Loowit Trail photo comparisons

Here's a comparison of photos of a spot on the Loowit Trail, on the east side of Mount St Helens. The first was taken July 10, 2009, while the second was taken 12 July 1986.
July 10, 2009
12 July 1986

Mount St Helens - changes

The only constant is change. Whoever was the first person to utter those words was brilliant. I've explored Mount St Helens over the years and have taken photographs on my trips around the Mountain. Now, thanks to the wonders of the electronic age many of my photos are being posted on flickr. Here is a sampling of three locations from 1986 to June 2009.

Ape Canyon - rock falls

June 2009. notice the section of cliff on the left that has recently fallen. Quite a large chunk. It will take another rather large mudflow event to 'clean' that rockfall out of the canyon.
July 1986.

Trim Line from Muddy River Mudflow/Lahar
Notice the regrowth of vegetation on the far slope from 1986 to June 2009.
June 2009.

12 July 1986

Upper Muddy River Mudflow. There are fewer dead trees standing in the foreground in the 2009 panorama taken from near the same spot as the 1986 photo.
12 July 1986

June 2009.

Chinese Garden, Portland 6/12/09

garden of awakening orchids





Chinese Garden, Portland, Oregon

I'm still here!

I'm still here! And, I'm still opinionated! I'm busy as ever trying to maintain and juggle hobbies, interests, and work! So, enjoy three photos I've taken recently on the Cave Basalt south of Mount St Helens, two moths caught in flagrante delicato at Lake Merwin, and a photo I took off Hawaii Volcano Observatory's webcam over looking Halemaumau on a recent morning.

Babies and sex and teens

When we see new born babies it is a typical reaction to go, aw how sweet, and coo coo. So, is a teen unwed mother the best spokesperson for the abstinence only message in trying to prevent teen pregnancies? I don't think so. Her message might sink in to one or two, but I think five or six more will see the baby and go coo coo, how sweet I want one of those.
But then as many of us know, abstinence only education doesn't work. It has to include a multi-faceted broad scope in sex education.

Scanning slides - keeping sane

Why is it that bad business decisiions are made and those people get to keep their jobs and bonuses, while those who do their job well and do it enthusiastically are laid off or demoted? It doesn't make sense to me. Never will.
So to try and keep my sanity I am scanning more slides. Here are two from a hiking trip up to Strawberry Mountain, north of Mount St Helens on 15 September 1984.

Notice the thickness of the pumice layers about eleven miles north north-east of the mountain. One is at least 2 feet thick while the other is pretty close to 6 feet thick. Both of these deposits put the 1980 deposits to shame.

View of Mount St Helens from Strawberry Mountain. Eleven miles away and still inside the blast zone.

Bear Springs

I went over to Bear Springs on the east side of Mount Hood today to take part in a mountain bike race! My first! It was fun, despite cramps towards the end of the race that made my slow finish even slower! It was a course of just over 17 miles (according to my GPS unit) which I completed in 3 hrs 5 min.

To see the route go to: http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/activity/8092205
The course was in a generally counter clockwise direction.