Little Gray Back Camping

Robyn and Tyson

I made it up to the Gray Back camper ground one night. It  is located on Caves Highway going up to the Oregon Caves, next to milage post 9, gray back creek run the length  of the camping area.
Very open camp sites and lots of room.
The temp the day I got there was running  in the 80 to 90 degrees area, but it was mid July.
The creek is low enough that the little kids can play in it without being wash away or scaring them.
Up the creek is a swimming hole with a rope for the little one to swing out on.
From here, Oregon caves is up the road about 8 miles,  I.V. swing bridge is about 20 miles way and the Oregon cost is about 70+ miles.
And the  city of Cave Junction is about 9 miles down the hill, so if ice or other items are needed, even a DQ run would work.
Robyn and Rochelle and 7 kid were all camping, this day.

First Dive of 2014

Made the drive to Applegate lake, and at one of the creek inlets the water is really clear and most of the times it is about 35 feet to the bottom.
So I get there and checking it out and see that the water has drop way down low.
I gear up and which seem to take forever, when it is hot, about 80* but the wet suit seem to make it about 110*.
So I had to pack my gear about 175 feet to the water and left the tank and BC in the water and got the rest of the stuff, fins, boots, gloves, masket and 2 lays of wet suit.
An I alway spend a few minuts testing every thing in the chest deep water, and play with reg and mask and any thing else that I can touch and move.
The dive last 50 minutes, deth 23 feet, used 1800 pounds of air on a 72 cu/ft steely tank.
Vise was about 20 feet.
You see the treasures, 2 sun glasses, rest thingy, Bose blue tooth, necklace. ear post and big lighter.
The one glass a nice a little girly looking, but how cares.
This dive #95.

The Pink dive tank

The day finds 2 sun glass, necklace, rist band, bose blue tooth and post thing.

The 4th of July 2014

A great little 4th of July we had, the weather was a little warm about 80*.
The day was good, slept  in to almost 7 AM and lazed around to about 6 PM we took  off to go to Molly's for the evening.
One of Molly's friend has a big pot luck / barbecue at there house in Central Point, the house face on to a little park about 5 acres in size.
Really is a nice touch for the home to be here, most of the area is green grass that is will taken care of and nice is flat with young trees bordering around the four sides.
The way the house are laid out, they shades the edges so there is always a place to get out of the sun.
It seem to keep the sound in the area much lower because it is absorbed by the grass and trees..
So some time later about 8 PM or so the fire work start coming out on the street right in front of the house, and the smoke get really thick and the smell seem to plug up your noses, so that you don't even smell the Sufi any more and the other smell that make up the 4th that create members when the order drifts into your face, we flash back to that one 4th of July that we seem to never forget and is always is there, and comes around any time that order is there.
So, down the street about 5 houses this neighbor, take on the 4th, so seems, all by himself.
Must spend a bucket of money to buy the fire works and the permit from the city to do this big fire show.
It just as good as the fair ground put one.
The show seem to go on and on, with big rocket shot and lots of big shots going in big bust and fans that cover the complete sky.
This show is free, to all and all the neighbors come and place law chair in the grass and blanks are spread out and family hanging out together and lots good laughing and hand holding and lots big smiles on all the face that met and see.
I only got a few pictures, I did try to hard with the fire works, but some record of being there.

Rochelle and Sarpha

The back of (right to left) Daniel, Paul, John and Domic.

The Problem With My Knee

The 5K Pear Blossom race took place on April 14, I had started training for this after Thanksgiving 2013 on a borrowed treadmill.
The training on a treadmill really stinks, the worst type of training that I have ever done, soooo borrowing.
I had done a 5K in February with pretty good time, 32 + minutes for an old 57 year old man.

