Sunday, July 31, 2011

Pincushion Mountain

Today i went and explored Pincushion Mountain above Peachland.
Taking the Hike from Trepenair Greenway up to the Mountain was a real eye opener as i hadn't been hiking in the area in a while and to get to an area that has been bulldozed and the forest ripped to shreds was really disheartening. I had tried this trail once before with some friends but I now realise we turned around about 3/4s of the way to the Picnic table. I did find my way to the Mountain top even though the trails had been completely demolished but i had a slight idea on where i was going and some of the terrain looked familiar, so i followed roads the best i could and got lucky.

They say you aren't really a True Peachlander if you haven't climbed to the top of Pincushion Mountain which i accomplished today. At the top awaits you a picnic table for you to bring some lunch and to enjoy the view while the Canadian Flag blows in the wind. The view at the top is absolutely amazing on a Clear day and the best thing about it, it's virtually all within the heart of Peachland.

You don't really need a hiking stick to do this hike, if you are good on your feet and have some good shoes and exceptional balance but i carried one and it came quite handy keeping myself from hitting the ground especially on the hike down as the dirt is quite slippery when its dry in the summer time which can make it a little dangerous.


Pincushion Mountain Facts:
Summit : 815m / 2 673.88 ft
Elev at the gate (start) (Ponderosa Trailhead) : 570 m (1875 ft)
Distance to the top : 1.2 km
How it got its name : A fire Prior to 1890 burnt the top of the trees leaving just the trunks. To the Early Pioneers, the burnt trees and the mountain made it look like a Pincushion.

Directions :
Turn onto Ponderosa Drive, follow it until almost the end, until you see Private Drive. Park at the bottom of the Private Drive and hike 100 m up the private drive to the trailhead. Coming from Penticton, travel north on Hwy 97, turning left on Ponderosa Drive.

Map : 
http://www.peachland.ca/cms.asp?wpID=91

Update

http://applesgosplat.blogspot.com/2011/06/trepanier-manor.html
I just updated an old article on Trepanier Manor in Peachland.

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Friday, July 29, 2011

G is for....

  • G Strings - I love a woman in a G-string, sexy on the right person
  • Grace Kelly - A star in one of my favorite movies, To Catch A Thief and also High Society
  • The Glades - I love this TV show which is into its Second Season
  • Green - Yellow and Green the colors of Australia.
  • Grades - Hills are a great test of fitness and any grade above 5% is good for the heart, lungs and legs.
  • Gravity - Going Downhill on a bike is such an awesome thrill, steeper the Grade the better
  • Genealogy - Family History is important, Proud to have English, Filipino, Australian Heritage 
  • Great Estates Okanagan - Set of Wineries that I work for.
  • Grass - The smell of Freshly cut grass in the Summer time.

    Day 13 - The Last Animation movie you saw

    Toy Story 3
    Saw this movie with Girlfriend which made her cry. This is a great movie.

    Monday, July 25, 2011

    Day 09 - Favorite Fairytale Character Cameo

    Sideshow Bob
    Not actually in a Animated Movie but still, one of my all time favorite Guest Stars.
    Kelsey Grammer from Frasier (Dr Frasier Crane) is the voice of Robert Underdunk Terwilliger or as he is referred to Sideshow Bob. The story-lines that Sideshow Bob gets and the voice expressions from Kelsey Grammer allow for a very enjoyable character to watch.

    In 2006, he won an Emmy for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance for his work in the episode "The Italian Bob".

    Sunday, July 24, 2011

    Bottling is a real B$%ch....

    This weekend was a great one weather wise with temperatures in the high 20s and low 30s. A weekend was spent sun tanning with me being able to get some sun for the first time in a while. Hopefully i will get some more in the next couple of days to keep the tan going.

    Friday night was my first time ever at a Casino, The Lakeside Casino in Penticton, which didn't go so well, losing $20 on black jack. This all started due to after work drinks with the guys from work.

    Saturday was spent in Penticton at the new house where i had the chance to build the bench work for my models. I made the bench work and now am just waiting to put the top on the table which will then allow me to start planning my layout. The afternoon was spent at 3 mile where i was able to get some sunrays.
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    Sunday Morning i awoke at 6 am so i could go downtown and volunteer for the Peachland Triathlon which i enjoyed very much and had a great time doing. I would definitely do it again. If i'm not volunteering for the Triathlon i will be participating as i would love to train for Ironman one day and this would be a great start for me.
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    Lately work has been pretty busy with the last week being spent Bottling Sparkling Wine and its been tough work. Bridget has worked with me the last week and its been great fun having her around to see how and what my job is all about. Hopefully she will take it easy on me when i get home and i say i'm tired. 

    Day 08 - Your Favorite Couple

    Beauty and the Beast
    Beauty and the Beast won Academy Awards for Best Song and Best Original Score, in addition to becoming the first animated film to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture.

