressions of regret and longing for a youth denied. Yet in "Ithaka" he conjures the rich mythic grandeur of Homer's epic and delivers it up as a kind of manifesto on living life to its fullest. I have always felt the power in these lines and turned to them as an ancient Greek mariner might have to his map of the Cyclades - for guidance through a rock-strewn sea.
John Boswell: Christianity, Social Tolerance, and Homosexuality : Gay People in Western Europe from the Beginning of the Christian Era to the Fourteenth Century
John Boswell was a gay historian at Yale who specialized in Western European civilization from the beginning of the Christian Era through the high Middle Ages. This work takes a a serious look at religious and cultural attitudes toward homosexuality during that period. He tells a richly detailed story about the rise of intolerance in Europe, how intolerance toward gay people was intimately related to intolerance shown toward other groups, and how the Christian church came to develop its strong antipathy toward homosexuality. The most important premise in this book, I think, is that, homophobia in Christianity was a product of social forces which came to a head in the Middle Ages, and therefore homophobia did not follow directy from the early church, or for that matter, from the reading of the scriptures.
Henri J. M. Nouwen: Bread for the Journey : A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith
Henri Nouwen (1932-1996) was the senior pastor of L'Arche Daybreak in Toronto, Canada, a community where mentally disabled men and women, with their assistants, create a home for one another. Nouwen's life and work are firmly rooted in Christianity, but in his writings I encounter a voice which is so expansive and wise that I cannot think of him as belonging to one denomination or one faith. It's that transcendency that feeds me on my own spiritual journey.
Bill Devall: Deep Ecology
I found this book in a bookstore at Dinosaur National Monument in Utah. I had just visited the fossilized prehistoric riverbed where skeletons of dinosaurs were being painstakingly excavated by paleontologists. The revelation I received from that visit is the stuff of a longer post. It's enough to say that I was in a mentally and spiritually receptive mode when I came across this book. Here is an excerpt from the synopsis on the back cover: "Deep Ecology explores the philosophical, psychological, and sociological roots of today's environmental movement, examines the human-centered assumptions behind most approaches to nature, explores the possibilities of an expanded human consciousness, and offers specific direct actions for individuals to practice."
Adrienne Rich: Dark Fields of the Republic: Poems, 1991-1995
The poetry of California poet Adrienne Rich found its way into sermons I heard at the Metropolitan Community Chrch in San Francisco, from 1993-1998. Rev. Jim Mitulski and Rev. Penny Nixon drew on her work to address the heart: about passion, democracy, the dangerous times we were living in. What has changed since then? The times seem even more dangerous now, and the voice of this poet more desperately needed.
William Carlos Williams: Selected Poems
A colleague and dear friend, Allan Peterkin, gave me my copy of this volume of William Carlos Williams' poetry in 1989. It's a book I always keep with me, and open frequently, because the poems are like unfading flowers, still fragrant with the freshness of their first bloom. Am I just being sentimental? I don't think so. Take a walk in this garden and see for yourself.
Wendell Berry: The Collected Poems of Wendell Berry, 1957-1982
Wendell Berry's poetry is rooted in the earth and in the soul; he is an essential American, one you simply have to encounter. I find I pick through his works, connecting with some and finding others beyond the range of my immediate needs. But the quality of his work is lasting and consistent. As for "The fear of love" - here is a poem that speaks to me in a uniquely powerful way. Its spare beauty and redemptive truth are the qualities that make it special to me. It is one of the few poems I have memorized and carry with me everywhere, like a small personal treasure.
Annie Dillard: Pilgrim At Tinker Creek
Annie Dillard spent a year in a cabin beside Tinker Creek, somewhere in West Virginia, with her solitude, a multitude of cultural, historical, classical and scientific literature, and a keen sensory awareness of everything going on around her. This book is an account of that experience, organized according to the seasons like book of days. Her deep and ecstatic reflections on the phenomenon of being alive to the world in the present moment run through the work like a stream of everchanging, life-giving water. "The tree with the lights in it" constitutes the pivotal reference, describing a moment of pure experience unadulterated by previous experience or existing ideas - it is hard enough for her to describe it, but the idea of it is exhiliarating. Dillard's book won the Pulitzer Prize for literature in 1975; I read and reread it for its continued power to refresh and renew my own sense of wonder.
walt whitman: calamus
Whitman's poetry is a manifestation of the real and true homegrown grassroots american spirit; whitman was a passionate, sensitive man who worked as a nurse in the civil war and witnessed the emergence of the country from that war; he celebrated himself in "leaves of grass" and extended that celebration to everyone and everything. If he were alive today he would undoubtedly self-identify as agay man; as for his spirit, it is unquestionably queer as much as it is unquestionably universal.