The knee was feeling a little bit sore, that week but it was still strong.
The started at 7AM and I took about 10 steps and crossed the 1st starting pad, and my left knee POP real hard just about inch below the knee cap.
I could  not go forward, just stood there then I started hopping back torrid the 1st aid station.
A coup of 1st aiders came and help me back to the  tent, they put a ice pack on my knee and sit there about 30 minutes.
I got so I could hop with it,  pretty good, so I made my way back 2 block to the car, that was a longest 2 blocks, took about 15 minutes and didn't hurt at all to drive.
Monday, I met up with Mike S. and He thought is was the meniscus, it had torren, but had to do a MRI.
Had the MRI in about 2 weeks,
Back to see Mike S. and look at the MRI and He was right, I had a terror.
Set a date with Dr. Bents on May 15 for knee surgery, and did the surgery.
Took the 2 stitches out in 14 day and all looks and felt pretty good.
There telling me that I should not run any more 5K's and keep the long bike rides to short ones.
The bike ride make the knee feel much better, so I'm working on that, been doing 5 and 10 mile rides and it seem to keeps working that way.   Biking is the way to go for now.

Not very good pictures, 2 little holes, is all that was needed.
Only missed 4 day of work.
This all took about 2 months to do and $4000.

Molly And The Animals

I believe these are Molly's Animals.
It has been some time since she has play with them, but they are in really good shape.
Been cleaning out the attic in the shop.
There is stuff that goes back almost 20 years.
I had to do a battle with the ants, that had build a home in one of the sowing bags.
There was nothing for them to eat, but there sure like that bag of buttons, zippers and thread and ribbon.
Every time I move it and inch or two, they would come swarming out, so i got a stick and pushed it to the other side and let it fall, then I jumped down and pick up the bag with a long stick and walked it out, along ways out.
Rochelle put a garden hose on it, to soak in down for about hour.
I came back to check and they had made a trail back to the shop, it was about 150 feet away.
So i got the big guns out, the got this ant killer stuff, called TERRO it has Borax in it.
Seem pretty safe, I uses borax hand cleaner at work.
We'll see how will it works.
Now that the bag is gone, I put the bag of ants in the trash can and wheeled it down to the end of the driver way, it will get pick up Monday.
The ant seem to be going away more less, give it some time to see.

A Little Cover Bridge

 This is a little cover bridge in an area off Highway 140 about 20 miles from White City, Oregon.
It is about 30 feet long and about 15 feet wide.
This area is call Lake Creek, much like Wimer with one store and a gas station.
A very beautiful area, it would be a nice area to live in, if it was not so far out.

 If the date is right, this is one of the oldest  cover bridges in Oregon.
There is a sign that talks about this, but the date seem that could be off a coup of years.

 Lots of big ranches in the area, many 1000 of acres in sizes, most of it is cow and hay farms.
So the Walch family has the little park that is  maintained by them.
A little stage to the right and a creek behind that, that runs under the bridge.
And about 10 tables and 3 or 4 barbaric units.
The gate is to keep the cows out of the area.
And it is Free, most of the county parks around here has a day fee of $6 to $10 dollars.

More of the Walch park.
Very green, as you can see they keep it watered.

What brought me out here was some geocaches and looking for another way to get up on this mountain, so I hear that there could be some thunder egg type rocks.
No luck on the rocks, but I did find 3 geocaches and this cool little park/wayside.

Caching Up on the Blog

Been some time, will a long time, so I'm trying to keep this thing alive, we will see what happens.
I going to do a little caching up with some thing thats happened and that I feel are important
 and would like to see in the blog.
This is like a jounal and am going to print it out one of these days and made a book looking item.

This is Dawson J. D Ford, the newest male to carry the Ford name on, born July 5, 2013 in Portland, Oregon.( old news) His B-day is about 2 weeks away.

Dawson look like He is going to have lot of hair.

 The to Rabbet Ears near Crater Lake, a big rock for sure. Found a coup of caches near here.
As you can see I was there July 20, 2013. Really hard to cache how big these two rocks are.
This was about 2.5 hour drive, but it was really cool and the caches helped make it worth the time and a good day off the coach. The road was not to bad, I drove the Red Metor to this, the drive to the look out was a lot rougher and should not be done in any type of low car, my many years driving on dirt roads/skills helped, I was able to get across some of the bigger water bars, but it was pretty tricky and had to be done just right or the car would hit and stick and brake things, and thats not good way out there. Would have been a day and half walk out with no cell tower hits.

