From Van up the Sea to Sky to Lake Garibaldi

A model of the coastal mountains from Vancouver north to Squamish. Highway 101 running the entire west coast changes to the 99 in British Columbia and from Vancouver to Whistler its called the Sea to Sky. The road is being redone for the Olympics, but that is another story.


The following are courtesy of Grey's boredom from various Whistler rides:
Highway 99 at its best; from a window seat

37 km (23 mi) north of Squamish and 19 km (12 mi) south of Whistler is our destination: Lake Garibaldi. The 9km (5.5 mi) hike is basically all switch backs but very doable.

The Sphinx Glacier
Elevation - 1450m
Significantly smaller compared with two years ago around the same time

Lake Garibaldi and the glacier

Lake Garibaldi and the Battleship Islands in the foreground

Lake Garibaldi and the volcano Mount Price

Lake Garibaldi

Battleship Islands and Mount Price

Lake Garibaldi with the Battleship Islands and Mount Price

The usual

Sphinx with the Battleship Islands

Lake Garibaldi

Most spectacular moon rise ever seen

Radu posing as if he discovered the west

-The Grouch-
No Slow Thinkers


Now don't you love it when your friends get you thinkin?

Do something innovative never even thought of

Get you all inspired and fired up to live life

You tell em what they did was tight you’re fully motivated

You might have hesitated now you’re on the move though

Without some of my friends I probably move too slow

If that ain’t cool so I need reinforcements

And to be around positivity makes more sense

Its intense

Tryin to top a legend

But I make due and get praised from my brethren

Then they taught me and the lass is the past

It keeps me on point with my foot on the gas

You gotta give respect where its due and stay true

Its neither all about them nor all about you

Surround yourself with prosperous people

If you will try hard to be more than equal



All my people are big risk takers

No time wasters

Nothings left to lose all slow thinkers

Nice Long expose with unintended people walking through with flashlights. There were honestly well over a hundred people in the campground that night.

I'm zoned in on my own flaws known as raw

But I hate most all I've ever done

Still I'm feelin like I'm the one

I get the underground thing and people are having fun

I'm part of that, that's where my heart is at

Beating, reaching you when I'm constantly seeking new angles

Man I take out the tangles and redirect just where the pain goes

I wanna paint the perfect picture

I wanna paint the perfect picture

I wanna paint the perfect picture

Paint the perfect picture
Grouchy

Break on the hike down

Cloquet Forestry Center

Forest resources program introductory field session at Cloquet Forestry Center, August 2008

FR 2101--Identifying Forest Plants : Students study the field identification of approximately 120 species of common northwoods trees, shrubs, and nonwoody vascular plants.

FR 2102--Northern Forests Field Ecology : Introduces students to the natural history of northern/boreal forests with respect to soils, ecological characteristics of trees, community-environment relationships, stand development, succession, and regeneration ecology.

FR 2104--Measuring Forest Resources : This course introduces land survey, tree/forest stand measurement (mensuration), and forest sampling techniques. Acquaints students with the use and care of selected instruments and introduces them to the measurement techniques used in field forestry and timber cruising.

Study break...

Luther's 1970 VW camper bus,
road tripped to the cabin and Duluth

Sitting on the dock, stunning light

False-lily-of-the-valley
Maianthemum canadense

Wild blueberries
Vaccinium angustifolium

Wild blueberries
Vaccinium angustifolium

Sunset snag

Field trip to Minnesota point in Duluth to study natural succession of sand dunes

Minnesota point looking towards the lighthouse

Nice view of successional transition from dunes to forest

Minnesota point

Brandon gazing into Lake Superior
(notice fog over Duluth compared to previous pictures)

Sonya unable to resist the yoga urge
Minnesota point

Eric - Jay Cooke state park

St. Louis river - Sonya
Jay Cooke state park

St. Louis river running through Jay Cooke state park

Brandon reading why the river looks so brown and dirty. Excess acid from abundant decaying organic matter seeps into the water, creating a darker color.

The only classroom suitable for an ecology class focusing on norther Minnesota forests

St. Louis river flowing through Jay Cooke

Forking St. Louis river
Jay Cooke state park

St. Louis river
Jay Cooke

View from the Cloquet fire tower

Brandon lost in the view over 100ft+ red pines and the sunset

Sunset from atop the Cloquet fire tower

Dusk from the fire tower, followed by a flaring green rainbow of the northern lights

DNR type 2 bog... wet meadow

Dead and dying trees

Dr. Thomas E. Burk

200 lbs male back bear trapped by fisheries and wildlife students. Only females are tagged because they don't wonder nearly as much as males.

Bear trap

Wildlifers and forestry students investigating the bear trap and bear