Stormy Weather

After considerable thought regarding my options, I decided to head south again, to southern Arizona and revisit Chiricahua National Monument. I had some unfinished business there involving several trails and I (perhaps somewhat foolishly) thought that it would be warmer there. The days were nice at the Grand Canyon and in northern Arizona but the nights were still a little cool for comfort.

Returning to Holbrook, I turned south onto Arizona 77, which takes you through the towns of Snowflake and Show Low. Noticing that there was a scenic highway “sort of” on my way I continued east on Arizona 260 then picked up U.S. 180/191 south through the White Mountains. It was an absolutely beautiful drive, and I highly recommend it, but only if you aren't in a hurry, aren't easily excited and you have a great deal of patience. Whew! I'll just say that I was very happy when I got through those mountains!

The weather had taken a turn – from a beautiful day with blue skies and sunshine to just plain weird looking. It was a hazy-foggy mix with a little sunshine penetrating the gloom. I decided to stop at Roper Lake State Park, a few miles south of Safford on U.S. 191. As I pulled into the registration booth it started to rain, poured down, but just for a minute.

About an hour later this appeared to the west (click on image to view a larger version):

With the dark clouds came strong winds, rain and snow.

A close-up view of the mountains beneath those big gray clouds. This particular storm passed by quickly. But other storms and more wind came again during the night. It was a very restless night!

In the morning we were greeted with sunshine, blue skies, and somewhat cooler temperatures. As I headed a few miles south toward Willcox and Chiricahua, I wondered what more Mother Nature could bring my way.

A Negro Man Called Thomas...

Several years ago I was corresponding with Carol Dorward, a distant cousin in my Goodrich line. She is a descendant of Price Goodrich while I am descended from his sister, Abigail (Goodrich) Joslin. They are the children of Bela and Sally (Church) Goodrich. Bela is a son of John and Abigail (Price) Goodrich.



John Goodrich was born in 1754 Wethersfield, Hartford County, Connecticut and lived there until about 1807 when he moved to Worthington, Franklin County, Ohio. From about the late 1790s until early 1806 he was known as John 3rd since there were two older men in Wethersfield by the name of John Goodrich. In April 1806 one of the older men died and John 3rd became John 2nd. Needless to say, this does create some “issues” with researching “my” John Goodrich.



One of the items that Carol sent me was a transcription of a brief biography about “our” John Goodrich from an article on Christ Church of Worthington. Among the information provided in that article was the following statement: “On Dec. 8, 1799, he bought a Negro man 'Tom,' the bill of sale being recorded on the Wethersfield land records.”



I know we are not supposed to judge our ancestors by today's standards, but I was more than a little surprised to learn about this “transaction” and decided to find the deed record. I'm glad that I did...








Wethersfield Deeds, volume 21 page 528.

Dated December 18, 1799. Recorded January 8, 1800.

Family History Microfilm 0,006,000 viewed February 13, ...


Wethersfield. December 18th, AD 1799.



Whereas I John Goodrich the third of said Wethersfield have this day purchased, bought & received of James Mitchell of said Wethersfield a Negro man called & known by the name of Thomas or Tom, between fifty & Sixty years of age & have gotten a Bill of Sale of sd Negro, to have & hold him said Tom during his Natural Life, and said Thomas or Tom has well served & Indemnified me, in Emancipating & setting him free, I do therefore for the Consideration of ten Dollars received to my full Satisfaction of said Thomas or Tom, sell convey & makeover, give & grant to said Thomas or Tom, all my Right & title to & Interest in his the said Thomas's Service, during his Natural Life, and whereas said Thomas is too far advanced in years to be Emancipated & set free, according to the Statute in such case provided, was to cause him to fall upon the Town in case of want & Sickness, yet so far as relates to any control over him, he is hereby Emancipated and free to all Intents & purposes as fully & absolutely as tho he had become a freeman of this State, & he the said Tom is forever, or during his natural, to enjoy all the Rights & priviledges of a free Citizen, as far as I can Effect both, from any Claim I have or might have or any of my Heirs or assigns. As Witness my hand and Seal the day & date above.



John Goodrich 3d. {Seal}



Signed, Sealed, & delivered in presence of – John Marsh, Stephen M. Mitchell.



