The Ice Went Out With A Sigh

Living along a river, as I do, allows my daily life to include certain experiences that my upland brothers and sisters may never see or hear. On long hot summer nights, the whisper of a cool wind still finds a way down from higher ground along the river way. When we get either north or south winds in winter, the ice heaves or collapses atop the estuary as the great mass of water breathes with the wind. Creatures of the night stalk the banks whether the moon is out or not and during the day, the old winding river lures critters and city folk alike to her quiet. Drawn by the river's familiar but ever changing beauty and a chance to experience a degree of solitude rarely found in the city.

Each year we get to witness one of the sublime events special to a northern river, the day or two we call ice out. On rare occasions the river shatters into a billion shards and as they rush past our house, they sound like a giant wind chime or endlessly breaking glass. The tinkling can be heard for hundreds of feet and others who have had the chance to hear the phenomenon will talk about it for weeks afterward. Yesterday, the ice went out in chunks, things that looked like they ranged in size from nearly the width of the river all the way down to car-sized pieces with a few even smaller ones jostling about into traffic jams that alternately broke through under the bridge downstream and backed up again as a giant ice dam. Occasionally there were large piles about the size of beaver lodges, thrust up by the briefly intense collisions between masses of ice that would normally support a hockey team, but today ran away faster than children released from school.

The night before last we had a major rainstorm and the added push of the rising water left no quarter for the ice to retreat to, instead it was flushed away over the course of hours. Each heave of the ice dams brought more muddy water and as the water rose, even the few chunks that had been pushed up on the shore floated free and easily away. It felt as if Nature herself had become tired of Winter. This year it must have been unfulfilling for her because the week or two that the ice was thick enough to be explored was all that could be mustered to emulate the season of hard water. Instead of weeks below zero, we only got one or two nights. Instead of a dozen or more snowstorms that required shoveling, we got but three. Heck, we got more winter in a week the last two years than we had all winter this time around the cycle of the seasons.

Winter went somewhere else this year, but in Northeast Wisconsin, where people pride ourselves as hearty and able to cope with all that winter can dish out, we felt a bit of Nature's sadness over both the record temperatures and lack of snow and ice. That said, there were many folks commenting on the fact that they "didn't miss" the snow shoveling, but just as many, if not more, went on to say how much they had missed skiing, snowmobiling and even the opportunities for ice fishing.The black earth is calling many to get their seeds ready and their gardens planned. Perhaps it is not yet time to plant, but this coming week the temperatures are supposed to get to sixty and if it were not still March, many would be planting in temperatures like these. It remains to be seen whether the sigh that the ice has heaved was borne on hope for the coming Spring or tired resolution to the fact that winter has gone from the landscape just a little too early.

Make Every Dollar Count

For anyone looking for a new leaf to turn over this New Year's Day, start at the most basic level. We live in a world of dollars. They often determine where we will work, for how long and ultimately how they will be spent. The local currency that we use is just a reflection of our efforts. Therefore how we spend them can reflect much about what we do and believe in. I recently went to a website that offered to calculate my lifetime carbon footprint with the ultimate goal of "offsetting" it through reforestation. This can be done at several sites, and it gives us a way to look at our energy use in a whole new light. Since I started paying for energy, budgetary concerns led me to be conservative. My first apartment became a workshop for efficiency techniques and innovative systems that mimicked nature. Because my compost was working out on a second floor balcony, I had relatively close contact with it. If insects colonized it, they provided food for my fish tanks. The rich liquid that I harvested from the under-gravel filter was used for fertilizing the trees that grew along the street. Occasionally I walk through that neighborhood and marvel at the difference between the trees that I watered with fish emulsion compared to those that did not get "the juice". Closing systems allow wealth as well as nutrients to cycle, creating generations of beneficial results for organisms enjoying the rich environment. As I found ways to live better on less, I realized many eternal truths that have shaped my understanding of sustainability, diversity, the give away and permaculture.

Some cities have developed local currencies that allow large groups to integrate and formalize barter systems. We have all felt the warm glow of outright giving, but in some transactions we need to be enriched in a more tangible or lasting way. Understanding that any form of currency is just an iconic representation of time, of human effort, of skills, or sometimes of less tangible "goods". Recently, I have had the opportunity to fall in with a group of junk-pickers who meet regularly. They often find things that are valuable, but not for them. We try to disburse them to appropriate locations where the recipients can get use out of them, without cost. a recent dumpster score was several hundred dollars worth of specialty clamps. The proprietor of a local string instrument repair workshop was flabbergasted that he was being presented with these tools of his trade. Throwing such wonderful tools away should be a crime, but in our capitalistic society, our perception of value has become quite arbitrary.