    Saturday, July 23, 2011

    Day 07 - Your Favorite Pair of Best Friends

    Timon and Pumbaa
     From the Lion King. These two are quite funny Characters.

    Day 06 - Your Favorite Villain

    The Joker
    The archenemy of Batman.
    My particular fascination with The Joker came about after watching Heath Ledger played him in the Dark Knight which i know isn't an animated movie but The Joker has appeared in animated movies before.

    Day 05 - Your Favorite Monster

    Sulley from Monsters Inc.
    James P. "Sulley" Sullivan, a large furry blue monster with horns and purple spots. Even though he excels at scaring children, he is kind-hearted and thoughtful by nature.

    Wednesday, July 20, 2011

    Day 04 - Your Favorite Animal

    Hamm
    The pig from Toy Story. Well he is actually a Piggy Bank but close enough.

    Hamm: You heard of Kung Fu? Well prepare yourself for pork chop.

    Tuesday, July 19, 2011

    Day 03 - Your Favorite Sidekick

    Donkey
    That's Right!! Donkey from Shrek is my favorite Sidekick. Voiced by Eddie Murphy, the comedy that is part of Shrek and Donkeys friendship never stops.


    Donkey: Whoa. Look at that. Who'd wanna live in a place like that?
    Shrek: That would be my home.
    Donkey: Oh and it is LOVELY. You know, you're really quite a decorator. It's amazing what you've done with such a modest budget. I like that boulder. That is a NICE boulder.


    [as they approach Fiona's castle, Donkey smells the air]
    Donkey: Whoa, Shrek, did you do that? Man, you gotta warn somebody before you crack one like that, my mouth was open and everything!
    Shrek: Donkey, if that was me, you'd be dead!
    [sniffs]
    Shrek: That's brimstone... we must be getting close.
    Donkey: Yeah, right, brimstone. Don't be talking about no brimstone. I know what I smelled, it wasn't no brim and it didn't come off no stone neither..

    Monday, July 18, 2011

    Day 02 - Your Favorite Hero or Heroine

    Batman
    My Favorite superhero of all time.
    I like the fact that unlike other superheroes such as Superman, he doesn't have special powers, he just uses his intellect, wealth and gadgets to conquer crime.
    As a child, i had a huge fascination with Ninjas. As a superhero, Batman reminds me of a Ninja with his stealth and power.

    Sunday, July 17, 2011

    F is for....

    • Firefox - My Favorite Internet Browser
    • Flinstones - One of my favorite Cartoons as a Child
    • Facebook - Helps keep me in touch with Family
    • Ford - Always been a Ford Fan as the Family car from a young age was an F150
    • Family - This one is very Important
    • Freedom - Never take for granted your Freedom. You could be in a Country that doesn't allow it.
    • Food
    • Friday Afternoons - Let the weekend begin!!
    • Fifty Inch Television - The Biggest television I've ever owned
    • Five Pounds - I'd love to lose another 5 lbs to get under 160lbs.

    Day 01 - Your Favorite Character

    Homer Simpson
    In 2007 The Simpson Movie was Finally Released which allows me to use Homer as a Favorite Character. I however fell in love with Homer many years before with his antics in the animated Series.
    He is the Everyday American Male who lives life by following his Instinct while not caring about how it will affect others. He is still very loyal to his family though which allows him to be loved even though he is quite stupid.

    Blog Challenges

    As i have just finished my First Blog Challenge - 30 day Challenge using Photos, i am looking for other ideas to challenge myself. I had great fun doing the challenge as it got me thinking about myself and i quite enjoyed when i got an original photo to depict my life.

    There are a few good ones to choose from and i would love to do another Photography Challenge however as I felt rushed trying to find Photos and trying to catch up on days when i was unable to Blog. This time I will take a few days to plan ahead before starting this Challenge and this will allow me to enjoy it a bit more and not feel like a chore.

    In the meantime i will do a written Challenge 30 Day Animated Movie Challenge

    Other Challenges:
    The 30 day blog challenge 
    30 Days of Me Challenge
    30 Day Photography Challenge
    30 Day Photography Challenge

    30 Day Animated Movie Challenge

    • Day 01 - Your Favorite Character
    • Day 02 - Your Favorite Hero or Heroine
    • Day 03 - Your Favorite Sidekick
    • Day 04 - Your Favorite Animal
    • Day 05 - Your Favorite Monster
    • Day 06 - Your Favorite Villain
    • Day 07 - Your Favorite Pair of Best Friends
    • Day 08 - Your Favorite Couple
    • Day 09 - Favorite Fairytale Character Cameo
    • Day 10 - Least Favorite Character
    • Day 11 - Best Character Design
    • Day 12 - The First Animation movie you saw
    • Day 13 - The Last Animation movie you saw
    • Day 14 - Your Favorite Movie
    Day 15 - Your Least Favorite Movie
    • Day 16 - A movie that should have a live-action adaptation
    • Day 17 - An Overrated Movie
    • Day 18 - An Underrated Movie
    Day 19 - Your Favorite Sequel
    Day 20 - Most Hilarious Scene
    Day 21 - Your Favorite Scene
    Day 22 - A Sad Scene
    Day 23 - An Epic Scene
    Day 24 - A Cute Scene
    Day 25 - A Scene that makes you Angry
    Day 26 - Your Favorite Song
    Day 27 - Your Favorite Quote
    Day 28 - Which Movie made you Laugh the Most
    Day 29 - A Character you feel the Most Like
    Day 30 - Thoughts on Animated Movies

