My second trip to Durango for railroad inspection was a few weeks ago. I decided to drive again and take in all the sights along the way. This time, I drove along I-70 and visited Glenwood Canyon. This place is probably the coolest place I have ever biked. Four of my favorite things were there: biking, mountains, rivers, and bridges. The bridges were incredible. I was in heaven. In fact, I want my ashes to be spread there. The hike to Hanging Lake was equally astounding even if it didn't have any segmental, post-tensioned bridges along it.
http://picasaweb.google.com/N.Marshall.80/GlenwoodCanyonHangingLake
After spending the night in Montrose, I drove down to Ouray to do some hiking. I checked out the ice climbing canyon, Box Canyon waterfall, and the amazing scenery surrounding the town. Afterwards, I took a 4x4 road near Silverton for dirt-lovin' fun.
http://picasaweb.google.com/N.Marshall.80/4OuraySilverton
After all that fun, I drove to Durango to start our railroad bridge inspection. It was tough climbing all over those bridges and walls in such a spectacular scene, but someone has to do it.
http://picasaweb.google.com/N.Marshall.80/5Durango
On the way home, I enjoyed driving over Wolf Creek Pass and seeing alot of the Sangre De Cristo mountain range.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
House Fun
I recently have had to bite the bullet and hit the books for my big professional engineering exam. It has been rough to not get to visit the mountains, but this time of year has been ideal for studying with alot of cold, snowy days. My life until recently has revolved around engineering with a full day at work and an abundance of practice problems performed at home desk with trusty, suitcased engineering resources nearby.
While normally a pain in the rear end, but given any excuse not to study, I gladly took on some pressing house projects. The first was when I noticed a leak in the downstairs bathroom. The culprit was a leaking toilet seal at the attachment to the floor. I was forced to dismount the throne and place some grout and wax ring around the iron pipe flange and reattach the toilet.
"Not sure if I can aim that good. Better put the toilet back on."
Project number two was planting grass where the former owner's pool and trampoline were at. So far the stupid grass hasn't done much growing, so I am considering just making it a small infield.
Project number three was the infiltration of water into my basement after 10 inches of snow started melting while being rained on. I discovered it as I walked in from my garage and noticed a pool a water at the base of the basement steps. First I thought it was the toilet again, but after finding 0.25" of water in the corner room in the basement, I realized it was a bigger problem. The water was seeping in between the slab and the walls. BTW, no sump pump.
Alot of the junky carpet got wet and will need to be hauled off. Cleanup was performed with a squeegee and a mop. It was a fun activity three days before my big test. The basement still smells musty.
That same week I noticed I had a new roommate. As I was carrying out the trash, I noticed a female duck was sitting in my front flower bed. I didn't think too much of it until the next day I noticed she was sitting on some eggs.
Currently, she has 6-7 eggs in my flower bed. I am not that big of a fan of omelettes so I decided to just leave them be. Mrs. Quackers, as I call her, was a wonderful guard duck as I drove back to Kansas for my PE test.
The day of the big test finally arrived. I felt adequately prepared and was exhausted from studying. The morning session, which includes all civil engineering subjects, went very well. The afternoon session, which for me was only structural engineering questions, was much tougher. I got through it though and feel mildly confident I passed. I won't find out until June or so.
After enjoying the pleasant springtime weather of Missouri at my parents, I drove back to Colorado through 3 separate rainstorms. The next day I awoke to 4 inches of snow on the ground. Springtime in Colorado is an adventure. So is owning a house!
While normally a pain in the rear end, but given any excuse not to study, I gladly took on some pressing house projects. The first was when I noticed a leak in the downstairs bathroom. The culprit was a leaking toilet seal at the attachment to the floor. I was forced to dismount the throne and place some grout and wax ring around the iron pipe flange and reattach the toilet.
"Not sure if I can aim that good. Better put the toilet back on."
Project number two was planting grass where the former owner's pool and trampoline were at. So far the stupid grass hasn't done much growing, so I am considering just making it a small infield. 
Project number three was the infiltration of water into my basement after 10 inches of snow started melting while being rained on. I discovered it as I walked in from my garage and noticed a pool a water at the base of the basement steps. First I thought it was the toilet again, but after finding 0.25" of water in the corner room in the basement, I realized it was a bigger problem. The water was seeping in between the slab and the walls. BTW, no sump pump.
Alot of the junky carpet got wet and will need to be hauled off. Cleanup was performed with a squeegee and a mop. It was a fun activity three days before my big test. The basement still smells musty.
That same week I noticed I had a new roommate. As I was carrying out the trash, I noticed a female duck was sitting in my front flower bed. I didn't think too much of it until the next day I noticed she was sitting on some eggs.
