Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Dried Tomato Disappointment
Looking for tea today, I moved my quart jar of dried Principe Borghese tomatoes - 8 lbs fresh. Full of little worms covered in webbing (not moving around). *sigh* It only cost $5.60 for the tomatoes, but it took me a while to pick them and then wash, dry, slice and dehydrate them... I guess it's good I didn't eat them. Was it one bad tomato? Were there several? I'll never know. I wonder if I should have frozen the dried tomatoes after they cooled off (just put the whole jar in the freezer, right?)
Thursday, November 03, 2011
REPOST: Backyard Crop & Preserves Swap
Backyard Crop and Preserved Food Swap
THIS SATURDAY
11-2 pm @ North Oakland Farmers' Market
5715 Market St, Oaklandco-sponsored by EBCA Swappers and Victory Garden Foundation
This is a special Fall Harvest edition of our monthly Backyard Crop Swaps!
Bring all your excesses from your fall harvest and swap them with your neighbors.
Fruits, vegetables, herbs, eggs, honey, etc. Anything you grow or raise yourself is fair game & totally swappable.
This time we will also have "put up" items for swap as well. Bring a few jars of that jam you just made. How about pickles or pasta sauce? Turn your mass amounts of one thing in to a bunch of different things.
Don't forget to tell your friends, family, & neighbors!
THIS SATURDAY
11-2 pm @ North Oakland Farmers' Market
5715 Market St, Oaklandco-sponsored by EBCA Swappers and Victory Garden Foundation
This is a special Fall Harvest edition of our monthly Backyard Crop Swaps!
Bring all your excesses from your fall harvest and swap them with your neighbors.
Fruits, vegetables, herbs, eggs, honey, etc. Anything you grow or raise yourself is fair game & totally swappable.
This time we will also have "put up" items for swap as well. Bring a few jars of that jam you just made. How about pickles or pasta sauce? Turn your mass amounts of one thing in to a bunch of different things.
Don't forget to tell your friends, family, & neighbors!
Wednesday, November 02, 2011
Ground Cherries!
I ended up with about a gallon of ground cherries - cooked them down and finished making the jelly. I had the same issue as last year - it doesn't seem to want to set very well, but finally set with a very soft jell - just perfect for eating out of the jar!
Ground Cherry Jelly
12 - 8 oz jars
Ground Cherry Jelly
12 - 8 oz jars
Friday, October 28, 2011
Pears!
In the first week of October, a friend forwarded an e-mail to me with a photo attached of a pear tree about to break under its own weight. I made arrangements and arrived at the warehouse space near Jack London Square to investigate - the pears were different from other pears I have seen - dark brown on the outside, like a sunburn that scratches off, to a light green underneath. The pears were hard and either under-ripe or just not dessert pears - but there were a lot of them so I set to work harvesting.
I poached two dozen of them the next day, and set rest out on trays in single layers to ripen - and a week later, still not ripe, I did some research and found an interesting article on Kieffer Pears.
I think that the tree is possibly a Kieffer Pear - not so great for eating raw, but excellent for canning. The pears are usually ripe in October, just as hard as they were back in July, and the trees often grow so tall that most people can't pick all the fruit easily.
However - the pears lack the sort of rusty stipple - but look more like Passe Crassane in the picture here: http://www.frenchgardening.com/tech.html?pid=1139483932219159
An interesting tip I picked up from these articles is that you should not store any of the pears too close to tomatoes or other fruit while you're letting them ripen - the esters will cause the softer fruits to speed up too much and get moldy (I realized this with some tomatoes that were on the table with the pears!).
After about three weeks of ripening indoors - some of the pears turned into little squishy spore bombs, so I decided it was time. I decided to do a batch of canned pears in light syrup with vanilla and a batch of pickled pears (apple cider vinegar & spices). I still have 3 trays of pears with blemishes and am going to make some pear chutney - and then maybe I'll try my hand at chow-chow since I have some green tomatoes!
Canned Pears
I poached two dozen of them the next day, and set rest out on trays in single layers to ripen - and a week later, still not ripe, I did some research and found an interesting article on Kieffer Pears.
I think that the tree is possibly a Kieffer Pear - not so great for eating raw, but excellent for canning. The pears are usually ripe in October, just as hard as they were back in July, and the trees often grow so tall that most people can't pick all the fruit easily.
