The Great Solar Eclipse of 2017 crossed the continent, from Oregon to South Carolina, and gave millions of people the chance to witness one of the most awe-inspiring events in the natural world.

But you had to be within the "path of totality", a narrow band across the earth's surface several thousand miles long but only about 70 miles wide. Outside that band you would only see a partial eclipse, not a total eclipse.

And there is no such thing as a "partial total eclipse", despite the impression blogs and the news media might give. I honestly think that's why so many people misunderstand the utter beauty of the spectacle; they may have seen a partial eclipse in the past that was total somewhere else, and even though they weren't in the path the news kept gushing about it being a total eclipse, so they assume they must have seen a total eclipse and just didn't find it all that impressive.


Posted by Dan 08/29/2017, revised 09/06/2017

Today's Lesson: Not all trail runs are created equal.

When I signed up for Wildflower Long Course, Karin Langer advised, "Better trail run your ass off!" So I've been doing just that.

I broke the seal on trail races last month with the Woodside King's Mountain Half. It went alright, all things considered. I was just coming down with a cold, so my energy was low and my heart rate was running 10-20 bpm higher than usual (Just don't run when you're sick. It's dumb. I promise I paid the price for my presumptuousness in the week that followed ... ) This meant that I had to walk more than usual just to reign in my sky-rocketing heart rate. The course was a steady, gradual climb 1,880 feet up to the 6.5 mile turnaround point. After that, I just tucked my legs up underneath me and effortlessly careened back down the mountain like a winged unicorn until mile 12, where I rolled my ankle and limped the final mile on raw adrenaline, hoping to beat the onset of swelling.

I finished in a respectable 1:37, which was good enough for 4th female overall.

Today's race was the King Richard Annual Half Marathon, and I figured that now that I was in good health and had my mischievous ankle swaddled, there was no way I couldn't snag a PR!

As we crowded the starting line, the race director warned us that this course "Packs a punch" and once we got a taste of it, we would certainly wonder what we'd gotten ourselves into!

"Oh, and watch out for rattlesnakes," he casually added.


Posted by Kimberly 04/04/2015

Well, I was gonna write all about the rest of Laos and Cambodia but I've fallen dreadfully behind so let's take up from our reentry into Thailand.

This time through Thailand began with a 24 hour trip from Siem Reap, in Cambodia, all the way to Krabi, with a brief stopover in Bangkok long enough to arrange the next leg. Krabi is well known for its world class climbing. The small beaches in Krabi are isolated from the mainland by towering Limestone cliffs.

Rock climbers paradise

The main beaches are Aow Nang, the busy primary stop accessible from the mainland, Railey East and Railey West, two beaches on the peninsula and accessible by boat, and Ton Sai, a tiny cove that can be accessed by boat or from Railey at low tide. Aow Nang is used as a jumping off point for the islands in the area or to catch boats to the other beaches. Railey's beaches have excellent climbing but are dominated by expensive family resorts and the families that go with them. Ton Sai is wonderfully removed from the resort beaches and far cheaper. The result: Ton Sai abounds with rock climbers from around the world; it is to rock climbing what Koh Tao is to diving.

The first day we were able to rent gear and enjoy some of Krabi's epic climbing at Ton Sai, a short walk from our bungalow. By the end of the day we could feel the effects through our unconditioned arms and opted to make the next day a day of rest.

Posted by nik 12/03/2008, revised 02/06/2009

If you're reading these entries chronologically, this one is directly linked from the Folk Festival: I arrived back in Townsville Monday morning only to turn right around again and head out for a 3-day camping trip with the ultimate frisbee crowd. And what a fun, fantastic crowd they are!

Monday morning, a group of 11 of us left for Keel Bottom Creek, about 45 minutes northwest of Townsville. We found a great place to set up camp along the creek, complete with a fan-mazing rope swing!! Most of our time was spent on this rope swing - it was perfect. We enjoyed 3 days of just relaxing in the PERfect sunny weather, playing in the creek, lying in the hammock, listening to music and running one of the car batteries dead, sitting by the campfire, and cooking up fantastic campfire-food (i had kangaroo for the first time! roo stew... SO tasty!).

A lot of the people that play ultimate frisbee are study-abroad students, so a number of them are leaving after exams these next 2 weeks. The camping trip was sort of an end-of-term, goodbye celebration for those of us that won't be around anymore, and it was a perfect way to conclude a great semester of fun and friends. We all had the time of our lives, and every moment of the trip was enjoyed to the fullest.

Our group of friends, hanging out on the rope swing tree ...Mom, I know you're squinting your eyes, thinking, "Which one's my daughter?" I'm the one at the very top.

Here again, I don't have my own pictures from the trip, but I've linked one of the other people's photo albums so you can get a look at this amazing trip. But yet again, not many captions, so you'll just have to look and enjoy.

Photo album - Ultimate camping: https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2495651&l=fe685&id=13930813

Posted by Whitney 06/15/2008, revised 06/15/2008