hippie love

Aw!

gate

Folks waiting in the bus line near the gate.

"I really like seeing people dance as close to the edge as possible. And trip a little bit, fall, and grab themselves. Sometimes they fall off, and that's just the way it is. At least I know they're human. We're living in an age where everything is so packaged and canned." -Les Claypool

entrance

It's here at the entrance to the fair that they start shouting things at you with a mega-phone. "No guns, swords, light sabers." "You are at the Fair people!" And, " Welcome home." It's here that I am always greeted by my friend Andrew (you might remember him from last year) with hugs and laughter. It's here that one realizes that they are among 40,000+ like minded people. It is here that magic happens!

laughter

Laughter is the

sensation of feeling

good all over and

showing it principally

in one place.

~Josh Billings, from the Peach Pit fair guide

Hippypotamus

Here is the Hippypotamus. It is built on the chassis of a Burning Man creation called the Hennepin Crawler which is pedaled by 4 men. This internal structure and it's story was featured in Make magazine volume 17. A wonderful addition to the fair this year teaching art, construction with trash, human power, imagination, beauty and cooperation. True ingenuity represented here with something so vibrant, showcasing the power of human invention.

flying saucers at the fair

Today was opening day of the (40th year) of the Oregon Country Fair. It rained hard last night driving down some of the dust and dryness that we have had over the past couple of weeks. Making for a perfect sunny day today ideal for landing alien spaceships. Flying saucers to be precise. There was not 1 craft sighted but 4 crafts traveling in formation throughout the fair. Many many photographs were taken by giggling strangers who always had a few things to share about their experiences with extra-terrestrials.

My kids had a very enjoyable time!

fun with Skerik

I always enjoy a good showing at a wee venue. Same Bond's Garage is a very fun place where they serve hard cider and mead in mason jars. The furnishings are rustic and wood, the folks there are tattooed, alternative and happy. The stage is just barely big enough to fit a 4 piece band. This little club is located in the art district in my town, walking distance from the bus depot amd downtown. Adjacent to some fine hole-in-the-wall diners and a health food store. It's a treat when the big names come through, which they often do.

Toby and I made made a special trip last night because Skerik would be there with his Jazz band McTuff. The night was cool and the moon covered with clouds. The band was late arriving after their scheduled time to play, just before we got there. The boys were just coming in as we were and I asked Skerik if he would like a hug before they began and he shouted, "Bring it on, baby!" At this point I thought that it should be a fun evening.

They opened with a few songs to warm up the crowd which was mingling and talking. the place was full but not packed, casual, with only maybe 65 people. Quaint! As things went on the crowd got loose and the band too. Skerik can really put on a performance all by himself with dancing, odd gestures, crowd involvement and his amazing saxophone playing. And his band met him on those standards and then some. They were all wonderful! Later they pulled out some groovy funk jams, some amazing covers, some lovely dreamy drifting songs and some funny licks.

The crowd was getting wild at this point, taking to the dance floor. They played for over 3 hours. It was euphoric! We had a really nice time. We shot some cut-up pictures with Skerik after the show and exchanged pleasantries. He's a really exciting guy. You can see more pictures here and video here. Glad to have seen such an amazing musician and get to know him.

mighty mountains

The Teatons bid us farewell to the land of mighty mountains. Huge mountains, splendid land, clean air, clear water, wild animals. It was an apt finale to what was so much fun and a blessing. A trip where I found myself and found out so much about things. The mountains are always very clarifying for me. I get the perspective that I need to look at my life from 'on high'.

We had more adventures on the several day journey back home. 2 crazy excursions into the back country of the high deserts of Idaho and Oregon in search of elusive hotsprings, chasing them across a soaked and slippery playa. A flat tire in the bush, engine repairs, chance meetings with friends we had never met before (in real life) at a gas station in the middle of nowhere, 2 nearly sleepless nights. One especially nice sighting occurred on a deserted back country road very late at night as we looked for a spot to call camp and get some shut-eye. Twice (up and back) we watched a family of Desert Fox youngsters playing on a bridge over a wash, a rare thing. Our treat for coming up this road so far and so late and not finding what we were looking for.

It was an amazing journey, trip, vacation. I've picked my favorite stories to tell here. There was so much more living that happened, sad stories, silly little things, thrilling sights. It's all inside me somewhere to carry with me. I will be back again in the future, maybe I won't stay away as long this time, I will bring my children and I know it will still be 'home'!

scat!

Scat! While out in the back country it's always good to be alert. And that means examining the smaller signs, looking for prints and scat. Poop that is. Yes, I'm putting pictures of poop up on my blog. lol We came upon alot of scat in our travels. Lots of ungulate, smaller critters, big bird and predators. Scat tells you all about the animal, the species, how big it is, what it has been consuming, when it came through. All valuable information for the hiker.

Sometimes you see the scat and not the animal who left it. This can be a good thing. Sometimes you are seeking the animal and never see them because they are elusive yet know they are nearby because of fresh sign. That is thrilling.

Above is fresh bear and below is recent wolf. I found another scat pile that was wolf and forget to get a picture of it.

It's good to listen and look and pay attention when in the wild. Stories unfold all around you if you allow yourself to become a part of the scene. I honed this skill early on when living in that wild place, part necessity, part love.

