Saturday, June 30, 2012

Archives #3

Archives #3
June 2012




Cool thing #6 about being unemployed; continued....

In my hunting through the kodachrome static of ancient hard drives I found this little gem. Years ago, a month or two before I left Maine and ventured west, I shot an assignment for a book project on the Appalachian Trail (AT). The idea of the book was pretty cool. It proposed to show the entire 2200 miles of the AT in a single day worth of photographs. A select handful of landscape photographers, outdoor photographers, and adventure photographers were tasked with shooting a small section of the trail. Everyone would shoot from sun up to sun down on the given day. You had literally 24 hours to cover your assigned section. The book would then show the entire length of the trail from Georgia to Maine in that same 24 hour window. A pretty rad and ambitious undertaking!

Photographers were selected and contacted and low and behold they wanted me. To this day I have no idea how they picked me or how my name came up but came up it did. I was super excited to participate.Then I got my assigned section. I was asked to cover the Maine-New Hampshire border to Highway 26. My heart sunk. Big bloody groan. You gotta be kidding me I thought! This section of trail contains the most difficult mile of the ENTIRE trail and the most uniformly steep mile on the whole dang trail. It is rumored that more people give up hiking the AT during this first section in Maine then anywhere else. Imagine! After four or five months of hiking you hit Maine and decide to toss in the towel. Thats how disgustingly gnarly this one little section of the AT is. Not to mention it would take an entire day to hike in to the assigned starting point and another entire day to hike out. No wonder they picked me. They needed a pansy, someone dumb enough to agree to lug pounds and pounds of camera gear through this ridiculously difficult 15 miles of trail. Is it too late to change my mind?

It was too late to back. It was mine. So out I went. I'm not gonna lie. It was brutal. Epic but brutal. June 1st was the assigned day. June 1st in many places is a pretty good day to be out and about hiking the Appalachian trail. June 1st in Maine however, especially above the tree line, is when the snow turns to mud. Pure hell. Pure hell. So with that in mind, out I went.

Thankfully I survived the ordeal. Barely. In fact survival was really the only thing on my mind during the whole day. Taking pictures was an after thought. I just wanted to get through it. The night before it was well below freezing. I slept with my cameras & a dozen rolls of film (yes film, remember those days haha!) inside the sleeping bag to keep them warm. I woke up well before sunrise to make sure all was in order. I had to chip ice off the nearby brook in order to pump water for coffee and oatmeal. Brutal. But epic. I fought through thigh high snow drifts in every saddle and braved 30mph winds climbing over the Goose Eye. It rained. It snowed. It sleeted. Brutal. But epic.



Border Sunrise.


Welcome.


Infamous Mahoosuc Notch, most difficult mile on the AT.
The trail goes under numerous boulders making you crawl and squeeze through on your
belly, pushing your pack in front of you. Brutal. But epic.



Moonrise, Speck Pond.


The famous Grafton Notch birches, highway 26.

Friday, June 29, 2012

USA Petroleum

USA Petroleum
Ventuckey, Calif.
June 2012




Private.


Decay.


Remains.

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Archives #2

Archives #2
June 2012




Cool thing #6 about being unemployed; continued....

Senior portraits back in the day. Made me chuckle.




RESC, 2003-ish maybe (?).

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Wee Walkabout

Wee Walkabout
Matilija Wilderness, Calif.
June 2012



You know how some old folks can feel an approaching storm in their bones? I'm the same way when it comes to adventuring. As the weeks go by without a proper adventure I can feel it in my bones. The beckoning. The calling. The wanderlust grips me. It builds up over time. I can feel it in my bones I say and my bones were itching. A wee walkabout was in order.

On a whim I pulled out the dusty maps and had a look. Its time. Long overdue. Long overdue. Bits and pieces started to pull together. Daydreams and ponderings. Would this trail work? Hows about this? I could link this and that with that and this. Walkabout. Sunshiny daydreams. I measured mileage and ran the numbers. Found one that looked promising. Could work. It just could work! I could feel it in my bones and my bones were itching.

