Craig Ewing's "Space"
A Description Of 10,000 Feet, 2019

Sunday, August 11th --
My brother, our friend, and I drove that afternoon from Casper to Fort Collins.   As usual, it took about 3-1/2 hours.   Thanks to my brother's girlfriend, we stayed at
the Hilton Hotel.   She used some of her points for us to get it.   Thanks to her for her generosity.   After reaching the room, we relaxed for about one hour and, like the
previous year, we then once again went to dinner that afternoon with my brother's friend and his friend's wife.   But this year, we went to the Rock Bottom restaurant in
Loveland.   Afterwards, we returned to the hotel, took it easy, and went to bed early in order to get up early.

Monday, August 12th --
We woke up at 3:30am and then went to the same Denny's restaurant that we went to during previous years.   We had the waitress fill up our six water bottles, ate
breakfast, and left at about 4:25. We arrived at the trail head at 7am.   While driving up the valley, a female bighorn sheep ran along with our SUV on the other side of
the road for about ten yards until it ran across the road in front of us.   Fortunately, my friend, who was driving, saw it and slowed down.   Otherwise, we might have
hit it.   We later saw a deer that also crossed the road in front of us.   And we saw two more deer in the campground prior to arriving at the trail head.
After arriving at the trail head and preparing our gear, we started hiking at 7:40.   While hiking, we scared four quail and they flew away.   We arrived at the lake and
got our favorite campsite at 10:15.   We had hiked faster than we did the previous year.   We were in better shape than previous years.   Once again, both my brother
and our friend took anti-leg cramping pills and they worked great.   While hiking, we encountered two men and one woman who were wilderness volunteers.   When
we arrived at the lake and our favorite campsite, we saw that someone had created a sitting area with three logs.   This was better than the fire pit arrangement that we
had discovered the previous year.
As usual, we set up our tents first, my brother and our friend went to the creek behind the campsite and got water from it -- using a filtering system, and then
immediately went fishing.   Actually, my
brother and our friend started fishing at 1:15.   About 15 minutes later, I went to the lake to fish from the shore.   Unlike my brother and my friend, I was using a
spinning outfit.   (I was using a red-and-white daredevil.)   I tossed the lure into the lake and reeled it in slowly.   When it was about 15 feet from the shore, it snagged
on a fallen, submerged tree.   I got the hint, put the pole against a tree that was on the shore, returned to camp, and took a nap from 1:30 to 3:30.   (I'm not used to
getting up at 3:30 in the morning.)   Meanwhile, as usual, my brother and our friend were fly fishing from float tubes and finished fishing at around 4:30.
We saw three people that day -- all men.   I didn't see them, but I heard a hawk and an eagle.   It didn't rain either that day or night.   Regarding eating, as I did the
previous year, I decided to go "old school".   I only ate instant breakfasts, granola bars, and trail mix while drinking only water.   Actually, I also ate some jerky that
our friend had made for the trip.   Meanwhile, my brother and our friend ate instant meals such as scrambled eggs, chicken and dumplings, beef stroganoff, and creme
brulee.   Creme brulee?   Is that camping?   Ha! Ha!
While I was fishing that afternoon, I noticed that my boat was sinking.   (Deja vu.)   So, I paddled back to "the launching area".   Quickly.   Instead of it leaking from the
bladder's fill tube -- like it had done during the previous year, it was leaking from a spot along the bladder's seam.   So, our friend got the patch kit and repaired it by
deflating it, patching the hole, and leaving a flat rock on the patch overnight.   (I wonder if the bladder will have another leak in 2020.)
It appeared that there were a similar number of dead trees both around the lake and on the nearby hillsides as was the case during the previous year.   That was a relief
to me considering how many trees had been killed by pine beetles during previous years.   And there was yet more algae growing at the bottom of the lake.   The amount
appeared to once again double since the previous year.   As usual, we all went to bed at 8:15.
Airplanes: 25
People: 3
Fish Caught -- 4
My brother: 2 -- Stimulator
Our Friend: 2 -- Chernobyl Ant
Me: 0

