Category: Family

NYC in 29 Hours

NYC with Kelsey and Kristen - Times Square — The lights are bright on Broadway at Times Square!

A month ago Kelsey asked if I’d take her and Kristen to Manhattan. Having given whirlwind tours of The City on several occasions I agreed and these past couple of days were when I had to come through. The raw stats: 10 hours to and fro, 29 hours on the island of which seven were spent sleeping. That already sounds ambitious but that’s only the beginning.

We started with a walk up Broadway from 34th to 59th. We toured the south half of Central Park then caught a train back to 42nd Street to catch our Circleline boat tour around the island. When we got back we hung out in Times Square after dark then went to the Empire State Building to look out over The City at night. When we finally crashed at our hostel, sleep was not an issue.

The following morning we started in Rockefeller Center, took in a street fair along 10 blocks of Sixth Avenue, and walked over to catch the tram to Roosevelt Island where we meandered about. The subway got us first to Grand Central Station where we explored its cavernous interior and then to downtown where we visited Ground Zero, Wall Street, and Battery Park. Feeling plumb tuckered out we next caught a ride back to where we started.

As tours go, the pace of ours was fairly unrelenting. However, Kelsey had wanted to give Kristen the experience of a lifetime and I did my best to help her achieve that. As to whether we were successful I guess only Kristen can say. As for me, I had a wonderful time but am happy to now be sitting idle and typing this post. 😉

Highlights of our trip can be seen after the link.

Family Hike

Old Rag with a Texas Gal

Climbing Old Rag with Kristin atop First Plateau — I have a dozen pictures of Kelsey at this spot, the first plateau of the Old Rag ascent. Today, we got one with Kristin too. Nice shot of two good friends during a wonderful hike on a smashingly good day.

It was wonderful to be reminded today how special Old Rag is through the eyes of Kristen, a friend of Kelsey’s from their month hiking in Alaska last year. The contrasts we heard to Texas are what drew Old Rag’s special nature to the surface. “There are so many trees! It’s so green!” True but not remembered. “The hills are so big! There are so many and they’re beautiful!” Why, yes! We’d forgotten. “From up here you can see so far!” True enough and worth being reminded of.

Kristen is here in D.C for an action-filled week. Kelsey is running her ragged and they’re having a blast. Friday morning we head to NYC to extend the experience to Manhattan. On Saturday we return. On Sunday Kristen flies back to Houston. Sunday night I collapse.

It’s been a pleasure having her visit; Kelsey makes good friends.

Super Women atop Old Rag — There's the summit of Old Rag and then there's the extreme peak, atop the boulders on top of the summit. That's where these crazy young ladies could be found assuming Super Woman poses.

Family Swim

My First 5K … Swim!

5K Lake Swim — Across two days there were four swim events: Clinic, 1 mile, 2 mile, and 5 kilometer. Hundreds of people participated and, again this year, I was one of them. Bravo!

Not a run nor a walk but a 5K swim. The equivalent of 3.1 miles this event was three times around a modified 1-mile circuit on Lake Audubon in Reston, VA where I live. While I have swum longer outdoor distances, it hasn’t been for a while so this felt big. However, in the end the water was perfect, the weather was great and the swim was quite manageable.

During this 25th anniversary of the Jim McDonnell Lake Swim almost the whole family played roles. Beth managed the registration area which required an evening of prep and two mornings of commitments that started at 6:00 AM. Kelsey was a life guard throughout the events; she watched over swimmers from her perch in a canoe. Courtney intended to come be a spectator but overslept … such is life post graduating from college.

For some insight on the event you can visit their website here.

Education Family

Graduation Happens; Courtney is Cooked

Post author By TravisGood
Post date May 20, 2012
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A great achievement has happened. My eldest daughter has graduated from UVA with degrees in Economics and in Environmental Sciences. She wrangled a purple degree from a red and a blue and she’s about to go cash in on it. In july she begins her professional career at ICF International.