I would like to make the case for taking a critical look at how every dollar, that after all, just represents how we have spent our life force, is spent. Do we want to spill our nickels into the purses of those who receive huge government subsidies? Would we rather give our money to those who handcraft items that will be around for generations? Do we spend our time rewarding folks who walk their talk, or those who are greedily lusting after money, power and prestige? These sound like huge complicated questions, but really they are quite simple. As one begins to research and understand what the marketplace has to offer, and how dollars flow in our current system, deeper understanding and insight make their way into our consciousness. Certain choices become second nature and when less time is spent finding out about what each purchase means for our neighbors, our local environment and our community, we can truly sat that we are on our way to sustainability.

When I first started down this road, I discovered that mankind's history in the Northern Hemisphere has been fraught with examples of raping The North, carting off it's "resources", and creating boom and bust economies based on this extraction.The process continues to this day, but knowing that, I can try to work my magic to charm the lives of those northern communities by taking low impact vacations there and trying to wrest as many dollars from the south as possible to redistribute to folks who live sustainably in these northern climes. Don't misunderstand, when there are products that reflect a sustainable ethic, or truly "green" technologies, I will reward them wherever they are, but when faced with a choice of two sources, I always choose the northern producer over those closer to the equator. Similarly, if a business owner treats their employees like "human resources", to be exploited, I have no problem taking from them without giving back, or taking my business elsewhere. No product is so essential that we couldn't make due without it and people who only know how to take are jeopardizing their right to survival in my book.

It is time for us to embrace a new culture. One of cooperatively working with nature, natural systems and one another to eliminate waste, fraud and corruption. Living is giving. Understanding this important fact has the power to unleash vast reserves of human potential that lies dormant because of the commodification of nearly everything under the current capitalistic system. By reviewing our personal budget and understanding how it fits within a larger economic system, we can allocate our funds with much more precision and make decisions for where to spend our dollars that can transform our lives, our planet and the lives of those around us. In the New Year, let us all try to live a little more and spend a little less, making sure to reward those we care most about and make a friend in the local economy who will then be empowered to do the same for another, on and on to the betterment of our respective communities.

Guidelines for Fire Tenders

With the summer camping season approaching and the weather making a turn for the better, it is time for some basic fire tending review. First off, be aware of your surroundings. Many areas here in Northeast Wisconsin have had burn bans in place already this Spring. Local ordinances govern where, when and how fire may be used. Please heed them, because nothing ruins a good bonfire like a bunch of guys arriving on a fire truck! Try to use good judgment as well as (pardon the phrase) common sense. A friend once melted all the newly installed vinyl siding off the south face of his house by burning way too much fuel in relatively close proximity to the house. Normally, twenty feet is a good guide between the fire pit and any combustible material, but in his case, fifty feet was not nearly enough! Also keep in mind that in forest conditions, leaf litter that has been long covered, or root fibers can extend great distances below ground and the possibility of fire escaping out of control exists both above and below ground.

Another good rule that I like to follow is to keep a five gallon bucket of water close at hand for, not only any errant sparks or fires that escape the fire ring, but for the inevitable burnt fingers, hands, or other items that get too close to burning embers. Having ice on hand for immediate first aid in these cases works well, but can be impractical miles from a trail head.I also like to make a trip to the nearest water source to make sure there are no low branches, rocks in the trail, or other obstacles that would create a hazard in case the bucket needs to be refilled in a hurry. Remember, it is always better to be safe than sorry in the case of fire. Taking these precautions will assure the best experience possible with the least hardship involved.

Many places that you might camp have fire rings established. When you are lucky enough to have one, use it! Be advised, many poor fire tenders exist who will trow trash and other items that will not burn into fires. Before you start your fire, take the time to scrape the hearth out, remove offensive items, and dispose of non-flammable materials and trash that may have been left behind. This is a good time to explain why it is always a bad idea to throw anything but fuel into the fire. BECAUSE IT STINKS! Wax coatings on cups or plates, plastics, metals, rubber, etc. all create hazardous by-products during combustion. I have never been able to understand why someone would travel into the Great Outdoors, only to degrade the quality of the environment once they get there. Dioxins, Furans, Poly Aromatic Hydrocarbons, and other carcinogenic compounds are unwelcome guests anywhere, but especially in the wilderness or your local campground. All plastics need to be packed out, never burned.