I packed up the day pack. The dog knew something was up. She felt it too. Walkabout. I crashed early but couldn't sleep. My bones were itching. Anticipation. Like waiting for Christmas morning, couldn't sleep. The alarm interrupted my daydreaming. 4am. 4am. 4am. Dang, way too early but get up I must. Quick coffee, okay two. Power bar, protein shake, cup of yogurt. I like to start lite. Heavy breakfast just bogs me down. Warm shower to wake up, warm up the muscles. Shake off the lack of sleep. Trailhead by 5am, daylight just slowly starting to seep in the corners.

The first climb is hard but doable. The cool morning air helped. So did my excitement for the day. Walkabout. My bones were itching. We climbed higher and higher. Ortega Ridge by sunrise. Watching the Ojai Valley wake up. Come to life. The sun rose higher, crested the mountains, bathed us in warm light. We pushed on. Making good time. Further and further in the shadows. Walk on. 7 miles in we stop for a quick lunch. Lunch I say but its only 10:30. Still we have been up for over 6 hours. Lunch it is. Sun climbs higher. Starts to burn. No shade anywhere. Barren rock and scrub brush. High desert. Walk on. Last climb of the day. Brutal. Sun in full force now. 1500 feet in less then a mile. Big climb slows us down. Walk on.

Oretga Hill by noon. We stop and admire the ocean views. Enjoy the peacefulness under a shade bush. Miles away but just below us. C Street. The Oxnard Plains. Santa Monica Mountains in the distance. Just below us. We start the descent. Temp reaches 90. Shade disappears. Necks burning from the unforgiving sun. Thighs burning from the sharp descent. Temp reaches 100. The poor dog is panting panting panting. Crawling under every bush she passes to escape the suns menacing glare. We push on, coaxing, cajoling, begging. Walk on. Temps reach 110. The heat of the earth burns through my shoes. Foreheads on fire. Shoulders scorching. The valley below us, green and lush. It beckons. Siren song green and lush. I pick up the dog and carry her the rest of the way.

Maple Camp just after 1pm. The last 1.7 miles took over an hour. Poor dog. She could barely walk. So hot. Damn. She crawls into the stream. Collapses in a puddle. Happy. We relax. Sigh of relief. Big big sigh. Another quick lunch. Avocados and fresh mozzarella. Heaven. We soak in the stream. Pure bliss. 11 and a half miles in. Feeling good. Feeling strong. Feeling refreshed. Half way home. Walkabout. Adventure. Half done. My bones were still itching. Walk on. Maple Camp> Upper Matilija> Middle Matilija> Matilija. We cruise. Cross the river a dozen times. Two dozen times. Three dozen times. I lose track. Up the canyon wall, down the canyon wall. Up and over and across and down and back up again. We pause to admire a waterfall. Every waterfall. Sunshiny daydreams indeed! We soak when we can. Cold mountain water, fresh. Running free. Running fast. Feels amazing on the poor knees. And just like that it was over. Done. We had arrived. My bones were sore but no longer itching.

We reach the parking lot in short order. Made good time. Not great but good. Acceptable. Still feeling strong. Feeling refreshed. Can't wait for a cold beer and sunset. Wait. Something's not right. Something's off. Where the heck is my ride? Where is the car? I sit. I collapse really. Defeated. Now all of a sudden exhausted. Inside I'm screaming. An hour passes, still no one shows up. Where the heck is my damn ride? I pack up the day pack, pack up the dog. We hitchhike. Get lucky but not so lucky. We bum a ride from a suspicious couple in the dusty bed of their pickup truck. The dog is scared, doesn't like doing 60mph down a mountain road in the bed of a rusted out Toyota. But just to highway 33. Its a start. Better then nothing. An adventure I suppose. I had asked for it after all. Keep hitchhiking. Sticking out the thumb. No one stops. Light starts to fail. Legs hurt. Dog wants to sleep. Another car, stick out the thumb, another denial. Inside I'm furious. Another hour passes. Nothing. Dark soon, 6 miles to the car. Uphill. Another car, thumbs up, another denial. Another and another and another and another. No. Nope. Nadda. Nothing. Zip zap ziltch. Walk on.