However - the pears lack the sort of rusty stipple - but look more like Passe Crassane in the picture here: http://www.frenchgardening.com/tech.html?pid=1139483932219159
An interesting tip I picked up from these articles is that you should not store any of the pears too close to tomatoes or other fruit while you're letting them ripen - the esters will cause the softer fruits to speed up too much and get moldy (I realized this with some tomatoes that were on the table with the pears!).
After about three weeks of ripening indoors - some of the pears turned into little squishy spore bombs, so I decided it was time. I decided to do a batch of canned pears in light syrup with vanilla and a batch of pickled pears (apple cider vinegar & spices). I still have 3 trays of pears with blemishes and am going to make some pear chutney - and then maybe I'll try my hand at chow-chow since I have some green tomatoes!
Canned Pears
- 4 quarts & 1 pint canned pears, plain
- 8 qts & 3 pints canned pears, with vanilla
- 1 qt & 9 pints pickled pears
Tuesday, October 04, 2011
Goodbye, Garden!
Goodbye, garden! We just didn't get warm enough and you were not the most disappointing garden - last year was pretty bad. At least I got a few more tomatoes than last year but I can't believe that even the zucchini weren't even half as productive compared to last year.
Time to dump Kassenhoff and get on the ball with starting my own tomatoes in January since their tomato plants never seem to thrive or produce.
After it's done raining, I'm pulling up the sorrel and useless feral arugula (with teeny leaves) and planting some cauliflower, broccoli, mustard, radishes, daikon and stuff... probably too late to sow seeds directly into the ground with this early rain.
Time to dump Kassenhoff and get on the ball with starting my own tomatoes in January since their tomato plants never seem to thrive or produce.
After it's done raining, I'm pulling up the sorrel and useless feral arugula (with teeny leaves) and planting some cauliflower, broccoli, mustard, radishes, daikon and stuff... probably too late to sow seeds directly into the ground with this early rain.
Saturday, October 01, 2011
Fall Tomatoes
After spending 4 hours at Mariquita's farms in Gilroy, exhausted from picking 160 lbs of tomatoes - I wasn't sure I'd have energy for much else. It took nearly a full week for me to process two big batches of marinara and one big batch of pottsville relish!
The part that seems to take the most time is the same regardless of equipment - the foodmill. I use the food mill attachment on my Kitchen Aid, but I am pretty sure it took a lot longer using a chinois. I have to stop and take it apart to get all the skins out - but the chinois was a lot more physical labor.
Since I often cook red wine into my pasta sauce, I decided to put it in the sauce while I was cooking it down. I made sure to add lemon juice to each quart this year and processed everything nice and hot for a good 45 minutes.
Tomato sauce
The part that seems to take the most time is the same regardless of equipment - the foodmill. I use the food mill attachment on my Kitchen Aid, but I am pretty sure it took a lot longer using a chinois. I have to stop and take it apart to get all the skins out - but the chinois was a lot more physical labor.
Since I often cook red wine into my pasta sauce, I decided to put it in the sauce while I was cooking it down. I made sure to add lemon juice to each quart this year and processed everything nice and hot for a good 45 minutes.
Tomato sauce
- 27 qts
- ~2 gallons (forgot to count jars!)
- 4 qts, frozen
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Jenn's Big Summer Adventure: Part 16 - Round-up
Week 1 (2500 mi):
1. August 19 - Oakland to SLC
2. August 20 - SLC to Sidney NE
1. August 25 - Mentor OH to Toledo OH (149 mi)
8. Sept 1 - Custer SP to Buffalo WY (300 mi)
14. Sept 7 (150 mi)
15. Sept 8 (275 mi)
1. August 19 - Oakland to SLC
2. August 20 - SLC to Sidney NE
- City Cakes & Cafe (http://www.citycakescafe.com)
- Anong's Thai Cuisine in Rawlins (http://maps.google.com/maps/place?cid=3756428376724009430)
- A&G Surplus, Rawlins
- Cabela's
- Wave Pizza, Grand Island, NE http://maps.google.com/maps/place?oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=pizza+grand+island+Nebraska&fb=1&gl=us&hq=pizza&hnear=0x87998644ec7765f7:0xa12d5b784951b17b,Grand+Island,+NE&cid=9953004828580824796
- more bad pizza in IA (cute hotel tho)
- Sullivan's Grocery, Dixon IL
- Tommy's on Coventry (http://www.tommyscoventry.com/)
- Ferrara's, Mayfield Heights OH
- Thai Orchid, Mentor (http://www.thaiorchidmentor.com/)
- High Thai'd Restaurant, Cleveland Hts (http://www.highthai.com/)
1. August 25 - Mentor OH to Toledo OH (149 mi)
- Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge (http://www.fws.gov/midwest/ottawa/)
- Indiana Dunes
- Karyn's on Green (http://www.karynsongreen.com/)
- Burnridge Forest, Elgin IL (http://kaneforest.com/ForestPreserveView.aspx?ID=11)
- Landmark Family Restaurant
- Cedar Rock (http://www.stateparks.com/cedar_rock.html)
- Roots Market (http://www.rootsmarket.net/)
- Briggs Woods Campground, Independence Iowa (http://www.briggswoods.com/)
- Barn Quilts http://develop.hamiltoncountyiowa.com/html/barn_quilts.html and http://www.barnquilts.com/
- Elms Motel, O'Neill NE (two thumbs up!)