Dan on a side road looking at Rabbet Ears.

I also found some Petrefied wood in the area.

This is from a near by fire look out.

Look up this is about 400 to 500 feet up this face.

Had a little snow this year Feb 19, 2013

Made it to Miller lake, about a 4 mile one way bike ride up hill. 5/2013

The Gray Back Mt. Highest, 2 year to get there.

From the top, highest in Josephine county. 7055 feet. Over 10 mile hike.

1st and last 5K for 2014 the next one knock out my knee.good time 32.30 minutes .

Robyn that morning after Tysen L. was born.

Tysen L. Sutherland born Jan 10, 2014 in Medford Oregon.

The Rock at Pilot Rock

On the October 19 we (Dan, Rochelle and Daniel) made the hike to Pilot rock down by the Oregon border between Oregon and Californa.
We pick up Daniel in Medford, about 1:00PM and headed down I-5 going south.
You get off at the top off near Kalhands or if you were going sking, you go the same way, but pass by the road that goes to Mountaing ashland  sky area, and just drive on down for about three or four miles.
You will come to some dirt roads on the left and one will have a sign that say, this way to Pilot Rock.
The road goes alone for about 3 mile or so.
The Metro would not have made it down this road, but we took the Subaru, and got there with out any trouble. Lots of rock to get around, and pot hole of large size to weave around.
This is a new wilderness area, will in 2009, and so you can't drive up to the old trail head.
You now have to park at a gravel pit about 1+ miles from the old trail.
Pretty flat walking, till you get to the trail, going left up the hill and start to climb pretty good after about 300 feet and get pretty steep, till you get the the rocks and then you have climb up a gutter that goes up the hill for about 400 to 500 feet.
The top is 5200 feet, and the weather was about 60 + dergees, great veiw all around the valley.
Busy  day on the Rock, had to wait for people coming down, about 8 and then when we were on top about 9 more people come up and went down.
We spent about 1 hour on top.
The last 1/4 mile is pretty tough, have to get on all fours to work you way up the rocks.
A fun day, no climbs log this time. We climb it in 2007 and found note book with lots of story of other people who had climb and the place there were from.

Daniel and Rochelle at TH.

Looking North.

Daniel and Rochelle going UP.

Looking down, some people going down.

Rochelle using a short cut.

Rochelle side hilling.

Daniel going down.

Looking up the gutter, the top is just right there.

Oregon Sunstone?

In July I did a road trip and geo caching trip as will.
So the trip took me over to highway 395 in east Oregon.
I pick up a coup caches alone the way, heading down highway 140 to Lakeview.
My goal this day was to get to a place were the Oregon Sunstone is found.
As it happened, it is the only place, that is not a real a cache out there, but only a Earth Cache.
Just a place to find, but not a cache or log sheet to sign.
Most of the time you have do something or answer some questions.
Heading north up 395 for about 25 miles then turn right out into sage bush for another 25 miles of dirt, rock and gravel, and slow driving.
This part took about 2 hours and at times I was not

complete sure that I was heading in the right direction , but the GPS pretty much kept me thinking that I was going in the right way. LOL
I got out there about 3:30PM, and it was a hot one. Read the sign to see what I could do or not do.
As it turns out there is about 7 square mile area that the Sunstone are found, and all but 1 square mile is under a Mining clams.
The one square is held by the BLM, and is for public uses.
As you can see I found a few, this is like picking up diamond off the sand and dirt, just laying there.

The bigger ones is about 1/2" a bunch of 3/8 and lots of 1/4 inches.

