Payara Fishing on the Orinoco River

After school on Friday, Daniel, Matthew, Michael, and I headed to the river village of Mapire (Venezuela). Here is a pictoral essay of the trip.

Our guide Rafael arrives with his boat.

On our way, about 8:00 AM. Beer me!

Mike (F.M.) Beer him!

Daniel was the expert net handler.

My second payara.

Teeth

My catch for Saturday; 5 payara.

Matthew hooked a monster which he fought for about 20 minutes. We were unable to land it.

Rafael, our skipper.

My lure is beat-up and a battle scarred. It has teeth embedded in it.

The tropical sun cooked us.

Exotic birds...the place was thick with birds, including at least one pair of osprey. I hooked a cormorant when it ran into my line. Fortunately it was able to work itself free. The interesting thing was that its mate and other friends flew back to help it.
We don't give animals much credit when it comes to some kinds of intelligence.

Our final count (minus 2 we ate): 9 payara; Me - 8, Daniel - 2; 3 sardinata; Daniel - 2, Matthew - 1.

About 29 Years Ago...

It is an overcast snowy day in southern Idaho. I working at the top shack of a chairlift; bored, cold and homesick. I want to go back to New Mexico.

At the end of the day, I go to my boss and tell her I am quitting; I was tired of being cold…snow and ice wasn’t for me.

It was dark and lightly snowing when I walked out of the lodge. I got into the unheated rag-top half-cab of my 1964 CJ-5 and buckled the frozen lap-belt.

I head out of the parking lot and onto the snow cover mountain road…6 inches of fresh snow. A few miles down from the lodge I enter an S-curve too fast. The jeep’s rear end whips out. I steer into the slide, but there is little or no response. The second part of the S is coming and I am helpless…the CJ is still perpendicular to the road and heading straight. I brace myself.

The jeep hits the soft shoulder, left wheels dig in and immediately starts rolling! I watch the headlights do a slow motion counter clockwise roll. The driver’s side hits the dirt/snow hard with a loud crash!

Momentum carries me around; upside down…passenger’s side…on the wheels...driver’s side…upside down… passenger side…on the wheels…driver’s side…upside down…finally coming to rest on the passenger’s side.

I dangle from the driver’s seat. Assessment time; I’m okay, I’m not bleeding and everything works.

Electric fuel pump buzzing; turn off ignition. Lights on; turn off lights.

Hanging for a moment, I unlatch the seatbelt, fall into the passenger seat, pick myself up, and open the canvas driver’s door like the hatch on a tank.

Once outside, I look things over. There is about 12 inches of snow on the ground and it is still coming down. The jeep looks drivable if I can get it back on its wheels. I want to solve this problem myself and I certainly don’t want any law enforcement involvement.

I find my HiLift jack in the snow a few feet from the wreck. Jack under the roll bar, I lift until it tops out. Now at the tipping point, I use the roll bar and I rock the CJ-5 back and forth. The HiLift slips and the jeep crashes back on its side. DARN!

I start over and get the wheels on the ground on the second try. Now working as fast as I possible, I checked the battery and the fluid levels (oil and water). I find most of my stuff in the snow and pile it into the jeep. The ragtop supports are bent so I put the top in the back as well. Back in the driver’s seat, I push the accelerator pedal and it goes unresponsively to the floor; the throttle linkage has come apart because of a broken cotter pin. I fix it by making a new pin from some tie wire from the nearby barbed wire fence.

Ready: engine start, engage low range 4-wheel drive, reverse, and power onto the snowy pavement.

Success!

I am without a top or heater, but I am safe and alive and head back to my studio apartment in Twin Falls.

I am not sure if I almost died that night...

• My seatbelt kept me from being ejected and probably crushed and or decapitated (you hear horror stories with Jeeps).

• On the drive to Twin Falls, I discovered I could touch the roll bar with my head if I tilted my head back a little. It did its job and kept me from being crushed.

• I probably would not have frozen since other people were still up at the ski lodge.

Of the 5 years of being with that jeep, this was the most serious mis-adventure we had together. I suppose we both could have died.

Two days later, the day John Lennon died, I left Idaho in my wounded Jeep and headed to New Mexico.

*****
Link to Red Ravine (earlier draft)

Happy Birthday Dad

Today would have been my dad's 77th birthday. I sometimes think what he'd think of today's world.

I did my first post dengue fever rides this weekend. On Saturday I had no snap in the legs. Probably partly due to fatigue and recover, but also partly due to lack of fuel. Friday night I had a small plate of shrimp-fried rice for dinner, then no breakfast in the morning before riding. Made for weak legs.

Sunday was better. I ate better Saturday night, then had breakfast on Sunday morning before riding. I had one minor dizzy spell after the Fausto Trail. I stood in the shade for a minute or two, drank more water, and I was okay for the rest of the ride. Did a lot more climbing. Legs had more power.

Looking forward to the Christmas break.

Dengue Fever

I caught dengue fever last week. It is a totally sucky tropical disease that just zaps everything out of you. I had a sustained fever of about 39*C (102.2* F) for about 48 hours. Horrible stuff! I am one of the lucky ones who never gets headaches, but with dengue, it felt as if someone had driven spikes into my head. Not super painful, but painful enough.
Fortunately I have a wonderful wife who makes sure I recovered by resting, drinking plenty of fluids (including lots of homemade chicken broth), and forcing me to take tons of vitamins. I was a terrible patient btw.
Hopefully I will be recovered enough this week (today is day 10) to go for a short bike ride. I just want to get back in the groove.

