beer

The Sting

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Some things are so American you shouldn’t avoid them.

Tonight I went to a baseball game. After a small bit of sport climbing, Karli and her friend Ash decided while we were eating pizza and just across the road from the Denver Rockies stadium it would be worth it. So we did.

Act 1. The beginning

The stadium is impressive. Big, fully lit to the point there is barely a shadow , impressive and mostly full. And plenty of beers stands, pretzel, candy, and expensive food. We find we got cheap tickets into a slightly more premium area. Taking our seats the game has already started and the stadium is vibrant.

act 2. The slow dance

The thing I wasn’t told about baseball is its slow, really slow, between each bat is about 30 seconds to a minute. Of siting and waiting. They play music to clap too, but it last about 10 seconds and is on loop with about 4 other samples. All night the same four track on repeat. I’m not complaining to much, but its not even a good sample section, its starts turning into hard work clapping along. were in the second play.

act 3 repeat-     It seems the time between the plays/ innings is getting longer and longer, with more and more commercials between flashing on a board bigger than the game display and with mascot style novelty teeth and toothpaste running around advertising a brand. One of the pitchers seems to be spending more time trying to catch out runners trying to steal a base than throwing to the batter. It seems he is dragging out his moment of glory.

Act 4 How Long Is This Going To Take????? Its the slowest game of my life, i feel sanity slipping away. Its like groundhog day. I’ve been tricked, this is no spectator sport, they lied to get me here so i would have to endure it. I presume at this point the stewards have locked all exit doors until a profit margin is hit on sales of drinks and food.

Act 5 Inning 5

I’m sure i can see people on the opposite stand falling asleep, and a brilliant idea it is too, nice fresh air, a slow sedate game with a low commentary, just like being home in front of a tv. I’ve been told we can leave at the end of this inning. I hope its no lie.

 

In the end we did leave, after a couple off beers, clueless to the score, but did I enjoy it?

Secretly yes, it is kinda good fun. and a nice family environment.

here are a couple extra photos from denver and the past couple days. be sure to read The Wacky Adventures Of Benjamin and Karli. Its the start of the new trip. 🙂

grand canyon
dinner time camping, classy coolerbox table and cola glasses
best time to see denver
shopping with ‘the Karli’

 

 

The Wacky Adventures Of Benjamin and Karli

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This is the first of a new series of blogs on this road trip

After a great week of chilling out with Karli and her friends we had Karlis’ goodbye night out. Starting as any good night out should with beer, vodka, and champagne bought by Kiva, Molly and Tyler the house mates, and joined by Eliot. Now, on a wednesday night Denver isn’t the most lively place on the planet but with these guys even two’s a crowd. First stop was a dj set with hip-hop and plenty of mixing followed hours later by a second place that for the life of me I cannot remember the name of, but it was empty so we stole the dance floor and bust crazy moves till they became sick of us. On route to pizza the girls decided to take a scooter out for a spin and run a few lights. When we reached the apartment everybody seemed pretty burned except me and Karli, so while they went to bed we went back out to an empty closed city to cause mischief. The idea was to get as high as possible. First of all finding our way onto a building site before setting of a proximity alarm and quickly departing. We went off the site idea and decided a hotel elevator would be easier than an external crane to gain a view. Upon finding a classy looking hotel we calmly walked in greeting staff on route to the lift. Upto the 29th we flew and after wondering around lost for a minute found the exit staircase with a route up. We were so close. But alas the final door would not open. we descended back down and set the height bar lower. There was a two story shopping mall/parking lot that looked feasible. This again confounded us within a few feet of the top. We made one final attempt. We had to succeed and Karli knew where we could!
On she led into the dark till we found a small rise onto a flat roof that dropped away on one side. This was it , the high point, 4foot off the ground. The terrace back at the apartment block was a lot higher but this was outside and without safety rails. We sat for a while at the high side watching vehicles drive by before deciding to head home.
A couple of blocks from home there was one last bar, closed but playing load music outside. Justin Beber- love yourself. One last dance outside with no one else about and we arrived back exhausted. It was getting light out so I don’t know what time but we had a blast and I collapsed on the sofa content.
In The morning we all went around to Karlis’ mums house to see her mum and grandparents before departing. A quick trip back to the apartment to pack and an hour later we said goodbye to the house mates and were on the road. The first shop for our road trip went slow. Standing and staring at jars of tomato sauce to go with pasta not quite knowing which to get, the options were endless, an entire shopping isle. Then picking the ideal pan and plates. It took longer to do this shop than the decision to drive to Argentina and pack for the trip. Last night after the shop we drove 200miles to the Colorado monument Pitching the rooftent up just outside of the park.
We are now on day three, Ill be honest and say after missing a turn we went 68 miles in the wrong direction and had to turn around, but now!, after the small diversion we are on the way. We just passed through moab and have stopped in the grand canyon, might have something really big planned tonight/tomorrow. The rangers told us its not advisable so we know were on the right track. Extreme heat, dehydration, lots of miles and lots of elevation.

watch this space!!

shopping with ‘the Karli’

Climbing

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So, my trip has taken a turn (not the first on this trip) which I will get to in a minute. A few days go I cycled the 80 miles out to the base of longs peak (14,259ft), with a bike climb from 5000ft up to 9500ft, collected route information from the ranger station, cycled down 6 miles to national forest and camped.

