Goals.

Before I came out here I set a goal for myself: to do a bike ride and a new hike every weekend. So far I have had two weekends, and I have managed to keep good on my goal so far. The hardest part is the cycling, because there is no pavement within the first 3 miles of Bodie and all I have is a road bike. But I figure, if I want to actually make good on my goal I have to actually do what I set out to do, starting now and no later.

Last weekend, I did a Sierra Club hike to the Paramount Mine and surrounding area in the Bodie Hills. For a bike ride, I borrowed a visitor's mountain bike and did a quick mile loop at the end of my last day off. Talk about squeaking by.

This weekend I had a bit more of a success, but only a bit. I actually got two hikes in: one up Lundy Canyon - about 5 miles or so of very beautiful country, with beaver ponds, waterfalls, and plenty of trees; the other was to what I thought was Glass Peak/Mountain/Hill/whatever, where I had been told there was a lot of obsidian. Either someone pulled my leg, or I hiked up the wrong mountain, because when I made it up that crazy shale-covered ridge I found only more shale. For a bike ride, I went out this morning with my car and my bicycle and drove to the start of the pavement, parked my car, and road a frigid 4 miles down an 8% grade hill, up another, and then back. The whole thing took about 20 minutes, but I was decently chilled by then, not to mention winded from my first experience hill-climbing at over 8000'. Still, I think it was a good start. And what's more: I have, so far, made good on my goal of one bike and one new hike each weekend.

Sorry everyone, no pictures this time around. I keep forgetting to bring my camera on these things. :)

Until next time!