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Edge – Getting near the glades on the Busiek Red / Yellow Trail
Getting near the glades on the Busiek Red / Yellow Trail. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. Hiking along the ridge to the east of the Carter Family Cemetery on the Busiek Red / Yellow Trail.
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Spring Daffodils – Carter Family Cemetery – Busiek Red / Yellow Trail.
Spring Daffodils – Carter Family Cemetery – Busiek Red / Yellow Trail. We hiked up the ridge and past the Carter Family Cemetery on the Yellow Trail.
Yucca plants in the wilderness are a sure sign that there was a home or cemetery near-by. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
Hiking along the ridge near the Carter Family Cemetery. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
New trail markers. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kansas City, Missouri
Altar – Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kansas City, Missouri. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. As it is Lent, the usual cross has been removed and there are no flowers.
The above is an out of Camera jpg image with a little bit of punch and cropping in Lightroom.
Below are some more internal pictures and a couple of the outside — though I’ve yet to find a really good angle on the cathedral. To show that we had quite a good turnout I have included a couple of pictures I took during the final session of the day.
Ye Shall Receive a Crown of Glory. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. 
Interior – Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kansas City Missouri. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. 
Founders’ Hall, Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
Cathedral Bell tower seen from the courtyard outside Founders’ Hall. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
Cathedral Bell tower seen from the courtyard outside Founders’ Hall. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
The Rev. John Spicer leads the final session of the day. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
The Rev. John Spicer leads the final session of the day. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Diaconal Ministry and Community
Small group discussion. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. A small group discussion led by the Venerable Bruce Bower (on the left, facing the camera), Archdeacon of The Diocese of West Missouri.
Another one of my ‘personal images’ taken while I was working. Not only was I diocesan documentarian and roadie this weekend, but I also led one of the workshops. And we get to do it all over again on March 17. But that’ll be in Springfield, so I won’t need to spend six hours in a car.
I almost prefer the black and white version, it’s really difficult to pick which one I prefer.
Diaconal Ministry and Community. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Overlooking Woods Fork
Overlooking Woods Fork. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. At the top of the ridge of the Yellow/Silver Trail I’ve noticed a side trail. Today I decided to check it out. It only goes 50′ or less and ends at a log where you can sit and look out over Woods Fork.
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About to Descend
Notice how the trail disappears from view here?
It’s steep and covered in loose gravel. You have to take it carefully.
(Another hike on the Busiek Silver trail — only this time I was also testing out some makeshift hammock gear.)
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Gnarly Tree
Gnarly Tree I love the shape and look of this trail-side tree.
Notice how the trail disappears from view here? It’s steep and covered in loose gravel. You have to take it carefully.
Same picture – in color. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. 
The Hill starts to flatten out a bit here. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Trial Run With The Hammock
Testing the Hammock Setup. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. I’ve been wanting to try hammock camping for quite a while.
I’m reluctant to purchase all the necessary gear unless it’s something I’m sure I will be comfortable with — and in. I’ve been pulling together the necessary bits and pieces so that I can try out a hammock before investing a lot, and today I took my hammock gear out for a test setup.
A year ago, I invested an $11, 8′ x 11′ tarp, it’s very heavy and doesn’t fold up small, so it’ll be no good for long-term use, but it will keep the bad weather off of me while I discover if Hammock camping has a place in my future. I also invested in an up-to-date hammock suspension system. All of this I’m trying out with a hammock we bought in 2010 for use when we were car camping. We only used the hammock once, and then we transitioned to backpacking. The hammock has been sitting idle ever since.
Hammock technology has moved on in the last eight years, and the hammock was a budget model, but I figured that it will be good enough to see if I want to take up hammock camping. Ginger is quite happy with our High Sierra one person tent, and in the tangles of the Ozarks forests, finding a spot to pitch the smaller tent and the hammock will, hopefully, be easier than finding space for our 3-person Mutha Hubba. Weight and size-wise the current set-up will be bigger and heavier than the Mutha Hubba — because of the heavy tarp and the heavyweight material used for the hammock itself. But if I get on with it, a modern hammock and tarp will be a lot smaller and lighter.
