Hiking Southwest Utah and Adjacent Areas, Volume Three (Book) - 10/1/2020 9:52:35 AM
Thanks for writing these wonderful guidebooks for those would like to get out under the desert skies and explore these beautiful landscapes you have trekked. Unfortunately, I can't anymore, but my thoughts are with you on the trail.
Ron
Hiking Southern Nevada, Volume One (Book) - 5/9/2018 6:42:44 AM
You are one hiking fool, but I mean that in a good way. Not only have you covered the best trails in Utah, you now have taken on Southern Nevada as well. From what I read earlier, I think anyone would really enjoy using your guides to make their hikes easier and more enjoyable.
My younger brother has hiked all over Arizona and going to places rarely or never visited finding many ancient archaeological artifacts and drawings/carvings. He just lost his labor of love, a huge log home, to the Tinder Fire, Southeast of Flagstaff, and will have to start over.
Ron
Too Many Choices? (Article) - 11/15/2020 10:20:50 AM
A well-thought- bit of cereal economics. I have three different boxes of cornflakes waiting to be opened and eaten by me, but none of them are the original. On the other hand, your analysis is quite narrow when it comes to over choice.
Alvin Toffler in 1970 described Future Shock as those who have so many choices that they make the wrong ones and cannot move into future thinking. I see it everywhere today. Especially in older people who are stuck in the past.
The economy is like nature. Business ideas are generated every day and new businesses created. Marketing drives these businesses and advertising makes things better than they really are. Everyone has a business idea, a new cereal if you will. Most fail for various reasons that I will not go into. But those that succeed become part of our choice that grows like finding new continents every few years. Old obsolete products and services die hard. Often kept in place by the power of money, not validity or worth.
At first there were two cereal manufacturers. Kellogg's and Post. They were in constant lawsuit against each other but both managed large portions of the cereal market. They since have been absorbed into other companies in the growing trend for international corporations. So many new cereals are gobbled up by these huge cereal eating companies beholden to no government that literally run our world today. Just a look at the last 20 years and you see monopolies of a strange type, all digits in the ethernet, very hard to put in your cereal bowl, delivering your daily dose of a selection of 1000 cereals from all over the world to your back yard breakfast table by drone. Including freshly milked milk and cream still warm from the cow.
But where's the competition that makes the economy great? It's consumerism. The more cereal we buy the better the economy is. Not whether we are making wise choices. It takes many years for destructive cereals poisoning us to be identified, brought to the attention of people, and banned… Hopefully by the choice of the consumer, but don't count on it. There are always those that will discredit science and call it "fake." The earth is still flat. And flat taxes will solve the cereal tax problem forever.
Ron
Elkhart Cliffs Canyon (Article) - 6/14/2018 8:36:53 AM
That certainly is a dramatic picture. The wall is so vertical and the base is so flat, that it looks like it's man-made. My brother lives in Elkhart, but I didn't think there were any canyons there. And then, I realized that he lives in Indiana and this canyon you're writing about is in Utah. ;-)
I really love the detail that you provide, making it easy for someone to find these places you enjoy so much. Unfortunately, my opportunity to visit a slot canyon is long gone in this electric wheelchair.
Ron
Hiking Southern Utah: Kanab’s toadstools are cool (Article) - 5/9/2018 8:12:33 AM
While I never will be able to take that hike, your detailed description made me feel like I was there in my mind's eye as I read. You are that good as a travelogue writer.
A few years ago I saw in the news where I believe it was Boy Scouts (?) that had videoed themselves tipping the tops of these toadstools off their pedestals. You noted that in millions of years the wind was unable to topple them, along with no other natural phenomena or animal. It is only humans they can do such destruction inane and terrible destruction. While videos of actions like this may encourage other idiots to try, there also is a learning the for the general public for what not to do. Your written cautions are a great help for neophytes who don't know that they are doing wrong when they don't protect these precious and fragile environments.
Ron
2017 Thanksgiving Thankful List (Article) - 11/24/2017 9:01:27 AM
Thanks to my partner my salads are very exotic and don't contain those usual salad bar ingredients you mentioned. And, like you, without something to cause it to all stick together and slide down the throat, eating salad like that would still be delicious, but harder to do.
Cats have that kind of perception primarily to catch mice, their natural primary food. They can hear mice squeaking in the walls.
Although I was caught twice and paid the fine, Houston outlawed traffic light cameras, because the locals would rather be outlaws than save a few lives from T-bone collisions.
