by Amy | Feb 19, 2014 | Blog, The Art of Adventure
It’s not a secret that winter lasts a long time in Practically Canada. The cold and snow blows in around October and doesn’t leave until the rest of the country is knee deep in spring. {Last year we had one final blizzard in the middle April.} This winter we are a little wiser to the ghastly tricks of PraCan. So, to stop ourselves from going stir crazy in the Polar Vortex we took a little stay-cation to Lake Metigoshe with one of our couple-besties…the Kelleys.
Lake Metigoshe is about two hours north of Minot {also where I shot that breath-taking wedding last fall} and covered in snow. Our cabin was plenty big for the four of us, the water smelled and tasted like pure rust {we bought our own from the store across the street}, but that didn’t matter. We had skis, board games, and a TV with cable so we could watch non-stop Olympic coverage.
Ideally, we would have rented snowmobiles along with our skis, but they were all checked out. So we were forced to watch others zip around the lake from our windows.
The weather was perfect. Highs above zero, and wind chills above zero to boot. It was ideal for getting out and taking a long ski through the woods, even though one person in our group said it was “…all the boring parts of snowboarding, except on skis.” I won’t mention names, but I will say that 3 out of 4 really enjoyed the cross country experience and 1 out of 4 chose to have a good attitude about it anyway.
If you are wondering, the trails at Lake Metigoshe State Park are wonderful. There are warming houses along the way, so you can ski a few miles, then come in to thaw. We did a total of 6.5 miles and ate lunch in the warming house, which had a wood burning stove-thingy, which kept us nice and toasty.
On Monday we went down to Bottineau Winter Park, where Derek and I did a little downhill skiing and the Kelleys went tubing. {Because Katie hates downhill.} The tubing was advertised at “Two hours of total bliss.” She assured me that it was just that.
The weekend definitely broke up the monotony of the long winter, which–if we are lucky–will only last a couple more months. If you are feeling cramped, bored, or stir crazy check out my list of 40 things to do this winter. It’ll help break up the time.
by Amy | Feb 5, 2014 | Blog, The Art of Adventure, The Art of Fitness, The Art of Gathering, The Art of Living
by Amy | Jan 14, 2014 | Blog, The Art of Adventure
I’m in Shreveport, LA. If you’ve been a friend of the blog for long…you know that before PraCan was home, this was where I parked my car and rested my head. One of my best and dearest friends still lives here. So when Derek found out he needed to come down for a week of training, I was totally on board for tagging along. Seeing a bestie + escaping the Polar Vortex=a major win-win.
Today the bestie is at nursing classes. So I was on my own. I started my day off by doing a little video work for another friend who works for a lovely non-profit in the area. More on that later. After I finished up there it was 10am and I had yet to have a cup of coffee. In dire need I headed to Strawn’s Eat Shop. Here’s the thing about Louisiana. I don’t miss the heat. I don’t miss the bugs. But what I really do miss is the vibe here. The accents, the sassy locals, and the abundance of southern comfort food.
Stawn’s is iconic. They’ve been featured in magazines and on TV. Their joint is quaint. Their food is amazing.
I settled in this morning, ready to take my time…maybe knock a few more pages off of an amazing book I received for Christmas. During the course of the hour I spent there sipping coffee and slowly working on my food I watched the action unfold inside one of Shreveport’s oldest and most loved eateries.
It’s the kind of place where the waitresses know the customers. More than once was a patron greeted with a “Hey, how you doin’?” and a hug to match. My coffee cup never fully drained. The waitress never pressured me to hurry up and move on. She just let me nibble and read. By 11:15 the door was constantly swinging open as more and more hungry locals poured in for burgers and pie.
{yes, that is a giant slab of butter on the counter. I love the south.}
When you spend time in a place like Strawn’s you see the best in the community. People excelling at their work. People carrying on a tradition worth carrying on. Lately, I’ve been overwhelmed and heavy-hearted over the state of our world. The truth is, it is easy to look around and feel like everything and everyone is awful and growing worse. But all it takes is a slow breakfast in a hole-in-the-wall to remember that there are still lots of good people, and plenty of good left to be done. Maybe things aren’t really as changed and far gone as they sometimes feel. That’s a happy thought to hang on to.
xo Amy
by Amy | Jan 9, 2014 | Blog, The Art of Adventure
As you may have noticed, it’s been cold. Really cold. Now, I’m not going to jump on my high horse and tell you that I’m better and more hard core than you because I live in Practically Canada and it’s been colder here than wherever you are.
