Hiking, web development, best practices, and general awesomeness
Since the summer of 2008 I've been exploring the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It all started with waterfalls, the quest to find and document every waterfall within a hundred mile radius of our old house in Houghton. Once Katie and I moved to Wisconsin the adventures slowly changed, becoming more…
My shoulders cried in relief after I shrugged off my backpack and dumped it into the car. Over the years I've tried to upgrade my gear, aiming for smaller and lighter, yet my pack still feels far too heavy. A new sleeping bag is probably up next, and then maybe a lighter mess kit. Anyways, I was…
Cool darkness was beginning to pale with morning light on the McCormick Tract. Slowly I rolled out of my sleeping bag, stretching and shivering slightly as I left its accumulated heat. Without dressing I headed out into the cool air, clad only in boxers and a cheap pair of old wet shoes, and headed…
Crisp fall colors and scents poured out over the Peshekee and rushed around me as I stepped out of the car. Ah, yes. Everything was perfect today. The temperature was warm, edging close to eighty degrees. The sun shone down through a cloudless sky. And it was autumn over the McCormick Tract, the…
My legs were sprawled out on a flat rock, a timid autumn sun slowly seeping into and drying off the wet patches the thick woods had left behind. There was no way to get completely dry - my boots were far too soaked through for that - but I held some hope that the damp clinging to my calves would…
Rain never came that night. Instead the sky cleared, letting the full moon's light and icy air cut through the forest like a sharp wintery knife. When I finally pulled myself from the lukewarm cocoon into the freezing predawn air I was greeted by a thin sheen of frost covering every surface in…
The straps cut deep into my shoulders. I was carrying a very heavy pack, filled with food, warm clothes, and extra supplies, much more than my usual haul. This was no simple in-and-out camping trip. My destination was White Deer Lake of the McCormick Tract and cold temperatures and rain were in the…
Located north of Champion, the McCormick Tract is a 16,850 acre wilderness in the Peshekee Grade. Originally owned by Cyrus McCormick, inventor of the reaping machine, the land was donated to the USDA Forest Service in 1967 and is now available for the public to enjoy. In July of 2009 I visited the…
The Yellow Dog River has recently gained media attention as one of the two waterways endangered by the proposed Eagle Project sulfide mine. This mine would be located on the Yellow Dog Plains near the headwaters of the Salmon Trout River and Yellow Dog River, potentially threatening two pristine…