=+==+==+==+==+=



Of course, as often happens, this document brings up more questions.We'll probably never know the underlying reason for his actions but it appears that John purchased and emancipated Thomas on the same day.

Morning Beach Walk

If I actually manage to get back to regular blogging, it will most likely seem very boring and monotonous. Because I imagine it will begin to look the same each time I do. Here is our morning beach walk, at 6:15 am. Compliments of God and Ava.

We did manage to leave the beach for a short while today. To go and buy beach chairs, sunblock and sunhats. We joked that it was our entire entertainment for the summer. That's not entirely true since I will also hoop, read and scrap. At the beach. While using the beach chairs, sunblock and sunhats.



Ok, so we might also need the sun umbrellas that we have been dragging around for three years and only used once up till now. What can I say, we were hopeful this time would come where we'd need them every single day. And now that time is here!



Living the life at the beach!

Mt. Shasta, Avalanche Gulch

Mt. Shasta had been on our radar for a while and since northern California had a good forecast, we decided to head south. It is the second highest volcano in the lower 48 (Rainier is the highest). This is the view from the trailhead at Bunny Flat (6,900'). The huge valley in this photo is Avalanche Gulch. The route starts up the left side, goes around Helen Lake (10,400') and ends up on the right side.We seem to spend a lot of time standing still and looking up. The snow was firm and allowed us to make good time. We made it above the Red Banks in time to see the sunrise. There is nothing like watching a sunrise from high up on a mountain. It was starting to get cold and windy.The shadow of Shasta is projected onto the countryside as the sun comes up. Next, we had to climb a feature called Misery Hill and a few false summits. We finally made it to the true summit.Doug and Dave on the summit. You would think that northern California would be warmer on June 25th, but it was cold at 14,162'!When the conditions are good, you can glissade about 3,000' down this route. The snow was still too firm, so we had to walk down. There were still a lot of climbers heading up.

All that was left was the long drive home. We got to see a bunch of deer, antelope, turkey vultures and about 10 more snow covered volcanoes.

It was fun to take a road trip to a new area and finally climb this giant.

Weight Distribution Mysteries

One thing that continues to mystify me about frame design, is how different bicycles react to weight distribution. Over the years, I've really found this aspect of a bicycle's handling to be a wildcard. My Rivendell Sam Hillborne is built like a typical mid-trail touring bike, which, it is said, makes it optimal for carrying heavy loads in the rear but only moderate loads in the front. However, I prefer to ride this bike with an enormous handlebar bag, and it does very well with it. It also handles well with a saddlebag and panniers, but interestingly the handlebar bag - with the same amount of weight in it - does not appear to affect speed at all, whereas the saddlebag does a bit. If I am going on a fast ride, Iremove the saddlebag butdo not bother removing the handlebar bag. All of this is just fine with me, because I find it far more convenient to keep my stuff in the front for easy access. But it goes against my understanding of the way a bicycle like this is supposed to react to weight.





Then there is the Moser racing bike, which reacts badly to any weight I put on it at either end. The front gets twitchy with even a small bag attached. And with any saddlebag larger than a tiny wedge the bike feels distinctly rear-heavy. A few times I've affixed a mid-sized saddlebag so that I could carry my camera, and it felt like trudging through mud compared to the speed this bike is normally capable of. On the other hand, a full water bottle on the downtube (the bottle weighing about the same as my camera) has no effect, and neither does my own weight gain when I stuff my jersey pockets with all the things I would have otherwise kept in a bag.



Riding bikes like this has made me understand why some cyclists chose to ride with backpacks instead of baskets or panniers - some bicycles simply do not handle well with weight on either end, but do fine when the weight is part of the rider. This is one reason the argument "If you want to lighten your bike, lose some weight" does not make sense to me.You cannot simply take the combined weight of a bicycle, its accessories and its rider, and assume the handling and speed will be the same as long as the total remains the same.







My first city bicycle - a Pashley Princess - came with a huge front basket, but it did not handle well for me when I put things in the basket. Eventually I removed it and attached a set of rear folding panniers instead. With that configuration the bike handled much better, and faster. When I carried weight in the rear, I could detect no difference in speed, even with a full load of groceries.