my music

My Junk
Duncan Sheik (music), Steven Sater (book and lyrics): Spring Awakening (2006 Original Broadway Cast)
The score of Spring Awakening is rich and achingly beautiful, each song a project of passionate expression. The play, based on the play of the same name by Frank Wedekind (1891), is set in a 19th century German village, but the themes of adolescent yearning and struggle against the tyranny of the adult world are expressed in the contemporary language of its songs' lyrics. The play, then, deliberately and consciously transcends its historical setting, and the plight of the protagonists becomes universal. In the end, the music is so delicious you will be chewing on and digesting it long after the play is done.
rufus wainwright: want two
Wow I love this lyrically-rich, musically adventurous album sung by a guy with an irresistably sexy croon and a demonstrable love of the piano. "The Art Teacher" is a killer ballad about a buried passion so intense it has no rationale justification - and none is offered - you just listen and feel your body slip down into the river with poor dead Ophelia where you too will beautifully drown. Bravo Rufus
Sweet Afton
Nickel Creek: Nickel Creek
This tune is one of the many gems on Nickel Creek's first album. The tune is by mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile, bringing the bountiful lyrics of Robert Burns to life, such as in this verse: "Thou stock-dove whose echo resounds thro' the glen, / Ye wild whistling blackbirds in yon thorny den, / Thou green-crested lapwing, thy screaming forbear, I charge you disturb not my slumbering fair." Nickel Creek is the first album by the trio of the same name, consisting of the wonderfully talented Sean and Sara Watkins, and Chris Thile. My sister Ruth sent me this album and what a great gift it was. I never get tired of listening to this and subsequent albums by Nickel Creek. These artists are tapping a rich vein of American folk music and imbuing it with their own unique combination of youthful clarity and disarmingly mature styling. (*****)
Strange Boy
Joni Mitchell: Hejira
Elektra/Asylum Records 1976 A timeless work of art, packed with the most intimate, sophisticated, delicious lyrics. It’s about existential angst, the rollercoaster emotions of love, wandering, pilgrimage, searching for yourself. I've been listening to this album for decades, and know it like a treasured book of poetry. (*****)
Vicar in a Tutu
The Smiths: The Queen Is Dead
Sire Records Company 1985 I had an acoustic, poetic and existential revelation the first time I heard this album, a long time ago when Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher ruled the world, and I wondered if I would ever find love. Not only are Morrissey's lyrics exquisite, Johnny Marr's guitar pulls it all together in a mash of riveting, intense, dreamlike sound. You could listen to the music or the lyrics separately and still love this album – together, they are sheer rapture. Can you tell I'm a Smiths fan for life? (*****)

people to know

David Frauenfelder
A "trained specialist" in ancient and comparative mythology who has launched a mythological cyber-bistro where visitors hungry for some good stories and discussion can find nourishment. Check it out ...
Myrto Angela Ashe, MD, MPH
A colleague and friend of mine for many years, Dr. Ashe is a family physician who offers life coaching and wellness counseling - a great resource for persons engaged in making substantial, healthy changes in their lives, particularly around issues like weight loss.

recommended site-seeing

GLS san juans 1

Erich Fowler led a group of eight members of the Gay and Lesbian section of The Sierra Club (GLS) on a backpack to the Grenadier Range of the San Juan mountains in southwestern Colorado, September 14-17, 2006. We met in Durango and then took the historic Durango Silverton narrow-gauge steam locomotive to our trailhead at Elk Park, via the splendidly scenic Animas River valley. Our trail in the Weminuche Wilderness led us along Elk Creek through forests of spruce, pine, and golden-leafed aspen to the beaver pond where we stopped to camp. The following two days were memorable for the rain and sleet (or "gropple"?) that descended on us relentlessly from dark, cloudy skies, and prevented us from reaching the Vestal Peak basin, which, according to one retreating hiker we met, was in full winter mode. Despite this we managed a great day hike along the Colorado Trail which stretches across the Continental Divide on its way toward Denver - autumn colors were resplendent as well as the year-round rainbow coloration of the lichen-covered rock cliffs of the mountains which rose up around us. Group participants included group leader Erich Fowler (Denver, Durango), and co-leader Jacob Morgan (Fort Collins), Jonathan Fierer (Boulder), John P. Campbell (Cortez), Philip Martin (Chicago!), Derrick James (Chicago!), Dan Puskar (Mesa Verde), and John Krotchko (Denver). See part 2 for more images of this trip.

