mdvaden

Couple more ...

Took Evergreens ID in 1982, and repeating once more at the local college. For a term project, I have to turn in like a .doc or .pdf file notebook for the trees and plants, with photos. As I got into the photo part, found it was fun to approach the tree parts photos similar to how I've been experimenting with portraiture the past year. Bet a bunch of you know several of these.

That was different ... Haven't seen one of those in years. I mainly used a Deere, at country clubs. But recall that model of Massey as seeming like everywhere on farms. Like the "beetle" of farming ? ...

Bump ... Shot from last month. Just posted this pic at the video section where Dan Curtis posted about Nat Geo Explorers redwoods video. I just embedded that redwood video into my redwoods page (link below). Nice to see it again ... it was on Youtube in 2011 and vanished. ...

No apologies needed ... thank you ... This full version was on their Youtube channel in 2011 and vanished after a few months. I'm glad it surfaced again so I can start linking to it again. Refreshing ... doesn't that music in the beginning send a charge up your spine ...

Since that's close to my best attempt the past 40 years or so, that's why this still seems surreal. Also, it hit me a few months ago "WHAT IF" whatever flipped the switch of my will, didn't happen? What if I did not make the same choice last June? Because it seems the odds were stacked to have just followed my habit pattern. It's still something I don't understand. Not THAT I wanted to change. But what flipped the switch. The continuing part I understand a bit more. It was FEELING the change. I saw the change, but feeling lighter, feeling less pain, feeling more agile and capable in itself was very motivating. ...

Sure .. should be easy now. Before, I never weighed myself, had no idea what foods had how many calories, and ate too much. Now I've already erased the highest calorie foods from my regular meals, will weigh twice a week, and will reduce my food intake a little bit. And that reduced intake, in a month, will actually be an increase compared to the past few month. So I can actually eat more than now, and not gain. ...

I've been chunky most of my life, even back to grade school. The least I've weighed was probably around age 20 when I did some building construction for a while and don't recall why my eating slacked a little. But my physical activity was really a lot too. I was still over-weight though. So presently, I'm the leanest I've ever been in nearly 45 years, going back to like age 10 or so. ...

Beginning to experience that. Like last hike to Tall Trees Grove, I went down and back up in much less time, therefore had enough time to squeeze in an extra short hike, unlike a year ago. Then at work, I find getting more done in less time. And carrying 40 lbs of branches now, is 20 lbs. less than just walking my body from point A to point B in 2011. It's almost surreal once in a while. ...

I scaled-back about 1200 calories or more per day. And that from the weight-maintaining calories of 2700 calories. So ate like 1500 to 1800 daily. But I was previously eating, and maintaining (heavy), somewhere around 3500 calories per day. So my eating was cut in half more or less. Actually, I'm looking forward to the next 5 or 10 pounds being done so I can raise my calories enough to start enjoying a few extra portions and snacks I cut out altogether the past few months. ...

Reached my goal of losing 60 pounds this month. Started last June. A local grocery manager let me photograph 30 x 2 pound blocks of cheese yesterday to show that weight visually. Just added the pic to my redwoods & hiking page too. It was a swollen knee from a hike that was a big reason for wanting to lose some weight. Never realized how much I was storing until I lost 30 pounds and saw there was plenty left. ...

Sure like that view shot from up there. I've read that New Zealand has a pretty decent assortment of redwoods. There's a giant sequoia redwood in town here about 5 minutes away, about 110 feet tall, with branches nicely spaced all the way up. I'm considering asking to free-climb it in the next couple of years just for fun. ...

Jet boat that goes up the Rogue River from Gold Beach, Oregon. There's also a Jet Boat tour place up the Klamath, near the redwoods. But a fishing guide who's friends with the Klamath based boat company, admits the Rogue River tours are the best. The Rogue's actually a nicer river even though it's not as wide as the Klamath, which is murkier water.

So ... aside from the houses or shops of the two coastal areas, here's a comparison of the north coast near Cannon Beach, and the south coast near Brookings and Gold Beach.

Well ... Cannon Beach is a nice town if you pick it. The drive there and back toward Interstate 5 will only burn up about 3 to 4 hours. You could head down Hy. 101, but that's a pretty slow route, due to the small towns and winding nature of the highway. Wish 101 were next to the ocean all the way down the coastline. When I head to the coast up at this end of Oregon, Canon Beach is a favorite. I like Ecola State Park next to it also.

Cannon Beach ... because of the gift shops? Or just to see the ocean? It is a very nice coastal town. Lots of gift shops. If the coastline is what's to your liking, the ocean between Brookings (1/2 hour from redwoods) and Gold Beach a half hour up 101 has equally nice coastline. You may even like the Jet Boat tour up the Rogue River out of Gold Beach. Here's a couple of photos from this last weekend. Watching Elk near Hy. 101 near Prairie Creek, and also autumn in the Avenue of the Giants.

Congratulations. Hard to imagine sometimes that we were all that tiny at one time.

This is not the same tallest maple, but this is an image of the same species, macrophyllum, up the highway and in Jedediah Smith redwoods.

It could lean slightly in the work category, although it is recreational. I started to sell a few prints. And my redwood web pages provide just enough income from Google, to cover my fuel and 2 night's lodging about every 7 weeks. Then I take some of the photos and more that I learn about the redwoods, and build that further into the web pages. In 2010 and 2011, I got a little part time work helping to find and measure certain tall redwoods. That is wrapped-up now, but what I learned carried over into exploring and measuring during my own hikes and adventures. ....

Here's from Monday morning too, entering Jedediah Smith redwoods to the north. The weather was lovely. ...

So ... had a chance to get back to Avenue of the Giants in northern California, and measure the tall maple I found in July. Just this past weekend, and the autumn weather was awesome. The tall maple is confirmed as the tallest in the USA. And it seems it may well end up being the world's tallest known Acer. I suspect there's even taller yet ... maybe even next year. 157.80 feet or 48.09 meters tall. Circumference of 9.5 feet. ...

Got the warning here too. Bypassed it temporarily. Must be worth figuring out though. ...

That's a favorite redwood, since it's so unusually shaped. There's lot of old archaic looking trees in that area. This cathedral redwood is in the same little valley.

A lot of companies I know find Facebook to be of no use. But others find it very useful. But about the photos in particular, what you shared indicates that having photos is important, as long as they are used somewhere. Although the somewhere may vary. As I wrote, I've had even better success not using photos out on estimates, than when I used to drag an album with me. But I have a ton of photos at my website, and most people are going to my site before they even call me. So that may the equation in my case. I do have the photos, but just don't think about it when I'm out on the property. Photo records seem especially useful for sharing online at forums and stuff too. ...

I used to think photos were useful. But about 10 years ago, I became so experienced, and effective at communicating, that explanation alone erased the need for photos. At least for pruning and tree care. For design, that may be different. But for tree stuff, people became so convinced that I know my work, that the discussion became all that's needed. Actually, I found that many after photos, look worse if a person can't be at the place in person to see the beneficial change, because before photos tend to have more greenery, and after photos less greenery. So I have not shown a photo for pruning stuff in maybe 8 to 10 years. Now ... the photos I am taking around with me, are to start promoting portraiture work, for the future. That's one skill or service where I think there's no way around using a portfolio. But I'm showing about half my customers the practice photos I'm taking networking with models locally, to prepare for paid photography work, like in 2013 or 2014. ... ...