Chickadee nest

Carolina chickadees (Poecile carolinensis) have made a nest in one of our bluebird boxes. It's apparently not an agreeable spot for bluebirds -- none have nested there in three years -- so I'm glad the chickadees found it.



I was surprised at the amount of cedar tips cushioning the nest.

There's a little blue feather on the lower right of the first picture, and I wonder where it came from. Did bluebirds start the nest, and the chickadees just finished it? Or maybe a bluebird stuck his head in to see what was going on, and left a calling card.

The chickadees could have just picked up a pretty soft blue thing as building material. We see swallows picking up duck feathers all the time, so I know some birds "feather their nest" with other species' feathers.

One of the first birdsongs I learned was the Carolina Chickadee's. A friend and I chased all over her property for a frustrating hour before we finally pinpointed the bird who sounded exactly like a rusty porch swing. You can listen to him here.

-----

Friday Ark is up!

Piton Hybrid? It is true...

Happy Man in a Piton Hybrid.




You know when you are talking gear with a designer and he complains (only a little mind you) that his original design has now been some what usurped by a new product, that there is something to it.

Especially if you liked the original and really like the newest "version" even more.



In this case the Patagonia Piton Hybrid Piton Hoody was the topic of discussion. The product that it closely resembles is the R1 Hoody. I own and use both.



But seldom, if ever, can I remember making two blog posts in such a short amount of time on a single product.I recently bought 2 moreon the Internet at retail! And now my wife has one as well. It is a Patagonia insurgency here! Weird that, as I am not generallya big fan of Patagonia.



But when one piece of clothingrapidly becomes mychoice for everything froma fast ski run, to an alpine ice climb, bank the fact it is a good piece of outdoor clothing. Way better than first impression might leave you with. When I want to watch TV in mine (yes I admit to it, I watch TV on occasion) I know something is up. When Ican run on a wet and miserable day in it...BC ski in it with out a shell......well you get the idea. Most anything I do I might want to use a Piton Hybrid. No thumb holes which I like. But long sleeves. Great hood. Water and wind resistant inserts and a long, well fitted body. Full zip. One chest pocket. And super comfortable as a base layer, mid layer or even a outer layer. How many pieces of clothing that can do all three for you with little or no compromise?



Few pieces of gear have impressed me this much. Phantom 6000 with Baruntse liners, the Nomic, CCW packs, the TLT. Nothing in clothing I'd add to the list. And we all know I like much of the the currentclothing lines.






Piton again, with no shell required, on a mid winter summit.




More here:

http://coldthistle.blogspot.com//01/patagonia-piton-hoody.html

ANT Truss Bike... Mine!

For some time now I've had a trade deal in the works with Mike Flanigan of ANT. In the early stages we discussed what kind of bike it would be, but couldn't decide with certainty. A loop frame with faux lugs? A basket cargo bike? Then one day I knew: a truss frame. And trying one that belonged to a friend cinched that decision.





The truss frame bicycle is a Massachusetts classic, the original having been built by Iver Johnson in 1910 as a pathracer. Mike Flanigan revived the design about a decade ago and made it his own. The basic ANT Truss is what I would call a "civilised recreation" bike: a simple single speed with a reinforced frame, wide tires and low but swept-back handlebars, intended for casual road-to-trail cycling in one's regular clothing. Over the years, the Truss has become one of ANT's signature designs. This, and its relevance to local bicycle manufacturing, is why it appeals to me. I consider this bike to be a ridable collector's item and a piece of local history.





An additional aspect of owning this bike that's interesting to me, is that it is a prototypical ANT and in no way a "collaboration" with me. I merely signed off on features that the builder himself thought best to use. And yet, I like everything about it; I agreed with all the choices Mike made. The bike shows off the shared aspects of mine and the builder's tastes, with neither of us having had to compromise.





This Truss is a 52cm x 54cm lightweight cro-moly steel frame. It is a hybrid between a classic pathracer and a modern track frame, with a high bottom bracket, aggressive geometry, clearances for 35mm tires, and a generous wheelbase. There is no toe overlap with the 35mm tires. The Eastwood (not RAL) powdercoat is an interesting colour half-way between sage green and slate blue. It looks greenish in the sun, bluish in the shade.