On the other hand, the Bella Ciao city bike I now ride - while faster than the Pashley overall - is more sensitive to weight in the back. The handling doesn't change, but I can feel a difference in speed depending on how heavy the load I am carrying is.




With pretty much every bicycle I've ridden over an extended period of time so far, I've noticed some sort of relationship between weight distribution and handling, and it is not always a logical one - or at least not obviously so. I am sure there are lots of factors contributing to these effects, and these factors are just too nuanced to be obviously discernible. It's interesting to figure this stuff out in the process of getting to know a bike.

Gearing Up for the Holidays

Every year when it hits November, I kind of hold my breath a bit, bracing myself for the coming holidays. I love the holidays. I am really geeky about holidays in fact. But they are also tiring because of all of the "extra" they add to life.



Adding to the holiday busy-ness is the reality that work is going to get much busier. It will get downright crazy in fact. We will also have more people around us that we want to spend time with. Pickleball will be in full force. And I will love it all. And I will be ready to crash when it ends because it really is exhausting to juggle so much in such a short time. So on days like today, where I spent most of the day at Sixteen Hands...I soak up the peace and quiet while I can.



I enjoy the pace of the horses. I pay attention to the small details, like Dancer's jingle bells.



I laugh at the silly faces Patriot makes while he camera hogs my view.



I marvel at Gracie, who is one of the wild mustangs here. I appreciate her patient and gentle spirit with us as we try to attend to so many horses needs.



And I spend as much time as necessary to see that Cherokee gets as much food into him as he can handle today.



I get down to the basics when I am here. All the things that nourish living souls. Nothing more. And it is exactly what I need to keep me grounded.



Living the life in FL!

Review of "Eustacia Vye": Pashley Princess Sovereign

[Edited to add: There is now an updated review of this bicycle here. I suggest reading the updated version first, as it's the most complete.]



Meet Eustacia Vye:my precious and unique beauty, made by Pashley and customised by the fine people at Harris Cyclery. If you are familiar with the works of Thomas Hardy, you probably got the reference of the name. (If not, read Thomas Hardy!) Eustacia roams the heaths and meadows with wild abandon, seducing those whom she encounters with her regal beauty. And she is excellent in Boston traffic.



Here are the front and back views. If you are interested in how I came to select this bicycle, you can read about it here.



I. THE BICYCLE:



The Pashley Princess Sovereign is a classic "loop-frame" ladies bicycle. It comes standard with fenders, a fully enclosed chaincase, dress-guards, a heavy-duty black Pletscher rack, a hub-driven dynamo headlight and an LED rear light, a Brooks B66S saddle (sprung, suspended leather), enclosed hub brakes, puncture-resistant Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires, a pump attached to the frame with braze-ons, an "O-Lock" for the back wheel, a "ding-dong" bell, and an enormous wicker basket. My Princess is the 20" frame (51 cm), which fits my 5'7" (170 cm) proportions perfectly. Standard specs for the Princess Sovereign can be viewed on Pashley's website here.



For those not familiar with Pashley, they are an English manufacturer and have been making traditional bicycles since 1926, specialising in transport cycles and classic English roadsters.



A close-up of the Pashley headbadge.



This is a traditionally lugged and brazed handbuilt frame. The frame is powder-coated and the paintjob is very durable (a powder coated finish will scratch and scuff, whereas a liquid-coated finish will chip). The Princess is available in two colours: "Buckingham Black" and "Regency Green." I chose the green, because it seemed to have a stronger personality, and because I generally like green bicycles. The shade is a dark and subdued "British racing green".



Pashley bicycles are made in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. Some cool photos of their factory, including the brazing process, can be viewed here.



II. CUSTOMISATIONS:



As mentioned earlier, many customisations have been done to this bicycle. Here they are, not at all in the order of importance or magnitude:



Dress-guards: We replaced the standard dressguard pictured here with a netted dress-guard I bought in Germany. I wanted a dressguard that resembled latticed wroght iron rather than transparent plastic. This one certainly does. It also covers more of the wheel than the original dressguard.



Here is a close-up of the netting over the chaincase...



... and around the opening for the "O-Lock". The O-Lock is a European locking system that locks the rear wheel, making the bicycle impossible to be ridden away by a thief. In most areas in the US, it is probably prudent to use this for supplementary purposes only.