hume go home 2006

Hume Reunion in Scotland 2006 Details to follow

GLS san juans 2

This is the second half of images from the GLS backpack to the San Juans which took place September 14-17, 2006. Due to inclement weather (cold blowing wind and various forms of precipitation) the group decided to retreat from Elk Park in the Weminuche Wilderness a day early and catch the train back to Durango. No sooner had we set out on the return trail, the skies cleared and gave way to a gloriously sunny fall day. These are the vagaries of mountain weather! We enjoyed excellent mountain vistas and fall colors all the way back to Durango; after dinner at a local New Mexican restaurant we were taken in by John P. Campbell and his partner Allan at their home in Cortez where we spent a very pleasant night. The following morning we drove from Cortez through Dolores, over Lizard Head Pass, past Telluride, on to Ridgeway (some of us channeling Margaret Cho along the way), and finally to Orvis Hot Springs where we had ourselves a wonderful afternoon soak. This journey through the San Juan and Uncompahgre National Forests afforded us views of some of Colorado's most dramatic mountains, including Mount Eolus, Mount Wilson, and Mount Sneffels. Thanks to Erich for organizing this trip and to everyone else who made this adventure a particularly memorable one.

best soccer

Cousin Ann, Joe, Aunt Helga, Jessica and her new BF, and me, cousin John, all gathered to cheer the University of Wyoming's women's soccer team, The Cowgirls, as they challenged the CU Buffs at Prent-Up field in Boulder on Sunday, October 1. Athough they put up a good fight, The Cowgirls lost to CU, 0-2. Christina Best, a senior at University of Wyoming, played defense most of the game - you can see her in the black and white-stripe uniform, #10, with her long blonde ponytail dancing behind her. Great job Christina! Ann and Joe will be following Christina to Las Vegas and Salt Lake for more away games, and will be in Laramie for the home games.

colorado snow biz

It has been a snowy winter in Colorado - Denver got the first big dump just before Christmas 2006 and it kept snowing almost every weekend through the end of January. Most of the snow has hit the front range, but the mountain ski resorts received fair amounts of snow also, making for an excellent ski season - armed with our Colorado Passes, my friends and I have headed up I-70 to take advantage of some of the best skiing currently available in the world. And the season is far from over yet! Here are a few hastily taken images from the white wonderlands of Arapahoe Basin, Keystone, Eldora, and Vail (we made it to Breckenridge also, an embarrassment of riches!). Lots of fun, lots of Colorado snowbiz!

hume go home 2006 2

more pix from the hume reunion - details to follow

ashes in boulder

A collection of photos from my visits with Jim and Myrto Ashe and their three sons Aidan, Jayson, and Jasper. They live in a house in north Boulder, Colorado, which overlooks Wonderland Lake at the feet of the Rocky Mountains. Many of the images were captured by Jayson and Aidan, who, like their father, have an affinity for cameras.

« THE COST OF MADNESS | Main | 2007: A REVIEW IN PICTURES »

December 08, 2007

SATURDAY MORNING SNOWFALL

I woke up late,
It’s Saturday morning.

The snow is falling
A fine spray of tiny flakes swirling, dancing,
Falling to the ground,
Beneath a cold grey sky.

A light dusting, everything topped with white like powdered sugar on chocolate cake,
And a woodpecker with black-and-white polka-dot wings
And a bright red patch of feathers on the back of its neck
Perches at a feeder in the crabapple tree
Pecking out suet and seeds with its sharp black shiny beak.
I hear that swooshy soft sound of car tires on the slick pavement of 8th avenue,
Muffled and sleepy.
Skiers in their cars line up on I-70 waiting for their first real chance to hit the slopes.

It’s winter, the days are short,
The nights are long black journeys dreamed beneath comforters.

