Sierrapaloosa 2003

“Welcome back y'all. I can't wait for more photos and details!”

“I'm home too. What a great outing with everyone. Group outings don't get much better than this.

We went backpacking in some of the finest country on Earth. We had laughs, great conversations, and we hiked, hiked, hiked. A day of climbing in there too! We also fed lots of skeeters.

My journal entry will take a few days to do.”

“Oh

And the 7-day group looked well. They were in good spirits as they made their way in our opposite direction. We all met up at Columbine lake. Quite a gathering.”

“We're back too! What a great trip! Everyone made it down with only a few blisters. Vehicles were in good shape. Mine had only mothball/ammonia protection, but only the hood insulation got chewed on. Silver City showers and burgers were great after!

Photos will take awhile to sort out.”

“That is beautiful WW.

I am glad everyone had a good time!

I can't wait for the pics and trip reports!”

“tango, i thought you were in on this trip big time....

are you ok??”

“Gosh, I wanted to be here is my trip report of my 5 days in California, the Sierrapa-loser thread:

Sierrapa-loser”

“Gosh, I wanted to be here is my trip report of my 5 days in California, the Sierrapa-loser thread:

Sierrapa-loser”

“Yup, a great trip, great people, great scenery, great experiences. I just can't believe those trees! I had not seen them before. Made it home this AM, after having a wonderful first-meal-out with my daughter at Wolfgang Puck's in Orange. Way too much driving, patrolman pulled me over just before the AZ line, guess I was weaving a bit. Slept a little and then came home.

One outcome, besides some gear ideas, is that I am changing my screen/user name to my real name. Meeting people and telling them two names seemed wierd. Fritz and Phil have the right idea, so webmaster allowing, from now on I'm "Shawn".”

“Shawn: Are you sure you don't want to change your name to Speedy?”

“Yeah...that would be fitting!”

“How about Speedy Shawn?”

“Nope, simply Shawn. I feel so pure : )


Did I miss tarbubblebaby? An earlier post say's she was coming, but I don't remember meeting her. Maybe I did and the O2 deprivation scrambled my brain. I recall some discussion as to whether she was along. And did anyone ever hear from Val? She was a "for sure" on the 5 day, but then dropped off the thread.”

“The topo software determined the total elevation gain to be 13,541 feet and the elevation loss to be 13,548 feet on our 5-day loop.

2,138'gain/3,880 loss on day 1 to Redwood Meadow.

3,845'gain/1,645' loss on day 2 to Hamilton Lake

3,927'gain/1,718'loss on day 3 to Little 5 Lakes

2,190'gain/1,693'loss on day 4 to Columbine Lake

1,403'gain/4,548'loss on day 5 over Sawtooth Pass and out.

Now I know why my legs were so tired on day 4.”

“I knew there was a lot of downhill on day 5 ;)
So how was the Burger WingDing?”

“I just want to thank you all for making this such a wonderful and memorable trip for my sons and I.
We had a blast!!!

Fritz and Shiprunner
Landscaper and Wannabp
Shawn
Snow Nymph and Snow Dude
Tekdude
WingDing

THANK YOU!!!”

“ibid on Wind Walker's thanks to everyone. I had a great time out there thanks to the great company.

The burger was really good and so was the extra slice of melon.”

“Yes, thank you all. I had a great time, now just have to ease back into civilization slowly. Is "topo-shock" a word?”

“wingding - that looks like some serious bu##-kicking elevation gains and losses!”

“yow.

My knees are burning just thinking about it, LOL”

“Fritz and shiprunner should be approaching Trail Crest about now! Wish them luck on summiting Mt Whitney!”

“I took 369 photos and SnowDude took 95 (I had 2 cameras).

The first Sierrapalooza album (Part 1) is up. Working on Part 2.”

“I have two webshot albums full:

http://community.webshots.com/user/wingding0

Now I need to add captions.”

“Wingding's Albums

Wow!!! Those are some great photos Snow Nymph, Snow Dude and Wingding...cool!

Snowy is a tree hugger?
I missed the fawn...glad you got some photos of it.

My Bear photo :)”

“let's see . . .

Does a wild bear . . . ?”

“Here's my journal entry:


Great Western Divide

As you'll see, each photo in the index correlates to several more. 173 posted in all, but you can view and read what you wish.”

“Great Pic's Tekdude, I'm ready to go back.”

“Wingding- Whoa. You got a photo of a Shawn! And it wasn't motion blurred! Those are harder to get than black bear shots. 8)

I noticed you and I took many of the same photos from the same place. Amazing how that is. I'm also starting to develop an eye for your work.”