The fork is also handbuilt by Mike Flanigan, with a brazed double-plated fork crown. These forks are Mike's specialty.





The main tubes are TIG-welded with a superbly smooth finish. The headtube features decorative lugwork. The handmade ANT headbadge was made right in front of me, with the process shown here.






The seat cluster features the signature ANT stays and a lugged collar.





This bike does not require a rear brake bridge, and in its place is a signature ANT plate.





Paul dropouts were used for the rear fork ends.






The stem is handmade by ANT, fitted with Soma Oxford handlebars flipped upside down, a Dia Compe front brake lever, and classic grips from Gripworks.






The stem is rather stunningly made and finished, and also one of the builder's specialties.





The hard plastic grips are made in Missouri. Gripworks only sells them wholesale in large batches, but Mike has individual pairs available, if anyone is interested. They are very firm to grip, which I prefer to the softer rubber ones. I also like the shape quite a lot - gently fluted and not too thick.






The crankset is Paul's, with 170mm cranks. I love the beautiful circles design and the classic look.






MKS Touring Pedals were customised with ANT cutouts and the cages powdercoated black.





Chris King headset and a Paul centerpull front brake with Kool-Stop pads.






Paul's seatpost with a standard amount of setback.






And a Selle Anatomica saddle.






Mike Flanigan prefers to make as many parts of the bike on his own as he can, and to source as many of the remaining components as possible from the US. On this bike Mike made the frame, fork, headbadge, stem, and pedal cages. The headset, crankset, brake,seatpost, saddle, and grips are US-made.





We wanted this bike to be a single speed with free/fixed possibilities, but we agreed that it should not be drilled for a rear brake. So the natural solution was to have two wheelsets: one fixed and one with a coaster brake. We installed the coaster brake wheels to start with and I will probably leave it this way for a while. The rear hub is VeloSteel, made in the Czech Republic. Harris Cyclery built this wheel around a spare Bella Ciao rim I had left over from an earlier project. The front wheel is also a Bella Ciao left-over. The rims are aluminum and made in Germany. My fixed gear wheelset is a very low-end one, but some day I will save up and replace it with one built around Phil Wood hubs, to honor the builder's US-made preferences.





You don't need me to tell you that ANT makes good bikes; Mike has been on the scene for decades and has a legendary reputation without my help. Having known him for three years now, to me Mike is a very real person - creative, independent, open-minded and kind, with great stories and valuable advice. I am fortunate to have been given the opportunity to own one of his bicycles, and I think the unique Truss was the right choice. The bike fits me wonderfully, it rides nicely, and I will surely post more about it as I get to know it better. Full set of pictures here.

Chamonix '11?

Day 3 in Chamonix. No avalanches, Police stations, Emergency rooms, Doctor's offices or lost gear today. And thankfully no one died. We seem to be on a roll now. Of course going from sea level to 11K feet has a few draw backs but that is easy (although painful) to fix.

The climbers above are on thethe NW face of the Midi and is taken from the stationwalk way. (Goulotte Profit / Perroux III 4, M5 I think?)A short climb I hope to get on by next week when I can actually breath and climb at 3800m /11k. Today it was hard enough just skiing down.



Sunset from the Midistation after doing the Cosmic Arete with 20cm of new snow and acold wind @ -18C.

OUT

Tuffee knows when I tell her OUT she is to get out of the horse pen. This is her slipping out the gate. She knows how to push it open just enough she can get out.

A meet and a räksmörgås

After my eventless search of Stockholm’s subway art and joyriding, I went shopping at the PUB which is also where my hotel is located. It’s still raining cats and dogs and cows outside and even though I have an umbrella courtesy of my hotel, I was not in the mood to walk outside. No one in their sane mind would.



Late lunch at Stortorget: Räksmörgås and going against the trend pairing it with a red.



I also went to have a quick coffee at the café corner of the building where I had a yummy delicacy—munched a tiny crunchy croissant filled goodie stuffed with lemon. It was really good! I wish I knew the name.