- Wounded Knee Monument
- Earth Goods (http://earthgoodsnaturalfoods.com/)
- Custer SP and Wildlife Loop (http://gfp.sd.gov/state-parks/directory/custer/default.aspx)
- Blue Bell Campground, Custer SP
- Dakotamart, Custer SD
- Mt Rushmore
- Cabela's
- Crazy Horse Monument (http://www.crazyhorsememorial.org/)
8. Sept 1 - Custer SP to Buffalo WY (300 mi)
- Custer Post Office
- Wyoming Welcome Center on 90/14
- Aladdin General Store
- Devil's Tower National Monument (http://www.nps.gov/deto/index.htm)
- Blue Gables, Buffalo WY (http://www.bluegables.com/)
- Big Horn Powersports (http://www.bighornpowersports.com/), Sheridan WY
- Mountain High Natural Grocery, Cody WY (http://www.yelp.com/biz/mountain-high-health-foods-cody)
- Old Faithful Snow Lodge (http://www.yellowstonenationalparklodges.com/old-faithful-snow-lodge-cabins-131.html)
- Old Faithful, Yellowstone
- Old Faithful, Yellowstone
- Yellowstone Geothermal features
- Mammothsite
- Canyon
- Yellowstone egress by Tetons
- Lotus Cafe (http://tetonlotuscafe.com), Jackson WY
- Breakfast in Jackson @Lotus Cafe
- Gas in Idaho Falls, meet up with KTM of Aspen group (http://rmrwinc.com/pages/home.html)
- Craters of the Moon (http://www.nps.gov/crmo/index.htm)
- Galena Summit (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galena_Summit)/Sawtooth Range (no camera batteries!)
- Sawtooth-Idaho Scenic Byway (http://www.idahobyways.gov/byways/sawtooth.aspx)
- Stanley (http://www.stanleycc.org/)
- Casino Campground/hot spring
- Soak in hot spring (http://www.stanleycc.org/do/hot-springs/)
- Back Eddy, Stanley ID (http://www.backeddysmarket.com/)
- McCoy's Tackle & Gift Shop (http://www.mccoystackleshop.com/)
- Papa Brunee's Pizza place, Stanley (the BEST well water I have ever tasted! I filled up my Camelback before leaving town!)
- Laundry, Stanley
- Riverwear (http://www.riverwear.com/) for cool stickers!
14. Sept 7 (150 mi)
- Kirkham Hot Spring (http://www.idahohotsprings.com/destinations/kirkham/)
- Big Twin Power Sports, Boise (http://www.bigtwincycles.com/)
- Shangri La Tea House & Cafe, Boise (http://www.shangri-latearoomandcafe.com/)
15. Sept 8 (275 mi)
- Shangri La Tea House & Cafe
- Willowcreek Cafe, Vale (http://www.facebook.com/WillowcreekStoreCafe)
- El Dorado Ditch Co Restaurant, Unity (http://www.yelp.com/biz/eldorado-ditch-co-restaurant-unity)
- Quilts & Beyond, Prairie City
- John Day Quilt Show
- Rory & Ryan - Burns, OR (http://www.burnsorhotel.com/)
- Harney County Fair (http://www.co.harney.or.us/countyfair.html)
- BLM Wild Horse Corrals (http://www.blm.gov/or/districts/burns/wildhorse/corral.php)
- Manzanita Lake Cottages, Lassen National Volcanic Park (http://www.lassenrecreation.com/where_to_stay/index.php)
- Sierra Hot Springs (http://www.sierrahotsprings.org/)
Monday, September 12, 2011
Jenn's Big Summer Adventure: Part 15 - Packing
I just don't know how to successfully pack for multi-week, multi climate trips - I ended up sending home the sleep sack that I bought and buying a warmer sleep sack - and then even ended up sleeping indoors more than expected because I brought a bivy instead of a tent.
