Klatawa kopa stone illahee kopa spooshchuck Da' wa

Where in the World is Mr. Alford?!?!?!

Mr. Alford woke in the morning, got out of bed and peaked through the window of Aunt Sue's living room.  He looked west towards the Pacific Ocean and watched as a thick blanket of frigid coastal fog swallowed the trees of Golden Gate Park.  As much as Mr. Alford had enjoyed his visit to San Francisco, he hadn't seen the sun in nearly a week!  Mark Twain was astute when he said "The coldest winter I ever had was a summer in San Francisco."  

It is time to hit the road!, Mr. Alford thought to himself.

Wisely, Mr. Alford consulted with his lovely wife Jenny and she agreed that the time had come to be moving along on their bicycle journey.  They packed their bags, bid Aunt Sue farewell and boarded a ferry bound for a city to the northeast that served as the capital of California in 1852 and 1853.

Fueled up with chocolate chip cookies, Jenny gives a thumbs up to moving on from San Francisco.

While Mr. Alford gets plenty of cardiorespiratory endurance activity riding his bike, he realizes that it is only one of the four components of fitness.  It is important for all of us to participate in muscular strength & endurance activities  three to five times a week.  

Jenny spots a hole in the cloudy and gray San Francisco sky.

The one, the only Aunt Sue.

Escaping the fog of SF by ferry under the Bay Bridge

Out from under the perpetual gray of the San Francisco Bay, Mr. Alford and Jenny lathered up with sunscreen and peddled their little steel ponies northeast on bike paths and rural roads through the city where Ms. McGillviray grew up.  They continued their journey through the fertile fields of the Central Valley towards to the city known as the "Camilla Capital of the World".  Occasionally Mr. Alford could hear jets from the United States Airforce 60th Air Mobility Wing roar overhead as they pedaled east under the hot California sun.   

Jenny in a food co-op is like a kid in a candy shop.  Nothing makes Mr. Alford's lovely wife happier than wholesome and fresh food.  This particular Co-Op is one of Jenny's all time favorites and is found in the city that is home to the University that boasts the largest veterinary school in the United States.

Mr. Alford's resourceful wife Jenny can smell wild fruit trees a half mile away.  Jenny would however like to remind readers that it is possible to eat too much of a good thing and consuming ten figs in a sitting might make you feel as if you drank a gallon of strawberry milk.

Mr. Alford sadly didn't have the opportunity to meet the Governor of the Golden State on his way through the River City, nor did he catch a game of Kings.  However,  he very much enjoyed riding through the historic district of this city and imagining what it must have been like in 1862 when the riders of the the the famous Pony Express pulled saddles off their horses at the end of a long journey.

Further east Mr. Alford and his trusty wife Jenny continued along what arguably could be called the most patriotic river in America.  Upstream they persisted, passing a famous prison where Johnny Cash once performed, a hydroelectric dam, and a lake that all bear the same name.  A brief stay with Jenny's parents allowed Mr. Alford to hang out with his new best buddy Wally and rest up for a climb into the mountain range that contains the highest peak in the contiguous United States.

The Hurst Family.  Mr. Alford is holding his good buddy Wally.

Up into the mountains Mr. Alford and his hardy wife Jenny climbed following the path blazed by Morman veterans of the Mexican-American war over 150 years ago.  For several days they peddled up steep hills through dry forests of tall pine trees gaining over 8000 feet and passing the Grave of a Maiden along this historic and scenic path.  Finally they crested the 8574 foot mountain pass on the Great Basin Divide that drains water into the Carson River to the east.

Hydration is key to not only performance, but survival.  On the portions of this journey where water has been scarce, Mr. Alford carries a 6-liter MSR Dromedary full of extra liquids.

 The Maiden's Grave mistakingly marks the spot where a young girl who died crossing the mountains in 1850 is buried.  In actuality, a young pioneer named Allen Melton from Henry County, Idaho was buried here in 1840.

The forest fires in Truckee are visible approximately 45 miles to the north as the crow flies.

Handstands improve both brain function and full-body muscular strength and endurance.

After a speeding decent into the Carson River Valley, Mr. Alford and Jenny headed north and soon found themselves climbing again to a 7740 foot pass named after pioneer Ira M. Luther.  Finally, they blasted downhill into the basin of the second deepest lake in the United States that derives it's name from the mispronunciation of the Native Washoe word Da'wa.  

Tired from their long journey through the mountains and a little saddle sore, Mr. Alford and his lovely wife Jenny decided to park the bikes and do a little exploring on the largest alpine lake in North America.  With stand up paddle boards Mr. Alford and Jenny set out into the bay named after the birthstone of May to an island that was once the home of Captain "them's my toes" Barter.  On this island Mr. Alford and Jenny enjoyed a beautiful, albeit smokey view from the remains of the Vikingholm Teahouse. 

Jenny paddles on glassy early morning water.  While Mr. Alford would like to report the haze in the background is fresh cool fog, he regrets to inform that it is smoke blown north from one of the largest wildfires in California State history.  

Where exactly in the World is Mr. Alford standing?

Mr. Alford would like to invite you to guess his exact location in the photo above.  Be the first to comment below and win a gift certificate to the best outdoor shop in Seattle, Second Ascent.  Be sure to get your parents permission before signing up as a commenter on blogger.   As the first week of school commences Mr. Alford would like to welcome all new and returning students to Brookside, wish his esteemed colleagues a wonderful start to the school year and remind everyone to do their burpees!

Kloshe Konaway

Kloshe Nanitch

Mr. Alford