That’s not my game.
They have called it a Polar Vortex. Which sounds ridiculous. Like a a sci-fi black hole that you get sucked into. On second thought, that’s kind of what it’s been like.
I’m just going to tell you what’s it’s been like living the past week in the coldest place in America. Compliments to a few of my friends who took a moment to take photos during this time. I’m using their images…because I have been too busy a) not leaving the house and b) madly dashing from house to car to destination at a pace that didn’t allow for photography.
The image above was taken north of Bismarck. Click the photo to go to its original home.
You see that cool ring around the sun? Up here it’s called a sun-dog. It happens when the sun’s {or moon’s} light reflects off of ice crystals in the atmosphere. ICE. In the atmosphere.
Derek, being every observant noted that one day it was “120 warmer in our house than the windchill outside.”
Take a moment to really think about the difference you feel between 0 degrees and 120. That’s the difference between “dead of winter” and “Texas wildfire hot.” That’s the extreme difference we were feeling this past week.
Now…for a segment I’ll call…Cold Enough…
First. Thank you to my friend Melanie, who took one for the team and snapped this photo. It proves that it has been cold enough to freeze wet hair solid after shaking it upside down outside for a moment. Her hair is frozen like that. Frozen.
While making supply run to Menard’s I lost a glove somewhere in the store. It was cold enough that the walk from store to car left my ungloved hand visibly cracked, bloody and chapped.
The extreme cold will make your eyes water. But it is cold enough that your tears immediately froze on your face. So don’t even think about shedding tears over the situation.
Cold enough that the air you breathed felt like sand paper rubbing the inside of your lungs. I guess really the temp wasn’t so bad if you held your breath and closed your eyes.
To really gauge the severity of the situation…the National Weather Service warned that it was cold enough that frostbite could occur on uncovered skin in less than five minutes.
Perhaps, most shocking…it was cold enough that North Dakota schools closed down because of the extreme cold. If you live here, you know this never happens. If they closed down because of cold, negative temperatures, there’d be no school from November to March.
And in case you don’t want to take my word for it, I posted to my personal Facebook page asking friends to describe the cold in their words. Here are some of the things they said.
A brainfreeze on the outside. All over your body.
Hard to breathe because your nose hairs freeze straight out.
When you inhale your nose hairs get stiff. When you exhale your glasses fog up and freeze over.
It feels like death.
“I can’t [describe it] without cursing.”
You get an ice cream headache from breathing.
You have to do the Minot Shuffle. {Where you run into stores instead of walking.}
It’s now 23 degrees. I guess I should go for a jog or something. Stay warm and toasty my friends.
Amy
by Amy | Jan 2, 2014 | Blog, The Art of Adventure, The Art of Faith, The Art of Gathering, The Art of Living, The Art of Projects, The Art of the Kitchen, The Art of the Moment, the house
Happy New Year! It’s hard to believe we have entered another year. If your life is anything like mine…it’s felt like a whirlwind ever since Thanksgiving. Yikes. But now the festivities are behind us and it’s time to learn from the past year and step into a fresh, new season.
The year goes by so fast that I often feel like it passed in a blur. {Any one second that?} I have to remind myself that a year is a long time. A lot can happen. One life can do a lot in one year. I really believe that and I hope you do too. For me 2013 could have been a very hard, negative year…but I think we chose how we spend our time and resources and energy. We can let negative circumstances weigh us down…or allow them to give us a chance to brush up on our hurdling skills. I may have banged my shins on hurdles a few times in the past 365, but I can confidently say that I cleared them all.
And if you don’t believe a lot can get done in a year…let’s look back at the biggest moments of a year with Amy Allender. (more…)
by Amy | Nov 8, 2013 | Blog, The Art of Adventure
{Photo via http://legacyproject.human.cornell.edu}
I like solving problems. I always have. As a kid I got extra work in school. Extra math, critical thinking problems. Just because I liked problems.