The next morning at 3am I started cycling in the pitch black by head torch back up the mountain. There is always a debate in my mind when I wake early to climb or hike about should I just lie there and be a normal person getting up at a reasonable time, is this a sane thing to do? Anyway. Arriving at the trailhead I stashed my bicycle behind the ranger station and made some hot cinnamon oats which tasted great. So this is quite a popular peak and there were plenty of people heading up while I ate. The ranger the previous day recommended setting off around 1am, naturally I chucked this piece of advice to the wind believing myself to be a supreme machine(often I am wrong in this assumption). At around 4.15/4.30am I started up, hiking and running the flatter areas. I reached the Keyhole, a natural gap in the ridgewall and only way up at first light, which is where the scrambling begins. I flew past a lot of people and reached the summit after around 2.5hours. I sat a while talking to a few other hikers then started descending. Two others descended with me and turned out to have a decent pace. Which was nice compared to the solitary ascent. After getting back to the car park I whipped up some spaghetti and a mystery silver foil packed sauce which was possibly some form of madras with lentils then dropped down to boulder for the night. There was no plan to go to boulder but 20dollars at the campsite in Lyons seemed expensive for what was there, so I carried on.

the narrow traverse on longs peak
volley ball chill out day
the narrow traverse on longs peak

In boulder its surprising just how many signs saying no camping are up around the town and surrounding area. I ended up paying 100 dollars for a motel room I didn’t want, I resented it but it did beat the hostel that offered my their last suite room for 250 dollar. This rarely happens but I was tired and hungry and had saved money the previous nights wild camping. I cycled back to Denver, cleaned up my bike with a pack of 1 dollar wipes, bought a beer from a brewery and before I finished the beer sold the bike to a gent I agreed to meet there a day previous to boost my funds a little for the next part of my trip. Met a lovely couple while drinking my beer and letting the gent go test the bike. I had a minor concern he would just ride off on it never to be seen again, but i figured if he did it would be one less thing to worry about.

Chapter 2- The Next Part

So, Through chance I have met a girl called Karli who is wanting to drive from Denver to Argentina. Her plan beats my original plan in a few ways, first, cycling a long way on paved surface is boring, really boring, especially alone its like solitary confinement on a seat not designed for a mans behind. Second, it would be nice to be on a roadtrip for a while and have a few luxuries like pressed coffee, a real seat to sit in instead of dirt, and a climbing partner for some more technical ascent, which there will be plenty of. I have spent the past couple of days hanging around and getting to know Karli and her friends. Today we went tubing on a river with a couple of beers followed by volleyball under glorious sunshine. Sometimes life is hard but I guess I can endure.

Setting off in a couple of days. Mayhem bound to follow.

Benjamin

‘The Vortex Is Real, It Sucks You In’

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I’ve been trying to leave Salida for a couple of days now. But its fighting me , its like being on a ship in rough water constantly trying to trip me up, and as I climb through the decks I fall over buckets and mops tumbling head over heal to the previous level . I’m concerned I’m going to become swallowed up by the furniture. A downward spiral of soft pillows and comfy chairs with backpackers and hikers never going anywhere. Its dangerous. My mind runs through the potential jobs of busking and bar work. Here there is no politics, no stress, just laughter. Its easy to forget why you came to a place, ‘have I really just travelled half the world and hiked and cycled thousands of miles to sit here?’

I’m in a hostel, where several people have stopped a day or two, or three. I’ve fixed  my bike and adjusted everything to go but inertia has slowed me down. I have packed several times to leave but the stairs going up to the dorm room seem to be a slide down hill for my kit and I get spun around trying to find the exit which evades me every day at 11. By the time I find it its 3pm and too late to go. I wake again at 9 am, its Ground Hog Day. Sitting back each day listening to music, singing to songs with other backpackers, and short walks around the town. Everybody here has given up everything at this moment and its peaceful. Backpackers go out to the shop, buy cheap food and cook it. Then share everything. When someone new walks in, they are invited without question. Life is cheap to sustain. There is no tearing hair out with big bills. Every hiker has a different colour and energy and its wonderful.

Yesterday when walking to the shop we came across a scared bear in a tree. The ranger in charge of the taped off area said he will likely come down in the evening when all the people are gone and run straight out the town to a quieter place. I kinda felt sorry for the poor fella, so many people vilify these black bears but he looked exhausted draped across a fork in the tree petrified of the people nearby. I hope he made it out ok.

Hopefully I do too.

Benjamin.

 

 

 

 

 

Falling into the dream with Montana

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So, today I cycled 83 miles on dirt road, I would have stopped earlier, but I really despise flies and knew from the 47th mile at the 83rd mile there would be a pint of refreshing ale and a swimming pool as a reward. 4 pints later and I’m still telling myself there is time for the pool. I have pitched my tarp sheet in a nice rv/motel park borrowing a towel as I carry non.  Tomorrow will descend on Yellowstone. Hoping to get in early to beat the park entrance fee. I am really settling into this trip now.