Tuesday, August 13th --
We got up at 7:15 to a clear sky.   We ate breakfast and we tested my (hopefully) repaired float tube's bladder.   It didn't leak.   Whoo-hoo (again)!   So, we deflated the
bladder, put it back into the boat, re-inflated the bladder, and I was good to go.   We all started fishing and, this time, I fished -- fly fished -- from my float tube.   While
we were fishing, a man, a woman, and a child arrived at the lake.   They ate lunch, fished, and left soon thereafter.   We also saw one man who was there during the
afternoon.
We finished fishing a little bit after 11 o'clock.   At 11:15, our friend took a nap.   Until about 3:15.   (We didn't eat lunch that day.)   My brother and I resumed fishing
around 1 o'clock.   Our friend later joined us.   While we were on the lake, we saw a hawk flying around.   It sprinkled for about ten minutes while we were out there.   (I
wasn't taking any chances and I returned to the shore.)   My brother and our friend didn't "panic" and continued fishing until 5:15.   As was the case the previous day,
fish were rarely breaking the surface to eat.   As a result, we weren't catching many fish.
While I was fishing, I spotted a large bug on the water.   I swam over to it and discovered that it was a grasshopper.   I scooped it up from the water, swam to the nearest
shore, and put the grasshopper on it.   So, I did my "good samaritan duty of the day".   Interestingly, that was the only grasshopper that we saw during the five days.
I would like to point out that the birds that we saw and/or heard during the trip, that I didn't already mention, included sparrows and robins.   The flies included house
flies and deer flies.   During dinner every night, we set up a Thermacell device to fend off mosquitoes.   And every night, we returned to the lake, simply sitting or
standing there and enjoying its peacefulness.   At 8 o'clock, my brother, our friend, and I went to bed.   Note: Once again, it didn't rain.
One extraordinary thing that happened that night was that my brother and I saw "flashes" in the sky.   We first noticed them while we were in the tent before we fell
asleep.   We discussed what could be their source or sources.   One strange issue was that there was no single point source such as an emergency vehicle.   But that was
extremely unlikely since we were two miles away from the nearest road.   And the flashes lit up the entire sky.   So the source probably wasn't related to the Perseid
meteor shower since meteors rarely light up the entire sky.   Also, the flashes occurred frequently -- about once per second -- and more than once they occurred twice or
three times per second.   Coincidentally, the moon had just breached the mountain to the east.   When the moon completely cleared the mountaintop, we couldn't see the
flashes as easily since the moon was nearly full.   Extraordinary.
Important: Our friend was awake a total of 8 hours and 45 minutes that day.
Airplanes: 40
People: 4 -- 1 man and a family of three
Fish Caught --5
My brother: 3 -- Stimulator and Chernobyl Ant
Our Friend: 0
Me: 2 -- Rainbow Trout Streamer

Wednesday, August 14th --
All of us got up around 8:15.   We didn't eat breakfast and immediately started fishing at 8:30.   As was the situation during the previous two days, few fish were rising.
(By the way, I fly fished again, using a Rainbow Trout streamer.)   So, we didn't catch many fish once again.   While we fished, two day hikers, both of them men, arrived
at the lake.   One of them caught a fish and both of them were QUITE excited about it.   They left a few hours later.   We finished fishing at 12:15 and had lunch.   There
were mosquitoes bothering us again, so we turned on the Thermacell again.   As usual, it worked well.   But what worked even better was wind ... or our friend's cigars.
After lunch, our friend napped from about 12:30 to about 2:30.   Meanwhile, my brother and I started fishing at 2 o'clock.   From 2:30 to 2:45, it sprinkled.   My brother
showed us some "slimy" things that were on rocks on the bottom of the lake.   They appeared to be filled with eggs, probably larvae.   We noticed a hatch of size 20 dun-
or brown-colored flies.   After fishing, we got a second round of water from the creek.   That day, our friend saw a squirrel and we realized that there were fewer animals
or birds around the lake this year.   At 8 o'clock, we all went to bed.   Before falling asleep, we heard a tree crash somewhere nearby, somewhere alongside the lake.
Note: My brother had made a friend during the trip.   As a matter of fact, he made a friend with it when he had hiked to the lake during the previous week with his
girlfriend.   It was a bird.   Strangely, the bird, a sparrow, had a nest on the ground.   He would take small amounts of food and put them near the nest.   Maybe it was
HIS friend, but I don't think that HE was the bird's friend.   One thing that I'd like to point out, as a reminder to us, is that my brother taught me how to prevent the
perpetual twisting of fly lines.   The trick is to stretch the line by grabbing it with both hands spread apart by about two feet and pulling the hands apart.   It works.
Airplanes: 53
People: 2 -- 2 men
Fish Caught --5
My brother: 4 -- Chernobyl Ant
Our Friend: 0
Me: 1 -- Chernobyl Ant