Packed up and leaving Ohio (2011-08-25)
Just a day out from Cleveland in Indiana (2011-08-26) - note: I'm actually wearing my Camelback, but discovered that it actually tired out my shoulders wearing it all the time over my jacket.
This is what it looked like in Wyoming (2011--09-01):
Wearing my new hi-vis jacket, above Prairie OR (2011-09-08):
This is just before getting home, in Lassen (2011-09-11):
On my way from California to Ohio, I realized that just trying to put the big stuff sacks on the back was not going to work - I wanted a waterproof duffel so that I wouldn't have to worry about stuffing things into smaller sacks. I attached it with a 6' motorcycle tiedown (double duty - in case I needed it for actually tying down the motorcycle) and a bungee through the handle on each side to the luggage rack.
I wasn't clever enough to take pictures of the contents - I am very impressed with the level of organization in some of these postings!
Basically it was like this:
Tank bag:
Jacket pockets:
Camelback backpack:
Cabela's waterproof duffel:
Jandd cordura mountain bike panniers:
I ended up making about 4 boxes back home to ship back tie downs, trinkets, gifts, broken glasses, sleeping bag, clothing & books I finished.
Next time - I'm just bringing the regular tent, not the bivy - unless it is >60 degrees at night, I just get too cold sleeping outdoors in a hammock or bivy. The bivy was fine in Illinois but in Iowa with storms coming in - it got too cold and I was up putting on all my layers at 2:30am.
That is - for a real camping trip. I think I might just take Custer SP Blue Bell Campground host Vern's suggestion and look at overnights at state parks and KOAs with cheap cabins for the next multi week road trip - there's so much less overhead in unpacking, setting up, breaking down and packing for a longer trip that it seems like it would be more fun (and lighter) that way.
Next time, I'll actually wear my sunblock on my face - or get some sort of UV block for my visor - I ended up with some solar radiation damage on my face between the bottom of my sunglasses where there is a gap above the bottom of the face opening.
I'll also make sure I have actual waterproofing on my coat!
Packed up and leaving Ohio (2011-08-25)
Just a day out from Cleveland in Indiana (2011-08-26) - note: I'm actually wearing my Camelback, but discovered that it actually tired out my shoulders wearing it all the time over my jacket.
This is what it looked like in Wyoming (2011--09-01):
Wearing my new hi-vis jacket, above Prairie OR (2011-09-08):
This is just before getting home, in Lassen (2011-09-11):
On my way from California to Ohio, I realized that just trying to put the big stuff sacks on the back was not going to work - I wanted a waterproof duffel so that I wouldn't have to worry about stuffing things into smaller sacks. I attached it with a 6' motorcycle tiedown (double duty - in case I needed it for actually tying down the motorcycle) and a bungee through the handle on each side to the luggage rack.
I wasn't clever enough to take pictures of the contents - I am very impressed with the level of organization in some of these postings!
Basically it was like this:
Tank bag:
- bandanas x2
- headlamp
- maps
- phone
- gps
- Solio charger
- glasses/cases (I wear separate Rx glasses & sunglasses)
- sunblock (which I never used)
- hairbrush
Jacket pockets:
- phone
- camera
- wallet
- lip balm, antacid, bandana, tissues
Camelback backpack:
- 1.5 L water bladder
- a couple paperback books
- charger cables for phone & camera
- extra layer (or stuff in the jacket liner)
Cabela's waterproof duffel:
- North Face Bivy
- Sleeping bag
- very small hammock
- big agnes sleep pad
- Keen sandals inside (cheapie flip flops clipped to the outside)
- Clothing - probably took more than I should have but I didn't want to be doing laundry every two days!
Jandd cordura mountain bike panniers:
- toiletries
- towel
- swimsuit
- rain pants
- pack covers (for panniers & duffel - orange for visibility)
- food - lots of udon noodles & cubes of veggie stock, tea, miso, couscous, gravy packets, dried veggies, Bumble Bars
- spicewheel (from http://www.ratpak.com/)
- teeny stove & isopro fuel
- nesting pair of pans, bowl, insulated stainless steel cup
- Alite Monarch butterfly folding chair
- tool kit
- extra tube
I ended up making about 4 boxes back home to ship back tie downs, trinkets, gifts, broken glasses, sleeping bag, clothing & books I finished.