There is conflict and chaos all over the world today -
Opinions all black and white take wing, circling madly in search of ears.
The red patch on a neck is blood;
The muffled sounds are victims
Falling under hard black guns and shiny bombs and sharp machetes.
Refugees line up for water,
For rice that spills from relief trucks in a fine, dancing spray;
The sky arching over everyone is dark and filled with tears.

Their days of sunshine short -
Their nights so long and filled with nightmare darkness.

Today,
And here,
The snow is dancing;
Beauty everywhere you look.
Peace covers the earth, a fine sweet powder: a dream
I woke with
This Saturday morning.

December 08, 2007 in aesthetic reflections | Permalink

Comments

I miss watching snow. But I don't miss being in it.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

4 Dec 2007

A thin film of mist on cold water.

Bone dry air on a cool winter day.

Steamy mornings. cold steam.

The lake is steaming in the cold dawn.

Misty wisps on wintry morns.

5 Dec 2007

Veiled seas under clear skies

The night was sharp, clear and cold.

The moon was unreasonably bright.

A bright firefly astride a quarter moon.

Planetshine. Moonshine. Starshine.

A quarrelsome moon.

Posted by: poetryman69 | December 08, 2007 at 05:37 PM

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jones family 08 26 06

Scenes from a family gathering of the Jones clan in Boulder, CO, a day before Bill and Martha's 50th wedding anniversary celebration in the back yard of their house on Erie. I was unable to attend on that Sunday, August 27, 2006, (heading out to Paddle Oregon!) so came to help out with setup on the day before, and to hang out with the family. Included in these photos are Bill and Martha Jones, sons Rob and Kevin, Kevin's partner Melissa and her daughter Mariah, daughters Beth and Kathy, Kathy's husband Marty and their son Robin, Martha's brother Bo (or Beau?). Ann and her husband Frank, their son Sam and daughter Helen, were elsewhere on this day, and so not pictured.

paddle oregon 2006

Jessica Yasutome, an EMT on the staff of Cannon Beach Fire and Rescue in Cannon Beach, Oregon, recruited me to be a volunteer medic for Paddle Oregon 2006, a 5-day, 120-mile canoe/kayak journey from Eugene to Newburg that took place on August 28 - September 1, 2006. The event is sponsored and run by the Willamette Riverkeepers, an environmental group that educates and does advocacy for the Willamette River, considered to be one of the most endangered river systems in our country. About 120 people participated in the event, which featured camping at various state parks and the private land of a local farmer, and fully catered meals. Educational presentations and nature walks were also featured on the trip.

moab utah

A group of friends gather to savor together the beauty of canyon country in Moab, Utah, and partake in the thrills of off-road biking and hiking (March 16 - 20, 2005). Here is the group at a high point on the Porcupine Rim Trail, which commands stunning views of Castle Valley and winds its way down to the banks of the muddy green Colorado River. Pictured here from left to right: Erick Tombre (Missoula, MT), John Krotchko (Denver, CO), Sam Cole (Denver, CO), Todd Dubois (Missoula, MT), Jacob Morgan (Fort Collins, CO), and Gary Matthews (Boulder, CO). Not pictured: Erich Fowler (Denver, CO) who was hiking. Thanks to Jacob for this group shot. Here's a link to the rest of Jacob Morgan's photos: http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/guzwhyte/album?.dir=95a5&.src=ph&store=&prodid=&.done=http%3a//pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/guzwhyte/my_photos

capitol peak 2005

Join us, members of the Gay and Lesbian section of the Sierra Club (GLS), Rocky Mountain Chapter, and the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative (CFI), for a Capitol experience! July 2005 was the fourth year in which GLS teamed up with CFI to do maintenance on the alpine hiking trail which traverses the fragile alpine meadows and slopes of the Capitol Peak Wilderness (near Aspen and Snowmass, Colorado) on its way to the jagged ridge on which climbers summit Capitol Peak (elevation 14,210 ft), one of Colorado's most stunning and challenging fourteeners. The adventure began on July 14, a hot, sunny day in the valley, and ended on July 17, when a smaller group of us headed up the Saddle, across the snowfields and up to the summit of K2, from which the real climbing begins on the ascent to the summit of Capitol Peak. Here are images of our hiking, trailbuilding, sightseeing and rock-climbing escapades.