The thing I’m really looking forward to is the ease of setting it up and breaking it down. Not that the Mutha Hubba is difficult, it’s just that the hammock should be easier, and offer a lot more options for where I can camp, especially as it doesn’t need a flat ground surface.
Before going off backpacking with the hammock I wanted to get in a test set up, so I took it with me on a day hike on the Silver Trail at Busiek. This was my second attempt. I tried setting it up in 2016, but made a very poor job of selecting a suitable site and so when it came to us going backpacking last year I decided to stick with what I knew — the Mutha Hubba.
I did some more research over the winter and as a result, I’ve set up a structural ridgeline on the hammock, and I spent a bit more money on a ridgeline for the tarp — as I’d had trouble setting the tarp without one.
Today’s test went fine – except I forgot to pack the stakes to peg out the tarp. There were enough small trees and bushes around to get the tarp taught, but it wasn’t ideal.
Other things I discovered: I had the hammock ridgeline a tad too short, and I set the hammock suspension too high up the trees. And finally, at first, I set the suspension up too loose. Having the suspension too loose was fun, as the cinch buckles didn’t cinch properly dumping me on the ground the first time I climbed in. I wasn’t dropped hard, it was very graceful, but I was glad there was no one around to watch. However, learning this stuff was what today was all about. The new ridgeline for the tarp was great, it made setting the tarp up a whole lot easier.
The result looks very ‘Ozarks’, but it should be good enough, now I’m waiting for a warmish night, for the first proper test. If it all goes well, I’ve already selected the hammock I’m going to buy — a Chameleon from DutchWare.
Testing the Hammock Setup. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Family Visit
Ginger’s brother Sam, and his daughter Samantha are visiting the Grandparents for a couple of days.
I took the obligatory picture of them with Lanie and Ginger. Not too shabby for a quick ‘in the living room shot’.
Of course, I couldn’t resist a Black and White version.
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Ginger & Sam
Sam and Samantha are visiting the Grandparents for a couple of days.
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Gary and Ginger — Ninth Wedding Anniversary
Gary and Ginger — Ninth Wedding Anniversary . Copyright © 2018 Ginger Allman, all rights reserved. Ginger took a ninth wedding anniversary selfie.
Low-key celebrations this year — we went out for a very nice Indian meal. To repeat a quote from an observer (back in 2007), “These things never last.”
Link: The wedding Pics.
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Mao & Tubbs
Mao & Tubbs I had been getting a refill of coffee from the kitchen when I walked by these two looking particularly cute.
Normally it’s a waste of time fetching a camera as they’ll just carry on with their feline ways and change their pose before I get a chance to take the shot. Today though, I had time to grab the camera. They held the pose just long enough for one picture before Mao (a.k.a. Blue Kitty) turned away in disdain, and Tubbs (a.k.a. Tubby) jumped down to answer the siren call of the heat vent.
Out of Camera jpg — Pro Neg Standard — cropped & slightly tweaked in Lightroom
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7am — View from My Office Window
7am — View from My Office Window. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. This morning’s view from my office window didn’t augur well for an undisturbed day’s work
I’ve had a busy few weeks, and this week kept piling it on. I had a magazine to finalize and publish, and a newsletter to write and send out. The last thing I needed was distractions. But the distractions, in the form of lots of noise and constant movement in my peripheral vision has been the order of business all week.
I thought that we’d seen the worst of it yesterday when they switched us over to the new water main. Alas, that was not the case as I saw when I looked out of my office window at 7 am this morning. Today was even busier — with Concrete deliveries and another crew working down the street replacing a lamppost that had been knocked down at some point yesterday. By the time I’d put the finishing touches to editing the newsletter they’d stopped work for the day. Tomorrow I’m working away on-site with a customer. Maybe they’ll get finished while I’m gone.
I had hoped to get out hiking today (record temperatures 70°F), or at least a trip to the range. But by the time I’d cleared a couple of phone calls I decided it was too late.
Wednesday — Connecting the Water Main. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
The Unknown Joys of Cartography
Piney Creek Wilderness Several years ago we made a map.
