Hiking, web development, best practices, and general awesomeness
Being a remote developer has its share of obvious benefits. There is no commute to work, none of the office distractions, and the comforts of home are just a couple of steps away. However, there are a few downsides to deal with. After five months of working remotely I wanted to take some time and go…
Over the last few months I've been playing around with Twitter's streaming API. I'm still at the tinkering stage, with a grand project in mind that's slowly being imagined. For a while the thought of a steady of stream of information was something that PHP just couldn't handle. Then I bumped into…
The last leg of the Chapel Loop is a relatively easy jaunt from Mosquito Beach back to the trailhead. There are two possible paths, one on each side of Mosquito River, with the longer western option darting over to Mosquito Falls before looping back up. Of the three sides of the lopsided triangle…
My legs dangled off the edge of Grand Portal Point, the ice and water of Lake Superior some two hundred feet below my feet. I relished the thrill of danger that coursed through me as I sat on the gritty rock. It had taken me all morning and more to reach the point, hiking through puddles and snow…
Returning to Chapel Rock was a tedious venture. The sun had continued to rise, warming the woods and melting the snow, and the trail of mud, slush, and water made for a tiresome slog. I tried to remember the longer sections of snow from the walk out to strap on snowshoes for, just so I could walk a…
Early morning slowly filtered through the winter-bare trees, bringing light and little warmth to the narrow dirt road. I was on Chapel Road, a two-track of Pictured Rocks, and it was still below freezing on this mid-April dawn. The road was plowed, a pleasant surprise to find, though there was…
It's been a few years since I climbed Sugarloaf Mountain. The area is one of those spots I tend to skirt around, with marked trails and frequent visitors, even though the views of the Marquette shoreline are very impressive. This evening seemed like a good time to stop by. It was late enough to…
Way back in the early years of Marquette's iron years there were other metals that people hunted for, silver and gold and more. There were traces of these precious materials found in creeks and veins throughout the Huron Mountains. One of the more promising finds was along Birch Creek. These…
Spring was arriving so slowly for much of the Upper Peninsula. I had started the day with a few short trips in the Peshekee Highlands and had been greeted with flurries and two feet of slush to slog through. Hoping to get a break in Ishpeming on the open trails of Al Quaal I found even more wet snow…
Teal Lake is one of those spots between Marquette and Houghton that has long grabbed at my attention. It helps that US-41 runs along the south shore for a good mile in Negaunee, offering even views of the dark waters and northern bluffs. Were there waterfalls flowing in or out of that highland lake?…