    Day 31 - A picture of yourself

    Photobucket


    Can you remember back to when i started this? Here is Day 1 Picture of Myself

    Sunday, July 10, 2011

    Day 25 - A picture of your day

    Most of my days are spent at work in a Winery Warehouse.

    Photobucket

    Naked Art

    Have you ever wanted to do something out of the mainstream, something that people find crazy or strange, that breaks the rules of everday life.

    From News.com.au
    I MAY be called The Naked Traveller but the fact is I tend to keep my clothes on.
    Thirty-year-old New York-based artist Miru Kim, however, is a real naked explorer, travelling the world finding weird and wonderful urban landscapes to serve as backdrops for her travel snaps.
    As part of her "Naked City Spleen" project, Kim has bared all, literally, on a New York suspension bridge, in the sewers of Paris and  among ruins in Istanbul, saying the process of posing "au naturel" in urban areas is a great way to conquer your fears.

    Saturday, July 9, 2011

    Black and White

    Photobucket

    Androidify

    Share photos on twitter with Twitpic 
    A cute little application which is mainly for fun, in which you get to dress up your little avatar, the green guy from android, in any style you want. There are a few different options in which you can change skin tone, add facial hair, change hair styles and change outfits till you have the perfect match to make your avatar the way you want to look.
    Overall longevity for the application would most likely be short because there isn't really much more you can do other then dress up a strange looking midget. It is quite easy to navigate and sharing to other programs is simple with internal application sharing.

    Day 24 - A picture of something you wish you could change

    Image Source,Photobucket Uploader Firefox Extension

    Friday, July 8, 2011

    Moving

    I don't know of anyone who enjoys moving. I know I don't. Packing and cleaning. Cleaning and packing. Then there is the cleaning and unpacking. In two months from now (September 1st) I will have gone through the process. As of now, we are looking at moving to Penticton, which is a town in which we spend plenty of our time and is slightly closer to work for me.

    The house we are moving out of holds many great memories and will be cherished for many years to come as it was Bridgets and my first Canadian House together. There are things I will miss, such as the privacy but there are also plenty of things I will not miss, such as the snow removal.

    This move is for the better, as it puts us in a place where we spend a lot of our time which will reduce our automotive gas bill and with gas prices the way they are ($1.27 a litre) it's only a smart move. It will also put us closer to the Beach, where we love to spend our summer months. Late nights at the beach can be spent without the 45 minute drive home.

    Looking forward to new adventures, Here we Go!!!

    Day 23 - A picture of your favorite book

    Image Source

    Monday, July 4, 2011

    4th of July

    July 4th 2011

    Peachland Beach Run

    Results for the Beach Run on July 1st.

    77th out of 206 runners for the 5km

    37th Male out of 71 men

    6th out of 7 Males in my age group

    9.05 kilometre average split

    27m 39 sec overall time

    http://www.raceheadquarters.com/results/2011/run/PeachBeach2011OA5K.html

    Sunday, July 3, 2011

    Sunday

    Lately I have been quite enjoying my weekly group ride and it's been challenging. There are some very strong hill climbers in the group and the hills are the real test of my fitness. I unfortunately have extra weight that I have to ride up the hill with my guess that they are 30 lbs lighter then me. I will keep working on those hills.

    Other then riding, i have just been waiting for summer to arrive as it's very late this year. Hopefully it will come soon, as I write this, I sit at the beach and it doesn't feel like summer.

    Day 18 - A picture of your biggest insecurity

    Image Source,Photobucket Uploader Firefox Extension

    Saturday, July 2, 2011

    Day 17 - A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently

    I feel a lot more healthier riding my bike. This allows me to feel a lot more confident about myself. I endeavor to ride my bike a lot more.

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    Friday, July 1, 2011

    Peachland Beach Run

    Bridget and my first ever Race Number for our first ever Running Race.
    664 belongs to Bridget and 520 belongs to me.
    The Results from my run can be found here ---> http://bit.ly/j0E8iF
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    Day 16 - A picture of someone who inspires you

    http://www.flickr.com/people/taniaseyes/

    I thought long and hard about this one and it was tough to think of who or what inspires me. One name kept popping into my head and that was Lance Armstrong once again for Cycling. But as i had used him before in an earlier post, i wanted to try and find something or someone else who inspires me. The website above is that of a Local Photographer in the Peachland area and her photos are amazing. They inspire me to try and improve my photography skills.