Dan's Outside

2003.08.26

***Sir Wilfred Thesiger, Renowed Explorer and Writer, Dies at 93.
Wilfred Thesiger was arguably the last of the world’s great explorers and lucky enough to have lived at a time when the globe still had some uncharted corners. By Paul Lewis. [New York Times: NYT HomePage]

The heir to great 19th-century venturers like Livingstone, Stanley, Speke and Burton, Sir Wilfred was a restless, insatiable traveler throughout his life; he eventually won medals named for Livingstone, Burton and Lawrence of Arabia. He was also a man of private wealth, a misogynist and a romantic who hated the modern world and found nobility in the primitive life.

***It’s a Jungle Out There for the Fearsome Beasts.
Extinction faces more and more of the great, meat-eating predators, says the science writer David Quammen in his absorbing new book. By Michiko Kakutani. [New York Times: Arts]

***Study Confirms ‘Stakeholders’ Gave Advice to Energy Panel.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 25 The General Accounting Office issued its final report today on how Vice President Dick Cheney came up with the administration energy policy two years ago. The accounting office said it had to piece together scraps of information from other sources because the vice president’s panel had been so unresponsive. By Katharine Q. Seelye. [New York Times: Business]
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August 26, 2003 Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary | Comments Off on 2003.08.26

2003.08.23

***New Kind of Electricity Market Strains Old Wires Beyond Limits.
Consumers have learned a difficult lesson about the electricity grid: it was an afterthought during the decade-long process of deregulating the power industry. By Neela Banerjee and David Firestone. [New York Times: NYT HomePage]

***EPA misled public on 9/11 pollution
– White House ordered false assurances on air quality, report says [SFGate]

The draft statement contained a warning from EPA scientists that homes and businesses near ground zero should be cleaned by professionals. Instead, the public was told to follow instructions from New York City officials.

Another draft statement was deleted; it raised concerns about “sensitive populations” such as asthma patients, the elderly and people with underlying respiratory diseases.

A statement about discovery of asbestos at higher than safe levels in dust samples from lower Manhattan was changed to state that “samples confirm previous reports that ambient air quality meets OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) standards and consequently is not a cause for public concern.”

Language in an EPA draft stating that asbestos levels in some areas were three times higher than national standards was changed to “slightly above the 1 percent trigger for defining asbestos material.”

***A more pleasant topic
– I took this photo yesterday at Almaden Quicksilver Park.

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August 23, 2003 Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary | Comments Off on 2003.08.23

2003.08.22

Late-summer managed fire in Yosemite National Park. Date unknown.

***A new hike today
– at least partially. I went to my same old trailhead at Almaden Quicksilver County Park and started up the usual trail. On a lark, I took an old use trail that branched off near the bottom of the trail, and followed it up a creek until it ended. From there I cut up the hillside though some trees, to emerge on a newly graded trail.
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August 22, 2003 Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary | Comments Off on 2003.08.22

FireSmokeYosemite

Smoke from late-summer managed fire in Yosemite National Park. Date unknown.
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August 22, 2003 Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary | Comments Off on FireSmokeYosemite

DenaliCaribou2002

Caribou near Savage Creek. Denali National Park, Alaska. July 2002.
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August 21, 2003 Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary | Comments Off on DenaliCaribou2002

RocksStreamUpperPioneerBasin

Rocks and stream in upper Pioneer Basin. Sierra Nevada range. August 5, 2003.
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August 21, 2003 Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary | Comments Off on RocksStreamUpperPioneerBasin

BearCreekSpireReflection

Bear Creek Spire reflection. August 3, 2003.
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August 21, 2003 Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary | Comments Off on BearCreekSpireReflection

2003.08.21

Bear Creek Spire reflection. Eastern Sierra Nevada. August 3, 2003.

***Red tape takes a hike, and a trail is born:
Public to get first close look at ecologically rich Peninsula watershed – “It was closely guarded and fiercely debated. The endangered red-legged frogs could perish. Nonnative plants could take over. Fires would surely ignite. Terrorists, posing as hikers, could taint San Francisco’s water supply.”

“Now, the decadelong battle over a pristine stretch of land 13 miles south of San Francisco has ended. Beginning Saturday, a sliver of the long-off- limits Crystal Springs Watershed in San Mateo County will provide free tours to small groups of bikers, hikers and equestrians.” [SFGate]

Its about time. San Francisco has locked up huge sections of Bay Area open space for years. Now let’s hope that they fully open this area – and open up some of the others that are still closed.

***Yosemite landmark falls – Sentinel Dome’s oft-photographed Jeffrey pine topples
– “Yosemite’s famous Jeffrey pine on Sentinel Dome — whose poetic beauty and unique, wind-swept formation made it one of the most photographed trees in the park, if not the world — has crashed down.”

“The gnarled tree, photographed by Carleton Watkins in 1867 and later made famous by Ansel Adams, had stood dead since a severe drought in 1977. It finally fell sometime last week, most likely between Aug. 9 and 11, after a series of severe storms, said Yosemite spokeswoman Deb Schweizer.” [SFGate]

When I was in junior high school I did a lot of black and white photography – trying to emulate Ansel Adams, who I heard speak at a local college. Somewhere I have a black and white print of a photo I took of the tree when it was still alive.
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August 21, 2003 Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary | Comments Off on 2003.08.21

2003.08.19

***Ogden Nash.
[Quotes of the Day]

I think that I shall never see
a billboard lovely as a tree.
Perhaps, unless the billboards fall,
I’ll never see a tree at all.

***Patterns: Altitude Perils at High Weights.
People who are obese may want to think twice before going to high altitudes. By Eric Nagourney. [New York Times: Health]
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August 19, 2003 Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary | Comments Off on 2003.08.19

2003.08.17

***A Wet Spring and a Hot Summer Bring West Nile Virus to Colorado.
The state has the worst outbreak of the West Nile virus in the nation this year with at least seven deaths. By Nick Madigan. [New York Times: NYT HomePage]

Most of the advice I’ve heard for dealing with West Nile Virus has been pretty unrealistic, at least if you are in mosquito country. You can use all the mosquito repellant you want and wear long sleeves and long pants and you are still bound to get some bites. Fortunately, I also hear that the virus is not serious in most cases – only a small minority turn into serious illness.
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August 17, 2003 Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary | Comments Off on 2003.08.17