:: Thursday, August 19, 2004 ::

For those of you without somethingawful accounts, I have pasted my Philmont post from there here:

For those of you who don't know, Philmont is a 137,000 acre scout ranch in northern New Mexico. Thousands
of boys (and quite a few girls) along with adult leaders go there each year to hike around in what could be
one of the most beautiful places on earth (and certainly the most beautiful I've ever experienced).

My crew spent July 29th - August 8th on the trail doing things like hiking (durr), black powder rifle
shooting, tomahawk throwing, branding, checking out old gold mining towns and mills, and of course enjoying
the view. We hiked an estimated 80 miles, including all 12,441 feet of Mount Baldy.

I've done enough babbling, so here are some of the best pictures resized down to 800 x 600.

Enjoy!

http://img21.exs.cx/img21/9223/philmont358.jpg probably my favorite/nerdiest pre-trek photograph. <3 Mario Kart.

http://img9.exs.cx/img9/7955/philmont002.jpg a pretty little shot of the moon right before dawn

http://img9.exs.cx/img9/5293/philmont004.jpg in two days i'm on top of that mountain. muah ha.

http://img9.exs.cx/img9/5846/philmont009.jpg each staff camp has an adorable kitten or two that enjoys the flesh of chipmunks

http://img9.exs.cx/img9/4389/philmont010.jpg the trail up to our campsite near Baldy Town Camp

http://img9.exs.cx/img9/1410/philmont018.jpg a bit cloudy when we first got up, but you'll see it cleared up.

http://img9.exs.cx/img9/7151/philmont036.jpg who knows what the hell someone was thinking...

http://img9.exs.cx/img9/2822/philmont037.jpg beautiful view from atop Mount Baldy

http://img9.exs.cx/img9/2307/philmont038.jpg more sexiness

http://img9.exs.cx/img9/2926/philmont060.jpg I'd say it's a great viewpoint.

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/373/philmont065.jpg it's amazing how the only thing to grow atop the mountain is a beautiful little flower...

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/2765/philmont073.jpg the steep as HELL decline/slide down shale rocks.

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/2085/philmont092.jpg sneakin' up on some wild turkeys

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/4361/philmont101.jpg a stunning shot of some wildflowers i'm quite proud of.

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/1821/philmont103.jpg the endangered horned lizard of NM

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/8759/philmont107.jpg wildfires in 2002 burned 98,000 acres of NM land, 28,000 of which was
on philmont property. Now the wildflowers are pushing through and the whole area looks amazing. I hiked Philmont in 2002
and my trek was actually diverted due to the fires.

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/6176/philmont117.jpg the philmont staff out in the wilderness camps get a bit lonely...

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/8025/philmont121.jpg and that's spar pole climbin'!

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/718/philmont128.jpg a great view of Baldy from Wilson's Mesa

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/6382/philmont129.jpg we hiked up to this camp (Rich Cabins) and saw the flag at half mast.
We'd been isolated from society for around a week and I had crazy thoughts in my mind of the President or Michael Jackson
or Rick James dying. Luckily it was just "some New Mexican guy" according to the staff. RIP Rick James ;_;

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/8885/philmont136.jpg a pretty Bull Thistle. A guy once got lost and lived off of the root of
this plant for a month.

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/1826/philmont137.jpg I took this picture because she was knitting and though my girlfriend
would get a kick out of that; now I just appreciate it for comical facial expression value.

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/922/philmont142.jpg the only rainbow of the whole trek.

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/9859/philmont146.jpg oh man cows rock. I love the dude behind her staring intently.

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/7672/philmont152.jpg somehow this little deer mouse crawled under out tent and when we awoke the next morning,
he was smashed to death right beneath where my friend Philip had his head. No wonder he was complaining about the rocky ground...

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/1896/philmont166.jpg cool picture of a cloud forming after rain in the trees.

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/6459/philmont188.jpg we thought we heard a bear, but it was just a bird flapping beneath the brush (we think...)

http://img26.exs.cx/img26/8563/philmont191.jpg nice sign inside the cantina

http://img5.exs.cx/img5/3021/philmont197.jpg earlier that day that was a 4' gap with a little foot bridge. the river
swelled to around 35' across and the bridge became dunked by 4' of water.

http://img5.exs.cx/img5/9810/philmont205.jpg it really brings the sign together.

http://img5.exs.cx/img5/2687/philmont225.jpg Inside the Villa Philmonte at base camp. They called this a "descency blanket"
or something along those lines so that women wouldn't show their ankles as they went up the stairs...ooo...

http://img5.exs.cx/img5/2604/philmont229.jpg the coolest picture ever taken. a 137 year old indian! notice how nothing but
cartilage continues to grow in old age, so he has huge ears and a gigantic nose.

http://img5.exs.cx/img5/7825/philmont252.jpg some kickass clouds from basecamp.

http://img5.exs.cx/img5/9973/philmont253.jpg sun setting behind the ridge, looks aflame. cool stuff.

http://img5.exs.cx/img5/1125/philmont326.jpg sup mule deer

http://img5.exs.cx/img5/3813/philmont287.jpg a hilarious wood carving of jesus i saw in the hotel

http://img5.exs.cx/img5/2682/philmont289.jpg angelfire vietnam memorial

http://img5.exs.cx/img5/5917/philmont318.jpg a little holiday celebration at harlan, the shotgun camp.

http://img59.exs.cx/img59/4987/philmont351.jpg the sandia peak cable ride

http://img59.exs.cx/img59/155/philmont354.jpg this looks straight outta lord of the rings.

http://img59.exs.cx/img59/2007/philmont360.jpg this AWESOME kid was climbing around downtown Taos like spiderman \m/

http://img59.exs.cx/img59/1756/philmont366.jpg a bunch of hawks (or maybe eagles?) flying around Bandalier national park


And that's it! I hope you all have enjoyed these pics. It'd be great to hear about some experiences from fellow philmont hikers in this thread too!





So uh yeah, Philmont! Sorry, I don't really feel like blogging. I don't feel like elaborating on my classes and teachers except to say that overall everything is swell and nice and enjoyable. Oh and I still love megan and I'm still a dork. Bye!

:: Floydthebarber 8/19/2004 03:03:00 PM (0) comments [+] ::
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