The rain slowed down a bit in the early afternoon when I took the metro back to Gamla Stan. I am meeting an old colleague in Stortorget. She is Swedish with South Asian roots. We used to work together at F years ago in Amsterdam. The last time I saw her was her going away party at her apartment in the centre of Amsterdam. I remember liking her apartment, quite spacious with a little balcony that overlooks down a secluded garden, however, when you step outside the front door you are welcomed by pedestrians, cyclists and vehicular traffic. Such a contrast it was.



She helped me order some Swedish stuff and told me that I should try räksmörgås, which many of us might have tried unknowingly at IKEA food/cafe. Well, I did, before. Räksmörgås is basically peeled shrimps, fresh ones.



Honestly I am not such a big fan of traditional Swedish food but I think, compared to the Netherlands, Sweden, due to its strong design background and adaptation to contemporary styles, has more inviting and trendy restaurants and eating out culture.



It was a nice close to my Stockholm weekend getaway. Nice to get in touch with an old friend and colleague.



Now it’s time to rush back to the hotel to pick up my bag. I am not sure if I will be taking the cab back to the airport or the Arlanda train express... which is quicker?



Had lunch at Stortorgskällaren restaurant at the famous old square of Gamla Stan, Stortorget. The skies have started to clear up a bit.



A few fotos earlier of the day while shopping and having coffee break:



This was the yummy delicacy I had.... crunchy with lemon flavoured stuff inside.



At the PUB store, there is a money exchange counter. Swedish Kronas. I almost never have cash in my wallet as I pay by bankcard and creditcard. When travelling it is the same, I just go to an ATM to withdraw if needed.

Sophie Prior - "The Ricoh Destruction Test"

Sophie Prior came to visit.






So did Logan Barber.

The jjobrien climbing and relaxation ranch on Australia's Sunshine Coast hinterland has beengraced witha long list of climbing legends and little-knowns.

The staff were excited about the arrival of Logan Barber and gave little thought to his plus-one a Sophie Proir.

Turns out she has talent, grace and presence.




A quick climbing tour of the Sunny Coast starts with the obligatory thrash on Coolum Cave's icons.



How do you like this guy? He puts all the moves together in one session. Sadly, didn't get to go back and send it. No doubt he can and will.





Then for a "rest" day they get stuck into "The Ricoh Destruction Test" 100m 23 (M1)

I have to work that day but I wag a couple of hours and rap in over the fourth pitch.

They ran into some problems on the second pitch and I whipped out the long lens justas they werefeeling the joy of getting established at the second hangingbelay.







Logan knocks off the tricky third pitch, blocky overlaps and lack of feet.







Sophie follows and picks her way through the overlaps.



Funny story. I moved to Tinbeerwah in 2000. There were just a couple of routes there but rarely any climbers. I hatched a plan to create a climbing scene close to my home.

So I spent weeks bolting the longest, hardest route I could conceive ofthinking it would drawclimbers from everywhere.

Nothing.

The route has probablyhad about three repeats in over ten years.

A year later I bolted some 14s. That got 'em in.







Gareth Llewellyn and Adam Donoghue did the route on their epic "Tinny in a day"

There's been a couple of hundred metres of hard climbing added since then.







Sophie gets the stand-out pitch 4.

Slabby, columns, run outs, big air below, carrots, it's got it all.











The Ricoh in question failed the 100M drop test by the way. It's mangled body could be seen at the base of the route.

My old Nokia phone got dropped from here at 80M. Recovered the following day.

"You have 3 messages"!!!






















Best shot of the roll.

Perfect position and poise. You can just make out Logan at the vanishing point.







Nice work team. Logan ticked a swag of tough routes around SEQ in a punishing nine days on.






Logan inspects Queensland's hardest high ball boulder sector never to have been touched.







Late winter is luxurious on the Sunny Coast, beautiful days and wild flowers.

Sophie's home is in the Blue Mountains, a favourite of Aussie climbers but so harsh in winter.












Thanks Sophie.

I've been trying to sell this route for a decade.