• New and Old

    New and Old – New welding visors and old posters. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Rasp snake

    Rasp snake. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Jim’s Workshop

    Jim’s workshop – well, a large bit of it. You can’t see the anvils, forge, and lots of other tools that are behind me. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Table

    Table – the legs are steel, not wood. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Old Tools

    The text 'Old Tools' inlaid in wood by Jim Davis.
    Old Tools. Detail from inside the tool chest. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Tool chest in the workshop

    Tool chest in the workshop. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Globe lamp

    Globe Lamp – sculpture by Jim Davis. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Butterfly

    Butterfly – Mild steel sculpture by Jim Davis. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
    Butterfly – Mild steel and copper sculpture by Jim Davis. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • On the workshop wall …

    Baby Elephant – Mild steel sculpture by Jim Davis. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
    Workshop wall (detail). Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
    Fish Lamp – Mild steel sculpture by Jim Davis. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Sunflower

    Sunflower – Mild steel sculpture by Jim Davis. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Afternoon in the garden

    Afternoon in the garden – Mild steel sculpture by Jim Davis. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Ozarks Mule

    Ozarks' Mule - mild steel sculpture
    Ozarks Mule – Mild steel sculpture by Jim Davis. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    While we were visiting Carol & Jim, I caught up on taking pictures of some of Jim’s recent (and some not so recent) creations.

  • Weekend target practice

    Beretta PX4 Storm and Sig P938. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    There were two “must dos” for this weekend. Take some pictures of Jim’s artwork, and run at least 50 rounds through my Sig P938. I actually ended up going through more than 100 rounds, and Jim ran a few through his Glock, and also put a few through the Beretta and the Sig.

    I was surprised at the rust on the Sig. I remembered thinking that Katie wasn’t looking after her gun (a Sig P238), but it is now looking like the Sig’s rear sights in particular attract rust. The rust is easy to see in the above picture, there’s some on the hammer, and I also spotted some on the base of one of the mags. Unlike the Beretta, which has been through many rain storms, the Sig’s only been exposed to the local humidity. The rust will easily clean off, but it is quite disappointing that the coating isn’t more weatherproof.

    I wish I could get an Alien Gear holster for the Beretta1, but they don’t make one. I’ve adapted the retention holster I do have so that it uses the Alien Gear holster mount. Now either holster clips into my belt and any other mounts — like the new holster mount I’ve fitted to my hammock’s ridge line.

    Apart from the visual imperfection of the rust, the Sig was fine, I could consistently hit an 8-inch target at 40 feet. There were a couple of occasions when the slide failed to lock back when the magazine was empty. I’ve read that’s a common problem.

    we probably ran around 60 rounds through the Beretta, I had thirty rounds in the mags when I arrived. I had one failure to eject, which I think was my problem not holding it firmly enough.

    It was all good fun, I now know the Sig performs well. We made a lot of noise and added a bit more lead into what must be an already well lead-impregnated hillside.

    Update

    While Alien Gear Holsters still don’t make a holster for my Beretta, I found I could fit the Alien Gear holster mounting plate onto my existing retention holster for the Beretta. Now I can swap between the Sig and Beretta using the same mounting hardware on my backpack or belt.

  • Hercules Glades Wilderness, Pilot Trail around a quarter mile east of Lower Pilot Knob

    Pilot (Tower) Trail, Hercules Glades Wilderness. Around a quarter mile east of Lower Pilot Knob. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Nearly noon and here I am heading east on the Pilot (Tower) Trail. In two-and-a-half hours I need to be back at the trailhead to meet up with Ginger.

    Fortunately, unlike on my last hike here, my heart wasn’t in AFIB. I’d been taking extra care to avoid that; drinking lots and trying to keep cool. I even packed out an additional liter of water so I’d have extra on the trail. I’ve hiked these trails a lot of times now. That meant I had a pretty good idea of how much time I needed, though I’d left a little later than I’d planned (surprise!). I keep a trail journal, so I can tell you the following.

