Manzanita Lake Cabins @ Lassen NP

Last weekend we cruised up to the Manzanita Lake Cabins in Lassen NP.  The Chases, Metreses (Metres-ites?) and the Kuwabaras reserved a cabin per family for the weekend a while back.  Back then I had thought we should have decent skiing on Lassen... but yikes, upon seeing Lassen's condition, my heart shattered.  Bleak.  What a weak end to the season.  Probably the first year since puberty that I hadn't skied in April or May. 

GoodGirl loaded up!

soon after arrival we decided to check out the lake.   According to wiki, Manzanita Lake was formed 300 years ago by a rock avalanche.  It's a pretty wild lake with seaweed like plants growing all over, full grown trees underwater, etc.  This first day, there must've been a hatch as the lake was buzzing with flies towards sunset.

Pumpkin loved it!

Kimbo was a bit concerned (look at her face)... I wanted to test out his lifejacket.

Soon Mia & her folks arrived, and the two started playing musical chairs on the steps.

unhappy kiddos

happy kiddos

Hi Kai!

Chez Chase made dinner for us on Fri night.  Mahi Mahi with avocado-cilantro marinade?  Amazing.  Try to have that man cook up dinner whenever you go camping.  I think I was too busy stuffing my face to take any pics.  

The next morning, Dave, Danielle & I went on a short run up Manzanita Creek, while the Chases checked out the park.
http://www.lassenhiking.org/Hike-Pages/Manzanita-Creek/Manzanita-Creek.htm

It was HOT.  Not as hot as the Central Valley (it was in the 110s down there), but still hot enough that Danielle went dunking in Manzanita Creek... which is straight snow melt.  

Yee haw!

Kai = Hippie.  Not only is he wearing tye-dye, he's having a no-pants party.  

Sharing!

The kiddos loved the slackline...

Danielle's folks, who live in Red Bluff, joined us for the weekend in their RV.  They were on their way back from a nice road trip in Oregon.  We had another amazing meal on Sat, courtesy of Chez Chase of course.... the secret ingredient?  Chicken. 

After dark, Metres and I went out on a Milky Way lit, alcohol fueled paddle across Manzanita Lake.  That light on the left is Metres stumbling around his SUP.  

And on to some wildlife pics!  Here's Metres' rocketbox after driving through the central valley during sunset.

Ducklings!  This log was a busy place.  Ducklings, goslings, muskrats, and lots of babies...

Goslings!

Muskrat!  This guy lived right in that log.  He was collecting plants for his nest the whole day.

Some kind of Borer Beetle 

Another picnic at the lake? Sure, why not!

Ellery being silly.

Helen Lake... which is supposed to be a great place to swim.  Next time...

Hipsters in Thailand?

You betcha!  Check out this hipster in Chiang Mai!  He must have a cousin in SF showing him the ropes.  That fixie was a bit too big for him, but he rode it like a champ through Thai traffic.    I'd say he did a pretty good job of following The RULES. 

Thailand with Kai! (part 1 - Chiang Mai Night Market)

A few weeks back, Kimbo, Kai & I were joined by my folks on a vacation to Thailand!  We figured Kai was still not yet 2, so while he could still fly free we'd take advantage and head to a country we love.  Thailand is also closer to my folks who are in Japan, and they also love Thai... and they lived there for a few years... and my dad speaks Thai pretty well.

So we hopped on a flight from SFO to Tokyo (11 hrs) then another flight from Tokyo to Bangkok (5.5 hrs) slept at a hotel next to the airport for 6 hours, then hopped on another plane up to Chiang Mai (1 hr) ... and I've gotta say Kai did really well.  We may have a future vagabond on our hands....

"Airplane... airplane... airplane..."

snoozing off on the flight...

Kai's first visit to Japan.  Too bad we didn't leave the airport... he sure liked all the buttons everywhere.

We ran into our folks looking for the departure gate at the Narita Aiport.  Woohoo!

Once we were "settled in" in Chiang Mai, it took us about 30 min to find a massage...

Many, many massages followed.  The going rate in Chiang Mai was about 5-10$/hr... amazing.  Many massage parlors are located at the temples (wat)... and those seemed to be the best.  

We were in a heat wave for the first few days in Chiang Mai.  Hovering around 90 deg with a 70% humidity meant the lows were a balmy 75.  But it also meant I'd drink about 5 fruit shakes a day (60 cents - 1.50$ depending on the fruit) 

The Som Tam (Papaya Salad) was sooooo yummy (a-roy) in this heat.  

My mama put pumpkin's hair up as it was getting in his eye. ..

So we decided to give him a haircut.  See that jar, it's popcorn with maggots.  It's some kind of buddhist good luck charm.  Many stores had it right next to their cash register.  Maybe it also doubles as a security tool, and you can throw it at a potential robber...

Riding in a Song Taew... the easiest way to get around for cheap.  Notice my mama's holding two fruit shakes. .. that was normal.  

There is a Saturday & Sunday walking street market in Chiang Mai.  Both are probably the best street markets we have seen in SE Asia.  Lots of variety at these markets... including hairless Pomeranians eating ice cream. 

