Photos 3, page 3
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Around Mauna Kea (continued)
| January 8, 2007 |
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| (3:06 PM) On my walk to the farm, I took a couple of shots of the Tracker. Looks kinda lonely |
| (4:21 PM) And another shot when I got back |
| (5:15 PM) After calling Robin and Ray, there's nothing left to do but take pictures |
| I reached a point near a dried-up pond (center left) where the road wasn't readily discernible. You can see it fine in the view from Google Earth, but on the ground, I couldn't tell. As you can see, I started along the correct route, but turned back. My GPS was showing the road as going straight on, but there wasn't any road in that direction. I finally chose the route to the north-northeast as being the closest to what the GPS was showing but I soon came to a sudden drop-off. When I tried to back up, the grass was just wet enough that the tires just spun. Even though the Geo has 4WD, it has street tires so it couldn't get enough traction to get me out of there! The tracks to the right are the walking route I took to a farm I could see (photo). Unfortunately, it was deserted. FORTUNATELY there was excellent cell phone coverage and I was able to call Robin, then Ray to come in his big 4WD pick-up truck to tow me out. Robin decided that instead of sitting around home worrying, she'd come out to wait with me, which was fortunate because Ray didn't show up for another hour and half and it was already dark. It took Robin an hour and a half to get to me, arriving just before dark, and it would have been completely miserable if I'd had to sit there alone in the dark! It was chilly and windy and, although beautiful, pretty forlorn out there. Remember, I'm over a mile high at an altitude of roughly 6100 feet! |
| This is the track of me pacing while waiting for Robin |
| After Robin got there, we sat in her car facing the direction Ray would come. This track shows my path as I got out of the car to talk to Ray as he pulled up beside us then as we went to pull my car out. GPS is pretty amazing, isn't it? |
| This is the track I walked to the farm. The upper of the two lines was the cross-country route I started on. The grass was really thick and reached past my knees so I had to pick each foot up high and swing it around to take each step - very tiring! I finally reached a farm track that I followed the rest of the way to the farm and then was able to follow back (lower line) to the car. |
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| Click Google images to enlarge |
| And watch the fog roll in at the farm. Is it fog or clouds when you're at 6100 ft.? |
| (6:03 PM) Mauna Kea is off in that direction someplace. My guess is a little to the left. |
| Looking back along the "road" I came in on. |
| It was kind of eerie up here. It was so quite that it felt like the whole world was holding it's breath. |
| Look, you can see a little blue sky! |
| This is the road I should have taken - the one I took but turned back...! |
| ( 6:17 PM) One lonely little star as it gets too dark to take pictures. |
Robin arrived right about now (6:30
PM), which was a good thing because
Ray didn't get there for another hour
and a half. He had his big pickup truck
with the dual rear wheels and crew cab
with 4WD. Towing the Tracker out was
no sweat, then we all caravaned back
out to Saddle Road - a trip of about an
hour and a half in the dark...
PM), which was a good thing because
Ray didn't get there for another hour
and a half. He had his big pickup truck
with the dual rear wheels and crew cab
with 4WD. Towing the Tracker out was
no sweat, then we all caravaned back
out to Saddle Road - a trip of about an
hour and a half in the dark...
| CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE |
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