The Swiss Army Box

Most of us have heard of the Swiss Army Knife with its many different elements.  But here is a very cool box which brings a new concept the Swiss Army.  Now you can pack the kitchen sink with you.

Five Adventures for Fall

Always looking for  adventures to do during every season of the year I thought I would create a list of fall activities.

1) Go for a hike - This is number one and really can be done during any season of the year all that is required is the proper set of clothing and footwear.

2) During the fall a bike ride is still possible and even enjoyable so long as it is done during the warmer hours of the day.

3) The waterways are still accessible and setting a kayak in for a quite day paddling along the shore of a peaceful lake gives a lot of time to reflect or enjoy the company of others.

4) Get out with your camera and take pictures of the spectacular display of fall colors, who knows maybe you will get a picture worth framing and placing on your wall. 

5) Go for a drive to a small town near you for a walk down main street and a sit down meal at the local diner or restaurant.  Usually the small town has a wonderful mom and pop joint.

Some of these adventures can even be combined like the hike and photography expedition or the kayak and a meal at mom and pop's.  The point is getting out will make Fall an enjoyable and adventuresome season.

India Star Garnetts

Treasure hunting is not usually what one thinks of when looking for an adventure but getting out and both going to an unknown location and doing something new is. In this particular case traveling south through St Maries, Idaho to the Emerald Creek Camp ground and parking in Forest Service parking lot beside a nice forest stream was worth the leisurely drive. From the parking lot it is a short quarter mile walk to the "dig" site. Once arriving at the site there are helpful Forest Service employees who take your $10 fee and promptly explain how to go about panning for India Star garnets.

Here is the process, find a spot in the very large pile of dirt and fill a five gallon bucket. Take the bucket over to the screening area and screen the little particles out, quite a bit of little stuff filters out and you are left with pebbles and round balls of clay, most of the soil is made of clay.  Next you take to dirt over to the sluice and work your way through your bucket picking out the garnets as they appear. It is a treasure hunt. The rangers tell you that you can take up to five pounds per $10 permit. After four hours of panning I came away with 8oz, and according to the forest rangers that was pretty good, only one man that they know of has ever gotten five pounds and he brings all his own equipment. Then for a little more adventure I decide that a different route home would be exciting.  Driving on instinct and no map is always exciting and can lead to very interesting finds, but this is a subject for another blog.

Stone Henge - A memorial to the sacrifice of the Great War

Recently, after a successful bid for the summit of Mt. Adams, I visited a full sized replication of Stone Henge in one of the most out of the way locations you could think of, across the Columbia River from the tiny town of Biggs, Oregon. This Stone Henge is oriented exactly as the original in England, toward the Autumnal and Vernal equinoxes, there is even a key stone.

It is believed the ancient Druids offered human sacrifices upon the alter at the center of the monument, probably as a way to appease whichever gods they worshiped. The new Stone Henge is dedicated to the greatest sacrifice of human life up to that point in history, WWI. The man with the money, Sam Hill, built the monument and placed plaques on the inner ring of columns with the names of those from Klickitat County, Washington, who gave their lives on the battlefields of Europe. Sam Hill also gave large sums of money to the country of Rumania to help it rebuild after the destruction of the War to end all wars. He gave so much that that he became close friends of the queen of Rumania, Queen Marie. They were such good friends that she donated some of her personal things to the museum in his mansion, including the dress she wore to the coronation of her cousin Tsar Nicolas II of Russia. Stone Henge in Washington is a great place to visit and admire and also to remember the sacrifices men made for others.