Currently, she has 6-7 eggs in my flower bed. I am not that big of a fan of omelettes so I decided to just leave them be. Mrs. Quackers, as I call her, was a wonderful guard duck as I drove back to Kansas for my PE test.
The day of the big test finally arrived. I felt adequately prepared and was exhausted from studying. The morning session, which includes all civil engineering subjects, went very well. The afternoon session, which for me was only structural engineering questions, was much tougher. I got through it though and feel mildly confident I passed. I won't find out until June or so.
After enjoying the pleasant springtime weather of Missouri at my parents, I drove back to Colorado through 3 separate rainstorms. The next day I awoke to 4 inches of snow on the ground. Springtime in Colorado is an adventure. So is owning a house!
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Study Breaks
So I have been pretty busy (trying!) studying for the big PE exam. The weather has not been ideal for staying inside though with the very mild temperatures for the last few weeks. The nice weather took a brief break last Thursday when a blizzard hit the Denver area. We only got 10 or so inches, but the wind made it near whiteout conditions. It was awesome.
Here were some fun events from the past month.Loveland Company Ski Trip
Winter Park Ski Trip
Day Trip to Golden Gate Canyon State Park
Steamboat Springs Ski Trip
Saturday, February 21, 2009
A Walk in the Neighborhood
Last weekend, my sister's boyfriend was in town to use my Christmas present to them...a few passes to hit the slopes. It was pretty fun, especially when Chris and I switched my skis and his snowboard. It was my first time snowboarding ever and I was happy I picked it up fairly well. The feast at Pizza Hut afterwards was legendary. Mmmm.
For a more elequint account of the proceedings, I will reference my sister's blog. http://milehighmarshall.blogspot.com/2009/02/snow-bunnies-on-copper.htmlYesterday, I decided to walk around the neighborhood and find good paths for walking a future dog. There are six beautiful ponds/lakes nearby. All of them are home to ducks, geese, and an occasional Nessy-like creature. Here is the neighborhood.
Here is a quick photo tour. I cannot wait to take Fido on daily walks.
http://picasaweb.google.com/N.Marshall.80/MyNeighborhood#
http://picasaweb.google.com/N.Marshall.80/MyNeighborhood#
Speaking of Fido, I met my first dog "match" today. I signed up with two Golden Retriever Rescues which provide foster homes to homeless dogs until they are adopted out. The first dog I met was a 4 year old yellow lab, which I was already hesitant about because I really want a sweet golden retriever. I drove up to near Eldorado Canyon to meet the dog. The foster parent introduced me to the dog and I petted it on the head. It quickly turned and tried to nip my hand. "Umm, no thanks!" I thought. I told the lady I didn't want any part of an aggressive dog (hence the golden retriever rescue) and quickly got out of there.
While I was in the area, I hit up Eldorado Canyon and did some good hiking. It had some good views of the Continental Divide.
Lots of rock climbers were out scaling the canyon's walls. 
As I was walking up the trail, a train appeared from a tunnel high above the trail and rumbled the entire canyon. It was very impressive seeing it pull so many cars up such an incredible grade. I noticed it passed into another tunnel, so I ventured toward it to check it out.
The tunnel had 1939 cast into the headwall. Pretty impressive. I walked over to the other tunnel and was considering walking through it to get to the trailhead, but I could not see the end of it. Instead I bushwacked down the steep mountainside and jumped back onto the trail. A bit of an adventure for a Sunday afternoon.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Busy Bee
After finally settling into my new home, I was ready to have some fun out on the slopes. My friend, and former boss, Calvin and his family took their annual trip to Winter Park for some skiing. I was fortunate to be invited out to ski with them on Saturday.
Calvin and I have the same skill level, so it was great skiing with him. He caught me up on all the latest KDOT gossip. The conditions were great all day with the sun shining for the first time this year while I skied.
My first significant home improvement I decided to undertake was painting my upstairs bathroom. The room had an abundance of drywall holes and just looked pretty junky.
Beck expression reads, "I don't think you know where you are going."
Calvin and I have the same skill level, so it was great skiing with him. He caught me up on all the latest KDOT gossip. The conditions were great all day with the sun shining for the first time this year while I skied. The views were spectacular.
Here is a video of me heading down a blue/black slope. My mogul skiing needs alot of work. After skiing, we scarfed down a bunch of Pizza Hut and soaked in the hot tub. It was alot of fun.
On Sunday, I went snowshoeing up in Rocky Mountain National Park. I hiked up to Mills Lake in Glacier Gorge.
During the descent, I followed Glacier Creek which had sections of steep rock faces. The waterfalls were frozen, so I slid down many of them to get down. It was a very cool experience after hiking by the same creek during the summer while it had water rushing through it.
