thetinymite.com

Upper Gauley

reese — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 22:50:01 +0000

Back in in October 2011, some friends from Columbus arranged a whitewater rafting trip down the the Upper Gauley. I flew up from Houston, and we drove out Friday afternoon. The river was running at 3200 CFS on Saturday morning, and the weather was perfect.

Big thanks to our guides Big John & Andy who made it so much fun. As Dan said — see you next year?!

Red River Gorge

reese — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 03:35:02 +0000

A 4-day cabin trip with my dad to Red River Gorge in Slade, Kentucky with my Dad. We went hiking and kayaking and saw some unique geology. Gray’s Arch was the highlight.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Picked Dad up at the Columbus airport
Picked up dinner (Hot Head Burrito) & gas in Florence, KY
Grocery run in Winchester
Arrive at River Roost cabin in the Red River Gorge at 11:15pm
Fight off moths and enter a steaming hot cabin
Notice the cabin is absent an oven, insulation, food disposal, etc. but homely nevertheless

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Make a hearty helping of bacon & eggs after sleeping in
Meet the caretakers’ nephew, Kai
Drive to Gladie Visitor Center for advice on what to see & do
Hike Sky Bridge,
Drive to Whistling Arch and Dad make a nice 6 foot ascent using fixed ropes J
Drive up a gravel road to enjoy the views of the Gorge from Chimney Top
Walk over to Princess Arch and almost miss seeing it
Drive down Rock Bridge and eat a quick lunch before the mosquitoes discover us
Walk the 1.4 mile Rock Bridge trail and climb around the arch perched over the river.
Go back to town to pick up a few items missing at the cabin
Dine on steak, bake potatoes, pale ales, and a salad topped with an impromptu beer & mustard dressing (missed that one at the grocery store!)
Drank chocolate milk for dessert, the result of not having a freezer.
Heard the Dallas Mavericks bombard the Heat with 3-pointers in the 4th quarter to pull ahead 3 – 2 in the NBA finals over the car radio

Friday, June 10, 2011

Healthy breakfast of oatmeal & OJ
Drove down to Martin’s Fork to hike to Gray’s Arch
The hike started off under a dense canopy of trees and beside a small creek.
The flies and mosquitoes mugged every inch of visible skin until the trail climbed up.
Once above the trees, we though we found the arches and looked for a way over to them.
The trail instead lead us to an unexpected fork revealing the actual location of Gray’s arch was still a 1+ miles away.
Hike 2 miles and crisscrossed a backpacking couple, which confirmed to both parties that we had somehow missed Gray’s Arch.
Thanks to the help of their map, we retraced our path and found a very discrete trail leading off to Gray’s Arch
Marvel at the unique geology of the sandstone formations.
Continue to marvel while climbing around and taking action pictures
Low on water and food, we hike 2+ miles back to the car.
Our pace quickened as thunder shook the valley just ¼ mile from the car.
Run to the car just as it a major downpour rolls in
Eat lunch in the car along the highway and return to the cabin to take a much needed nap
Grill pork chops with broccoli and corn
Savor more chocolate milk over backgammon.

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Stay with the oatmeal & OJ for breakfast with a few slices of bacon
Swat down the fifth consecutive spider web spun overnight across the driver’s side-view mirror.
Launch a couple kayaks into the Red River at the concrete bridge along Hwy 715 with the help of our caretaker.
Enjoy the scenery of the upper section of the river
Strategically guide the kayak over numerous shallow water sections – lots of bumps
Rock skipping contest
“Cliff” jumping from 20 feet up
Grinded out the lower section which was characterized by slow current, fallen trees from a recent tornado, and less interesting scenery.
Hooked the kayaks together using the bow and stern handles and the forward kayaker supplied all the power over the last mile
Ate lunch back at the cabin and took a power nap
Drove over to Natural Bridge and started hiking to the Sky Walk just as thunder struck
Our calves burned after quickly gaining 300 – 500 feet elevation
Reach the Sky Walk just as the rain starts to pour
Decide to take the ski lift down, which leaves us more vulnerable to the rain than originally planned
We arrive to the car 30 minutes sooner than if we hiked down, but soaking wet.
A quick run over to the grocery store to pickup that salad dressing
Last supper of delicious leftovers
Drink more chocolate milk

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Take a scenic detour through rural Kentucky
Learned Dad’s flight was cancelled and now departed ~3 hours later
Cross the “Ohio” River – which is nearly all in Kentucky.
Reroute after discovering that flying out of Cincinnati is quicker than Columbus
Say goodbye after a splendid Father / Son trip.