Finally we get lucky. Kindly soul picks us up, swings us over to Wheeler Gorge just as the sun is finally setting. Long day. Walkabout. Crazy adventure. Done. Happy. At last. Walk on.





Total miles: 21.2*
Hiking time: 6h23m
Total trip time: 14h12m

Elevation gained: 3700 feet
Low point: 1514' High Point: 5322'

Daytime Low: 52.4 degrees Daytime High: 112 degrees




*including the hitchhiking




Sunrise.


High Point.


Overlook.


Noonday Hot.


Soak.


Mini-fall.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Hattie Russell #1

Hattie Russell #1
Reyes Peak
Sespe Backcountry, Calif.
May 2012






Standard Oil.


View.

Monday, June 18, 2012

Archives #1

Archives #1
June 2012




Cool thing #6 about being unemployed; finding long forgotten gems buried in dusty hard drives. I am constantly sending out job aps, re-doing my resume, and evaluating my portfolio. For the most part I seem to have the job hunt workflow down like an expert. Its dialed in. Like a finely tuned symphony. Like Big Casey at bat. Except that I am still unemployed. So maybe I'm not as expert as I would like to think. Even the mighty Casey struck out right. So these last few days I have been firing up long dormant hard drives and sifting through terabytes of images, designs, marketing pieces, emails, reference letters, and other assorted flotsam and jetsom. Ahhh the memories, it has been slightly productive but for the most part I sit back remembering times past. The good ole' days I suppose. I laugh. I cry. I promise to do better.

In my hunting today I stumbled across some of the first B&W images I made after I moved back to Maine. Man the memories they inspired. Crawling around in the dark. Exploring. Jumping fences. Picking locks. Totally illegal. Trespassing. Dodging coppers. Dodging the ghosts of Christmases past. Guessing exposure times. Its film, can't wing it? 30 seconds here. 1 minute there. 4 minutes on occasion. Holding my breath the whole time. 150 years of history at my finger tips, as long as security didn't catch me. Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. Back when photography was a passion not a paycheck. I miss it. God I miss it.




Closed.


Hall.


Electric.


Loom.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Pine Again

Pine Again
Reyes Peak, Calif.
June 2012




Shine.


Stand.


Set.


Site.


Star(s).

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Defeat

Defeat
Sonny McLean's
Santa Monica, Calif.
June 2012



Ventured down to sunny Santa Monica for Game 6 of the Celtics- Heat championship series. I love Sonny's-- the brick walls, molded ceilings, dark corners, and mischievous leprechauns remind me of home. The crowd, drabbed in a sea of Celtic green, was definitely pumped for the game. A hint of destiny was in the air. We were all brothers in arms, comrades against the world, huddled together in the cold unforgiving trenches of playoff basketball. We laughed together we cried together. Through rain and shine, through the ups and downs, through the minor victories and the eventual defeat we were one, bound by our dayglo green emotions. And then it was over. As fast as it started. Doneski. There is always next year.





Forlorn Hope.


Dashed.

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Pine Office

Pine Office
Pine Mtn.
May 2012




Open Air Office.

Bday Eats


Bday Eats
Pine Mtn
May 2012




Found out the road to Pine is now open. Snuck away for a few days. Eclipse, birthday chillaxing, hiking, climbing, star gazing, sunshinny daydreaming. Good for the soul. Needed it. Desperately.




Dead & Red.


Simple.


Morning Joe.


Joe's View.

Monday, June 11, 2012

Pine Bloom

Pine Bloom
Reyes Peak
May 2012



Thoughts on Light & Dark.




Lupine.


Sunspot.



Meadow.


Dusk.

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Stars

Stars
Piedra Blanca
May 2012




Firelight.

Tar

Tar
Sulphur Mtn.
May 2012




Flow.


Rainbow.

Friday, June 8, 2012

Chaff

Chaff
Sulphur Mtn.
May 2012




Leaves of.

May Gray

May Gray
Sulphur Mtn.
May 2012




Rolling.