KEEPING UP WITH BRY

... so the day we arrived in Sitka the sun was shining ...

it was 2pm and about 70 degrees

almost unheard of for Sitka!

... although they've had a great summer ...

and as we walked around town, most locals

were sporting suntans

so Bryan and I thought

"who knows how long the rainclouds will stay away?"

and we donned our sneakers to go for a hike

not just any hike

Mt. Verstovia

this is where bryan chose to do his

EAGLE SCOUT PROJECT

and completed it just 1 week before we moved

his project was to make and place

elevation and distance markers

at 3 points along the trail

the project took him over 6 months

the FOREST SERVICE required that he use

already fallen cedar logs

for the markers

and that they be place alongside the trail, partially buried

so they don't detract from the natural beauty

the logs were

DANG HEAVY

so bryan enlisted the help of another government agency:

the US COAST GUARD

and their mighty helicopters

to fly the log markers to the peak and drop them off

cuz anyone who hikes to the top of Verstovia

knows that it's enough just to hike it -

carrying a couple hundred pounds of log would be

WAY TOO MUCH work

coordinating 2 government agencies is the reason his project took so long to complete

Bryan is an avid hiker

he comes by it honestly

Bryan, his Dad & his brother were made for the outdoors

so the #1 DESIRE of Bryan

was to head back up the mountain and check on his markers

just like childbirth, it sounded like a good idea before we started

and was fulfilling after the long soak in the tub that night

but honestly:

IT WAS GRUELING

for me

a PIECE OF CAKE

for Bryan

(note my red face and frizzy, wavy hair ... this was HARD WORK, I tell you!)

Bry's cousin, Joshua, joined us.

He took up the rear

(to make sure I didn't topple backwards just to get out hiking, I'm sure!)

Besides the unmatchable

fragrant, CLEAN air;

the sounds of eagles, squirrels, and ravens;

and the

UNMATCHED BEAUTY of the place,

hearing Bryan ahead of me on the trail

as he'd come upon one of his markers

only to find it had weathered well the past 2 years

with his WHOOPING cheer

well, that was priceless

I'd hike a million miles

up a million mountains

to experience that over and over again with Bry.