Monday, March 18, 2024

Last Week Of Winter Wichita Bluff Nature Area Nature Communing


On this third Monday of the 2024 version of March, it was back to the Wichita Bluff Nature Area I ventured today, for some hilly nature communing.

As you can see the sky is a bright clear blue, except some white exhaust spewed from a Sheppard Air Force Base jet.

The temperature was in the mid 50s zone, not quite back to chilly winter-like, but nowhere near being in the HOT summer-like zone of the past couple weeks.

Spring is scheduled to arrive later this week.


I hiked to the highest point on the bluffs, looking east at the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Wichita Falls on the horizon.

It has been several months since I went hiking the bluffs. It was quite invigorating. The distance to the Wichita Bluff Nature Area, from my abode, is the furthest distance of any of my local hiking destinations.

Tomorrow, weather permitting, methinks I shall be back at Sikes Lake. I was there yesterday. Several goose spooking coyotes have been installed around the lake...

Sunday, March 17, 2024

Microsoft OneDrive Memory Remembering Biking Lover's Leap In Waco


Another Microsoft OneDrive Memory from this Day that I remember, sort of.

I know that is me looking at the lens of my antique, long gone, Casio digital camera, with its taking a selfie feature, well before such became a common thing.

And that is my long gone Schwinn Moab mountain bike behind me. That bike died five bikes ago, with the aluminum frame braking whilst I was having a fine time on the Horseshoe Trail in Grapevine.

I am fairly certain, in this photo, my bike and I are in Cameron Park in Waco. That park has some of the best mountain trails I have pedaled on. The trails have names and markers indicating their difficulty level. If I remember correctly, and sometimes I do, one diamond meant easy trail, two diamonds meant less easy, on up to five diamonds, which indicated difficult, for expert riders only.

I remember finding the one and two diamond trails treacherous enough for me. I did not attempt any of the three, four or five diamond trails.

There is a cliff in Cameron Park, called Lover's Leap. The leap is into the Brazos River, far below. If I remember correctly one of the five diamond trails took off from Lover's Leap...


Saturday, March 16, 2024

Lovely Linda Lou Takes Us To Daffodils & Mount Rainier


 A couple days ago I posted a blog post titled Seeing Real Islands From Summit Of Washington's Mount Erie in which I made mention of the fact that a time or two I had been surprised to see Mount Rainier, to the south, from the Skagit Flats.

And then yesterday, the Skagit Valley's lovely Linda Lou, text messaged me the photo you see above.

The Skagit Flats ablaze with the yellow of thousands of daffodils, with the Mount Rainier volcano hovering in the distance.

I surely do miss living in a zone of multiple scenic wonders...

Friday, March 15, 2024

Seeing Mount Baker Takes Me To Fir Island & Fort Worth's Imaginary Panther Island


I never tire of seeing photos from my old home zone, especially photos of Mount Baker, a volcano I used to be able to see from my living room windows in Mount Vernon.

I saw the instance you see here, this morning, on Facebook. The view is either from some location on the Skagit Flats, or from Fir Island.

Fir Island is a real island, not an imaginary island, such as one day the town of Fort Worth, Texas hopes to see.

Fort Worth's imaginary island will be claiming to be such after a cement lined ditch is dug, with Trinity River water diverted into that ditch.

Ironically, Fir Island also is created by being surrounded by river water. At Fir Island the Skagit River splits into two forks, the North and South Forks of the Skagit River.

Wikipedia has an article about Fir Island. The article makes mention of the worst natural disaster I have witnessed up close. In the early 1990s a Pineapple Express brought extreme flooding to Western Washington.

The flooding was so extreme that the flood level was predicted to inundate downtown Mount Vernon. So, hundreds of people helped build a sandbag wall to try and hold back the flood. I was watching the 11 o'clock news when it went live to Mount Vernon, showing the feverish activity, filling sandbags, including sailors from the Navy base on Whidbey Island.

By midnight I was in downtown Mount Vernon, helping to build the sandbag wall. The wall was complete around 3 in the morning.

The flood crest was expected to hit Mount Vernon around 11 in the morning. At that point of time I joined the huge crowd, waiting on high ground for the crest to happen. You could see the river was about to go over the sandbag wall, when, suddenly, the river level dropped a couple feet.