Education Family Make Technology

Four Hours to Build a Chair

Post author By TravisGood
Post date April 17, 2012
1 Comment on Four Hours to Build a Chair

Kelsey Chair — Safety training also includes basic use of tools. Last night Kelsey was thrilled to have used the radial arm saw during training. Today she went all out, used several power tools and built a chair!

Last year I built a chair from a single piece of 2×4 wood, eight feet long. It was a one-page project detailed in MAKE magazine and allowed me to use a variety of tools and joining techniques. At the time I thought it would be a great project for Kelsey to learn from but not till today did it happen.

The reason it took till now? Safety training at our makerspace got her excited.

Bridge Family Ocean Travel

Ladies in San Francisco

This trip was special. On this trip I was joined not only by my daughters Courtney and Kelsey but also by my wife Beth! When the lure is San Francisco and it’s snowy cold back home then I guess they can be coaxed.

They came in two waves toward the end of my time at TechShop.

Family Mountain Road Travel

The Illusive Mount Lemmon

Post author By TravisGood
Post date January 10, 2012
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Twice previously I’ve tried to get to the top of Mount Lemmon but its 25 mile drive, its 6,400 foot climb, its weather all proved obstacles given my time constraints. That wasn’t going to happen this time. Today I was making it my hightest priority; other priorities would be sacrificed.

So why? What’s the big deal with Mount Lemmon? I suppose I’ve become intrigued by sky islands, where one experiences change through elevation. With this ascent one climbs from desert to alpine, the equivalent of going from Mexico to Canada. At stages throughout there are remarkable changes.

Family Hike Travel

Walking to know Manhattan

Post author By TravisGood
Post date December 4, 2011
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Central Park Reservoir — Smack in the middle of Central Park is NYC’s reservoir named after Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. It’s a stunning contrast of flat water to New York skyline and Kelsey captured it nicely at dusk.

Kelsey and I left Saturday morning for NYC. We arrived around 2:00PM and proceeded to walk from Macy’s on 34th Street up to and meandering through Central Park to visit Columbia University before heading to our hostel on 103rd and Amsterdam. The following morning we took a subway up and out of Manhattan to just over the river in The Bronx. From there we spent 5.5 hours walking down Broadway the entire 14 mile length of Manhattan to Wall Street and Battery Park. Before 36 hours had passed we were back home in D.C.

Family Hike Mountain Travel

Avalon Area Hikes with Cliff

Post author By TravisGood
Post date October 9, 2011
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Casino from Hilltop — This vantage point above Avalon gives perspective on the island. It juts out of the water with force and is quite unforgivingly. It is an island with strong character, not some sandy mound that barely surfaces.

The island tempted me to hike its length in stages. First I enjoyed walking around Avalon between sessions of the JazzTrax Festival. Later I ventured out to hike around the ridge of the valley around Avalon and from the “Airport in the Sky” to Avalon. Having 2/5 of the island under my belt I decided I should tackle the recently completed enchilada, the TCT.

My scheme was to tempt my uncle by leading him down the same path.

Camp Family Hike Mountain River Travel

Training on Iron Mountain Loop

Post author By TravisGood
Post date September 3, 2011
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Kelsey returned from Alaska a seasoned backpacker. Woven into the National Outdoors Leadership School programs are outdoor education, survival training, and leadership development. The program was conducted over the course of a month-long hike with heavy backpacks that were carried over 100 miles. It’s trial by fire and she learned a lot. This outing was about knowledge transfer: Kelsey to me.

Coming up soon I have several hikes planned. One is a four-day hike along the length of an island just off the coast of Los Angeles on a trail called the Trans-Catalina Trail. It’s relatively new and is 38 miles long though it’s a logistics challenge because it’s remote and support resources are few. Consequently, if I want to hike the trail I’m going to have to backpack and Kelsey was going to train me.