experiences

Beebe Hill Firetower

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On Sunday I went hiking out in Columbia County. It was a warm but quite nice morning out. First I parked up by Barrett Pond and hiked up to Beebe Hill. The trail is about a mile long, and then you come up to the Fire Tower after a moderate 300 foot elevation climb.

It was a nice clearing spring day. Excellent views to the west, including Canaan and Chatam from the Fire Tower. Some of the hamlets where blocked by the hills, and the fact that some where not much lower then Beebe Hill. You never are particularly high on the tower, but it’s such a quick walk from the parking lot. The fire tower only tops about just a little ways above the tree line, indeed that’s why they allow you to enter the cabin of fire tower.

Nearby the fire tower there is a lean-to. This would be great to stay at one summer night, probably not on a weekend whne it might be croweded/you have to share it. I can imagine photographing it at sunset/sunrise, and looking out at the stars over the Chatam into the darkness at night. It would be so awesome.

Windows


View Beebe Hill – Harvey Mountain Trail in a larger map

Why I Really Don’t Care Much About Gas Prices

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This may shock you but I do not care if gas prices are $2 a gallon or $10 a gallon tomorrow. While like most drivers I would prefer to pay less for gasoline, I am largely insulated from the high cost of gasoline. My truck gets around 20 miles per gallon of fuel and costs about 20 cents to drive a mile in fuel. Yet, I don’t really care much one way or another. My next truck might even consume more fuel then my existing one. I’m thinking of getting either a full-size extended-cab truck like a F-150 or Chevy Silverado — although many now have similar fuel rankings.

Higher fuel prices might even help me buy a bigger truck at a lower price. There will be less of a demand for full size truck should gas prices continue to go up. That’s all fine with me as I am all for saving more money when it comes to buying a new truck. Did I mention my 20 mile per gallon pickup truck uses less fuel then most Toyota Prisus on the road today? It gets fantastic gasoline mileage sitting in first gear with the engine turned off — for days at a time.

Parked Along Harvey Mountain Truck Trail

… I don’t really drive that much.

I take mass transit or my bike to get around town. I live within 3 miles of the city and can get around it faster on my bicycle then I can by car. I have yet to get a parking ticket for illegally parking my bike—all it takes is a tree or a lamp post to tie it up and find parking. No searching for parking spots! I do drive sometimes on the weekends. Yet, I drive sparingly and my average weekly mileage is about 75 miles (basically 150 miles for bimonthly camping trips). That means that even at 20 cents a mile, it only costs me about $15 a week in fuel (or at $10/gallon that equals an affordable $38 week in fuel). I haven’t changed my motor oil since January. Best of all driving is fun when I get behind my truck after a week of idling it, the truck feels so powerful.

Hybrid Bus

Mass transit is not perfect in Albany. Yet it is doable by understanding it and knowing when and where the buses run. Throwing a bike on the bus makes it even easier, as there is greater flexibility at finding and catching a bus. There might be sometimes

Are You in 4×4 Low?

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  1. You start to go, but all you hear is click-click while the transfer case is changing gears.
  2. You try to upshift, but it won’t let you as your in overdrive
  3. You get passed on the right by a guy driving a Ford Farmall Tractor
  4. You forget to push the clutch before coming to a stop, but the engine keeps running
  5. You try to start out gently, but you lurch ahead as you take your foot slowly off the clutch in first gear
  6. As you drive around, your going at 4,000 RPM but the speedometer refuses to move in 2nd gear
  7. Look at the idiot light on your dashboard or the control next to it
  8. Somebody walks past you driving your truck

My Truck