My contact lens that I bought in 1962 are in my bathroom drawer. I had to quit wearing them in 1963 when I could no longer put them in with my paralyzed hands. Fortunately, although I have myopia (glasses for outdoors) I watch television, read and dictate this without the aid of any granny glasses--man, am I thankful for that!
While I've been unable to explore much since being unable to walk 25 years ago, I am thankful for National Geographic, History and Animal Planet channels to give me a look at nearly every corner of the world, sometimes from drones that even from the backs of birds and wild animals.
While on the road, I usually eat fast food for expediency. When I have time, little out-of-the-way restaurants, are certainly a treat. Although the Family Café, with its canned corn at the height of the sweetcorn harvest, tough old meat, and other overcooked canned platitudes, made me wish for a franchise restaurant where I knew what I was getting. ;-)
I am thankful that the skin cancer was benign and that the blood clot can be treated here at home.
Ron
2017 Thanksgiving Thankful List (Article) - 11/23/2017 5:04:01 PM
It is usually the simple things in every day life that many of us are thankful for, and Tom's writing reflects that to me. I like the line about his cats as I have one to be thankful for myself. I enjoyed reading his list, great job Tom.
Happy Thanksgiving,
RobertJ
White Owl Canyon Trail: Slots in the Wilderness (Article) - 11/16/2017 8:06:50 AM
I enjoy walking in your shoes since I have been able to walk for 25 years as you take these little excursions from Utah and other parts of the West. I am fortunate to have a disabled pass to all national parks and monuments. And have used it quite a few times. I understand that there is no legislation being proposed to double the cost of the public's access to these national treasures and it's a shame because their budgets have been so curtailed in recent years.
As always your descriptions make me feel like I'm actually there. I have seen barn owls around barns, not slot canyons, so I know what you're writing about. The lowering of water in Western reservoirs like like Mead should present some interesting excursions to places like the former Glen Canyon where wonders there were flooded. Looking forward to your next post…
Ron
Stone Cabin Trail at Spring Valley State Park, Nevada (Article) - 8/24/2017 6:19:01 AM
One of the country's little-known secrets is the beauty and variety of state parks. Except during peak seasons when local people descend upon these places, one can find solitude amid beauty of great variety and state parks.
From your description, Stone Cabin Trail in Spring Valley State Park, Nevada is one of those gems. And, from your description, can be done in one day from your home in California… Cool.
Reminds me of the Memorial Day when my ex-wife and I were looking for a place to have a picnic. We decided to drive the 30 miles or so to Sealy Texas to Stephen F Austin State Park. We took her dog, Toby, with us. When we got to the scenic park, we were all alone on a holiday high point for tourists… Strange. Toby enjoyed playing with an armadillo and we saw deer everywhere when we left at dusk.
Ron
I’m Just Sayin’ (Article) - 4/21/2017 5:02:06 AM
Very well written and appropriate. Makes me recall a poem I wrote about the overuse of the word, "like." Or a phrase like, "do you see what I'm saying?" And the overuse of, "you know," as if by hearing you're supposed to know something, or, you already know/knew something.
I'm also interested in meaningless words like "irregardless" and phrases that are incorrect like "centered around." It is very interesting that some of these phrases and words seem to be the most used in ordinary language.
Ron
Making New Year’s Resolutions is a Lot Like Herding Cats (Article) - 12/29/2014 9:52:59 AM
I wrote my essay on this same subject before reading your learned treatise. I'm kind of glad I did. We have two tabby cats that cannot be herded. I can't even keep them in the back yard. They outsmart me at every turn. But they are fun just the same. Good advice here, Tom, even though I won't be taking it. Resolving to do "better" is enough for me. Why take all the fun out of life? Thanks for your wise thoughts.
Need a Desert Adventure? Try Keyhole Canyon (Article) - 10/23/2014 8:44:38 AM
I have disabled lifetime pass to national parks, monuments, and wilderness areas. I have never been to Zion, but hope to get there someday. I've never been in a slot canyon, but I understand from watching on television that they can be very interesting and beautiful. I am very thin, but one time in Mammoth Cave when I was still walking, I had trouble navigating a feature called "fat man's agony," because it was so narrow. I can imagine it may be like that sometimes in a slot canyon.
Thanks for the wonderful description of the fantastic Keyhole Canyon.
