Back online after lightning strike

Greetings everyone, we're back!!! First I'll give a general update and then will write about each event with photos later.
After a busy Aug and Sept and early Oct around here, and a very early morning thunderstorm 9/3 knocked out the satellite things are starting to get back to normal, well normal for Trinity.

Let me tell you a little of what has been going on. First in Aug some friends came and helped me with a work party and we worked on the Bowling Alley building, clearing out all of the trash, sweeping, stacking, and blowing, made it a destination for some of my friends. Jeff Burgess found a couple of Bowling balls and got 48 used pins from Eastmont Lanes since they had purchased new ones to replace them with. Also big thanks to Jeff B & Jill, Mark, Mike& Kerry D, Johnny cat, Jesse, Jordan, the Loomis' & Twitchell's my closest neighbors, Bill D, Fritz, Andrew and Laura D (first woman from WA to run the Iditarod) along with her team for a great weekend. If I left anyone out please forgive me in advance.
The bowling alley had looked the same since I got here 5 yrs ago filled with broken bales of straw, , and bales of woodchips from the Cascade Quest and had been that way for some time before that. All of the trash was removed and put into a burn pile that will be torched when there is over 1' of snow on ground this year. We also closed off all big openings in walls to keep the snow out this winter but doing so made it very dark in there. It only took about 3.5 hours of humping it on everyone's part to get it done and the first pins set and first strike was thrown in the first few throws, it was great.
We still need to build a ball return ramp and cage around the transformer for safety reasons, but it is usable. Everyone camped here for the weekend and we had lots of fun with a little work but got it DONE. Great Job and heartfelt Thanks to everyone that helped.

In Sept we had another workparty with the mushers & members of NWSDA came and helped work on the auto bridge railing that had fallen down after last years snow and worked on the valve house that was knocked down by snow load 2 yrs ago. Didn't get the last wall up or roof on it yet but got much further along than we had been. It was a long day but had a great time. Big thanks to Jay & Becky Justus, Dave Ford, Patti Kirkness, Kevin Casey, Don Duncan, Dan Bishop and Jasmine who will be coordinating this years Cascade Quest volunteers that are working @ Trinity. Great job and big thanks to all couldn't have gotten it done without ya'll.

This past weekend we had a Cub Scout pack that came here and installed a new Flag pole for a project. The weather was colder than expected so they also earned their winter camping badges for camping with overnight temps of 22 & 17. They did great. While they were working to finish the flag pole installation one of the boys saw smoke and even though they were young and learning, each grabbed a shovel and ran to the smoke finding burlap burning right behind my house, two of the leaders Will and Todd flipped it over taking the flames away from my back porch and all proceeded to put it out. I am very grateful for their quick action and fearlessness in saving Trinity, with the dry conditions we have been having all summer a true disaster was averted and my house was saved. Thanks to Will, Jamie& Devon Rau, Todd, Tristi & Noah Buchan, Scott Dunham, Denny Van Dorn, along with a couple of others that left before I could get their names. I'll be writing another post about this weekend and will get those names and put up photos of all if these events soon.

October 2-4 Laura D and team along with her parents Bill & Carole and sister Corrie along with her family and friends family, and other friends family we had 28 people and 22 dogs enjoying the cooler temps and Laura got in several training runs which she hasn't been able to do at home. It was more of a play time yet we still got things done also. Some of those here had only been hearing about Trinity for years yet never been able to be here, some were visiting from FL and had only been in WA for 2 days before coming to Trinity for the weekend so they started with Paradise and then returned to the dark side for the remainder of their visit. It's always a pleasure to see friends and have them visit, and 8 of them were kids under 8 who explored and played using their imagination and things found around here for all of their toys, not a video game or manufactured toy in the bunch and they had FUN.