Looking around there is a place in Utah that you can do the same thing, called Sunstone hill or something like that.
Here a little more info about sunstones.
A variety known as Oregon sunstone is found in Harney County, Oregon and in eastern Lake County north of Plush. Oregon sunstone contains inclusions of copper crystals. Oregon sunstones can be up to three inches wide. The copper leads to variant color within some stones, where turning one stone will result in manifold hues: the more copper within the stone, the darker the complexion.^[2]

On August 4, 1987, the Oregon State Legislature designated Oregon sunstone as its state gemstone by joint resolution.^[3]

I Spy A Hawk

On June 22 a Saturday I was working on one of the cars, not sure witch one, it was one of them.
I came out of the shop and these bird were cutting up, making all kind of nose.
There were mad at something, it seemed.
Started looking around in the lower parking area and found this hawk seating in the tree about 25 feet up in the tree,
As you can see He is a big guy, about 16 inch tall, with good feather color and watching the grape arbor?
The little birds would dive bomb at his head, and he would just at the last second he would turn his head and snap his beak at the little bird, and the little bird would weave around just in time and miss the beak.
So this went on for a coup of hours, then the hawk was just not there.
I thought the hawk had few off. but the little birds were still up set, and making lots of noses.
Walking back from the front of the house to the shop, the hawk came over the grape arbor with a snake in talents and fly away.
So the hawk had been watching the snake for the last few hours, to catch it, the snake was about 16 inch long.
In about another hours the hawk came back but only stayed about 30 minutes.
Pretty cool.
They have a nest on the back part of the property, I hear the young chicks, coup times a year.

A Motor Bike?

I had seen this bike with a motor on it going down the road some time ago, and had wanting to get a closer look at the set-up.
So I saw it locked up and stopped to get some pictures and a closer look.

This is a Diamondback, older model, but a strong frame.

I could not tell what the motor was, could be Honda, Yamaha, or some thing else.

It is a 2 stroke that runs on mix fuel. So, gas and oil has to mixed together, like 30/1 mix.

Meaning 30 part gas to 1 part oil.
And the reason for this, is that 2 stroke do not have a oil pan to oil the bottom of the motor when it running.
Un-like you car motor it has a place to hold motor oil so the bottom of engine is lubed, with a oil pump and splashing oil.

This looks to be about 50 cc to 90 cc motor from a real motor bike, like a kids dirt bike.

 I think it would be interesting to make something like this with a weed eater motor, I have a 49 cc motor in the shop, one of these days.

The Day At Squaw Lake

On Saturday, March 23, 2013.
We took a trip up to Squaw lake, that is located above Applegate Lake. about 7 miles or so.

The picture is of Daniel at little squaw lake, it is about 10 acres in size. Not to many people out to day.

Good thing Daniel did not fall in. so had no wet and smelly Daniel for the ride home.

Here is Daniel, Rochelle and Lucy(way in the back ground) on the trail hiking alone the shore of Little Squaw lake.

We did find about 6 geocaches in the area.
And a new trail called Summit Lake TH, must lead up to some high lake. looks like about 3.5 to 4 mile one way. I think I'll come back with the mountain bike and ride this one.
And hide some caches as will.

The Last Snow of 2013

 As you can see the snow isn't much, but in was Febuary 19, 2013 a little late.
I'm glade its over, I only had to get up early 2 morning and drive roads this year.
This year we had to chain up 13 bus for the PM run in Rogue River, not to bad.
Only last 3 set of chains from being to loses.

Sure looks pretty, :)
Only came to about 3/4 inch.
Work for me the last snow.

To Miller Lake

 Miller Lake is localed just out of a little town of Applegate, up a road call Thomson creek road.
It about 12 miles to the top, were the road forks, and the left turn goes to Applegate lake and the hard right goes to Gray back mountain, a right and 7 miles will get you to Miller lake.
I was there in ?????? I was able to drive right up to the trail head and hike the 1 mile to the lake. But, the bridge washed out about 4 years ago and was not replaced. So now you cross the in the creek.