hi david

Lisa Lewis, Jacob Morgan, Carol Hovenen, Gary Matthews, Bill Roettker wish you were here in the Capitol Peak Wilderness to accept some friendly snowball fire. Our tools say "Hi DAH!" Not pictured: photodocumenters John Krotchko and Galen Oellig.

meeker 2005

Images from a hike to the summit of Mount Meeker, in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado. Saturday, August 27, 2005 Sponsored by the Gay and Lesbian section of the Sierra Club, Rocky Mountain Chapter. Group Leader: Jacob "I, Marmot" Morgan. Group Co-Leader: John Krotchko Group Jock: Sam Cole Group Provocateur: Jonny Fierer Group Tour Guide, Historian, and Reference Librarian: Erich Fowler Group Princess: Deryk Standring Group Father Figure: Adam Bowen Group Boddhisattva: Gary Mattthews Group Perspective (not pictured): Georgia L

san francisco 2005

After a long absence, I had a chance to return to my old hometown of San Francisco for a medical conference sponsored by the UCSF School of Medicine: The Medical Management of AIDS and HIV, December 8-10. Social rounds included a visit to the home of Howard Rubin and Gene Nakajima, and their houseguest, Francois Paris, a contemporary composer and musician from Nice, France. Gene and Howard and I went to the SF Symphony to hear Stravinsky's Rossignol and oedipus Rex. I also had a chance to catch up with Lynn Schroeder, Lisa DiGiorgio-Haag, and other former colleagues at UCSF Student Health. The bulk of my social time was spent at the home of James Rozzelle and Ann Shepherd, and their daughter Josie, who will be 5 this coming January. We did a lot of fun things together; here are images of our bike rides, museum visits, the Sunday School classroom at MCC (!) where Josie is prepping for her role as Mary in the upcoming Christmas pageant, Golden Gate Park, and Josie's preschool in SOMA called The Village. Look for James at the end, exhibiting his typical Zen-like aura of peace and detachment.

dissent is patriotic

roraima trek 1

Trek to Roraima Part 1 Backpacker Tours 24-29 October 2005 La Gran Sabana Estado Guayana, Venezuela

roraima trek 2

Trek to Roraima Part 2 Backpacker Tours 24-29 October 2005 La Gran Sabana Estado Guayana, Venezuela

roraima trek 3

Trek to Roraima Part 3 Backpacker Tours 24-29 October 2005 La Gran Sabana Estado Guayana, Venezuela

roraima trek 4

Trek to Roraima Part 4 Backpacker Tours 24-29 October 2005 La Gran Sabana Estado Guayana, Venezuela

backpacker tours

Trek to the Roraima tepui with Backpacker Tours +++ a truly excellent team led by Gideon and Marco +++ 24-29 October 2005 +++ en La Gran Sabana de Venezuela +++ Many thanks to all of you at Backpacker Tours for an unforgettable experience!

chasm lake

Chasm Lake at the foot of Longs Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park is a popular day hike destination for the Gay and Lesbian section of the Sierra CLub's Rocky Mountain Chapter. Here are images from two hikes, one in April 2004 and one in June 2005.

bear peak 2004

The Bear Peak Loop is a short, strenuous 7-mile hike that starts at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado and reaches Bear Peak (8461 feet) along a western ridge with an elevation gain of almost 2400 feet. Along the way there are the meadows of Table Mesa graced with wildflowers, the dramatically upthrusting Flatirons, the namesake of Twisted Pine microbrewed beer, and the snowcapped Indian Peaks on the western horizon. From the top of Bear Peak, there's also a commanding view of Boulder and the expanse of Colorado's metropolitan Front Range - on a clear day you can see Denver and Pikes Peak to the south. We usually descend through Fern Canyon to get back to the trailhead, but you can do it the other way around. Participants in this hike, sponsored by the Gay nd Lesbian section of the Sierra Club, Rocky Mountain chapter, and led by Mike Lanciloti, were blessed by sunny weather during an otherwise rainy spring weekend.