“I especially like your bear shot, WW. Any chance of getting a raw copy? It would be neat to see if you can crop in on its face to get its expression.”

“Snow Nymph- Hopefully the seven day group will pick up the bug spray canister. I'm really sorry I didn't pick it up when I saw it. Not sure why I left it behind. Not thinking here.

Your photos are truly amazing. You have a different perspective and it shows from your experience and descriptions. The Mustang Flower photo is incredible. It would be interesting to see what your favorites are.”

“Fritz and shiprunner are probably now off the trail and in town or on their way back. Hope we hear from them soon.

I can not say enough good things about Fritz. Good man. Wished he lived here out West.”

“Cool shots.
I'm all amped for my trip out there now.

Gotta agree with Tekdude. Fritz is a class act.”

“Awesome pics, SN...!!! Wiah I'd been there!!!”

“Tekdude....you consistently amaze me...all I can say is WOW!

I don't know when I'll get to my journal...came back to a big pile of accounts recievable/payable, plus working with the crew, etc., etc.”

“"The topo software determined the total elevation gain to be 13,541 feet and the elevation loss to be 13,548 feet on our 5-day loop."



Uuhhh, WingDing? Something is awry here, my car was right where I left it when I got back. Where do ya think the 7 feet went?”

“ Sierrapalooza Part 2

Will work on part 3 tonight, will probably add a part 4.”

“lol Shawn - I'm I guess a bit sloppy on my route drawing”

“Great pictures everyone! - I still need to upload a few more and do the captions.”

“I hate you all.


*weep*”

“All I can say is........

Those 5-dayers walk really fast
And come home and post fast
And develop beautiful pictures fast
And do trip reports fast
And know how to reduce weight.

And are a great, fun, supportive group of people.

Wing, so glad to see the elevation gain/loss. I didn't just imagine it.

Those lost 7 feet....... Two of them are mine. The blisters are healing, so I'll be reclaiming them real soon. I miscounted days 'til my next trip and don't leave 'til Sunday -- plenty of time to heal.

Snow, I called Wild Ideas and mentioned your name.......Al DeForest told me the 'meeting Snow Nymph' story and waived my freight fee on the Expedition Bearikade. That's my next day freight fee!!!
(It looks like it will be shorter than yours. Did they change them?)

Stopped at REI on the way home and bought a Snow Peak stove. Time to re-arrange priorities and put weight reduction ahead of recycling volume.

Time to go to work. Aaaaarrrrggghhhh. Will look at the trip reports tonight.

A huge thank-you to all of you. I would have never done such a trip without you. :-))))))))))))”

“Glad to see you made it out safe and sound Karen. It was a wonderful trip, I'm nostalgic about it already. Really enjoyed meeting you and Jerry. Can't wait to hear from Fritz about Whitney, hope they had a good trip up and down that one.”

“Great Trip Report



Wish I could have been there!”

“That silhouette picture of Snowy and the mirror like reflections on Columbine Lake is a real show stopper!!! I can't believe I missed that! I think you could get that one published!!!”

“I second WW's comments about that pic Tek. That is indeed a magical shot.

Everyone's pics are great. Wow, what a trip you folks had. I wonder if Fritz and Ian will ever come back to Pa.”

“Hey Pennsy...were your ears burning???”

“Thanks for pointing out that photo, I barely noticed it too.

With PSP 8.0 there's an automated image processing routine I set up to handle resampling, exposure, focus, and border placement. It goes fast and the files are handled on a batch mode basis through a macro. So an image statement that stands out could be missed. You get lost in the technical handling and layout.

I've also been toying with the idea of placing images and journal data into a database whereby tables can refer to dynamic content in a more intuitive way.

Ack! What am I saying??? Glad you've enjoyed the pics. I sure enjoyed taking them.”

“I can know see the "tek" portion of tekdude. Batch, resampling, databse, dynamic.... that's deep, man. ;o) Whatever you're doing, keep doing it. Super stuff.

Yeah WW, I did feel a twitch or 2 this past week. I wonder what ole Fritz has been saying.”

“Hi everyone, just want to let you know that Ian and I got back safely late last night. Will catch up on the reading here when I get the time, and will of course post a too-long trip report at some point. Oh, and of course, lots of pictures. :)

Short version--we both had a wonderful time, and loved hiking with every one of you.

Yosemite drive-through and Whitney hike were great, too.

More later.”

“Glad to see you made it home safely Fritz.

Are you ready for Everest now?”