It's 5:00 PM here at the Wind Knot Ranch in North Park, Colorado, and it is (predictably) so buggy that willfully being outdoors borders on masochistic. Even with 100% DEET on, the mosquitoes are too thick to comfortably walk around with the dog. Ever seen a Doberman literally beg you for bug repellent before? I haven't yet been brave enough to venture down to the creek, so obviously fishing is out until the morning.
I'm not one to be bored, however. There is always ammo to be loaded, flies to be tied, guns to clean and beer to drink. Having just returned from 5 weeks at geological field camp for CSU, it has also become abundantly clear that my field sketching abilities are severely lacking, so I brought a sketch pad and some pencils in the hopes of improving them. I suspect I will need a few more of these Stone IPAs before that happens.
Speaking of field camp, I must say that it was an overall valuable and mostly enjoyable experience that I'm glad has reached its conclusion. My group of ~35 spent a week each camped south of Taos and west of Questa, NM, followed by 3 weeks lodged in Silverton, CO, which is famous for its scenery, 4-wheeling, touristy nature, mining, and very little else. I'll spare you the boring geological details, but our courses covered what is scientifically known as "a lot of different shit." I learned a lot, made several new friends, and became (perhaps uncomfortably) closer with my existing friends from what we affectionately refer to as geosquad.
I had the pleasure of driving my personal truck throughout field camp, which is something I acquired in February of this year. It's something of a franken-Ford - a 2008 F250 King Ranch with a 2010 6.4L Powerstroke Diesel and trans. Mods include a 71mm main turbo from Elite Diesel, Banks full dual exhaust (with big mufflers, thank God), Mini Maxx tuner, a 4" lift from Top Gun Customs featuring Fox dual-cylinder shocks, a Road Armor front end with excessively awesome lighting, color-matched Line-X everything, 35s on stock 20" wheels, and a bunch of other shit I'm probably forgetting. Anyway, it's pretty badass, and I paid about 70 grand less than it would cost to build the thing. Since the driveline is sitting at about 65k miles right now, I will be driving this beast for a long time to come. Power delivery on race tune is 650 whp and > 1400 wheel torque, and it runs in the mid 12s at Bandimere Speedway.
Over the course of field camp, I convinced myself that I needed a new street bike - something bigger, faster, and more comfortable than my '03 SV650. The original intended purpose of this new machine was to take extended rides and/or road trips with my brother and his Yamaha FZ1, which is a pretty upright sport touring bike, for those of you who aren't moto geeks. What I ended up with is a super clean, low-mile, 2006 Honda CBR1000RR, which is essentially a balls-to-the-wall 1000cc race bike. Whoops. Couldn't pass the deal up though, and I'm slowly converting it to a more comfort-oriented ride with a Sargent seat, 2" dropped pegs, Puig double-bubble windscreen, a luggage mount to replace the worthless rear seat, etc. I shall put the "sport" in "sport touring," to be sure. I will not comment on the CBR's speed and handling other than to say that it is on an entirely different level from anything else I've ever ridden or driven.
North Park is somewhat on fire at the moment, with the Beaver Creek Fire having consumed approximately 14,000 acres since its ignition by natural causes in the northwestern corner of the county. It is approximately 5% contained at the moment, according to today's Jackson County Star. The current approach seems to be to save what structures they can, and otherwise let it burn, which is a strategy I strongly support - the USFS' 100% fire suppression policy over the last 3/4 century or so has led to the accumulation of an absurd amount of downed timber and an overall unhealthy forest, according to people who know these things (I study rocks, not ecosystems). While it will be temporarily devastating, the long-term consequences of a large-scale forest fire in the area will inevitably be beneficial.
That said, it is going to suck for awhile.
Not much else to report, really. I've become kind of an Instagram post whore lately, so check me out @flyfishnaked if you do such things.
Later!
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