Outside Magazine, November 2009 issue

Hey I'm in Outside magazine! Finally Mark Levine's article got published. Here's a link: http://outside.away.com/outside/culture/200911/biking-in-scotland-1.html Here's some additional pics from that trip.

At the start in Strontian: Guenter, John, and me. The author: Mark Levine The infamous: Guenter The Brazilian: Andres in the lead on a road section leading towards the monro. The Crocodile Run: Guenter and John.

Acuario

I rode the Acuario trail on Sunday. I gave my friend my camera and he captured this pic.

At the Lecheria Fish Market

We went to the fish market yesterday about 11:30 AM to get something for lunch. While Tania was dealing with fish (she knows what to buy better than I do...I just make suggestions) I played with my camera. I got a few neat pics. BTW, the fish we bought; a couple of mullet (very tasty) and some dorado fillets.

Here's a very nice dorado. Has some nice color.

Someone's fish drying in the sun.

Fishing lancha that doubles as a pelican roost.

Waiting for scraps.

A nice looking mature pelican.

Saltwater catfish.

Transportation. You'll always see beater bikes at the fish markets.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

A Day on the Tour Divide 2009

On June 30, 2009 Matthew Lee rode to his forth 1st place finish of the Tour Divide race. I first met Matthew at his 2005 finish.

I spent the afternoon and night of the 29th, and the morning of the 30th chasing Matthew, trying to get some decent photos worthy of publishing. I don't know if any of these photos are good, but here's a photo essay of my favorite pics of that 24 hours.

Tracks north of Pie Town, NM

Matthew's arrival into Silver City, NM The Grinder Mill, Silver City Separ, NM (Continental Divide on I-10) at 4:00 AM Big Hatchet Mtn. Sunrise, Hatchita, NM Arrive at Hatchita. Breakfast in Hatchita. 45 miles to the Finish. Focused. Arrival at Antelope Wells. Podium The real finish...lunch at El Charro in Lordsburg.

A Bicycle Race at Paso Colon, Puerto la Cruz, VE

Last Sunday, Tania and I were in downtown PLC and came across a bicycle race. I took a few pics. These aren't in any order. I just posted the pics I liked the best. Not too bad for a tiny point-and-shoot (Canon SD1200 IS)

Merlin Titanium: Last of its Type

I took this pic on Sunday after my ride. I was just goofing around with the camera's settings.

I have several bicycles but this one is still my favorite. It is a 1996 Merlin titanium mountain bike. It was given to me as a warranty replacement after I cracked my 1993 Merlin, which was also a warranty replacement to the original 1990 Merlin. The original Merlin had a 3 digit serial number. This one has 5 digits. In 1997, Merlin was sold and Rob Vandermark started his own company, Seven which has taken titanium bicycles to another level.

This bike has been many places; a true adventure bike. I've really enjoyed it.

The Return of Monkey Boy

Got out for a ride today with Oscar. I was surprised when he had the initiative to get up and get ready on his own. It was a nice ride. The reason we haven't been riding together lately is because he had a weekend job that was taking all his time. He quit, wanting more time for himself but now is wanting a new job, but one that is not so demanding on his time (he's only 16 years old).
image copyright 2009 by Mimbres Man (B. H. Beard)
I decided I am going to play with B & W photography for a while.

Venezuelan Holiday

Unless you like crowds, which I don't, I don't recommend going anywhere popular during a Venezuelan holiday. Check out this crowd...and they kept coming.
Friend Daniel invited me to go sailing, and we went out with his wife, daughter and his wife's mother and 3 sisters. It made for a crowded boat, so I spent the entire time up on the bow. We "sailed" to Playa Punare (5 nautical miles) with the main sail up, but motored across the bay with the diesel.
Once at the island, we found a spot, I went for a short swim to try my hand at underwater photography...which I found very difficult and frustrating. I really need to learn how to take a good underwater photo.
The sail back was real sailing. We put up the main and unfurled the jib and took off! We made it across the bay in about an hour so we were averaging about 6 knots which isn't too bad considering our angle of attack (a broad reach in following winds). When we turned upwind to lower the sails, Daniel lost his Gila Cliff Dwellings horny toad hat in the sea. It must have sunk because we never saw it (plus it was a dusky olive color, so it blended with the sea pretty good). Will have to try to get him a new one.

My Thoughts Exactly

A beautiful little short film from the NYC Bicycle Film Festival.

I Like Riding Solo

Recovered from our Friday Caracas blitz trip, so I went out for a ride this morning.

I was riding alone today. Solo riding allows me focus. I think about all kinds of things. I think about how lucky and blessed I am. I think about new ideas. I think about the future. I love riding bikes...and its so fun to ride a bike that you love. I love my Merlin...Right now the elevators in the building are not working so I need to haul the bike down and up 5 stories. A 20 pound (9 kg) bike is easy to deal with!

Rode El Morro twice; up El Cerro, La Falla, then down the Fausto/The Rails, then to the base of Acuaro, then return to El Cerro and repeat...somewhere I picked up a thorn and my front tire started going soft, so I decided to call it a morning and rode home. I had to stop and add air a couple times...

When riding the back road, I came across some boys fishing with their dad. Their dad was swimming in the sea, using an old-school dive mask to see the fish, then using a large treble hook to snag the fish. They caught a pretty good sized fish using this method. Very cool!
Came across these guys riding up the rails while I was heading down. They had the right-of-way, so I paused and took some pics.