Next time - I'm just bringing the regular tent, not the bivy - unless it is >60 degrees at night, I just get too cold sleeping outdoors in a hammock or bivy. The bivy was fine in Illinois but in Iowa with storms coming in - it got too cold and I was up putting on all my layers at 2:30am.
That is - for a real camping trip. I think I might just take Custer SP Blue Bell Campground host Vern's suggestion and look at overnights at state parks and KOAs with cheap cabins for the next multi week road trip - there's so much less overhead in unpacking, setting up, breaking down and packing for a longer trip that it seems like it would be more fun (and lighter) that way.
Next time, I'll actually wear my sunblock on my face - or get some sort of UV block for my visor - I ended up with some solar radiation damage on my face between the bottom of my sunglasses where there is a gap above the bottom of the face opening.
I'll also make sure I have actual waterproofing on my coat!
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Jenn's Big Summer Adventure: Part 14 - Lassen
Sunday (9/11) morning, I awoke and realized that I had a lot more miles to put on to get home. I had a quick breakfast of tea and a now rancid Bumble bar (blech!) then headed off on Hwy 89 through Lassen. Amazing, gorgeous views but damned cameras die again!
September is alpine spring in Lassen!
The roads were gorgeous, amazing and fun - and there were not really any other cars on them!
There was still quite a lot of snow up there:
Can you see how clear that lake is?
There's a name for this rock - it's leftover from a glacier or something:
Second to last picture before my camera died on me:
The rest of the drive down Hwy 89 was just stupendous - it's absolutely beautiful there. I did see a lot more highway patrol and sheriff cars than at any other place or time on my trip, so I was very careful not to enjoy the road too much.
I arrived at Sierra Hot Springs for a soak - I was disappointed that the cafe was closed as I was counting on it for lunch. Overall, the pools did not impress me much either - the main pool was quite dirty. Some guests said that a load of folks from Burningman had been hanging out there all night (eww! nobody cleans the pool after large groups?) but that doesn't result in a heavy scummy layer of ick at the waterline and hairballs at the bottom. The sandy bottom of the hot pool was novel but also full of hair. I took a nice hot shower and got back on the bike, pinning it all the way down 80 til I got hit with a small rain squall and could not see. I powered through 200 miles, stopping once for gas, and got home to see my kitties, make dinner, sleep in my own bed!
View Larger Map
September is alpine spring in Lassen!
The roads were gorgeous, amazing and fun - and there were not really any other cars on them!
There was still quite a lot of snow up there:
Can you see how clear that lake is?
There's a name for this rock - it's leftover from a glacier or something:
Second to last picture before my camera died on me:
The rest of the drive down Hwy 89 was just stupendous - it's absolutely beautiful there. I did see a lot more highway patrol and sheriff cars than at any other place or time on my trip, so I was very careful not to enjoy the road too much.
I arrived at Sierra Hot Springs for a soak - I was disappointed that the cafe was closed as I was counting on it for lunch. Overall, the pools did not impress me much either - the main pool was quite dirty. Some guests said that a load of folks from Burningman had been hanging out there all night (eww! nobody cleans the pool after large groups?) but that doesn't result in a heavy scummy layer of ick at the waterline and hairballs at the bottom. The sandy bottom of the hot pool was novel but also full of hair. I took a nice hot shower and got back on the bike, pinning it all the way down 80 til I got hit with a small rain squall and could not see. I powered through 200 miles, stopping once for gas, and got home to see my kitties, make dinner, sleep in my own bed!
View Larger Map
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Jenn's Big Summer Adventure: Part 13 - Wild Horses & Hwy 395 South to California
Saturday (9/10) morning, I found myself almost instantly at the BLM Wild Horse pens -- I had to find a turnout and make a u-turn to go back! The gate was open but the place appeared abandoned, except for hundreds of gorgeous horses in different pens.
The first pen seemed to have the wildest bunch of horses - I suppose they get more exposure to people, cars and the rare motorcycle that way.
It was amazing to watch this first group of horses move around as a herd - it was like watching starlings or other birds moving around in big clouds. The horses shifted back and forth, quivered, waited anxiously - wondering whether something was going to happen, prepared to dart off, despite their confinement.
It seemed like the babies all looked like the mommas!