Kickstand: We replaced the standard Princess kickstand with the Pletscher Twin-Legger, which provides support on both sides of the bicycle and lifts either the back or the front wheel off the ground (you can adjust the balance to determine which).



Not all bicycles will accommodate this kickstand, but the Princess has a special braze-on below the bottom bracket for this purpose.



Grips: We replaced the standard Raleigh-style plastic grips with Brooks leather washer grips in brown. These are probably the most comfortable handlebar grips I have ever tried: They provide just the right amount of texture, softness, suppleness and durability. And they look gorgeous!



Gearing and Brakes: But wait, what's this next to the right grip? The Princess Sovereign comes with a Sturmey Archer 5-speed hub. Mine has been replaced with a 7-speed Shimano Nexus coasterbrake hub (and yes, the gear-shifter has been twined and shellacked). This is by far the most dramatic customisation, and I cannot thank Harris Cyclery enough for doing such an amazing job.



I wanted a coaster brake on the back wheel instead of the (hand-operated) drum brake that Pashley bicycles normally come with. Most people would have been glad to have the standard hand-operated brake option, but I wanted a coaster brake due to some problems with the nerves in my right hand. I can operate a hand-brake, but in stop-and-go traffic a coaster brake is more comfortable.



To accommodate this, the wheelbuilder at Harris Cyclery rebuilt the back wheel of the bicycle. This was done so impeccably, that it looks stock and absolutely flawless. I also asked Harris to set the gears lower, to make it easier to climb hills. They used a 23-tooth cog, which provided the lowest setting possible, given the enclosed chaincase. The 2 extra gears that came with the Nexus hub were pretty helpful in the hill-climbing aspect as well!



The front wheel retained the original Sturmey Archer hub dynamo/drum brake.



If you're confused, this means that I have a hand-operated front-wheel brake on the left handlebar, a 7-speed gear shifter on the right handlebar, and a coaster brake on the back-wheel that is operated with the feet by pedaling backwards.



Lights: We have added extra lights to supplement the standard lighting system.



Saddlebag: Not exactly a customisation, but the bag on the rear rack is a Carradice Barley. I absolutely love these remarkably roomy and attractive bags.



Initially, I had considered also replacing the basket and saddle, but on further testing decided to keep the originals. Please note that the 20" and 22.5" frames apparently come with a larger and more sturdy basket than the 17" frame.



III. IMPRESSIONS:



My first impressions of Eustacia can be summarised as "gorgeous, fits me perfectly and rolls like a dream... but unreasonably heavy". I had tested the Pashley Princess before purchase and had also tried several Dutch bikes -- so I thought I was prepared for the weight. But that was before I had to carry it up and down the porch stairs every time I wanted to ride it. I admit that during the first few days of ownership, I cursed and despaired, gave myself many bruises, and almost fell down the stairs a couple of times under Eustacia's weight. I was pretty upset about it and could not reconcile the fact that I had the most beautiful, elegant bike in the world and found it unmanageable.



Then, after a week, something magical happened: The bicycle miraculously lost weight! Well, either that, or I developed arm strength. Either way, carrying it up and down the porch stairs now takes only a couple of seconds and I take it in stride. Do I wish it were a lighter bicycle? I honestly cannot say for sure: Its weight also contributes to its stability, comfort on the road, reliability in traffic and tank-like indifference to pot-holes. (Edited to add: See also this post about speed.)



A summary of pros and cons:



Pros:

. stunning looks

. quality construction

. utilitarian add-ons

. luxurious accessories

. curved step-trough frame for easy on-off with skirts

. roomy and well-proportioned, with 3 frame sizes to choose from (I am 5'7", got a 20" frame, and can just reach the ground with my toes in the lowest saddle position).

. upright posture for relaxed riding, great views of surroundings, and visibility to traffic

. enclosed hub brakes make it weather resistant

. puncture-resistant tires are pretty much indestructible

. super stable

. handles extremely well in traffic

. sneers at pot-holes



Cons:

. heavy (specs state 45lb, but more like 50lb once you add accessories)

. not "agile" or sporty by any means; slow to accelerate

. upright posture restricts speed and uphill cycling

. saddle adjustment can be tricky with a "sliding off effect" unless perfectly tweaked

. if you are a private person who dislikes being approached by strangers, you might be overwhelmed with the attention this bike will get you. I get an average of 2-3 comments each time I take it out of the house.