A trail map of a wilderness area for which the official maps were sadly lacking. We hiked the trails with our GPS, and I spent many hours overlaying a USGS topographic map of the area with our GPS Tracks and notes. We put the map on our hiking and backpacking website and forgot about it.
Yesterday I was on YouTube looking for videos of local hikes, and I instantly recognized the thumbnail image of one — it’s a great view of the start of a really steep descent at Piney Creek Wilderness — the Wilderness we’d mapped. So I clicked on play. You can imagine my surprise when I saw that the opening credits were shown over a copy of our map. And it was our map the chap used on his hike around the wilderness. Excellent! That was exactly why we made the map and it was good to know that it is being used.
Watching the video I discovered one of the obvious, but previously hidden from me, joys of cartography. In making the map we’d recorded several unmarked trails, and he who makes the map gets to name things. Sure enough, the names we had given to the unnamed trails were being used.
It’s a minor thing, but at the start of a long busy week, it made me smile.
It also reminded me that we need to go back and map the last couple of trails we’ve not hiked. I also suspect there are a whole lot more unofficial trails left for us to discover.
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Late Night Movie Tri-Puss
This is what we call a ‘Tri-Puss’ I was going to read a book, but instead I watched a movie.
I didn’t notice these three sneaking in, but when I paused the movie to replenish my refreshments, there they were in the co-pilot’s seat — we’re flying a helicopter (Google it).
This cat configuration is what we call a ‘Tri-Puss’. It is a fairly rare occurrence as Tubby annoys Sprinky and Blue Kitteh as much as he often irritates us. He can be a demanding little fellow at the best of times, but on the plus side, he’s also very lovable too.
Yes, that is camo on the arm of the sofa, and the movie? Sin City: A Dame to Kill For.
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Sleeping Tubblet & I’ve Been Busy
Tubblet, Tubby, Rotters, whatevs – Keeping warm Our poor little tropical Burmese hates winter and takes any opportunity to find somewhere warm to sleep. For example: on the heat vent in my office.
It should be noted that Tubby goes by many names, as do all the cats: Tubby, Rotters, Rot-row, Rotty, Pokey-paws, Irritant, this list goes on …
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I’ve been busy the past couple of weeks so no new posts and hardly any back-filling of old posts. I have been able to find some downtime to watch hiking and backpacking videos on YouTube. Hopefully, it’ll help spur me into some outdoors action. I have a new backpack and my camera carry clip, so I’m running out of excuses not to go. This weekend I have a lot of work to catch up on (and it’s going to be cold and miserable). If I get my work done maybe I can take a break sometime next week.
What should it be, a hike or a trip down the range?
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Gary and Sprinky
Gary and Sprinky on the office couch. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. Here we are sitting on the couch in my office (which explains the whiteboard above my head). I took this picture because I thought the way that Sprink was resting her paws on my arm was cute. At 1/17 second, handheld with the camera at arms-length, this came out much better than I expected or deserved.
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Today’s Issue for the Attentionally Challenged
How can I be expected to work with such large, noisy, and fascinating distractions outside my office window?
A new water main is being installed. Most distracting. The trench is quite deep – I can only see the tops of the workers’ hard hats bobbing along in it.
If it wasn’t below freezing out there I’d be tempted to go sit on the front porch and watch.
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Peak Design Capture Pro Camera Clip (and a New Tripod)
The complete clip with the baseplate attached. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. One of the perennial problems of hiking with a decent camera is lugging the gear around.
The camera, in particular, is a problem. With a traditional camera neck strap, the camera not only swings all over the place, but it gets in the way when you bend down. If I keep my camera in my pack, then it takes ages to get at it, and most of the time I just don’t bother taking pictures, it’s too much trouble. A neck strap is just as much of an issue when I’m working in a church, it gets in the way, and taking communion with a camera strapped around your neck is not exactly an inconspicuous way of working. Finally carrying a camera on a neck strap gives me a neck and backache — even with the small and light Fuji’s.