As you get older the problems don’t stop coming, and you don’t have to ask for more just for fun. There are always plenty of problems to go around. Some you can solve. Some you can’t.
Last weekend I took a short trip to Rapid City, SD to visit some friends. I’ve been there a few times. Notably that time last year when I experienced that epic photo bomb. This year equally weird things happened. Maybe I’ll tell you about that tomorrow. But that’s not what I’m writing about today. When I packed up my things to come home, I forgot my computer charger. I left it. In my friend’s living room. That’s why I haven’t posted in days. And you know how much I like to write to you.
So I’ve been tech dead. Offline. Whatever. But the days without a computer got me thinking. This isn’t the first time I’ve left something important behind after a trip. This is a problem that needs a solution. And I think I’ve got one. A list.
I’ve got a travel pack that I keep all my small sized toiletries in. When a trip is upon me, I just grab the whole thing and put it in my bag. Now there’s something extra in there. My list. A list of all the things I take with me that I could forget. Things like…camera, charger, phone, phone charger, face wash, check the shower, tooth brush, things I bought on this trip, glasses, contact case, etc.
It’s a solution. Next time I travel I’ll just have to glance at my list to double check that I’ve got it all. And I’ll never have to be without charge again.
Sometimes it’s the tiniest solutions to the tiniest problems that make life strides easier.
Amy
by Amy | Sep 23, 2013 | Blog, The Art of Adventure, The Art of the Moment
This is it. Our final day in Glacier. Tomorrow we will move on to other things. I won’t say better things, because after our short trip to Glacier National Park, I really don’t think there are many things better than this…but I’ll move on nonetheless. {Also, isn’t it crazy that nonetheless is an actual word?}
On our final day we got up nice and early and made the long drive from West Glacier all the way to the opposite side of the park to the stunningly preserved Many Glacier Hotel. It was built in 1910 and sits right on Swiftcurrent Lake. When you finally get there it’s like you’ve walked into a postcard. The hotel is idyllic, if a little surreal. The lake is pristine. The mountains are so gorgeous they couldn’t even be dreamed up by Bob Ross himself.
{Above photo: Swiftcurrent Lake}
{Below bottom: Many Glacier Hotel, other photos in the collage: along the Grinnel Glacier Trail}
We left from the hotel and headed to the Grinnel Glacier trail head. Now, next time we visit I think I’ll try to plan things out just a bit better in the time department. You see, there is a boat shuttle that leaves from Many Glacier Hotel that will take you across the lake where you can catch another boat that will take you up the trail a bit. All in all it will shave off a good 1-2 miles off your total hike.
We did not catch the boat.
So that meant another long day of hiking. However, I am very, VERY glad we decided to save this one for last. While the hike was strenuous {a steady incline over 5 miles…then a very steep, rocky climb at the end} it was the biggest payout of any of the trails we hikes while visiting the park.
Along the trail you’ll climb steadily until you are high enough that you look down upon Lake Josephine and eventually Lake Grinnell. You can see Lake Grinnell in the collage above. It’s that brilliantly teal body of water next to the pine tree. Then far, far in the distance you’ll notice a waterfall. As you continue it will become clear that the waterfall is simple melt from Grinnell Glacier, and it is this fall that feeds the lake.
You’ll pass falls closer to the trail and you’ll smell all these amazing smells. You know how men’s fragrances are called “Glacial Waters” and “Mountain Pass” and stuff like that? Well, there is a reason. This whole corner of the world smells like the manliest, best ever, cologne ever made. Forget Axe Bodywash. I want a man who smells as good as the woods around Glacier.
Now, I’m getting off topic again.
Anyway. Remember that steep climb I mentioned earlier? It’s rocky and lasts for a good stretch. Like climbing a rustic stone staircase. Up, up, up. Your quads will tell you to stop. Don’t listen. Keep climbing. Because eventually you’ll get….here.
