Monday, January 26, 2009

Lunar Landing

We drove through south Texas to get to Tucson. Wow. The dramatic shift from the neon green jungle bayou to the moon got me pretty excited about getting outside once we'd gotten settled. There's no need to describe the stark olive drab expanse of the desert because everyone's seen western movies. Here are some pictures of comparing the southeast and the southwest.


southwest

southeast

southeast


Hiking

Em and I love hiking. Lots of other people do too, so we don't feel too bad about it. We went to the Smokey mountains when we lived in Kville. They are amazing. If you live in the Southeast and have never been there (or somewhere like it), you are wronging yourself. The natural beauty of this region is overwhelming but approachable. Anyone can look at a hundred year old moss covered oak surrounded by smooth brooks, river rocks, ferns, and fungi and see its beauty and worth.








Upon first arrival to the Catalina mountains in the Coronado National Forest, Em and I felt like we were on the moon. Overall, it looks dead. It's hot in January. And the sagauro cacti are kind of freaky at first, random pillars of thorns that look more like a dada sculpture than an piece of flora.





Romero pools are filled with snowmelt and people.


A little creek way down in a draw (southwest term for a holler)




The trails are intense and our hike became more of a scramble. We are not in bad shape, but there were times I thought we wouldn't make it where we were going. Thank God we are both stubborn.

Mountain Biking
These are two of my favorite places in Athens and Knoxville. The Woods swallow you. Tall trees block the sun. The soft soil and dense underbrush make the trail seem more like being inside some creature rather than outiside at all.


Then I got out on some trails over here. I never thought the east was tame (here are phone pics of Hill of Truth and a road on the way to I. C. King park both in Kville). I thought Kville was rugged compared to Athens and rightly so. There are legitimate mountains in east TN. That's not a typo on the sign; 19% is steep, even if you're from East TN. Hill of Truth is a long killer climb at Haw Ridge (that I nor anyone I know could clear) and will make liars out of 99% of people that call themselves bikers.



It is a different world in Tucson. My first five minutes of riding is spent mostly off my bike, scrambling up the same stuff Em and I encountered hiking. Downhill here is more like sledding down large (softball to volleyball sized), loose, and jagged rocks than mountain biking. Switchbacks are not just technically demanding but intensely scary.


This is a crazy staircase. Twelve to sixteen inch steps. It looks natural too. Why is this a bike trail? Hike-a-bike in my Sidis.

1 comment:

  1. I can't wait to go hiking out there with you!!!!! The pictures are a very nice touch too, bro-bro.

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