The food... oh the food... I'm pretty sure I could eat Thai street food everyday for the rest of my life...

Udon?  Sushi?  What the.... we decided not to try the sushi in a mountain town in 75 deg heat on day 2 of our trip...

bugs!  mmmmm

Chiang Mai has many temples.  Too many in my opinion... 'round every corner there's a 500 yr old wat.  I swear.  They're a nice quiet reprieve, but it's easy to get wat-ted out...

Check out the bee swarm over buddha's head.  

another kayak commute...

Had another chance to use my kayak the other day and get some more time on the water in the SF bay.

check out that glassy water!

Decided to go take the northern route for the way in... the current was quite strong between TI and SF.

And the route home...

Weather Info:

• Look for:
• No wind
• Paddle TO work during slack tide/ slight ebb... 
• Paddle FROM work during slack tide/ slight flood...
• http://snowymonk.blogspot.com/2012/03/weather-info-for-kayaking-across-bay.html
• http://www.bask.org/trip_planner/
• Current Currents
• http://www.norcalcurrents.org/COCMP/sfbay.html

Bay Crossings:

• Should take between 70 -> 90 min... 
• My First Commute to Work - http://snowymonk.blogspot.com/2012/02/paddling-to-work.html
• With Durbs - http://snowymonk.blogspot.com/2011/10/kayaking-across-bay.html
• Using the Webbed Paddle... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyyM5F0QtBs
• Paddling Back... may last year... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ci2hOXCRcU

BUNI (Beach Unicycling)!

A while back Stefan told me about his first BUNI mission.  He started at high tide, and after a few soft UPDs (UnPlanned Dismounts) off his coker, he finally fell into the ocean.... needless to say, we timed his second attempt a lot better and had a beautiful ride to start off our Sunday morning. 

I was already camping at New Brighton Beach for Jiselle's 5th B-day with a whole slew of folks and kiddos.  All I had to do was wake up and ride my uni 100 yards to the beach.  Stefan... who hosted his first bee extraction of the season the day before wasn't sure he'd be able to make it (which by the way sounded awesome and I was bummed to miss).  But sure enough he texted me after the event and told me he'd meet me at the parking lot at 6 am. 

taking steady pics while riding a uni on the beach is no easy task... 

After a few soft falls on the sand, Stefan looked like a seasoned BUNI-er

One the few outflow crossings we did in our route.  Surprisingly no falls.  That would have been entertaining...

Soon we were back at New Brighton State Beach, where the parents were cooking pancakes for everyone!  With the addition of some raw honey, thanx to Stefan, we had a yummy brekky.  

Here's our route.... not much elevation as you can see.  But it felt like we were riding uphill the entire time.  We started the ride at 6 am, and finished at 8:30.  I think it'd be possible to do a Capitola to Monterey beach ride in 4-5 hours (it's around 40 miles)... and as long as the tides are below 0, you should be OK.  That'd be pretty cool.

happy b-day Jelly!

SLAY: the Vid!

"Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go."

-- T.S. Eliot

Here's the vid from our trip.


Tips:

• Carry a light load - this is not what you want to look like... I think with our skis, boots, bags, water... our bags were under 30 lbs.  This is the way to go.  Light, fast & free.  Makes everything much more enjoyable
• Don't eat 10 lbs of beef ribs the night before... if you are Alexis.
• If you are with Alexis, and he demolished 10 lbs of beef ribs, don't ski behind him for the rest of the tour.
• Pre-purchase your checked bag for your skis... and they may not charge ya for the oversize
• Stay at the Yosemite Bug Hostel on the way home... the spa would have done us wonders.  For our muscles & for making friends on the ride home.  The Amtrak didn't smell that great... but we certainily didn't help.
• Cache, Cache, Cache!  It's awesome... here are some cache ideas.  Also note that at TM, there is a garbage can & recycling... so no worries about packing out there.  
• Wine is good
• Beer is better
• http://unofficialnetworks.com/man-drinks-60-beers-pees-avalanche-bullsht-41008/
• Whisky is nice
• Chocolate
• Mac & Cheese? or Pasta with sauce
• Thai Cuisine night
• Curry paste, pre-cooked rice, canned coconut cream, canned straw mushrooms, bamboo shoots, tofu?.  
• Caramel Corn was amazing.  
• Beef Jerkey
• Plantain Chips
• Tea
• Oatmeal/Grits/cheese
• Salsa & Chips
• Hot Choch
• Cherish the logistics/train travel.  
• Stay two nights at TM hut, and go ski Ragged Peak, Unicorn Peak, Johnson Peak, go check out Cathedral Peak... 
• Think about the Yosemite Border Tour to Ostrander (in Moynier's book).

Regrets

• not staying at the TM hut for a few more days... 
• not jumping into the Merced... apetor stylee

And a final Thanx to:

• Brandon for hosting us in Mammoth, picking us up at the airport, and giving us a ride to the trailhead.
• Rob & Laura - the TM winter rangers for being awesomely zen. 
• Johnny & Paul for cache-ing the food and making this possible.

Fun Rating of 1.