Ron
Forest green, lichen-charged air at Santa Clara River Trail (Article) - 10/22/2014 9:04:52 AM
Your description of the Santa Clara River Trail certainly made me want to join you for its wonderful ambience and closeness to nature. I recently returned from a brief afternoon with my brother in the mountains near Happy Jack, Arizona. That place has some of the ambience that you are describing along the Santa Clara River, but not all. He has built a beautiful log home there where he can explore trails for miles around.
Ron
Caves and vertical life zones dominate Great Basin (Article) - 8/14/2014 9:35:22 AM
A wonderful article describing a place I didn't know existed. The last time I was in the area was before the park was formed. I recall visiting Dinosaur National Monument in the morning and finding that my grandmother and I were the only ones there. Places like these are priceless.
Thanks for giving us a tour…
Ron
Arch Trail: A Nearby Space-Spanning Rock Formation (Article) - 7/12/2014 10:19:08 AM
A great travelogue and heads up on finding arches. I have been to the Arches National Monument, but, because of my being in a wheelchair, was unable to get close to any of them. I do miss hiking trails. The last time I did that was around 1990 when I was losing my ability to walk.
Ron
Venture out to Willis Creek Canyon (Article) - 6/17/2014 5:35:18 AM
You have me green with envy. Since I'm in a wheelchair and don't get Utah very often, I've only been to Arches National Park and Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado. My younger brother lives in Arizona and has explored almost every slot canyon there, but I haven't heard of him venturing into Utah in his many excursions.
I would only caution that, even though it may be sunny while hiking in a slot canyon, they are prone to flash floods and can be dangerous if there is a storm at higher elevations on site (and mind).
My own experience with out-of-the-way places was my visit to Dinosaur National Monument one morning when my grandmother and I were the only ones there. The dinosaur remains there were amazing and I don't understand why the place is so little known. Especially since kids are so fascinated with dinosaurs. Perhaps it is because it is so far off the main road in far western Colorado.
Ron
Spring Creek Canyon Delights, Exceeds Expectations (Article) - 5/12/2014 6:36:07 AM
Reads like a great place for a morning trek. Posting a picture would enhance the article. Unfortunately, slot canyons are not wheelchair accessible. But I have walked many canyons in the days when I still walked to know what you saw. I've also been fortunate to four-wheel-drive in remote areas of Arizona during the spring cactus color riot.
Ron
It's All Good--Really (Article) - 3/25/2014 6:33:14 AM
It may Utah thing. I haven't heard the phrase around here except maybe from one of my colleagues in the past. One phrase that I have heard a lot of lately is, "get over it." My helper uses it quite frequently for almost everything and said it again this morning about those people so tied up in the loss of Flight 370. Along with that phrase goes, "they need to get a life," for those people that get all tied up in conspiracies and news stories as though their life depended upon it.
I read recently that based on all indicators, for the world, if not necessarily the United States, 2013 was the best year ever. I tend to think that so that much of what is happening is "all good," in spite of the hurtful feeling many have. My sister, on the other hand, when I tried to show her that something good is happening, snaps back with shortsighted doomsday responses. She has always been fearful and continues in spite of good fortune like her husband surviving prostate cancer last year.
My niece's husband is a highly educated postdoc in anthropology with a specialty in pop culture. Like so many in academia he has not been able to obtain a professorship except for a couple of short stints as an adjunct professor. He has made a living working with advertising focus groups, I assume chasing pop-culture in an effort to sell the "latest thing" to the youth of the world. He is miserable and I can see why. As he ages, he must see how irrelevant it is to try to keep up with the latest thing.
I think I will, "live long and prosper." Good day and good night…
Ron
What I'm Thankful for this Year (2013) (Article) - 3/24/2014 9:13:27 AM
Lots of good humor here. Back when I had a huge lot in West Virginia in 1975, I bought the most expensive hose to the hardware store, it was black with a yellow stripe. I dragged that hose from West Virginia to Atlanta, and finally, to here in Houston. It's in the garage coiled up to be used almost daily this summer. That damn hose has never kinked. What's wrong with it?
I recently saw a photo taken in 1858 of a bunch of guys with bats and baseball gloves calling themselves a baseball team. I would say they're lying except for the handwritten caption at the bottom. What were they doing playing a game like that when they should've been in uniform ready to go off the Civil War to be photographed?
You won't get me in the Jurassic or Pleistocene eras either, who wants to be trying to sleep with hungry dinosaurs roaming about, or even woolly mammoths and dire wolves along with good old sabertooths… not me.
By the way, I still have leftward leanings, but I became a libertarian (whatever that is) a long time ago when I started thinking that belonging to organized groups was an exercise in social climbing futility.
Ron