Field Testing The Peak Design Capture Pro. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. … it’s one of the most useful pieces of camera gear I’ve bought …
I have found an excellent solution to the problem. I first saw the Peak Design Capture Clip several years ago. It lets you clip your camera to a belt or strap and it has a quick-release lock that holds the camera in place so that it cannot accidentally fall out. However, two things put me off buying one at the time. First was the price, and secondly, I didn’t want the big heavy Nikon hanging off of my belt or backpack.
Having ditched the Nikon, and wanting to take more pictures while I’m hiking and backpacking (if I say I’ll be going hiking and backpacking, just maybe I will actually get out more), I decided that the time was right to buy one.
Peak Design Capture Pro on a Backpack Strap. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. Expensive it is — well-made it is too. There is a lot of attention to detail, and Peak Design provides a lifetime warranty. There’s no fear of it falling out, it’s out of the way and instantly accessible.
The Capture Pro ARCA-SWISS style baseplate on the bottom of the Fujifilm X-E3 shown with the belt/strap clip it slots into. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
I tried out an alternate fixing screw with the Capture PRO ARCA-SWISS Style fixing plate. My thinking was that this fixing screw would save me having to carry an Allen key around. Then I realized that the Peak Design supplied Allen key has a key chain clip on it, and it also fits my tripod. I might as well stick with the original fixing screw – and I’ve since found out I can get an Allen key bit or my Leatherman pocket knife too. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
The camera release twists to lock the mechanism, just in case you want to be doubly sure your camera isn’t going anywhere without you. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.- Would I buy another? Yes, it’s an essential bit of gear for me.
- Would I recommend buying one? Absolutely.
Update after five years’ use
Quite simply it is a must-have piece of gear for me. It works very well and allows me to take my camera everywhere without a bag, hands-free, and without it swinging in the way. I’ve used it on planes, in cars, I’ve backpacked hundreds of miles in all weathers with it, at work I’ve used it in loads of church services and events. It is discrete, it is great.
Tip: Always lock the release button If you fit the clip to your belt and you will be sitting down. It is possible to accidentally release the camera by various body parts (your leg for example) pushing in the release button. This can (and will) result in a dropped camera. It’s not a fault of the clip, the locking mechanism is there, just make sure you use it.
I see the Capture Pro V3 is now available on Amazon (I bought mine direct from Peak Design).
Peak Design Capture Pro V3 – I’ve had this a year now, and it’s one of the most useful pieces of camera gear I’ve bought. Note the wear, proof it’s been well used. Copyright © 2019 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. Monopod / Tripod
The Capture Pro’s ARCA-SWISS style camera baseplate also dealt with another problem. I’ve been looking for a monopod I can use when I’m shooting in a church. I can’t maneuver a tripod around in the middle of a service, but carrying a monopod — especially collapsed, should be easy.
My first-step towards getting a monopod was to purchase an ARCA-SWISS compatible ball-head for my existing tripod. No sooner had I researched and ordered a ball-head, than a special offer came up on a tripod that converts to a monopod and is fitted with a removable ball-head. The cost of the tripod was the same as buying a monopod and ball-head. As an added bonus it allows me to retire my existing tripod which has a missing foot, is huge even when collapsed, and weighs a ton. Sold!
I sent the ball-head mount I’d just bought back (which was a shame is it was a very nice one) and ordered the new tripod. My initial impressions of which are that it is so much lighter and easier to use than my old one. I hope this means I’ll be using it a lot more, certainly I will have fewer excuses for handheld shallow depth of field images. We shall see.
The tripod’s makers claim (in Chinglish) that the monopod can be used as an “Alpenstock”. If it really can be counted on to replace my hiking pole, that might be another advantage. Though I’m not so sure I want to use one of the legs of my tripod in the mud and rocks of the Ozark’s trails, let alone immersed in the creeks and puddles.
A note about the links. The links marked with a this icon – – are affiliate links, if you buy through them, it doesn’t cost you more, and I get a tiny percentage which helps me offset the cost of keeping this website running. However, please buy from the source that makes the most sense for you!
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Rude Awakening
That moment when a sharp pain in the groin wakes you in the middle of the night … And, upon investigation one discovers a cat’s claw (with attached cat) embedded in one’s scrotum.
I couldn’t make this stuff up if I tried.