Other pens had slightly less jittery horses, some were getting to be downright friendly and came up to the fence to see if I had brought them any treats.
One of the hands at the ranch told me that there was a special type of horse that was going to be auctioned off - but the rest could be had for $125 if you had a trailer and a place to keep a horse!
Heading south on 395, the terrain changes to high desert with wide open, subtle landscapes and gorgeous skies. I guess a lot of people don't find it attractive but I quite enjoyed it and would not ever think of calling it ugly. Just when I was getting into a groove - along comes a really big lake - just one of those areas that photos don't do justice.
I stopped for gas in Lakeview - where the two teenagers on duty were very attentive, admired my Zombie hunting permit on my windscreen and sighed loudly that they were envious of my trip. Just past the shut-down downtown, I found a little Sunday lunch at a cafe with a great big motorcycle parked there. It was all pretty blue and chrome -- and the driver was just as shiny, so I sat at the counter and struck up conversation. Turns out Jason is from the East Bay but heading north!
Admire Jason's pretty motorcycle here:
After eating my iceberg lettuce, toast and ...yeah, that's pretty much all they had that was vegan at this stop - I continued south, heading for Lassen. I was out of camp stove fuel, so I thought I'd be clever and try to find some on the way down - stopping several times at places that promised outdoors/outfitter/camping/fishing supplies. I was a bit concerned about being able to have dinner or breakfast since I didn't see a restaurant in Lassen.
I arrived at Manzanita Lake just in time to get a walk-in cabin, buy isopro fuel, beer and a few vegetables before they closed the store at 5 or 6 or whatever it was. I got a cute little cabin, unloaded my gear, set up my hammock on the porch and proceeded to enjoy a cold beer, chocolate and my book for an hour or so before exploring the campground and the little chilly lake.
I had a hot shower, then returned to my cabin to make dinner (more udon noodles with curry and veg), drink beer and hang out with my neighbors at their fire, tell ghost stories to their children and acquire the brightest green laser pointer ever from the camp host.
View Larger Map
The first pen seemed to have the wildest bunch of horses - I suppose they get more exposure to people, cars and the rare motorcycle that way.
It was amazing to watch this first group of horses move around as a herd - it was like watching starlings or other birds moving around in big clouds. The horses shifted back and forth, quivered, waited anxiously - wondering whether something was going to happen, prepared to dart off, despite their confinement.
It seemed like the babies all looked like the mommas!
Other pens had slightly less jittery horses, some were getting to be downright friendly and came up to the fence to see if I had brought them any treats.
One of the hands at the ranch told me that there was a special type of horse that was going to be auctioned off - but the rest could be had for $125 if you had a trailer and a place to keep a horse!
Heading south on 395, the terrain changes to high desert with wide open, subtle landscapes and gorgeous skies. I guess a lot of people don't find it attractive but I quite enjoyed it and would not ever think of calling it ugly. Just when I was getting into a groove - along comes a really big lake - just one of those areas that photos don't do justice.
I stopped for gas in Lakeview - where the two teenagers on duty were very attentive, admired my Zombie hunting permit on my windscreen and sighed loudly that they were envious of my trip. Just past the shut-down downtown, I found a little Sunday lunch at a cafe with a great big motorcycle parked there. It was all pretty blue and chrome -- and the driver was just as shiny, so I sat at the counter and struck up conversation. Turns out Jason is from the East Bay but heading north!
Admire Jason's pretty motorcycle here:
After eating my iceberg lettuce, toast and ...yeah, that's pretty much all they had that was vegan at this stop - I continued south, heading for Lassen. I was out of camp stove fuel, so I thought I'd be clever and try to find some on the way down - stopping several times at places that promised outdoors/outfitter/camping/fishing supplies. I was a bit concerned about being able to have dinner or breakfast since I didn't see a restaurant in Lassen.
I arrived at Manzanita Lake just in time to get a walk-in cabin, buy isopro fuel, beer and a few vegetables before they closed the store at 5 or 6 or whatever it was. I got a cute little cabin, unloaded my gear, set up my hammock on the porch and proceeded to enjoy a cold beer, chocolate and my book for an hour or so before exploring the campground and the little chilly lake.
I had a hot shower, then returned to my cabin to make dinner (more udon noodles with curry and veg), drink beer and hang out with my neighbors at their fire, tell ghost stories to their children and acquire the brightest green laser pointer ever from the camp host.
View Larger Map
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