    About five minutes after taking this picture I was at the Devil’s Den West trail Junction. by 12:22 p.m. I was at ‘Twin Falls Creek, where I stopped for lunch for 25 minutes. At 1:12 p.m. I was at the Cedars (Middle) Trail Junction, and at 1:55 p.m. I’d made it back to the (in)famous Pole (Pete) Hollow Trail junction. Which had me nicely lined up for a 2:30 finish.

    The last section of the trail going east is comprised of four climbs, and in the heat, I felt it. I regularly stopped to give my heart a chance to slow down (that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it), and still surprised myself by arriving at 2:20 p.m. beating Ginger to the car. Knowing that she had a tougher climb, I got the car and more importantly, the AC going ready for her arrival. She arrived just after 2:30 p.m., hike over.

    Final Thoughts

    According to the GPS, this trip was slightly shorter at 6.2 miles each way. My average moving speed is 2.4 miles per hour. And average speed overall varied between 1.6 and 1.8 mph. Not bad considering I stopped for lunch on both hikes.

    • Once again I chose not to take Deet or a bug repellent, and I deeply regretted it. The ticks and chiggers were fearsome and plentiful. I counted 30 bites (and then gave up) on part of one of my legs alone. I really ought to have learned this lesson by now.
    • I had good (work) reasons for wanting to be where I had Internet access and cell coverage. But, I need to learn to keep my phone in airplane mode when I am out. Watching YouTube in the wilderness does not give me the break I want (or need) away from digital life
    • I need to revisit my reasons for not taking my camera on these trips. Or I need to use my cellphone camera more deliberately. However, its failure to capture the sunset was most annoying.
    • All the gear worked well, I’ve no complaints there.
    • Foodwise, M&Ms provide trail chocolate, and don’t melt in the heat. Result! I liked my new trail mix, and that will be replacing my almonds and raisins.
    • Three days is not enough. I need more time in the woods to just sit, think, and journal.

  • Day Three – Another lazy selfie

    Ready to head back to the trailhead. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Using our InReach Mini satellite communicators I let Ginger know I was planning to be back at the trailhead at 2:30, p.m. That gives me three and a half hours to cover the six and a half miles and allows time for me to stop for lunch at ‘Twin Falls Creek.’

    I arrived back at the trailhead at 2:20 p.m. Not bad.

    Oops, I left this here on my last visit – I’ve changed the color of the line I use to suspend my backpack from. It’s much brighter and less likely to be overlooked when I scan my campsite when I leave. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Before I left I had to grab the ‘trash’ I left the last time I camped here, back in May. I was a mile or so down the trail when I realized I hadn’t grabbed the line I use to hang my backpack up. It stands out fairly well in this picture, but when you are doing a quick visual check of the site it is easy to miss another bit of green. I’ve made a new line out of fluorescent yellow reflective line. That will be much harder to miss and leave behind.

    I had also left a used teabag sitting on a rock. They are supposed to be biodegradable, but I don’t like leaving any trash behind. I put it in my trash bag.

    I really must stop taking these lazy selfies. I have a tripod, I could take pictures of myself doing things. It seems I’ve not been bothered of late.

  • Firebox Nano

    Put away ready for the next time – My trusty Firebox Nano woodstove. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    What can I say? It works really well. I like it and I love the patina it is developing with use.

    I must leave it behind and give my titanium wood stove another runout. I’ve only used the titanium stove once. It’s about time I gave it another chance. It weighs a fraction of the weight of the stainless steel Firebox Nano and packs up smaller too. I suspect it’s that old function vs form thing raising its head again.

  • Hammock ridge line holster mount

    My new ridge line holster mount. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
    My new ridge line holster mount. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    When I first saw the Alien Gear ShapeShift holster system, I thought it would be great for backpacking. Unfortunately, Alien Gear does not produce a holster for my Beretta, so I parked that idea.