Thanks again to everyone for all of your help and laughs you bring each time, got lots done, and another reason I love this place...
We found our Paradise, hope you find yours too...Peace

More Dam Pics

The top 2 pics are of the dam with Phelps Ck forcefully going over the dam. The creek is almost 2' higher than what it normally runs when it isn't melting out due to the very warm temps we have been having. The water is clearing up daily and lots of oxygen in the water. just being up there and listening to and seeing the power of the creek when it is flowing like this, seeing all of the gravel in spillway and hearing the rocks which sould like bowling balls underwater is a powerful reminder of what it can do. Below the main spill is nothing but large boulders and bedrock that have been cut and carved over the years by this creek but at this time you can't see it because of the quantity of water flowing over and down the creek right now.
This pic is of the inside of the spillway/aquaduct the bright side is the spillway which supplies the water through steel screens with only 3/32" holes to keep the fry from entering the aquaduct and making it to the powerplant, this past winer it had 3-4' of ice on top of what you see here and why the powerplant froze up this past winter during the -10 nights, it froze faster than I could clear the screens so no power for 7 days. the spillway was 80% full of gravel and rocks when we got up there so had to pull the boards to lower the water level and get the rocks moving then assisted using a shovel to keep the gravel moving back into the creek, there was very little sediment it in, the screens are running down the middle. the darker side is still water that feeds the aquaduct which runs 9900' to the settling tank to get the debris out of the water and let rocks and gravel settle to the bottom of the tanks then send it on down to the powerplant to make power for the houses.

The lower photo is looking up at the dam from the road, below the dam is bedrock and boulders that have been carved by the poser of the running creek, this creek is not glacier fed. Above the dam and around a bend is a very beautiful tropical looking waterfall and several pools which are nice holes for cut throat trout to hang out in. This upper section of the the creek only cut throat trout are found and about 1.5 miles downstream below a 30' waterfall you will only find Bull trout because they eat everything else. Just above the upper waterfall is Spider Meadow but very few have ever experienced this area, once they have they always want to return.
We found our Paradise, hope you find your's too. Peace

forest Flowers and Buck Big Red

I have been asked where the forest flowers are in my photos tht I have posted lately since most have been of the river & creek while rising and waterfalls around here. These are a few of the flowers we have seen while out on our morning hikes, the top flower I'm not sure what it is called i believe it is a bulb plant with a pretty yellow flower that hangs upside down, it found in various areas aound here.
The next photo is of Trillium which are some of the first flowers we see here they love acidic soil for sure and pop up quite quickly after the snow melts, likes shady areas mainly it seems to me and grows all over the flrest floor.

As they get older more mature they turn to the purple color which gets quite deep purple which you see in the next photo.


In the bottom photo is some of the many deer that show up during the day to take their turn at the salt block I put out about 10 days ago and it will be gone in another 3-4 days. It's hard to tell from this shot but the deer in front is a year round resident buck i call Big Red and he already has antlers double the length of his ears and both sides are already forked and the left side rear is starting to split to fork again and it is just June 3. Each year he is a wonderful looking big massive buck with very wide 4x4 and he is extremely wiley and out smarts the hunters each year. He stays here during the winter and never migrates out towards Fish Lake like many of the the deer do.

We actually drive the truck in to Trinity yesterday it's still muddy in a few places but drying nicely aith a couple of snow spots left, it's nice to have y truck home from the garage after 6 months makes going & coming a little easier now.
We found our Paradise, hope you find your's too. Peace

First Visitors to Drive into Trinity

Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day with a nice breeze and good friends. After going for our morning hike and checking the flow of the river and creeks we got home and had an email from friends telling me they were going to come up and hike in to visit. When we came home on Thur we parked down at Little Giant TH and the barricade was put up due to a couple of snowdrifts still lingering and some very soft muddy spots in the road to give it a chance to dry out. Jeff had helped me move vehicles on Thur and knew where we parked which is 4 miles away and they planned to park there and hike in, but instead they figured to see just how far they could drive, well they drove all the way in without tearing up the road and showed up at the gate, very cool.
Jill decided she wanted to not only be the first to drive in to Trinity but the first into the pond which is normally 42-48 degrees in the summer but due to all of the melting snow and shallower water in the pond it was a little warmer. Jill gets the award for not only being the first into the pond this year but she went in twice so I could film it also, she's such a trooper, while Jeff, Johnny & I watched. We had such a great day just having them visit and showing them around and showing them all of the water flows happening right now due to the much warmer temps we have been having. While we were walking around with all of the dogs chasing critters we heard another dogs bark and as were walking to the spillway from the tailrace to show them how it was flowing over we ran into a couple of hikers with their dog, they had come to the same place and found out they could not get past it due to the water flow being rather high. I let them go around and up the road to the trail simply because they had stayed on the trail and didn't just go on their own, they respected private property.
While were out looking around I showed them where the deer had been tearing up the salt block that I just put out last week that was almost 50% gone. Every morning more and more deer show up to enjoy the minerals and socialize or fight whichever you want to call it. Lots of very healthy doe and some really nice bucks already with antlers taller than their ears and forked. The old trailer we are sitting on is from when the mine was running and the sawmill was in full production, we made some guesses of what it was for but aren't really sure, notice the wood spoked wheels they are in great shape for being over 90 years old and buried under lots of snow each winter. We figured it was for hauling logs because of the many leaf springs under it for large loads. Top photo is of Jeff, Johnny & I.
Bottom photo is Jill, Johnny & me with a better view of the powerhouse in background. This is the beginning of the camping and hiking season now that the gates are open with just a barricade up for a few more days anyway.
We found our Paradise, hope you find yours too. Peace

