Encountering Space

Encountering Space: The Fire Lookouts of Montana:

Working deep in the back country of Montana's rugged Rocky Mountains, Pittsburgh-based photographer Tom Persinger photographed three men who spend their summers perched high atop peaks keeping watch over some of our nation's most pristine places miles from the nearest road or modern convenience. Day and night they scan the horizon for curly gray wisps of smoke rising from the forest below: a tell tale sign of fire.Through photographs and recorded interviews this project seeks to better appreciate each of their choices, understand their sense of place, reveal the perceptions they have of their surroundings, and offer each of us the possibility to better understand ourselves."

Check out some some great stills from the film over at Tom Persinger's site.

USGS NATIONAL PARK MAPS

The United States Geological Survey has loads of maps for sale on their website (shocker, right?) and some of their National Park and Forest Service maps, which come in the historic variety (the image on top is a map of the Great Sand Dunes National Monument, now the Great Sand Dunes National Park) and the modern variety (the RoMo map on bottom) can even be downloaded for free. And they're huge files, so if your little heart desires, you can blow them up and hang them on the wall of your apartment/office/bathroom/yurt etc. Have at it.MP3: Ween - So Long Jerry

Bulgur

Adding hot water to an instant packet of oatmeal or mac and cheese is easy as pie, sure, but you have the wrappers to deal with, you need about 5 of them to feel full, bla bla bla. It might take a few extra minutes to cook, but if you've got that time, and I know you all do, try bringing bulgur wheat along the next time you're in the woods. It's cheap, cooks quickly (buy the least coarse variety you can find), and tastes just as good with something sweet for breakfast as it does with something salty for dinner. That means if you're in a safe enough place to do it, you can make extra at night and use the leftovers in the morning.Put some dry bulgur in your bowl, add boiling water, cover it for a couple of minutes, and when it's soft enough for your liking (I prefer it a little chewy, actually), sprinkle on whatever you've got in your pack. Honey and raisins, dried mushrooms and chili sauce, sardines and sliced almonds. Enjoy it.

No Van

Christine Hewitt is a great photographer and author of the blog, Me, Van, Bike. She wrote a gut-wrenching post yesterday about watching her home, a GET AWAY hi-top camper van go up in flames (nearly with her in it). Needless to say, she literally watched all of her belongings burn to the blacktop, her computer, a few harddrives, all of her clothes, wallet, phone, everything. We should help her out. You can donate securely through paypal, linked on her blog, and should head that way anyways to check out her photos.I'm going to go write "My Own Camper Van Fund" on a mason jar, brb.

Scorpion Antivenom

For those of you in the southwestern part of these United of States, you'll be glad to know that last week, the FDA approved the first-ever antivenom specifically for the treatment of scorpion stings. The drug, developed in Mexico, is called Anascorp, and is capable of rapidly reversing the symptoms of scorpion bites, which can include fluid in the lungs, breathing problems, excess saliva, blurred vision, slurred speech, trouble swallowing, abnormal eye movements, and muscle twitching."This is an historic event," Leslie Boyer, MD, lead investigator on the antivenom's clinical trials, said in a press statement. "This is the first-ever drug approved for this use by the FDA; the first-ever drug that we are aware of being developed fully in Latin America and subsequently approved by the FDA; the first-ever scorpion antivenom proved effective under controlled clinical trials; and the first-ever antivenom with so few allergic reactions."Adventure Medical Kits, take note. More info on Anascorp here.

Fjallraven Classic 2011

After a Swedish expedition to Greenland in 1966, Åke Nordin decided it was time to make his own coat. With the help of climber Hasse Hellström, one of Sweden’s foremost experts on Greenland and a member of the glacier researcher group, Friluftsfrämjande, he did just that, utilizing the olive green fabric that, at the time, was being used to make tents. Above is an old advertisement for that very garment, the Fjällräven Greenland Jacket, which reads “The perfect jacket for the mountain hiker and climber.” And if the previous three sentences won't suffice in detailing the history of the J. Crew catalogue staple, then click here.The reason for the Fjallraven post? Well, tomorrow, August 5th, marks the start of the 2011 Fjällräven Classic, an annual 110 km (68.3 miles) trekking event/race from Nikkaluokta to Abisko Touriststation in good ol' Sweden. Good luck to friends who flew across the ocean for one hell of a time.