My first significant home improvement I decided to undertake was painting my upstairs bathroom. The room had an abundance of drywall holes and just looked pretty junky.Here are some pre-paint pics.
The new paint is a light orange, although the pictures don't really show it too well. I wanted to feel like I was entering the sun when I got ready for work in the morning.
I have been enjoying going to Lowe's to buy new tools and supplies. I got a nice new ladder! Yeah, I am a dork.
After finishing off all my painting, Beck and I took a quick jaunt over to Boulder and climbed some Flatirons.
After finishing off all my painting, Beck and I took a quick jaunt over to Boulder and climbed some Flatirons.Beck was stoked. 
The Flatirons trail is pretty steep and was quite the challenge for folks coming out of hibernation.
The Flatirons trail is pretty steep and was quite the challenge for folks coming out of hibernation. Beck expression reads, "I don't think you know where you are going."We made it down just fine and walked through a bit of Boulder's downtown. Beck liked living high on the hog. 
Sunday, January 25, 2009
New House!
So Friday was the big day. I formally closed on my first house. The closing took only 45 minutes and went surprisingly smooth, unlike getting cashier's checks for the closing costs. After finishing up, I drove straight to the new place and unloaded a car load of goods.
I grabbed several more loads before heading to work for the afternoon. The new place looked great. Here is my new back porch.
Here is the neighbor's awesome evergreen tree.
My sister was a big help during the move. Her and I made many trips back and forth to bring everything over. All in all, it took probably 10 or so trips to complete the move.
After work, my buddy Jason helped me move the couch and the mattresses. It had begun snowing as we were leaving work, so the slick concrete created more of a challenge.
When we arrived at my place, my sister had spent the afternoon making herself a home.
Not everything was quite perfect, of course. My computer desk remained in Kansas City because my old apartment had a built in shelf, so no desk at the new place. Beck made do.
Lots of crap everywhere. For the most part, it has since found a better home.
On Saturday, Beck "Muscles" Marshall helped me move some of the bigger stuff. She was excited to move her plant.
On Saturday, I bought a couple of folding tables to throw the computer on and to use to fold clothes downstairs.
Also on Saturday, I brought home the washer and dryer from Sears. Beck was at work (and probably wouold not have been much help) so I MacGyver'd a way to move the appliances down the steps by myself without fear of death. Thankfully, the garage door was right above the stairway, so I was able to rig up a "washer/dryer rappel" down the steps.
I attached a rope to my car and slowly released the appliances down the stairs.
The washer was not boxed up, so I attached some cardboard sleds to the front with duct tape.
The washer and dryer arrived safely downstairs and were easily hooked up. They seem to be working fine, aka no fires or anything.
The water heater is due to be replaced on Monday. I figured I would let the experts do it since it is natural gas and will need a new valve installed as well. Beck irritatedly informed me of the lack of hot water as she was showering before work. We utilized the hot water at my apartment until the replacement is finished.
I grabbed several more loads before heading to work for the afternoon. The new place looked great. Here is my new back porch.
Here is the neighbor's awesome evergreen tree.
My sister was a big help during the move. Her and I made many trips back and forth to bring everything over. All in all, it took probably 10 or so trips to complete the move.
After work, my buddy Jason helped me move the couch and the mattresses. It had begun snowing as we were leaving work, so the slick concrete created more of a challenge.
When we arrived at my place, my sister had spent the afternoon making herself a home.
Not everything was quite perfect, of course. My computer desk remained in Kansas City because my old apartment had a built in shelf, so no desk at the new place. Beck made do.
Lots of crap everywhere. For the most part, it has since found a better home.
On Saturday, Beck "Muscles" Marshall helped me move some of the bigger stuff. She was excited to move her plant.
On Saturday, I bought a couple of folding tables to throw the computer on and to use to fold clothes downstairs.
Also on Saturday, I brought home the washer and dryer from Sears. Beck was at work (and probably wouold not have been much help) so I MacGyver'd a way to move the appliances down the steps by myself without fear of death. Thankfully, the garage door was right above the stairway, so I was able to rig up a "washer/dryer rappel" down the steps.
I attached a rope to my car and slowly released the appliances down the stairs.
The washer was not boxed up, so I attached some cardboard sleds to the front with duct tape.
The washer and dryer arrived safely downstairs and were easily hooked up. They seem to be working fine, aka no fires or anything.