IV. CONCLUSIONS:



The Pashley Princess Sovereign will give you elegant utility, with the bonus gift of increased upper body strength. As a town-and-country bike and a transport bike, it is a success. An agile, sporty bike it is not (and to be fair, does not claim to be). As with any bicycle, you can always customise components, which includes lowering the gears if you live in a hilly area. Enjoy the city and the meadows, and be prepared for lots of attention when people see this bicycle!





Edited to add:



Since this review, I have aded updates that may also be useful:

Pashley Princess as winter bike



Pashley Princess after some modificationsPashley Princess with cream Delta Cruiser tires

For other perspectives on the Pashley Princess, you may also want to check out...

.Miss Sarah atGirls and Bicycles

.Sigrid atMy Hyggelig.Michael atEcoVelo

.Lorenza atWhere Do Roots Belong

.Dottie atLet's Go Ride a Bike

Tree Lighted at Night

Do you Digi Scrap?

Today I am trying to do some more digital scrapbooking pages while we are traveling. I am making some basic templates to use later. It reminded me of my friend Eileen who is also learning digital scrapbooking. I thought I'd share one just in case she or someone else out there does digital scrapbooking and loves freebie templates. It is a layered template made in photoshop (PSD).

You can grab it here: Freebie Template



Here is the preview of it:

Ristra Display

I could see this ristra display down the ally way we couldn't get into.

Sunset Sky Flames

I stepped outside for just a moment the other evening, not expecting to see a colorful sky since it was so cloudy. However when I got out in the yard and looked to the west the sky just above the horizon was on fire! The clouds just above the trees had this amazing pink glow from the setting sun. It sure was a nice surprise!

Death Valley National Park

After six days at Joshua Tree, I traveled north to Death Valley National Park, arriving there on Tuesday March 23rd.

When I arrived at Texas Springs Campground (sort of in the central portion of the park near Furnace Creek) it was almost full. It's one of those first-come, first-served self-check-in campgrounds, so you have to drive around and find an empty spot. It took a while but I pulled into what I thought was an open site at the same time as someone else pulled in to the one next to me. We looked at each other and said, “Hi neighbor!” But a few minutes later they pulled out and went to another spot. As I was standing there looking around, a little old lady (the 80-year old camp host) came up and told me I was in a handicap only site, so I had to move. She said there were only three empty sites left and told me where they were.

As I pulled into my next selected site, I saw that my new neighbors were actually the young couple that had pulled in beside me earlier. We looked at each other and laughed. They had gotten the last site that had a picnic table and fire ring. My site had nothing. But it was better than no site at all. Being nice neighbors, the young couple (Ian and Jennifer) invited me to join them at their table and campfire. They were very sweet and pleasant. We had a wonderful time sitting around the campfire in the evening and talking the night away, literally.

We were neighbors for Wednesday night also and once again they were gracious and companionable and we spent another evening talking around the campfire. By the time the night was over, we each knew quite a bit about the other. I spent two more nights at Texas Springs. On Friday night, Ian and Jennifer joined me at my camp site after spending Thursday in the back-country. (I had moved to a new site Thursday morning with a table and fire ring.) Thank you, Ian and Jennifer, for helping to make my evenings in Death Valley so enjoyable. It was great fun!

Death Valley from Dante's View, 5500 feet above the valley.

The Golden Mountains. Those two little vertical “lines” in the middle of the picture are people!

This is an area known as the Artist's Palette.

At Zabriskie Point.

Zabriskie Point.

The Devil's Golf Course. Telescope Peak, in the background, is the highest peak (over 11,000 feet) in the Panamint Range that borders Death Valley on the west.

Close up view of the Devil's Golf Course. In 1934, it was determined that the salt and gravel beds of the Devil's Golf Course extend to a depth of more than 1,000 feet. Later studies suggest that in places the depth ranges up to 9,000 feet.

The salt flats at Badwater, which is the lowest point in Death Valley at 232 feet below sea level. Walking on the salt flats was strange. It looked like concrete but there was some “give” in each step. In several spots there were muddy pools of water where small holes had been made in the salt flat.