You’ll walk right up to Grinnell Glacier. Yes, this is what a glacier looks like in summer. And the photo really stinks. It’s breath taking. The water is clear right to the bottom. The ice bergs are so white they sting to look at. And that water, oh the water…it’s a color even Crayola envies. All the fatigue you feel walking up, up, up will be gone as soon as you see the oasis before you.
Before making our descent, we were lucky enough to spy this beauty. Who, even though I was pretty scared, let me get close enough to nab this awesome portrait.
Needless to say, we were left pretty darn tired at the end of our last day. So, after dinner, instead of going for another walk, or finding something else to do…we simply pulled off and waited for the stars to come out. It’s so dark you can see the Milky Way and constellations become a blur of millions of tiny lights in the sky.
I think these few short, exhausting days away were just what we needed.
Amy
by Amy | Sep 17, 2013 | Blog, The Art of Adventure, The Art of the Moment
At the end of our first day at Glacier National Park I was so tired I dreaded even standing for the 15 minutes it would take me to shower. {You know how I get about showering sometimes…} So, needless to say, we were glad to spend our second day at a much more relaxed pace.
We started with a morning visit to Lake McDonald at Apgar Village, just inside the west entrance to the park. It was a beautifully gloomy fall morning.
We really wanted to rent a canoe or kayaks and paddle around the lake a bit…but for some reason there were none to be had. All the rental places were closed for the season, or opened after noon. It was hard for us, but we managed to just hang out without much activity. We checked the souvineer shops, we watched the clouds roll over the lake, we walked {but not much} by the edge of the water. Derek even bought me a fancy coffee to drink while the chill dissipated from the air.
Chilly mornings aren’t half bad when you have a good coffee, the best sweater in the world, and your best friend in the world with you.
Later we saw some Jammers leaving from Apgar Village. Aren’t they cute? They got the name “Jammer” because when the were first put into use the drivers were called “Gear Jammers” in jest.
After lunch we headed to the Glacier Raft Company for an afternoon of white water fun. Now, you may be surprised by this…but I am afraid of white water rafting. I don’t like it. It’s too scary. I know, none of us are perfect. But Derek really loves it. So the trip we took was a perfect compromise. It was an eight mile trip. The first four miles were a scenic float. The last four miles were rapids. And at this point in the season the rapids were really low and tame, so that really worked out in my favor.
We were encouraged not to bring our cameras. However, I’m not one for rules. So I took it anyway. I just put it in a Zip-Loc baggie and put that securely inside my life vest. It survived just fine.
It was incredible to see the park from this angle. {Especially incredible since we got to sit down and our arms did the work instead of our legs.} Oh, and you know me and movie trivia…here’s a good one for you. This section of the river and this exact company worked with the cast and crew or The River Wild to film the river scenes in the movie. Pretty cool, right? If you haven’t seen it, you should. Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon…how could you hate it with a cast like that?!
Okay, so I’m getting off topic. After we got past the rapids our guide told us we were at the deepest point in the river and that if we wanted to jump in this was our chance. I don’t know if she was being sincere or not, but Derek and I took advantage. We would never pass up the opportunity to swim in a river of glacier run off. I jumped off the side of the raft before thinking too hard about the choice. I knew if I did, I would rationalize just how cold that water would be. So I just hopped off. And yes, it was cold. Very, very cold. Like take your breath away, can’t move your arms and legs–cold. After resurfacing I tried to make some lame joke about demonstrating the proper rescue form for when you fall out of the boat. But my lips didn’t work, so it just came out in gibberish. My fellow rafters laughed, but I’m sure it wasn’t at my wit.
Derek jumped in too. He agreed, I wasn’t crazy, it was cold. After he’d had enough I hauled him back into the boat. See, the camera was a good idea after all.
After the rafting trip it was well into the afternoon, so we went back to our motel room for a very hot shower {to dethaw after our polar swim}. Then we went out for dinner at the Belton Chalet. I didn’t take the photo below. That’s from their website.
It’s fancy. Maybe too fancy for us. But the food was delightful and the view was fantastic.
We rounded our relaxing day out with a few hands of rummy by the fire place at our motel and a cozy effort to try and dry our shoes out before our final day of hiking…
Amy