The water heater is due to be replaced on Monday. I figured I would let the experts do it since it is natural gas and will need a new valve installed as well. Beck irritatedly informed me of the lack of hot water as she was showering before work. We utilized the hot water at my apartment until the replacement is finished.Sunday, January 18, 2009
More Ketchup
After arriving back in Denver, I spent a strange week at work with hardly anyone else in the office. The office normally closes the week between Christmas and New Year's, however I did not have enough vacation accumulated to take it off. The quiet was nice at first, but I started slipping into some "Shining" mentality towards the end.
On New Year's Day, my cousins (Todd and Tyler) arrived to do some skiing. It was nice having guests, although one of my cousins clearly doesn't know how to behave away from home. We went to Winter Park on Saturday and had alot of fun.
It snowed most of the day, so the slopes were in excellent condition.
I was shocked the lift lines were so short. The economy must be keeping people at home. That means more skiing for me!
My next guest was my sister, Becca "Smickers" Marshall. I was very excited for her to move out here. Timing became an issue with her move, so she needed a place to stay for a few months. She reveled in my cookie dough.
For Christmas, I received a pair of snowshoes. I tried them out a bit near my apartment after we received all the snow we sledded on. I decided to go to Rocky Mountain National Park for a real test of the shoes.
The area was amazing with all the snow. I could not believe how many people were out there though. The parking lot was nearly full. The weather was unusually mild, but there was still plenty of snow near Bear Lake.
I hiked up to Dream Lake, then Emerald Lake. Snowshoeing was actually easier than I thought. The shoes have large claws to grip the snow. One thing that became a problem was I thought wearing gaiters would enough to wear since I would not be tromping through too deep of snow. I wore normal hiking pants under my gaiters. My lack of snow repellant attire became a problem when I discovered snow was flicking up on my backside with every step. Pretty soon the entire back of my pants was soaked. This became a greater problem as I approached Emerald Lake and the temperatures started dropping. Soon my pants were starting to freeze! This was not very comfortable. So the lesson learn is to wear snow pants even on a nice day.
On New Year's Day, my cousins (Todd and Tyler) arrived to do some skiing. It was nice having guests, although one of my cousins clearly doesn't know how to behave away from home. We went to Winter Park on Saturday and had alot of fun.
It snowed most of the day, so the slopes were in excellent condition.
I was shocked the lift lines were so short. The economy must be keeping people at home. That means more skiing for me! My next guest was my sister, Becca "Smickers" Marshall. I was very excited for her to move out here. Timing became an issue with her move, so she needed a place to stay for a few months. She reveled in my cookie dough. One of her first nights out, it snowed around 6". We hit the local sledding hills for some night sledding over the sleeping prairie dogs.
Beck was not adjusted to the altitude, but still was a trooper climbing the hills. I was looking pretty BA after a few sick runs down the hill.
Here is a video of Big Bad Beck flying down the hill face first. Listen closely because the first sound you will hear is the painful yelp of a prairie dog being treated as a mogul.
The next weekend I had more flatlanders visit. HL and the Gang from Kdot were in town for the national ASCE conference. We had a ridiculously good time in LoDo with the majority of the proof posted on facebook. Like a true Coloradoan, I awoke the next morning at 6:30am with a bumping head to go skiing.
I met more Kdot friends, Hovey and Frits, at Winter Park for more skiing. Little icy, but still fun.
Since my lease was up at the end of January, I decided to look at buying a house. I had saved quite a bit of money up since I am cheap, so I figured why not. I looked at 6 places in the Lakewood area and settled on this one.
It is a nice neighborhood with lots of parks nearby. The back yard is sizeable with lots of room for a dog. I loved the patio. It has a full basement, so it shouldn't feel too small for quite some time. Hopefully, if everything goes well, I will move in by the 24th of January.
For Christmas, I received a pair of snowshoes. I tried them out a bit near my apartment after we received all the snow we sledded on. I decided to go to Rocky Mountain National Park for a real test of the shoes.
The area was amazing with all the snow. I could not believe how many people were out there though. The parking lot was nearly full. The weather was unusually mild, but there was still plenty of snow near Bear Lake.
I hiked up to Dream Lake, then Emerald Lake. Snowshoeing was actually easier than I thought. The shoes have large claws to grip the snow. One thing that became a problem was I thought wearing gaiters would enough to wear since I would not be tromping through too deep of snow. I wore normal hiking pants under my gaiters. My lack of snow repellant attire became a problem when I discovered snow was flicking up on my backside with every step. Pretty soon the entire back of my pants was soaked. This became a greater problem as I approached Emerald Lake and the temperatures started dropping. Soon my pants were starting to freeze! This was not very comfortable. So the lesson learn is to wear snow pants even on a nice day. On the way out of the park (while my trousers were unthawing) I was surprised to see a herd of elk along the roadside.
I saw even more elk in the Moraine Park meadow.
More pics
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