Thursday, August 15th --
We got up at 8 o'clock.   After eating breakfast, we went fishing at 8:30.   Unfortunately, it wasn't good fishing again.   I believe that it was poor fishing because we
weren't having any storms passing through the area.   That included the previous days, ignoring sprinkling, and according to forecasts, it was supposed to be dry again
that day.   Another issue, especially for my brother and our friend since they always fished with fly rods, was the wind.   So, it was almost constantly windy.   We stopped
fishing at noon and ate lunch.   Our friend took a nap while my brother and I took a break for about two hours.   He and I resumed fishing at 2:30, our friend joined us
at 3 o'clock, and we all finished at 5 o'clock.   I hadn't had much success, so I used my spin casting system and tried four different lures.   I had no success other than a
couple of bites.
We had dinner shortly after finishing fishing.   We hung around camp for a couple of hours, including going to the lake.   We saw storm clouds approaching the area
that passed over the mountain to the west.   Along with them were the strongest winds that we'd experienced during the trip.   At 7:45, we heard another tree fall.
That's two fallen trees during one trip and I'd only heard one tree fall in that area during the 4-plus decades that I'd gone to the lake.   (Maybe it's related to the
increased number of dead trees in the area.)   We packed some of our things such as the boats, waders, etc. for the next morning's hike back down the hill.   Then, we
ended the day by going into the tents at 8 o'clock.
Airplanes: 48
People: 0
Fish Caught --4
My brother: 3 -- one was an LDR -- "long distance release"
Our Friend: 1 -- one was an LDR -- "long distance release"
Me: 0

Friday, August 16th --
We got up around 8 o'clock.   We ate breakfast and then finished packing.   After taking some last-minute photos of us being ready for the hike (Refer to associated
photos on the 'Pictures' page.), we left the lake at 10:30.   Interestingly, we didn't cross paths with anyone, even though it was a Friday.   (That was a first for us.)   We
arrived at the trail head at 2 o'clock ... about a 3-1/2 hour hike.
The story of the hike was bees.   Bumblebees.   About two-thirds of the way through the hike, we stopped to get water from the nearby creek.   We found a shady place
to put down our backs and then went to the creek with the water filtration system.   We filled up two bottles and returned to the backpacks.   About ten seconds later, I
felt pain in my left calf.   Then more pain in a different spot in my left calf.   I yelled out "Bees!" and ran out of the area.   My brother and our friend didn't get stung
and were smart by grabbing their backpacks before they ran out of the spot.   I didn't and, about one minute later, ran back in, grabbed my backpack, and ran back
out.   I got two more stings.   (I haven't been bitten by a bee for decades!)   The stings continued to hurt, but I remembered that exercising reduces or eliminates the pain
of a sting.   Fortunately, it worked and I couldn't feel them anymore after about 20 minutes.
For a change, our friend hiked in front of my brother and me.   Eventually, I was hiking in front of them.   So, we finished the hike and arrived at the truck at 1:58 -- a
2-1/2 hour hike.   After putting our packs in the back of our friend's Hyundai Santa Fe, we started driving home.
When we arrived at the trail head, we saw someone driving through and locking the gate to the private property that is located between the trail head and the reservoir.

Airplanes: 22
People: 0
Epilogue --

  1. Totals -- Airplanes: 180
    People: 9
    Fish Caught --18
  2. The result of me eating only granola bars and trail mix had its effect.   I lost six pounds during the trip ... the same as in 2018.   It turns out that we all lost exactly six
    pounds each.
  3. Of the two fish that I landed, they were both 16 inches long and well fed.
  4. My brother caught the largest fish, again, and it was 22 inches.
  5. The fish were larger and heavier than ever.   Maybe it's a result of having more food to eat related to the increased moss on the bottom of the lake.
  6. As usual, I never took a number two during the five full days that we were at the lake.
  7. This year's trip was 15 years since I spread my dad's ashes on our old campsite.


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