Posts by ericphelps@mastodon.social
(DIR) Post #Aw80id5ql4WnTszDe4 by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-07-14T01:51:17Z
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12 mile (19km) walk along the river. Surprised myself by getting on an unfamiliar side trail. That's getting hard to do since I've been walking the roughly 50 miles of trails I can reach from my house for quite a while. Still waiting for those 40C days I know are coming! Today was only 99F (37C).#hiking
(DIR) Post #AwThHRPLyr08ITDa9Q by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-07-25T02:36:07Z
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@stannard I, uh, what? Oh! Dry spaghetti! Now it makes sense!
(DIR) Post #AwqmIX8NKzj2kjVvGa by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-08-04T12:56:00Z
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When I'm out hiking, I always take the path less traveled. On almost every outing, it means I discover a dead end and have to backtrack or bushwhack.I had a good laugh walking with the river on my right and suddenly noticing water on my left as well. I didn't realize what that meant until I reached the very obvious point of a peninsula. Okay, backtracking it is! But then there's the good part about going off popular trails and following rough deer trails. You run into deer!#hiking
(DIR) Post #AxifO0tvstanNWGD3o by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-08-31T02:02:22Z
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Another hike cut short because Saturday mornings with my wife, well, the little things we do together make me smile. It's hard to rush what's become a tradition. So I only had time for 12 miles before it was suddenly dinner time.But you know, you can visit a lot of nice places in 12 miles!Wife asked me to go check out a new trail that opened nearby. You won't see those pictures. Ugly place under power lines with a paved bike trail and no shade. It's a shortcut, not a destination.#hiking
(DIR) Post #AxjFABciooxiveusGe by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-08-31T12:28:35Z
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@stannard 😂
(DIR) Post #AyBSM5peupSkGxqxto by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-09-14T02:13:19Z
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Hiking with my wife in the Plumas Forest (California USA). Only 4 miles with about 1000 feet of elevation gain. I couldn't ask for a better day to be out hiking. Perfect weather, clear skies, no bugs, no bears.My wife wasn't thrilled with all the climbing, but she made it – which matters because she's the one who picked the route! #hike
(DIR) Post #AyR5yRIeV82TflwVY8 by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-09-21T02:31:23Z
0 likes, 1 repeats
Yay, I made it up the South Fork of the American River! It was 14 miles of kayaking, but it should have been 16 because I got lost AGAIN. I mean, this time I paid attention to where my little launch inlet was, but my brain said "no way, it can't possibly be there" when I came back. Didn't actually make it all the way to the Salmon Falls Bridge because the water got too shallow and too fast. Found a place to beach, then hiked the last 200 yards to get a picture of the bridge.#kayaking
(DIR) Post #AyzV9OO3aB13Sz3Tns by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-10-06T01:48:26Z
0 likes, 1 repeats
Had a mandatory party on Saturday, so had to do a Sunday hike. Only did 9 miles due to time constraints. And when I'm pressed for time, I head for the worst places I can! No, you won't see them in the pictures. They're the places where you go off-trail, then go off from that. Places where things are so dense you can't move more than 10 feet without stopping to evaluate your next move. So. Much. Fun.Pics are when I was in open spaces. Also fun!#hiking
(DIR) Post #Az8s4TSVLS9f7IOmX2 by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-10-12T15:02:56Z
0 likes, 1 repeats
Well, I may not be getting as many miles in, but I'm having more fun! Cut my normal 15 mile urban hike down to 10.5 miles due to time constraints. The more I get off the established trails, the slower I get. Worth it. Adventure trumps distance.This link is for @hikingdude who thinks I do advanced stuff. See, it's all just poking around in the woods:https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNr7ZsEzXZssp4F_3YtsZMMHAHalWp-76#hiking
(DIR) Post #Azpy1XYMiRtFbDYToG by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-11-02T14:03:41Z
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@stannard Ahh, yes. The downside of cooking is cleaning. But my daily job is cleaning up after my wife's cooking, so I don't mind that part. But cooking… I haven't cooked since I got married. When my wife goes out, I just make salads.Remember when we were independent men who could completely take care of ourselves? And now… now we're happier.