black canyon

On Sunday, August 1, the Rocky Mountain Chapter of The Sierra Club sponsored a conservation outing to Black Canyon National Park near Gunnison, Colorado. It was planned and organized by Sierra Club Intern Randy Thompson. The purpose of the trip was to learn something about the intense geography of this region (especially the geologic and water features unique to the canyon) and the complex water use issues which are an integral part of the history and present reality of this national treasure. The day began with a guided tour of the canyon by boat, followed by a talk by a geologist over lunch (not pictured) and, on the banks of the Gunnison River, a talk by a National Park Service hydrologist. Following this the group split up and visited the new Vistor's Center (Black Canyon achieved National Park Status only recently, in 1999, by executive order of President Bill Clinton) and the surrounding observation points on the south rim of the canyon, including the amazing "painted wall" seen in the last images. This cover photo shows part of a model of the canyon at the Visitor's Center.

meeker & longs

On July 31 Jacob Morgan and I attempted an alternate route to Long's Peak via The Loft, which is the high rocky saddle between Mount Meeker and Long's Peak. We scrambled up some pretty challenging near-vertical terrain to get to The Loft, then found our way up to Mount Meeker. The view of the surrounding mountains and valleys from here was astounding, and Long's looks like alien landscape from the summit of Meeker's. When we got back to The Loft we had trouble finding the connecting route to Long's on the northwest corner, and before we had a chance to figure it out, clouds rolled in, hail started falling, and we headed back down. We were accompanied on our way up by a really fine climber named Fay Morgan, an architect from Tenafly, NJ, who appears in one of the images here.

capitol peak

A few years ago, the Gay and Lesbian Section of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Sierra Club (GLS) teamed up with the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative (CFI) to "adopt" Capitol Peak, a "fourteener" (one of ~55 mountains over 14,000 ft in elevation above sea level located in the state of Colorado). Peak adoption means maintaining and protecting the wilderness area surrounding the peak, and one of the most important ongoing tasks this includes is building and maintaining trails which convey hikers and other visitors through beautiful and ecologically fragile territory on their way to the ridges and summit of magnificent Capitol Peak. GLS volunteers teamed up with CFI leader Alicia Day for this year's work project which took place from 21-24 July 2004. Horses were used to pack in heavy tools like pick axes, sledges, and hammers, as well as food. The volunteers hiked about 6 miles from the trailhead to a wooded campsite next to a mountain stream and the rolling, steep, wildflower-studded tundra leading up to the rocky granite slopes. Work took place along the trail which had been built on previous volunteer trips over the past two years, at elevations around 11,000 feet. The wildflowers, the views, the delicious meals, and the excellent company made for ideal conditions in which to do trail work. Participants pictured above include CFI team leader Alicia Day, front and center (blue blouse); GLS volunteers from left to right are: Jamie Bender, Lisa Lewis, Bill Roettker (behind Alicia), Jacob Morgan, and John Krotchko. The pretty horse is unidentified but I think his name should be Brownie. Want to know more, or join us for a future work project or an outing? Check out these photos and visit us at our websites. Then give us a call. Sierra Club, Rocky Mountain Chapter http://www.rmc.sierraclub.org/index.shtml Gay and Lesbian section http://www.rmc.sierraclub.org/gls/ Colorado Fourteeners Initiative http://www.coloradofourteeners.org/home/index.php

colorotchko

Here's my parents, Dave and Ann Krotchko, one very bright sunny August afternoon, riding a train out of Leadville, Colorado. It's an old train from Leadville's big mining days, which came to an abrupt end sometime in the 80's when the bottom fell out of the molybdenum market. Now all that's left is a link of rail heading into the rocky hillsides above the headwaters of the Arkansas river, going toward the mine. The old train has been carefully restored and now takes visitors into the history and natural beauty of the Rocky Mountain wilderness outside of Leadville. The three of us took a weekend trip into the mountains, leaving from Denver, rolling into Leadville for the train, then driving to Crested Butte. We had a nice time there, and got to do some shopping on Elk Ave, and saw an old car show the next morning. From there we headed to the Black canyon of the Gunnison River to see some pretty fine canyon scenery. Finally, as Dad got lobster red from too much sun, we roadtripped back through the mountains to Montrose, and then Glenwood Springs, and back along I-70 to Denver. Quite a road trip, and a really pleasant one too, on one of the last truly beautiful weekends of summer in the Rockies.