First Hike

The First Book of Hiking was written in 1965 by C. William Harrison and illustrated by E. Frank Habbas. I found this guy on the bookshelves of a local Salvation Army and held on tight while finishing my shopping (even after brushing a good two months of dust off the cover). The illustrations are 2 and 3 color woodcuts with amazing detail.If you stumble upon this one, buy it, cut out those illustrations and tack them above your desk at work to remind you of what's great.

CAMPING AND PBHB

I'm sure many of you have long stretches of taking the same food on each hike, swearing by a recipe, not able to understand why you ever ate anything else. Happens to me all the time. Then, a week or two later, you'll find something totally different and have the same love affair. These past couple of weeks have been the good ol' PBHB (judging the B's ripeness and not smooshing it in your pack is a camping skill in itself, yeah?) because, really, there's not much better. Period. Sure, if you're home and the bananas are frozen, that's better. And if you have the energy to toast up the bread a little near the fire, that'll make it slightly better too. And, of course crunchy. Always crunchy. What do y'all got?

Fort Standard

Fort Standard is the design firm of Gregory Buntain and Ian Collings, two friends that studied industrial design together at Pratt. I spent a couple of nights with them on the Appalachian Trail last summer, and before we started hiking, they gave our group the opportunity to earn their handmade merit badges for completing activities like naked swimming, tree climbing, fire making and river crossing. We all earned as many as we could...Since that trip, in addition to their pendants, tables, and terrariums, they've been very busy hand making and painting an updated version of those merit badges from last summer. I visited Greg and Ian last week to buy some presents, eat a slice of Key Lime pie, and take in the waterfront view from their Red Hook, BK shop window. Let me tell you, friends, even if you don't get a chance to do a naked river crossing this summer, you should still pick up their merit badge necklace. Yes, it's the thing pictured above, and yes, it's a beauty.

+++ BUY IT HERE +++

Trail Mix Volume 2

Thank you to Geoff Holstad, artist and contributor to Cold Splinters, for providing the self-described "eclectic" music on the second installment of the Trail Mix. His blog, So Sweaty, regularly makes me question my decision to leave the midwest. Lake Michigan never looked so good.Enjoy the tunes and that wonderful album cover above (made by Geoff, of course) and have yourselves another great weekend.Download: Trail Mix Volume 2 - So Sweaty

Danner Stumptown

It was many years ago, while at the Savers on Broadway, the thrift store that's most likely responsible for the existence of this rag, that I first saw a Danner boot. It was an older model that's no longer made, and had a big ol' MADE IN THE USA tag on it, before that was a discussion point on the blogs. Before there were blogs. I bought them, did some research when I got home (there was internet back then), and, well, if you hike, then you probably know I came across the Mountain Light, arguably one of the world's most famous hiking boots.In the 1840s, Portland (Danner's hometown) was growing like crazy, and stumps from displaced trees couldn't be cleared fast enough. The city then incorporated them into the infrastructure, painting them white to make them more visible and using them to cross the streets without sinking into the mud during the rainy season. Hence Portland's nickname, Stumptown. Danner chose that name for their new collection (pictured above) as a symbol of the pride they have for their hometown and its historical logging industry. Stumptown is a "collection of original patterns brought back to life with a modern twist." Amen. Above are the first 6 of 11 designs that will be in stores on August 15th. Enjoy 'em.

(Danner is a client of my consulting agency, Cold Splinters.)

TRAIL MIX VOLUME 1

I asked Walter Manning, the man behind of my favorite places on the internet, Old Chum, to be the the first of hopefully many to provide a mix for your weekend outdoor adventures. Walter, who is also the owner of Old Faithful Shop in Vancouver, thankfully obliged, so start staring at that beautiful cover he provided, download the music, and play it loud en route to wherever it is you'll be headed. More to come...Download: Trail Mix Volume 1: Old ChumThanks, Walter.

CS x Outside: Al Arnold

Read the latest installment of "From The Lean-To" on Outside Magazine here. This week's column is about Al Arnold, pioneer of Badwater, the 135-mile course that starts at the Western Hemisphere's lowest point, Badwater Basin in Death Valley, and ends at Whitney Portal, the trailhead to the lower 48's highest point, Mount Whitney. The race takes place in mid-July (The 2011 version started yesterday, July 11. See the connection?), when the weather conditions can exceed 120 °F, even in the shade. Excuse my French, but FUCK, man.Read: From The Lean-To: Badwater's Baddest ManMP3: Peter Green - Do You Give A Damn For Me?