Log 2015031801

I purchased a Roughneck plastic container for my truing stand.  It's twice as big for what I need it for and I'm not sure about where I'm store it yet?

Recently, I've had my lower back problem reemerge.  But I've noticed that it gets better when I hike or workout.  It's bizarre that this is the effect considering the stress that I have to put on it to do this.   My guess is that that my entire body has not been getting adequate exercise when I'm at home and I'm loosing muscle mass unevenly, causing some of the lessening strands to stretch around others that have yet to compensate.  All I know is that it works better than 800mg Tylenol.

On the 15th & 16th, I made my initial inspection of Whipple Section - Buckeye Trail's off-road (North Country National Scenic Trail concurrent).  I wanted to do it early next month, but I monitor the severe weather conditions from the desk and weeks of areal flood watches and warnings, coupled with National Forest Service (NFS) campground closures prompted me to do it early.

Whipple's low point is at 604ft along the Little Muskingum River at a position that is roughly 7 miles north of the Ohio River.  The river's level near the SE tip of Buckley Island is 584ft above sea level there and at the mouth of the Little Muskingum in Marietta of Washington County as well.  I wish that I knew how many miles upstream our low point it, but it could be about 7 or 8?  Considering how far in land the Little Muskingum goes before it reaches BT/ NCT, I'm surprised at just how little it gains in that short amount of distance.

The good news is that while along the Little Muskingum, Whipple's sand surface was on a top of a ledge, some 5 to 7ft from the bloated river.  And it would really take a lot for a flooded river to overtake it, like a 200 year flood or more.

Whipple is passable at the moment, in fact, most people can reach average speeds on it.  With that being said, I accounted for 145 deficiencies in Whipple's 13.59 miles of off-road in the Marietta Unit of the Wayne National Forest.  Most of them are downed trees of 18" of less that are resting entirely on the trail's surface.  We have a sawyer course coming up in May and I intend to be there.  But without a sawyer, it would take over 24 days per person to clear those obstructions with a hand saw.  However, my experience with a chainsaw suggests that it won't get much faster.

Log 2014031801

I experienced a little bit of the same lower back pain for the first two hours that I was up today. But all in all, it's still subsiding. Other than that, I purchased a laptop stand on an arm that mounts to the desk at Micro Center in Mayfield Heights of Cuyahoga County. I'm not sure how I'm going to configure my desk around it yet? I originally wanted to just get a platform for a wireless keyboard that I already have.

Log 2014022201

Today, I've been working today adding content to the OTHR transit points. I got them done, but I realized that there were a few things missing in the transit map. Their replacements were noted in my OTHR re-fit task list.

Last night, I slept in a weird position. When I woke up, my back was in pain.  It's taken me all the way until now to finally get over it.

Log 2013110801

Ever since I unloaded the expansion floor and folded up the trailer, it seems that my 2008 Chevy HHR sits higher. I must say that I don't understand it because my car should fit 5 grown adults. Regardless, if this is true then the new rear struts are good, but need to be upgraded. I thought I felt that the back end is riding higher, but all I know, it's just my imagination.
Like I mentioned before, I folded the trailer and placed it into storage today. When I got the tool bins down, they might have been 300lbs a piece? And the gear bin wasn't too much lighter than the tools.  Between that, the trailer's dry weight, the 5500 BTU airconditioner and miscellaneous car repair equipment, it's possible that I was over my towing capasity. But, it's hard to tell without using an industrial scale. And if I had one, I think it'd be pretty close.
The trailer, gear, expansion floor & twin size memory foam mattress are in the 10' x 10' storage unit.  The next thing to do with it is see if my belongings will compact to one side so I could free up my uncle's office that I'm using for storage? To be honest, I'm not really sure it will work? There might be insufficent space in the new unit?
Right now, my bicycle is in the new storage unit until I cut enough plywood to block the windows on my parents shed. And my master portable gasoline tank was emptied out into the car today.  As of now, it's empty, but I still have about a gallon of 40:1 mix that I doubt I'll get rid of.  In my chainsaw class that I had at Buckeye Trail Fest 2013, I was informed that 40:1 mixed fuel isn't much good beyond 90 days after it was mixed.
Right now, I still have pain in my back from sleeping awkwardly in The Cramper.  But its getting better by the day with stretching.  Last night, I put a rice filled cold compress on it before I slept for about 42 minutes.  The cold disapated too quickly. I'm really looking forward to working out at the gym again.