No one knew what had happened. Soon, there were sirens blaring. At one point I remember seeing a helicopter with a cow strapped in below it. I do not remember how long it was til we learned the dike at Fir Island had failed, flooding the island.

There is currently no Wikipedia about Fort Worth's imaginary Panther Island. I doubt there ever will be...


Thursday, March 14, 2024

Hiking The Lucy Park Jungle With Nephew Jason In Hawaii


With the National Weather Service issuing a dire warning about possible extreme downpours, flash flooding, strong wind, hail, thunderstorms and possible tornadoes it was to Lucy Park I ventured today, under a semi-cloudy sky, for some high-speed endorphin acquisition, hiking the Lucy Park backwoods jungle.

You can see via the photo documentation that the Lucy Park backwoods jungle is in jungle restoration mode, with the ground solidly green, and with leaves slowly returning to the trees.

Hot today, in the 80s, but saw no slithering reptiles. Not even a lizard.

Meanwhile, in tropical Hawaii.


Email from my Favorite Nephew Jason, this morning, currently way closer to the equator than his regular location in Washington

I do not believe Spencer Jack is with his dad, this time, in Honolulu. Spencer Jack's dad confirmed what Spencer Jack's grandma told me a couple days ago, that being that Spencer Jack turned 17 about a week ago.

Seems like only yesterday I met Spencer Jack for the first time. In August of 2008, at Bay View State Park, in Skagit County, in Washington. Spencer was around two years old at that point in time.

I next saw Spencer Jack in March of 2012, in Arizona. Spencer was around six years old at that point in time.

My most recent Spencer Jack sighting was in August of 2017, at Birch Bay, slightly south of the border with Canada. Spencer was around 12 at that point in time.

The older I get the faster times seems to fly by. I do not like it, not at all...

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Lake Wichita Park's Mount Wichita New Parking Lot Finally Open For Business


At my old age it does not take much to please me. Way back before Thanksgiving of 2023 a paving project began in Lake Wichita Park, installing a new entry road and parking lot.

The project was estimated to take around five weeks to complete.

And now, several months later than five weeks, the project is complete, and the new parking lot is open, giving close access to the towering monolith known as Mount Wichita.

I was at this location just two days ago, and found the entry still blocked, so, it was pleasing to return today to find the parking lot open, with a lot of others also enjoying finding the parking lot open.

I know a new parking lot seems like no big deal. But, this location has been annoying since I first discovered it soon upon moving to Wichita Falls. Prior to its current brand new condition, the road and parking lot was a pothole infested, dirty, dusty, rocky mess, requiring going real slow and carefully navigating around the worst of the potholes.

Extremely windy today, with the temperature in the 80s. I had a mighty fine long walk, acquiring oodles of endorphins via the aerobic stimulation...

Seeing Real Islands From Summit Of Washington's Mount Erie


Saw that which you see here, yesterday, on Facebook. The view from the summit of Mount Erie, looking south. Mount Erie is public park land owned and managed by the city of Anacortes.

Mount Erie is on an island. Fidalgo Island to be precise. 

Seeing this photo put me in mind of a town in Texas called Fort Worth. Fort Worth has been trying real hard to have itself an island, where no body of island-providing water exists.

This attempt to make Fort Worth, what would amount to being an imaginary island, has been going on for over two decades.

During those over two decades the main progress towards having that imaginary island has been the building of three simple little freeway overpass type bridges, built over an astonishing seven-year time span, over dry land, intending, eventually, hopefully, to connect Fort Worth's mainland to that imaginary island.

I have long opined that apparently most people in Fort Worth have zero clue as to what an island is. Yes, it is a chunk of land, surrounded by water, but an island is not a chunk of land, rendered to be an island, due to digging a cement-lined ditch and diverting river water into that ditch.

In the above photo you see several real islands, in addition to the one the people in the photo are standing on. They are looking down on Lake Campbell, with that lake having an actual island at its center.

That island on Lake Campbell is an island on an island. 

Looking south from the top of Mount Erie ones sees several other islands. Those islands are in Puget Sound, located to the east of Deception Pass. Deception Pass is to the right of the photo, with that big chunk of land towards the upper right being Whidbey Island. That being another actual real island. A really big actual real island.

Wikipedia has an article about Mount Erie, which I found interesting. A blurb from that article...