The days riding was shear joy, open dirt roads, few climbs and great views (i do enjoy climbs but not at 32c (90f). Playing my repeated playlist again and again I felt like a Don singing out loud with no one to complain. One 4×4 vehicle on the road did pull over to talk, the couple inside had been to my home Lake District and talked of the great beer and a lovely 3 weeks there. I do believe Montana is getting close to brilliant beer, or maybe I am just enjoying drinking more of it.  I covered today’s distance in around 6 hours including stops where I attempted to take timed photos with no luck, I spent much time running back and forward and I have lots of ridiculous photos of my back running from the camera, there seems to be an auto motion sensor fighting me; I will sus this sometime soon. I am just over the border in Idaho and don’t think I will be back in Montana again in the near future, quite a sad thought, its been brilliant, the snow, the river crossing, the downed trees, the heat, the views, the cycling, the humbling experience and the friendliest people you could meet in the world who invited me to drink beer with them, introduced me to their families and opened their homes to me.  Sky, Sarah, Josh, Gov, Aram, and the many I knew only for a few hours. thank you all.

I will miss you Montana, goodnight.

long easy gravel road smooth as a highway
backdrop of the continental divide at red rock lake
I planned on stopping here but the fly situation was devestating
classic montana
my office for the eve
open road
my pitch for the night

Hitching A Ride

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So, After getting out of The Bob, I sat at the side of the gravel road waiting for a car to pass. and there I waited………

It took around 6hour for one vehicle to pass. This is a dead end road, just a small carpark at the end of a 30mile stretch of gravel more likely to be used on weekends, and today was Tuesday. I was beginning to think no one would be leaving that day (there were 3 cars parked up, likely on camping trips for multiple days) when a lovely couple pulled out the car park, offered me a beer and let me join them to Augusta, they were in their 40’s and had given up the desk jobs to tour the country. I stopped the night in a RV park, got breakfast in a small cheap cafe for a few dollars, and decided to hitch to Missoula then Spokane as there would be more to do while my feet heel and I could have a proper catch up with Tribhu. I walked to the roadside at the end of the town and before I had even turned around an old F150 pickup pulls over, and a nice old man says ‘hop in’, he was a carpenter on the way to finish a house. He agrees to take me to the crossroad 20 miles further down where I would continue my hitch in a different direction. The second hitch took about 10 minutes. A shiny new 4×4 drove past before swinging onto a dirty side road and coming back for me, the driver was an ex-police chief, on his way to a wedding. He dropped me in Lincoln 30 miles further down. From Lincoln I had one small ride of about 10 miles west followed by the rest of the way to Missoula with a guy going to see a music act that night, I honesty wasn’t going to consider the car for a lift, I could see in the distance the front wing had been ripped off in an accident and I slowly lowered my hand trying to make myself less noticeable, but he pulled in and asked ‘Missoula?’. Taking that as a good sign I took the ride. Before letting me leave he insisted I take a 4 pack of beers for the road and wished me well, as he passed me the pack of beers he hesitantly asked ‘actually, would you mind if I took one for the road?’. Safely presuming due to the conversation we previously had he was high and myself not really interesting in the beers anyway i happily obliged. Oh America you never surprise.

The satisfaction of covering a decent amount of miles from the generosity of others is one everybody should experience, a great way to see the states and meet the locals.

In Missoula I would relax for the day and look around before heading to Spokane to see a good friend. I asked around for a good coffee/pastry shop and planned on sitting down with a little food and finding accommodation. When I arrived at the coffee shop, the staff enquired if I was on holiday. I said I’m hiking the CDT and taking a couple of days off. After buying a pastry the girl behind the counter said ‘take a seat and relax here for a while’. So I did, minutes later for her to come over and introduce herself. She was called Sarah and had cycled the CDT two years previous with her husband Josh, she said they received a lot of generosity from people along the way and they would like to return the favor. So arranged for me to come down after the coffee shop closed and I could have a lift to their house. I met the husband Josh who had just got back from a mountain bike competition finishing quite well. The thing that always surprises me in life is just how much other people want to help.  After a nice evening and a good breakfast of pastry and coffee the next morning Josh gave me a ride to the Greyhound Station to catch my Spokane bus.

I have been in Spokane for most the past week now stopping at my friends. My mangled up feet nearly good to go apart from one scabbed up blister that has decided to remain. So tonight I will head back to trail by catching the Amtrak back to Glacier and hitching back to where i left off. I have adjusted my pack to be as light as possible to accommodate better digital equipment for better photos, footage, and blogs. Here’s hoping i don’t need an umbrella, bear spray, ice axe, crampons, spare socks, wood burning stove, spare boxers or more than a 2 season sleeping bag.

On this trip so far I can count 9 hitches, 3 offers of accommodation overnight, free beer during the hitch, a nice pack of beers after another hitch, new friends to hike with, 2 grizzly bears, 3 black bears, moose, lots of deer, prairie dogs, mice, marmots, chipmunks, snow bridges, many river crossings, and probably a lot I have forgotten already. All good things. While this has been a slow trip to start I am looking forward to the next couple of months.