nyc dec 2004

On December 29, 2004 a brave band of explorers from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, the Midwest and Colorado joined together for an excursion into the teeming, bulging and line-choked metropolis of New York City. These are some images from their journey, which included a ferry ride from Jersey City, a pilgrimage to Ground Zero, and culminated in an ascent to the observation deck of the Empire State Building. After surviving the slow torture of multiple lines and stuffy windowless hallways, our fearless crew arrived precisely at dusk, from which the city's spectacular skyline spread out before them in all directions, in all its glimmering holiday glory.

global partners 2005oct

GLS winter 2006

Here are a few images from outings hosted by the Gay and Lesbian section of The Sierra Club, Rocky Mountain Chapter (GLS) in the winter of 2006. Fingers frequently got a little frozen while removing gloves to take pix and adjust aperture/shutter speeds! On January 21 a cross country/snowshoe outing led by Elaine Johnson ended up at Echo Lake near Mount Evans; the following weekend found a group in Leadville where we visited the Nordic Ski Center at Ski Cooper for cross-country ski lessons - later Jacob and I put skins on our skis and hiked up a downhill trail at Ski Cooper, skiing down at the very last light of day; on February 11, Galen Oellig led a group of snowshoers and skiers to Butler Gulch just outside of Empire, near Berthoud Pass and the Henderson mine. Fantastic day - cold but bright and oh so beautiful! Finally a few images from a snowhoe/ski through the Fraser Experimental Forest in Winter Park, CO during the first weekend in March 2006.

a day at winter park

My cousin Ann Best, her daughter Jessica, and I traveled to the Winter Park ski resort (about 70 miles west of Denver) on Saturday, February 25, 2006, to join up with Ann's brother Gary and his wife Pam and their children Erica (age 7) and Michael (age 4). Pam directs the Denver Broncos Charities which was sponsoring an annual weekend-long ski competition featuring disabled people and Broncos alumni. We all managed to get some skiing in, then gathered at Pam and Gary's hotel room with their friends Jody and Trina, and their sons Zach and Noah, for dinner. Later, Ann and Jessica and I returned to Denver, where I had a chance to visit with Joe and Aunt Helga. About Denver Broncos Charities (from the website): DBC has enabled the Broncos to extend its support to numerous community organizations in Colorado. Broncos Charities support many qualified non-profit organizations that work to impact the quality of life for youth, and the hungry and homeless. DBC's emphasis is on programs designed to assist young people in the areas of education and youth football with a particular emphasis on programs aimed at disadvantaged and at-risk youth. The Fund will also consider programs devoted to health and hunger issues.

Here are images from a hike to Deluge Lake, in the Eagle's Nest Wilderness above Vail, Colorado, which occurred on July 11, 2004. The trip was sponsored by the Gay and Lesbian section of the Rocky Mountain chapter of the Sierra Club, and was led by the Club's state Outings Director Jacob Morgan. If you're visiting this site and new to the Sierra Club, make a point of visiting our website at www.rmc.sierraclub.org and contacting us about future outings. If you're interested in joining members of the Gay and Lesbian section in outings or other activities, please check out our page at www.rmc.sierraclub.org/gls/ and don't hesitate to contact us. We encourage you to join the Sierra Club, but membership isn't required to join us on an outing.

venezuelan snaphots

I made my first trip to Venezuela - to anywhere in Latin America as a matter of fact - in April 2004. The primary purpose of the trip was to participate in ongoing mission work of Global Partnership Ministries shared by the United Church of Christ and The Disciples of Christ, Rocky Mountain Chapters, with the Union Evangelico Pentecostal Venezolana (UEPV), based in Maracaibo, Venezuela. This particular trip was to focus on health and construction projects. The group, pictured above, included (top row, left to right:) Dorian Singh, Diane Singh, Carol Matheis-Kraft RN (group leader), Bob Kraft, Kim Canas RN, Barbara Harvey, (bottom row:) John Krotchko MD (myself), Merv Bangert, and Lesli Bangert. We left from Denver International Airport on April 18, 2004 for the one week mission. After this, I traveled to Merida, Venezuela, located in Venezuela's Andes mountains in the state of Merida. These are some images from my travels. Please visit my weblog where I have included stories and detailed descriptions to accompany many of these images.

Denver Pride 2004

Here are a few images from the 2004 Gay Pride Celebration in Denver, Colorado on June 27, 2004. The Denver Post was very stingy in its coverage so this is compensation.