Constantly Changing Chiwawa River

This top photo is the newest channel cut by the river, it has been working on this for a couple of years but up until this year this was only a bypass and the major channel of the river went right by Trinity and the Buck CK Trail. This nes channel cuts through the trees closer to James CK and then back around and into the old channel here by Trinity it's where it joins back into it.. It appears to be a fairly deep channel without a rock base like that we normally see it have, now all of the gravel bars are just sitting there huge areas bigger than a couple of football fields with only a trickling of the river along it. If I had my knee boots on I could have gone to get a closer look at this channel but that will be another journey.

This photo show just how much snow is still on the trail in places over 3+' in several shady spots along the trail, also a large tree blocks some of the trail, will have to get cut I just wasn't into cutting it today was enjoying the view and being out with the dogs.
This next photo is the spillway at the lower end of the tailrace, just where the Buck CK trail crosses the stream to continue on to the mountains. This spillway is being slowly removed to allow for a more natural flow making it easier for salmon & dollies to get there from the river. This is just above the confluence where the tailrace and river meet and about 500 yds from the Phelps CK logjam and confluence. If the Forest Service and those in charge of powerplant relicensing get their way and finally make up their mind this spillway could be taken out of action due to rerouting the tailrace back closer to the houses joining the spillway from the front creek and all of that tying into the old creek bed which hasn't been used for
thousands of years. Now the tailrace has been there for over 90 years working just fine and the fish continue to come up it into the pond even though they were spawned in Phelps CK it is the same water they just stay in the river a little longer, they want all of this done for the Dolly's and their breeding beds. It sounds all well and good but it definitely is one of those things that should use scientific data to base their decisions on instead of personel preferences, all of the Big Dolly's are hanging at the waterfall pool about 1.60 miles upstream, not down at this lower end...




This bottom photo is of the gravel bar that was where the river used to be, now it is big enough for several football fields long and wide yet totally hidden by the alders when hiker's are on the trail. I might just have to set up a tent and all out there and build a firepit it's far enough from anything but rocks with the river at either end. Well the alder is so stinking think that without loppers or a chainsaw you won't get through and what makes many of these places not accessible in summer . One nice thing though today did not see any bugs or mosquitos during any of our hikes lately which is a very good thing. Now if the beetles and moths would go away instead f killing off so many trees each year. Looking up and down the valley and seeing the destruction those bugs cause makes me sick, fortunately there are too many other good things to enjoy here.
We found our Paradise, hope you find your's too, Peace & One Love

Getting warmer waters rising, snow melting

The top photo is the gauge by the foot bridge on Phelps CK and since Sat it has come up almost .7' and still rising. We checked it yesterday afternoon and it was very dark and murky but not muddy which usually means lots of debris in the water which isn't good for the screens at the dam or settling tank, and can shut the plant down.



The next photo is Chiwawa River @ Phelps CK campground, the bend and Peace is doing what she always does she's looking for the dipper birds that live along the river, the sing and she goes after them without a care. All of the dogs use trees like bridges or highways through the trees, they are true mountain dogs, and love the snow.

The next photo is all 3 of them doing what they do best and that is hunt, not sure what went into the hole in the rocks but Peace is excavating which she is very good at, those big paws can move some dirt, whatever it is it won't get past the 3 of them. It's their favorite past time and they don't really care what it is as long as it runs or flies they will chase it.