A funny story:

We were hiking back to a remote hotspring just South of Yellowstone Park. We had tried one trail head and then another one and there was a third. At the mouth, very near the information board-which warned of bear in the area, among other things, was this big pile of fresh scat (pictured above). We noted it, aware and alert at this point. As an aside; I have never purchased nor carried bear spray in all of my time living in prime bear habitat. I saw a man and woman enter the trail about 10 minutes ahead of us and said aloud that it was good that we were not the only folks back there on this day. We hiked on for a mile or two at which point we stopped and observed more bear sign and then more. Different sign, not scat. Then the trail spit and we consulted with our guide (which wasn't very helpful on this hike) scanned the area and made some guesses as to where the secret hot pool gems were hiding. Through a lovely richly green creek side meadow and up over a knoll and down through another meadow. This is were we found several hotsprings and caught up with the two hikers.

I talked with them a bit about the area and the springs. They seemed disenchanted with the bog and temperatures of the many pools. I explained about how sometimes you have to 'make' them dippable especially in the back country. Rearranging rocks, adjusting river flow in and out of pools, digging. I noted that they looked like the hiker-type with all of their fancy new gear, yet clean and uncertain. As apposed the my mucky sandals, sweaty t-shirt, simple bag over my shoulder and casual attitude. At this point I asked them if they had seen the bear sign at the trail head. Both looked instantly alarmed and irritated. The man told me not to talk about bear around the woman, as it wasn't something "we do". Huh?! I brushed that off by saying that it is good to know, when in a place like that. I wanted (needed) to be aware of where this bear was while I was in his home, on his turf.

I went on to say that it was fresh scat, maybe an hour old, he had been eating greens, he had come up along the opposite side of the creek as we had seen his swath left in the tall grass and judged his size by the depth and width of the belly drag. We told them where we had seen his river crossing as he had left his footprints and belly drag along the creek bottom in the fine silt. Another confirmation that this bear had passed by merely an hour before. I talked about how he had walked along the hillside just below the trail then followed it for a bit and up and over the knoll toward the trail head and beyond. This was his valley, his meadows. He was nearby.

I watched as their terror grew. Feeling for their inexperience and wanting to calm them I said that is was OK, it was (only, lol) a black bear. A big black bear. And me, in those circumstances, make enough noise to let all bear in the area know that I am there and though friendly and alert very much not wanted to intrude and catch them by surprise.

So after that as Toby and I took another side trail, which was not so much a trail as an idea of direction, we sought out more springs in the area along an adjacent creek. The other hikers kept themselves just paces behind us, not wanting to hike with us as I had suggested is good in bear country, more numbers, but just behind us, saying that I "seemed to know where I was going". At that point I had given up on the scant directions in my guide and used my 'land logic' to scout the springs with better luck. The second group of pools another mile on, there was a third another mile past that, looked promising. Again the hiking couple converged with us and they seemed to think the springs looked too silty (or something) for their taste, leaving us alone at this point and wishing us "good luck".

Alone after that, I hoped they were noisy on their trip back out, I had already chosen a different route out, we had a lovely nude soak in some hot and delightful pools along a bubbling creek (that we would later forge) with high clear blue skies and the glorious Teatons looming in the distance.

Did we ever see our bear friend? We did not. That was my plan and being alert and aware was part of that. We knew he was there and he knew we were there and through mutual respect we managed to skirt around each other and go about our business. I was thankful that he shared his lovely valley home with us and allowed us a dip in the hotsprings. We were respectful leaving nothing behind and taking only pictures. I thought he had chosen a very nice place to live!

Upon returning back to our car (and dogs who were not allowed into the back country in this area and for obvious reason) we found wolf scat there on the ground inches from the tire!

meadow napping

I'm getting down to the end of my Yellowstone stories (which is good because the Oregon Country Fair is this weekend). Thanks for being patient with me and my need to record special things from my journey here. I haven't been around to visit friend's blogs either (which I miss) to see how your summers are going (pregnancies, families and lives). And we are super busy with orders through the shop. Summer!

So...this picture and spot is very sweet. We'd been around, all over and were exploring and found ourselves all alone high up a canyon along Hebgen Lake one afternoon in this meadow. It was cool and clear and the air was fresh with pines. The sun warmed and filled this meadow where the grasses and wildflowers were just sending up their green shoots. We had a fire and a meal and cleared all the gear out of the van, as it was in need of some organising. Then we decided to take the bed out as well and have a thorough cleaning out. I had the brilliant idea that we should put the bed in the meadow. Wouldn't it be so nice there? Toby goes along with my crazy ideas. His addition was "Wouldn't it be so nice to have a nap there?" Indeed!

With the sunning warming us, the birds singing all around and my dogs on the lookout for bear (really they were sleeping soundly) on either side of us, we had a mountain meadow nap. Quite indulgent, really, for parents who have 5 children and are so so very busy in the daily life. And we knew it!

This, for me, is exactly what this trip was about. Doing what we wanted, when we wanted, just for the sheer delight in doing it. Having not a care in the world at that moment and being so close to nirvana, heaven, bliss, that is relaxation. Now, when I look at this picture and remember how tickled I was to pretend, for a moment, that this alpine meadow was my bedroom, I smile and giggle. How perfect!