This past week was filled with firsts. I have owned the Jack Lalanne power juicer for a couple of years now, but just recently decided to vary from my traditional carrot, spinach and orange juice. Taking advantage of the cheap produce and no sales tax, we purchased a variety of vegetables and made a couple different mondo concoctions. One of our favorites included: beets, zucchini, cucumber, cabbage, ginger, spinach, kale, apple, carrot, orange, and lettuce. The juice proved to be beneficial as Melissa worked diligently and has nearly completed the new Klamath Outdoor School Website. Another first included Melissa’s introduction to spinning. We are taking advantage of a 10-day trial pass at a local gym and upon hearing Melissa was a spinning virgin, I was happy to join her for her premier. She proved to fare well after an hour of sweating and loud techno and she smiled as we took on a second round a day later.
Today we joined Bill, his wife Alex, co-worker Mike, and black-lab Maggie for a sunny day of cross-country skiing. We drove to Hyatt Lake, mile 1750 on the Pacific Crest Trail and with just a short lesson on equipment, we set out for our maiden voyage on a set of narrow skies. Currently, Oregon is said to have 62 percent of what is normal snowfall and this was obvious as we had to hop from sun-melted patch to patch like a frog chasing lilies. Three hours managed to fly by and the beauty of the frozen waters and Mount Ashland in the distance made it easy to wear huge smiles even after a few falls and a couple of bruises. We shared the 66 special, a cheeseburger on a homemade wheat bun, and a giant chocolate chip cookie at the Green Springs Inn, as we cheered on the US men in the gold medal hockey game. We left with smiles, knowing that we will be back to enjoy more on the menu in August, with a little bigger appetite.
~Justin
Take a peek at some photos… simply click on them to see a bigger album.
We have officially been Oregon residents for one whole week now, and I believe I speak for the both of us in saying that this state is pretty magical. The perks go beyond the zero sales tax and the friendly sales people in the local Medford markets.
I will mention two highlights, one speaks for the beauty, the other for the people. The first occurred as the sun was setting behind the dominating Mount McLaughlin. Our friend and mentor (also our host), Bill Hunt, drove us via the Lake of the Woods highway along the Upper Klamath to “K Falls” as the locals call it, short for Klamath Falls. Once home to the Klamath Indians, there are no falls near this sacred area. Its name comes from the “Link River phemonenon”, where legend has it that when the wind blew water upstream it came through with such force, it parted the water along the river, creating a walkway for towns people to cross. Once the wind died off, the water would come crashing back down the river, hence the name Klamath Falls. We did some work in the Klamath Outdoor Science School (KOSS) office before driving north to Fort Klamath to visit KOSS’ site. From there you can see Mount Mazama, home to the the beautiful Crater Lake. Upon our return, we were driving a long straight road in the basin when we spotted a Bald Eagle hunting a final meal before retiring for the night. The eagle dove on a small prey and before Buckeye could exit to snap a photograph it grabbed its catch and relocated to the middle of the field where we just had a glimpse of its supper. A magical moment, indeed, as this is just one of the few sightings I have ever had.
The second highlight was attending an Environmental Educators Summit hosted by the Gray Family Fund. The Gray Family are huge supporters of Outdoor Education in Oregon and donate approximately $750,000 in grants to EE schools statewide. This innagual conference was designed to share with the Gray Family the trials and tribulations that EE programs are enduring. Attendees included directors, administrators, grantees, writers and faculty. We felt honored to be a part and Buckeye did a fabulous job leading a group networking game on the opening evening. We shared about InspireOut and were teared up hearing about other programs and their success as well as needs for funding and support. In the end, we were humbled.
I am constantly reminded that each person must continue to do their part in order to ensure that we all continue to enjoy the beauty around us…. including more bald eagles! Now go outside and enjoy the fresh air.