On a clear day, Mount Baker, about 43 miles (69 km) to the northeast, and Mount Rainier, about 117 miles (188 km) to the southeast, can be seen from the summit.

I have been at the summit of Mount Erie countless times. I do not recollect seeing Mount Rainier and Mount Baker from the summit. I likely do no recollect seeing those two volcanoes, from that vantage point, because it was not unusual to see those two volcanoes from various Washington vantage points.

The one sighting of Mount Rainier that I do remember as unusual was seeing that volcano whilst on the Skagit Flats, with the mountain being a distant white pimple on the horizon.

If you ever get to travel to Washington, and to Fidalgo Island, you'll want to visit Anacortes and the famous Fidalgo Drive-In, operated by my nephew Jason and his first born, Spencer Jack. After having a cheeseburger and blackberry milkshake, make your way to Mount Erie. It is a fun twist and turning drive to the summit, where you'll find a maze of trails and bridges across chasms. 

Mount Erie was one of my favorite go to places when I lived in the neighborhood...

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Microsoft OneDrive Remembers Lake Powell Houseboating


Today's email from Microsoft's OneDrive had another Memory from this Day that I actually remember. 

Well, more precisely, I remember what I am seeing in this photo, but it definitely was not a memory from this day in March.

Back in the 1990s I houseboated twice on Lake Powell, in Utah. Both times the houseboating took place in October, not March. The clickable link goes to multiple webpages from the first time I houseboated on Lake Powell.

Since I houseboated on Lake Powell the houseboats have been upgraded to include satellite TV, and, I think, microwaves. The peace and quiet on Lake Powell is so pleasant it seems criminal to add the noise of TVs.

The clearest night sky I have ever been under was the first Lake Powell float. The second October float was under clouds. And rain. Which was somewhat fun, what with it making for a wild ride hitting waves generated by the wind. And waterfalls falling down the cliffs.

Last I heard the water level had fallen so much that boats are not on the lake. 

Monday, March 11, 2024

Pleased To Use Caution Today At Mount Wichita


It has been a few days since I acquired myself some endorphins via outdoor aerobic activity, due to the return of semi-winter-like weather. Chilly, windy, overcast, with some drippage and thunderstorming.

But, today, on this second Monday of the third month of 2024, with ten days til the arrival of Spring, it was back to Lake Wichita Park I ventured, for a long walk around Mount Wichita.

I was not the only one out having themselves a mighty fine time today under the clear blue sky.


I saw a kid and his dog make their way to the summit of Mount Wichita. The kid's mom made it about halfway before giving up.

Hiking to the summit of Mount Wichita looks like it should be easy.

It is not easy.

Ascending gets the heart beating fast, descending is treacherous, way too easy to twist an ankle or take a tumble.

Hence the multiple signs advising to PLEASE USE CAUSTION WHEN CLIMBING HILL.

I do not know why the only thing slightly resembling a mountain, for miles in any direction, is referred to as a HILL. 

Sunday, March 10, 2024

Microsoft Remembers Ruby Leading Grandma Miss Daisy Down An Arizona Street


Another day where I remember some of the Microsoft OneDrive Memories from this Day.

What you see here happened in March of 2019. I do not remember exactly what day in March.

Just realized, I likely blogged about this day. Just a sec, I shall see if that is the case.

Yes, on Monday, March 11, 2019 I posted a blog post about that which you see here, with the actual day this happened being two days prior, on Saturday, March 9, 2019

The blog post title was Cool Arizona Pool With Theo Driving Ruby On Handlebars.

My sister, Jackie was a bit surprised when suddenly all the kids, and me, got in her pool. Jackie thought it too cool to pool. I was used to getting in a cool pool in Texas. 

The photo above happened after having fun in the cool pool. Ruby led the way to a nearby park, with me wheeling Ruby's grandma, also known as Miss Daisy. This day was the last time my mom had all her kids, but the one none of us get along with, at the same place at the same time.

This was a fun day.


That would be me lifting nephew David out of the pool. This was five years ago. I do not think I could manage to lift the current version of David.

I also probably could not lift the current version of David's little brother and sister, Theo and David. The kids have grown a lot since I last saw them, five years ago.

I probably could lift the newest members of the Slotemaker Jones family, Hank Frank and Cade...