(DIR) Post #B09mhhvdZjRdOzYZtY by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-11-12T03:31:05Z
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@stannard Not the same. Well, it'll be interesting!
(DIR) Post #B0WtEMsCNHomvj8pqi by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-11-23T04:06:56Z
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16 miles today and the pictures don't do it justice. The colors were so intense I found myself taking pictures every 50 feet. The low sun angle really makes the colors pop! It was my "normal" creeks/river/lake walk, but I added in some bushwhacking and rock hopping. If I find myself on any trail wider than 1 foot, I'm highly likely to "turn left" and see what happens. Things got interesting for a bit, but I didn't get into any trouble.More pics/movie:https://www.relive.com/view/v26Mzr3NLEq#hiking
(DIR) Post #B0kN7qAbrXUBXLuho8 by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-11-29T01:14:05Z
0 likes, 1 repeats
Super short 6 mile walk today, so I headed to the "hundred acre wood". Saw 3 deer and a flock of turkeys.Look at those woods! How can you not abandon the trail and just head out "cross country"? Got a bit trapped, the first 100 feet were awesome, then it devolved into knee-high blackberry vines (thorny!). Pushed through anyway. And that narrow trail down the cliff? I always skip that trail because of the soft dirt and slick mud, but today I put on the crampons. Wow. Five stars!#hiking
(DIR) Post #B109HiDryYRMxHbtq4 by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-12-07T02:01:47Z
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It started out as a nice hike on a foggy cold day, and then I looked right. Hey, that's a cliff. Why haven't I noticed that before? Let's walk up to the edge and look down. Hey, I think that's a dry creek down there. How can I… Let's walk along the edge for a while. Okay, it's only 45° here, wet grass, mud, not really safe, should I rappel down, or… oh, heck, let's just put on the crampons and walk down like a civilized fellow.I found a new spot. Gonna have to explore that more!#hiking
(DIR) Post #B120wxFQVUKK9kqj4q by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-12-08T02:50:46Z
0 likes, 1 repeats
From my hike yesterday… On the way back as I was crossing a bridge, I looked up and saw a large number of birds circling above. I just stood there on the side of the bridge, looking up. Very cool.Then I saw a "V" formation of more birds heading my way on a collision course with the birds I was watching. Well, this'll be interesting!They passed right through the original bunch, banked as a group, and started their own overlapping circling.
(DIR) Post #B1KjCCmMwAibUwcR2e by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-12-17T03:46:43Z
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Today's work was visiting a nearby air traffic control tower. It was an old tower they abandoned, and now they're refurbishing it and making it the "new tower". I was there to do a "site survey" for an AWOS relocation and a new ATIS (if you're a pilot, you'll know, and if you're not, you won't care).The reason I'm glad they're saving the tower is the awesome painting on the wall of the stairwell.
(DIR) Post #B1L29LnGrZyziUORJQ by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-12-17T11:38:01Z
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@stannard No, I'll have to check it out. My guess is 60 years ago when the tower was built.
(DIR) Post #B1SrRCqpZaXrQmnvXc by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-12-21T02:02:12Z
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Well, I moved into my new 35L backpack and can finally carry everything inside. And it's long enough I can actually use the hip belt. It's perfect!I hate it. It turns out I carry 19 lbs. Water, purifier, rappelling gear, crampons, snake gaiters, rain gear… it all adds up. Before, I'd been carrying all the bits clipped all over me. Now all that weight is concentrated, and wow, I can feel the difference. The 10-mile hike today felt like 20.I'll get used to it 😠🏋️#hiking
(DIR) Post #B1o3oVVjdqaBjVyMYy by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2025-12-30T23:16:07Z
0 likes, 1 repeats
I'm just going to throw this out there. Has anybody had software decide it's already 2026?
(DIR) Post #B2v1dhNwTd3rTph1rk by ericphelps@mastodon.social
2026-02-02T01:43:18Z
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Awww, well, it was a learning moment. I was walking over a small bridge and saw an ornate pipe sticking out of the ground. Curious, I reached up on top and blindly felt around with my fingers for a bit. Then I figured "you know, maybe I should use the selfie camera to see what's up there".Have I ever mentioned how often I do the stupidest things and get away with it?