Remember, the only limitations to getting fire started are your creativity and understanding of what fire needs. Remember the three legged stool analogy. All fire needs heat, fuel, and oxygen. Heat can be provided using any one, or any combination of sources. Several folks I know have mastered the Wood Drill method. It always looks easy in the movies, but don't rely on this method until you have proven your skill in conditions that don't require you to depend on making fire with this method alone. Similarly, the flint and steel method work quite easily with a bit of practice, but I would not want to embark on a trip depending on that skill alone unless I had proven my ability in the comfort of a non-survival situation.

Fuel can be readily available, limited, or virtually non-existent depending on where you go, for how long, or again by regulation. Even areas that allow wood to be carried in are often limiting where the wood comes from to limit the spread of disease and the insects that are vectors for several tree diseases. One often overlooked fuel source, especially for the starting of fires is what I have heard called Witches Wood. Often on pines, or other oily trees, there will be tinder-dry sticks that burn easily, even after a heavy rain, because they are inside the growing canopy of the mature tree. Be aware that "punky" wood (notable for it's lightness when dry, and relative heaviness when wet) will fight you in two ways. For one, the air trapped inside will insulate deeper layers of the wood from burning, or worse yet harbor moisture which will have to turn to steam and boil off before it will burn. Worse yet, there will be far less heat value in it to begin with and will be unlikely to sustain a good burn even if it is dry. If the wood is that close to going back to the soil, let it. It will make a wonderful home for bugs.
Oxygen is one of the most frequently overlooked parts of the fire. You can't see it, but you can see the results of it. If you have fuel and adequate heat, but no real fire, boost the oxygen. Let air work it's way through the pile of wood. Many poor excuses for fires have been cured by the judicious stir, or a well placed prop that allows the fire to "breathe". This is why so many bad fires use dimensional lumber. The flat sides go together, and even though the wood is bone dry, the air cannot get to the surfaces. Remember as well that the air coming off the fire can be up to six times the size of the air coming into it. Like most fluids, hotter is larger. The hotter the fire gets, the more likely there will be no problem with smoke. The increasing size of the air will push the smoke up and away from you!

One of the best ways to prepare for a good fire is to separate your fuel into three piles, so you can have appropriate fuel for any size fire. Tinder, which has a diameter smaller than a pencil, is usually good for starting from scratch or re-stoking the fire from coals make sure that this material is as dry as possible. Impatience has stymied many, because it takes way more tinder than one might think to start and maintain a fire that will ignite the next larger size of sticks. In this pile, or perhaps if it is raining, over the top of your tinder pile, make a roof of birch bark, if you have it. Birch bark will burn even after being completely immersed in water. The resinous quality of birch makes it resistant to decay and very flammable. Small stuff, usually from about the diameter of a pencil up to about an inch needs to be at the ready as soon as the tinder is lit and able to withstand the loss of heat that the mid-sized wood will need to get going. Lastly are the larger chunks that will have staying power as your fire grows. Tinder needs to be fed or checked every few seconds up to a minute. Mid-sized fuel can occasionally be left without having to coax the flames for several minutes, but to be able to sit back and enjoy the fire, you will need considerably larger chunks of wood.

Knowing your wood species and how long it has been drying can make all the difference in the quality of the fire that you can produce. Although most wood can be made to burn, if your fire is hot enough, dry wood is always best. Moisture in the fuel makes lots of smoke, absorbs most of the heat that keeps the fire going, and is nearly useless in most instances. The best wood has been cut, split and dried for a full year, but when you camp, you have to do the best you can with what you can find. Many natural areas are fragile enough that fires should be for food only and those needs can be effectively accomplished by bringing a cook stove and fuel with you. Check with Rangers or local officials before you go, especially if you are not familiar with the area.