This bottom photo is at the auto bridge at the gate, looking up stream of Phelps CK, in the last week it has come up almost a 1' with most coming since the temps went over 70 on Sat & Sun and the nights have stayed warmer than what they have been lately. The afternoons the water is murkier and darker but in the morning it is clearer. This afternoon we heard the tale tale sounds of rising water in the creek, it sounds like bowling underwater from the massive boulders that roll along the bottom, rocks you or I can't lift without help and they are easily pushed down the creek, and the noise alone is becoming defining if you are close. It's a sure sign that spring has arrived at Trinity.
We found out Paradise, hope youfind yours too. Peace

Late April Snow Showers

This morning while the dogs and I were out hiking and checking out the melt out progress along the river and creek the sun was out shining bright. This afternoon around 3:30 we started getting snow coming off the mountains, but instead of it just being blown by strong winds the sow oved into the valley. These are some of the shots I took while it was happening and still is happening but I wanted to get this posted while it was happening. This is the latest storms we have had while I have lived at Trinity and is one of the things that makes living in the mountains so very special.



If you love the snow as much as I do then enjoy these few shots and if not and you are seeing snow then just send it this way where it is very appreciated... I like the cooler temps that allow for the snow instead of rain which would really make things difficult for getting around.


We found our Paradise, hope you find your's too. Peace

Paradise from the Front Pond

Many of my friends and people I meet think that I must be crazy to live in the middle of nowhere as they call it, just because I'm not in town or have a store down on the corner, closest one is 23 miles away. At first I had to get used to it by making sure to get what I needed while in town or being able to do without it until the next journey out. Sometimes it isn't the easiest especially for someone with very bad knees and shoulders but then I go outside and look around me and see the wonderful majestic mountains surrounding me and the beautiful landscape that changes often.


These photos were taken from the front pond actually the south side of the pond looking back toward Buck Mountain and the Chiwawa's in the top photo. The middle photo is looking back from the front pond toward Fortress Mountain & Massie Ridge and the bottom photo shows Massie Ridge and Chiwawa Mountain with Red Mountain. When I get up each morning and look out and see those mountains all around me and no traffic to contend with especially right now during the meltout I am grateful to live in such a wonderful place, fact is I can't see living anywhere else.



Most of my friends that make it here want to stay but just can't break away from the rat race, and I don't even know what that is. Living here is slow paced most of the time unless I'm trying to keep up with the dogs on one of their outings. I think it is wonderful to have such a place to live and enjoy everyday and the only thing that could possibly make it better is someone to share it with all the time, my dogs are great and they do have their own language but it is still a guessing game as to what they want at times. It's nice to have someone to talk to while exploring all around the place we call Paradise.
We found our Paradise, hpe you find your's too. Peace

What a Difference a Day Makes

These are phots I've taken the last 2 days to show just how fast the creek & river are rising due to the really warm temps and fast melting snow. The top and 3rd photo are of the bend at the Phelps CK campground showing how high the water was today and how high it was yesterday around the same time .

The 2nd photo is of the creek just in front of Trinity at the auto bridge, showing melting snow and rising levels. The creek is still fairly clear but getting muckier each day. Loosing almost 18" of snow since the weekend on our gauge and seeing the river rise almost 1' since yesterday is making for a very interesting meltout. It's supposed to be cooler tonight with the possibility of some snow overnight at 3000' would be nice but will really suck if it is rain here. Hopefully the temps will cool down and slow the melting process some. The advantage this year is that what snow we did have was much wetter snow and when last measured had almost 43-44% density which is much better than what we had last year.


Now that these logs and snow are under water now or melted I will be using the last photo to show the difference of the rivers depth and flow daily but at the rate we are going it won't even be visible after a couple of more days, that is unless the temps cool down alot over the next few days. I've already had friends cancel coming out yesterday on snowmobiles due to the lack of snow between Alder Ck where hey would have to launch and Chickamin flats which is 8 miles up the road. From Chikamin to Trinity there are a few dirt spots but should still be passible for a while but it is really going to depend on what the weather has in store for us.




If things keep up like the last couple of days we could have some really severe flooding so we are praying for cooler temps even during the day it would be a blessing right now, it has been much worse at this time other years with water flowing everywhere, while we still have 2-4' of snow on the road but just one step too far off the road you sink to your knees.
We found our Paradise, hope you find your too. Peace

Meat Friday & Gibbs Organic Farm visit

This past Thur the dogs and I headed into town, me riding the ATV with them running the 23 miles to the garage, then on to Leavenworth & Wenatchee to run errands. This was to be the longest time away from Trinity since we parked the truck at the garage in Dec. We went out to visit friends and attend Meat Friday at Ryan & Sarah & Holt Walker's. Since we went to visit our friend Grant and wanted him to go with us we had to wait for him to get off work at Steven's Pass before heading to eat meat. Before we could leave though we had to check on the new bull calf that was born just before Grant got home, having just being born 15-30 min before hand, he's a good looking and very strong calf.

