After several months of posting here, I've decided to move the blog to a hosted account, using Wordpress as the blogging platform. For all who've enjoyed reading the Crude Analysiz Blog, thank you for your support, & I hope you'll continue to follow along in our hiking stories & gear reviews.
Please follow along at www.crudeanalysiz.com.
~The Pilgrim.
On Friday, May 22nd, I headed up to Franconia Notch State Park with my sweetheart, Beth, her sister & her boyfriend. Of course, my buddy Skippy Bones 
We took one car & drove up I-93 to NH, parked at the Lafayette Campground on the east side of 93. We figured on hiking up the Old Bridle Path towards Greenleaf Hut. It was chilly when we started out, and started later than we'd planned. But we pushed up the trail at a brisk pace. The views were fantastic as we drew closer to the hut. 
At the top of the climb where the hut rests the wind was really blowing good. On the way up I wore a long sleeve top & shorts. After a couple of minutes, I walked into the hut & talked a bit with one of the young guys working in the kitchen, asked him about a spot for us to camp for the night. He said there was a little clearing down the Greenleaf Trail a bit.
There's no camping within 1/4 mile of the huts in NH. There are signs marking the radius on the trails surrounding the huts. We hiked west down the Greenleaf Trail as the young guy at the hut had suggested. The trail is lined with rocks, easy to turn an ankle or trip. It wasn't long after we passed the 1/4 mile marker that Beth found a clearing to the left. The area is heavily wooded, but as we headed toward the clearing, we noticed several nice spots to set up a tent. It was getting late, we were all tired. The girls started dinner while Anthony & I set up the tents. Skippy explored the tent site.
It was chilly again on Sat morning, but not too bad. Our agenda, after breakfast of course, was to head back up Greenleaf Trail past the hut & up to Franconia Ridge/AT. It was good hiking, chilly but good. Lots of people were out this weekend for Memorial Day, and I think if the weather was a bit nicer, it would've been much busier.
There were 30-40 people up on Mount Lafayette when we reached the top. Lots of talking, eating, people asking how Skippy was doing on the trail, if
All the way up Mount Lafayette I was thinking & looking forward to a beautiful 360 degree view of the la
We headed south on the AT from the top of Lafayette. Over Lincoln & Little Haystack we passed, hiking beyond the junction of Falling Waters Trail. The AMC Liberty Spring Tentsite was less than 2 miles from the top of Little Haystack, but our intention was to set up
Late Sat night a storm swept through; wind, rain, thunder & lightning. The tents held up fine, though sleep was off & on because of all the noise. Our thoughts were on the climb back up the mountain to reach the Falling Waters Trail. There were some good size boulders we encountered on the descent. Things always seem a bit worse when you're tired.
Falling Waters Trail was everything I'd heard it was, beautiful waterfalls & gorgeous scenery. At one point we lost the trail, going beyond the trail marker. I think we didn't see it because we were too interested in the sloping rocks before us. After we realized that there was nowhere to go but into a pool of water, we turned back up the rocks & found the marker, then continued back on the trail. The detour took about 10 minutes of our time. The lower we descended, the sunnier & warmer it felt, and the park was crowded with hikers. We reached the parking lot around 2 pm. As Slightly would say, "Good Times."
~The Pilgrim.
This past Sunday, May 10th, my lovely woman & I went into Boston to watch the Red Sox play the Tampa Bay R
We took the train in from Wollaston, on the way discussing the weather & what we'd eat once we were inside the Park. A Fenway Frank was at the top of the list, of course! I think it wasn't until the end of the fifth inning when we went to go get some food. Standing in line at one of the hotdog stands, my sweetheart says to me, "Honey, look at the guy in the back, look at what he's doing." When I first caught sight of the young guy, in the back of the work area within the stand itself, I wasn't sure if what I was seeing was what I thought I was seeing.
This young guy, standing behind one of the food preparation counters, was taking the foil bags, those which hold your hotdog after it's placed in the bun; you know those foil bags? One at a time, he'd pick one up, open it & place it on a tray where one of the other employees could take it & throw a hotdog in. Well, in his bright, young mind, he figured he could speed up the process of opening the bags by blowing into them. Yes, that's right, he was blowing air, with his mouth, into each of the foil bags!
My sweetheart walked over to the side of the stand, calling to another employee. She then explained to them how the guy in the back was blowing into the foil bags as he was opening them. There were at least three other employees working the stand who, when hearing of the bright activity of their teammate, turned & looked at him in amazement. One of the girls asked him clearly, "Were you really doing that?" His response was to hold his hands in an outward gesture, as if to say, "What?"
I called back to him, "You don't understand, do you?" Once again, he held out his hands to his sides, a look of "what's the big deal?" on his face. "You're wearing plastic gloves on your hands and you're blowing into the bags. Kind of defeats the purpose of germ prevention." He didn't understand, and I don't mean he didn't understand english. He didn't understand what the big deal was about blowing into the bags.
It's commonly known that when you blow onto or into something you are, in essence, spitting onto or into that something. Tiny particles of saliva are leaving your mouth, each filled with little germ passengers, to spread their message of sickness & bacteria to others. This is how viruses & common colds are passed around. This is how the dreaded Human Swine Flu is contracted. It's unbelievable to me how this young food vendor would even think of doing something as irresponsible as blowing into or onto anything within a food establishment!
Now, I'm not saying this kid is passing around the Swine Flu or any flu for that matter. But he's not thinking about what he's doing, and that could be because he's not being educated properly in how he should handle himself within his job environment. Maybe there should be some stricter regulations on the food vendors within all ballparks, not just at Fenway Park. I love Fenway Park & I love the Red Sox! I love the Fenway Franks & giant pretzels. But I love my health much more, and think that maybe someone should look into this.
~The Pilgrim.
If you've been an ultralight hiker for any great length of time, then you've probably heard of a guy by the name of Steve Gillman. If you haven't, then go and check out http://www.the-ultralight-site.com/. Steve has posted countless articles on the subjects of hiking & backpacking, wilderness tips & some other subjects as well.
Most everyone in the backpacking community knows of Ray Jardine, commonly known as the father of ultralight backpacking. Ray's revolutionary ideas & views on hiking with lighter weight has literally transformed the way thousands of people all over the world enjoy the outdoor world today. His site, http://www.rayjardine.com/, is packed full of tips & kits for sale, everything from making your own pack to tarp-tent, backpack to knife-making kit. Lots of good stuff at reasonable prices.
Steve Gillman has done much to further educate hikers & backpackers in the area of ultralight hiking. His latest article on building a wilderness shelter can be seen at http://ezinearticles.com/?id=2298274. It's a really good article. His book, Ultralight Backpacking Secrets, can be downloaded through his site for $7. The information found in his book is well worth more than the $7 charge.
I've implented quite a few of the suggestions from Steve's book, as well as other articles of his. So, for anyone looking to gain a bit of knowledge & more insight into ultralight hiking, head on over to Steve's site & check it out.
~Till next time, The Pilgrim.
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