Cycling Rallarvegen

reese — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 17:44:32 +0000

Nearly a year later, I think it’s about time to start chronicling the adventures from Norway. I know, it’s a little late, but there were so many good times that I’d like to remember. The first (and easiest to post) is a video Gunnar made during our 2 day cycling trip along Rallarvegen.

Click to watch the video (I can’t seem to embed into WordPress)

Rallarvegen is an old service road built for the construction of the rail line built from Flåm to Myrdal and has been converted into a biking trail. Converted should be used loosely given the number of large rocks waiting to throw a biker, but this is Norway. I took an early morning train from Oslo to Haugastol and nearly had a wipe out when my tires found the tram tracks. Once there, the rest of the crew gathered and we started off on the 80 ride to Flåm. Just after lunch, we made it to Finse, which is Norway’s highest railway station at 1222 metres above sea level.

After Finse, we ran into a group of marathon runners, but this wasn’t a normal marathon. They started at sea level in Flam and ran out of the valley with nearly nearly a full mile in elevation gain. After a good dinner near a small lake, it started to rain, and we looked for a camping spot. One group found a cave, while I pitched a tarp against two bikes for shelter.

We were startled in the middle of the night when a fox started stealing food from inside the tarp. I was using the food bag as part of my pillow and that stupid fox still managed to take it. Thankfully, it wasn’t able to eat through the food bag, but it did puncture my apple.

The second day was absolutely incredible. According to visitnorway.com,

The final 20 km goes through Flåmsdalen, a valley famous for its beauty and Northern Europe’s most exciting railway journey. The line falls 865 m over the course of the valley. The upper section has 21 sharp curves, and at this part it is wise to get off your cycle and walk!

It was so beautiful, we rarely stopped to take pictures. Those 20 km were simply spectacular. I’ve never had more fun on a bicycle.

Also, Amber wrote a very good entry with lots of great pictures about the trip here and here. It’s certainly worth clicking over to see.

2010 Surly Long Haul Trucker — For Sale

reese — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 15:02:55 +0000

Description

If you want to carry a lot of stuff while riding your bike long distances, you’d be hard pressed to find a better bike than the Long Haul Trucker. You’d also be hard pressed to find a

better sale than this one. The bike is practically brand new. Bought in January 2010 and only used ~500 km. Plus, it comes loaded with all the accessories ready for a month-long trip to China or the grocery store. Looking to sell this weekend because I am leaving shortly for the United States. You can’t find a better bike for carry heavy-loads. It’s comfortable to use and has good speed.

Specs

Size: 50 cm

Color: Blue Velvet

Frame: 100% Surly 4130 CroMoly steel

Fork: 100% CroMoly, lugged and brazed (compatible with most front luggage racks)

Shift Levers: Shimano Bar-end, SL-BS77 9-speed

Front Derailleur : Shimano Tiagra, FD-4403 triple

Rear Derailleur: Shimano XT, RD-M761 SGS long cage

Wheel size: 26” wheels

Brakes: Tektro Oryx cantilever, #992. Silver

Customizations / Add-ons (easily over 6000 NOK if bought individually)

Rear rack: Tubus Cargo 26” Bike Rack

Front rack: Tubus Tara Front Bike Rack

Handlebar bag: Ortlieb Large handlebar bag (Black)

Rear bags: Ortlieb Back Roller Classic (Black)

Front bags: Ortlieb Sport Packer Classic (Black)

Seat: Brooks leather seat (B17 Standard)

Frame pump: Topeak Road Morph Pump with Gauge

Pedals: Shimano A530 SPD Sport Road Pedals

Luggage: Airline travel case

More information available at: http://www.surlybikes.com/bikes/long_haul_trucker_complete/

Price: 15000 NOK. Willing to negotiate, depending on

I’m a Criminal Baby

reese — Thu, 06 May 2010 12:37:38 +0000

Have you ever done a search for your name because of privacy concerns (or narcissism)? Every been surprised at what you found? Well, my surprise came before I even hit Enter on my query. Don’t believe me? Try for yourself. Yep, I’m a criminal baby!

Ok, what do the robots at Google know?! To my knowledge, I’ve never been arrested. Not yet, at least. Of course there was a near miss on my way home from church this winter. Yeah, there was that time the night before A&M – texas tickets went on sale and suddenly found myself on Kyle Field talking to the police. Oh, sure I may have been involved in a drive-by water ballooning that lead to a car chase. But how did Google know about the last two? Oh… well, now they know.

Apparently, I’m not the only Reese Hopkins in the world and there was a radio DJ with a criminal past. Whew…