    When I bought my Sig Sauer P938, I checked the Alien Gear website and was very pleased to find they made a holster for it. In the package, there was a desk/dashboard mount that I adapted for use on my hammock ridge line.

    I made a small wooden block that screws to the Alien Gear mount, and it has a slight groove to grip the ridge line. It works perfectly.

    Hammock ridge line holster mount — It’s an Alien Gear desk/dashboard mount with a wooden block with a groove cut in it to hold the ridge line. Copyright © 2025 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    The above pictures show the ridge line mount in detail on my Hammock Gear Circadian hammock, which has a larger diameter line than the Chameleon hammock featured in the images at the top of the page. I probably should have made the groove bigger to match the line, but it still works well a year later (2025).

    Photograph of an Alien Gear ShapeShift holster with an adapted paddle mount for a backpack's hip belt with a Sig Sauer P938 handgun.
    Alien Gear ShapeShift Holster and adapted paddle mount for my backpack’s hip belt. Copyright © 2023 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    The complete ShapeShift system included another holster mount, which can be fitted on my backpack’s hip belt. I made a minor modification to the paddle, adding an elastic retention cord. The retention cord ensures the holster doesn’t come off the hip belt if my pack gets turned upside down.

    The same holster mount transfers to my pants belt when I’m not wearing my pack.

    Photograph of an Blackhawk Sherpa holster adapted woth an Alien Gear ShapeShift mount and an adapted paddle mount for a backpack's hip belt with a Beretta PX4 Storm handgun.
    Blackhawk Serpa holster with Alien Gear ShapeShift mounting plate and adapted paddle mount for my backpack’s hip belt. Copyright © 2023 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    I also discovered that I could modify my existing Blackhawk Sherpa retention holster for my Beretta to take the Alien Gear mount. So now I’m free to carry whichever gun I want without changing the hardware that’s attached to me or my gear.

    I’ve also realized that with a little bit of engineering I can use the same mount for my camera. Because of the way the mount works, that might work a lot better than my Peak Design Camera clip when I’m carrying bigger lenses. I’m going to have to give it a try.

    Updates

    • August 2025 — I’ve just discovered that the Alien Gear ShapeShift holster system no longer includes a retention holster option. When I contacted them, they stated that it had been withdrawn due to safety concerns. Call me cynical, but I think it’s because they are pushing their Level II Duty holsters and Rapid Force system. 🙁
    • May 2025 — I noticed that this post has been getting a lot of views, so I added some more pictures of the ridge line mounting plate to help anyone wanting to make their own.

  • A brilliant sunset and I’m in the wrong place to see it

    A brilliant sunset and I could only catch a glimpse of it through the trees. My cell phone camera was not up to the job of capturing it. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Hammock Camping — August 2022

    Camped by ‘Deep Hollow’ I lent Ginger my summer tarp, leaving me with my winter tarp. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    I lent Ginger my summer tarp. Because of the rain in the forecast, she wanted some shelter to sit outside away from her tent, and still be dry. This meant I was using my bigger (and heavier) winter tarp which has a lot more pieces of string attached to it.

    There are a total of 14 tie-outs on this tarp, and I’ll often use them all. By doubling up the lines running to some of the stakes I can manage with six to eight stakes. 14 would probably create a major trip hazard for me.

    All the tie-out lines are reflective and at night they light up like a proverbial Christmas tree when a light shines on them. Excellent for helping me see them and not fall over them, but not so good if you want to be stealthy — as I found out once when camped near Table Rock Lake. My camp was raked by a searchlight after the reflective line on my food bag hanging in a tree caught some illicit hunters’ spotlight. At least they didn’t mistake me for some wildlife and take a potshot at my camp.

    I suspect that this picture could almost, in the vernacular, be referred to as ‘hammock porn.’

  • Hammock camping in the woods

    A different view of camping in the woods. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Yup, just my chair, my hammock, and a load of trees.

    (We’ll not mention all the ticks and chiggers).

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