As can be seem, the barren with the painted signage, "Miller lake 4 miles" on the other side was the bridge.
 The next picture is the creek crossing, not to bad, but it is about 12 inch deep and pretty rocky.

I parked in front of the bearer and but the bike together and took my shoes off and push the bike across in the water and the temp was really good, I would have guessed about 60 degrees. The current was a little much, I put the bike on the up stream side and just leaned into it a little, the front pushed back a little, but the back wheel would swing around behind and hang there till I was out of the water.

On the other side was a large rock to seat on to air dry my feet for a few minutes.
I started out in lowest of the 27 gears I had for about the first 1/2 mile, then I was about to 2 and 3 off the bottom gears for most of the ride to the lake.
I got to the trail head in about 1:05, this some how came out to 3.33 miles, 3.5 advage speed. pretty slow.

From the TH its about 3/4 of  a mile of pretty good trail. some parts are real rock parts,

due to water washing down the trail leaving a butch of rocks on top, none much bigger than 6 inch in size.

I did push the bike up the trail about 1/2 mile and hide it, and walked into the lake.
I use the mark a spot on the GPS so I could find the bike later, if I need it. More about that later.

The Lake is about 7 acres in size as can be seen from the pictures, and it is all snow melt coming off the peak that is about 800 feet above the lake. There is a stream about 2 feet wide pouring into the lake, in the third picture from the top you can

just see the stream pouring.
The was a natural lake, but was a little smaller, so a 20 foot dam was build out of dirt and added a shoot for the over flow form  a year around creek. I believe it was used for irrigation around 1910 to 1930s and some mining.
There is a cache here, "Is it Miller Time" there was another cache about mile away, on the other side of the lake, up on the peak.
So I went up the trail above the lake and found that it was going in the wrong way so I cut over the ridge back to the bike I had marked on the GPS. For some reason the GPS lead me to another trail that looked just like the one I hike up the trail to the lake, and there was no bike at the spot? So I know that the real trail was down the hill, closer to the creek, so I walk on down there and guess what I found my bike after about 15 minutes of looking around. As it turn out, what ever happened, the bike was about 400 feet from wear it should have been. The ride down the hill was pretty quit, took about 25 minutes to get to the car. So I got 7.5 miles in 1 hour and 25 minutes

The Wreck

In December last year, this bus was hit, in its on lane, and hit pretty hard.

The good thing is everyone walked away.

 The bus was traveling about 25 mph going into a left hand curve and the car, a small 4 door, coming from the other direction and slid out of his lane into the buses lane, don't know how fast the car was going ? 

This happened so fast, I do not think the driver had any time to steer away or applie the brakes. I watch a inside camera shot of the the accident, and it happed very fast. But that being said. The driver was up out of his seat and moving to the back to get the kids out almost befor it stopped moving. The bus was empted out in about 1 minutes. In most cases the driver seat there in shock, and only starts moving after there hear the kids in the back.

The car was pushed all the way back to the front axle of the bus, with the windshield just showing, and front doors pin shut, the driver had to climb out the roof hatch to get out of the car, driver was check out at hospital and Ok.  

The kids, most went on to school on another big bus and a two kids were check out and went to school later. The driver was ready to do the PM route but the boss sent him home, and he did the route the next morning.

At the point of contact between the bus and car, the bus carried the car about 60 feet before coming to a complete stop, the bus stay in its lane, just went straght.

The interesting point is when a air brakes system breaks a line or just loses the air in the system the rear brake set-up or go to full lock-up, this can take 15 to 30 seconds to happen.

What I'm leading up to, the car, when it went under the front of the bus, it cut the bottem of the foot brake valve into 4 pieces, so the driver could not uses the brakes even if he wanted to, thank to air brake system.
Now if this was a hydraulic brake system, the bus would have just kept rolling till the car was mashed up enough to stop the bus. The bus save the car drivers life, by stopping on its own. 

Now if this would have been a log truck or other big truck, the car would have been completely run over before stopping.