We were a little late getting there and not alot of people but tons of different meat dishes, anyone that didn't get full it was there own fault. Got to see old friends we haven't seen much lately and some new friends we hadn't met before, and even got to meet our neighbor's at our garage the Loomis'. We had a wonderful time and had plenty to eat even having lunch and dinner the next day from leftovers we took home.

Grant and I worked at the farm to get things ready, harrowing the hay field along with other chores around a farm while Grant sprayed his trees. We kept watch for the calf and as the day got longer he got stronger.

When we went out originally we we had planned to come home Sat but it was warm in town and thought we would put it off until Sun or Monday giving the snow a chance to set up so not so soft for the dogs that they punch through and get hurt. Easter morning I got a phone call from a friend telling me that he just saw it was already 45 @ Trinity yet only 38 in Leavenworth which when checked again the last update from the webcam was at 2:45 on 4/11 and normally when that happens it means one thing, the plant has dropped/ shutdown, meaning we had to pack and head home immediately so we did. The closer to Trinity we got the wetter it was and not the best for travelling on snow. We headed in from the garage around 11 and after almost 2 hours arrived home to find 4" of new snow in a mix or rain & snow from Chikamin to Trinity. This was a great weekend with friends, just cut a little short.

The best thing was when we got home the plant was still up and running and it was just the computer froze up which was a pleasant surprise. All in all a great weekend and the dogs got to all the stores that have doggy treats in town.

We found our Paradise, hope you find your's too...Namaste'

Skate Skiing to Trinity

Rob & John started out to Trinity around 6am from the Fish Lake Sno-park skate skiing to Trinity and arrived 2 hours and 22 min later, a very quick trip for 23 miles on skis. I got an email from Rob earlier this week about them making the run out here since the trail was getting groomed one last time for the season. It was raining at the time and we got over 1" of rain that day, yesterday morning I emailed him to let him know how wet the snow was after our morning hike. He said they were coming as long as it got groomed wo we both wanted colder temps than 33, we got it 23 overnight due to clear skies. This morning couldn't have been better for them the road was groomed and freezing temps set it up nicely making for a fast trip. I had coffee on for them and the dogs let me know they were here. We had coffee and visited for a little while while they warmed up some, but since the sun was getting higher and higher fast they headed out after their snack and coffee to have good snow on the way back instead of soft snow, it really slows them down. This is the 2nd year for this trek and they couldn't have had a more beautiful day for it, who wants to join them next time. It's an adventure with a cozy resting place with a hot cup of coffee and happiness in the middle of the mountains.

We found our Paradise, hope you find your's too.

Playing in my Backyard

Since yesterday we've had over 18" of snow fall here and today several friends came out for skiing, snowmobiling & brunch. It was a great day it puked snow and for the first time since mid Jan this is the most snow at one time we have gotten here. Sometimes it was snowing over 2"+/hr of beautiful POW. Everyone had a great time and the dogs really loved it, at time all you could see of Bear was the top of his head but they just love the deep POW to play in, but then again don't we all. We are now over 6' on our gauge and that is a good thing.
Even though we have held what snow we have had here never getting lower than 3.5' it just wasn't adding up do to warming and settling before it got to 4' and then today we finally went over 6'. I've always liked the snow and seeing everything white in the trees because it is so clean and beautiful but until it stopped snowing I never realized what kind of impact it caused. Most people that know me know I'm very laid back and never let things bother me, take everything in stride but when things started turning white again I realized I was feeling depressed due to the lack of snow especially during the middle of winter, now that it's snowing I feel revived and much happier now. I love the snow and the mountains and getting to live here is the Bomb, just can't see living anywhere else.


I feel great now and have enjoyed sharing this wonderful place with my friends, if you love snow and wintersports of any kind you can find it here, most only visit but my dogs and I live here always, what could make life better... that is another story...
Get out and enjoy these beautiful surroundings and the POWPOW, it does a body great.

We found our Paradise, hope you find your's too. Namaste'