No Trace camping involves disappearing your fire ring. carefully choose stones for the ring that can be put back where they were, preferably with the smoked side down. When cooking needs to be done, selecting three stones large enough to balance your cook pot on, while leaving space for the fire underneath can be most effective. No trace aficionados also remove the vegetation where they intend to make fire, replacing the "plug" once the coals have been soaked, stirred and soaked again, cooling the soil so as not to cook the native turf. Google Leave No Trace for insights on camping invisibly. As the numbers of people who are looking for remote camping opportunities increase, there is more and more need for practicing no trace camping. Lasting damage, even from temporary campers has lasting negative effects on the enjoyment of others who seek to enjoy the wilds. Be respectful, try to leave no trace as much as possible. Others will appreciate your consideration.

Lastly, when the time comes to put your fire out, don't take chances. The old douse, stir, douse method has worked well for generations. You will be surprised at how much heat will invade the soil. Especially if you have had a raging fire for a couple days, don't expect to just dump the left over ice from your cooler on it. If there are any unburned chunks of wood, douse them, let them rest, and douse them again. If there is no forest duff to worry about, you can also smother fire with dirt, but don't rely on this alone. Many times I have been able to re-kindle fires that were "banked" the night before. This process involves covering the coals of the fire with dirt to slow the burn. It slows the oxygen from getting to the hot coals, saving them for a very long time.

Enjoy, enjoy!

Harvest Time 2009

Reflect on what you have planted. Yesterday I harvested dozens of large potatoes. I had planted some tiny little seed potatoes, the largest of which was about the size of my thumb. I planted them in poor soil, not suited for root crops. I fully expected that they would become compost, but... During the growing season I weeded them twice, and mulched them several times with grass clippings. what I pulled out of the ground yesterday was nothing short of miraculous! Rolling out food from a small plot (4x8 feet) I got to thinking about life. We plant seeds of hope, or discontent, doubt, or inspiration. Much like casting seed in our gardens.

Virtually all the earth is covered with soil. To be sure, some soils are more yielding than others, but for the seed, the only thing that exists is it's own will to survive. We can only reap what we sow. The earliest insane people, (and some still exist today) are those who plant lemon seeds and expect apples, or who plant spinach and are confused when iceberg lettuce won't grow! Society, like the rest of the earth is destined to grow, cultivate and give birth to generations of life that both rely on and exploit resources laid down by previous generations. Certainly we can see the results of some actions, but other affects of our behaviors are obscured by time. The people who envisioned the railroads could not comprehend the demise of the Buffalo, nor could those who thought up the interstate highway system imagine a time that we would become addicted to oil, or so preoccupied with securing the last drops of it for our use. Sometimes the very goal of certain actions undermine our ability to see clearly the results of what we are doing. Like what happens below ground with each and every plant, this obscured part is as important as the parts we can plainly see.

Please study your "seed" carefully before you spew it. Once released, the resulting growth can spiral out of our hands. Unlike potatoes, our thoughts and ideas can grow legs. Luckily for us, this is true with true, just and compassionate thoughts and ideas. It is with certainty and great hope that I say, we do have the ability to improve both the quality and amount of "good seed" available for planting. It just takes a commitment of time and energy in the short run. Try improving the quality of your seed by turning off the talking heads. Meet others in your community who seek positive change. Understand that crime is at it's lowest point ever. Don't succumb to the fear of everything that is touted by the media. Focus on each ting that you engage in fully. Study the results of your actions. Read labels. Always remember that by the time each product reaches us, an enormous amount of human energy, resources, and intention have made it possible for us to make a choice. Everything we use has an effect, and also realize that by leaving an object on the store shelf rather than buying it plants a seed as well. The seed of feeling secure enough with what we have has the potential to grow into a future state of being able to give away surplus, without feeling lack. We continue to do the best we can with what we've got. In spite of what our bank account says, we live a very rich life. This site is dedicated to everyone who wants to inject more life into their years, enjoy the adventure of a life well-spent and to learn what we can do to heal the rift between humankind and nature.

While I was rolling out several weeks worth of potatoes from a shady spot behind the garage, my wife was harvesting about two grocery bags full of greens. For $0.95 invested in a packet of seed, we ended up with $10-20 worth of vital, nutrient laden food that grew, literally before our very eyes! Anyone can sow the seeds of ignorance, hatred and malice, underestimating the ability of our species to adapt. The fruits of the harvest that follows that course of action are not healthy for anyone. The time has come to step up to the challenges that we face daily and to study our best course of action, learn to live with and love one another, and forgive those who have trespassed against us. Taking a positive stance, removing the blinders of oppositional thinking and renewing our hope and the goodwill that follows from it, we can create a better life for the next seven generations.