So I was going to write something grandiose about all that I had gained this summer, but words are currently failing to convey the pure feelings of the experience. Here's a quick update on what has been, what is, and what will come...

The scout group left a week ago and it was good to have some normality back in life. Unfortunately, my time here for this round of life is coming to an end during a busy part of the year. We've been trying to wrap up miscellaneous projects in preparation for fall training which will start in earnest any day now. The nights have been getting cooler with multiple mornings of frost last week. The dog yard has been extended into the new kennel area and a new musher's cabin has been brought in. We also did a little landscaping to prevent the over curious public from wandering into the kennel area.

I'm all set for the return journey and will hopefully relax once I make all my flight connections. Tomorrow begins with a bus ride to the eastern coast and the city of Umea. Not too sure what to expect, but it'll be a quick stop before heading out the next morning to Stockholm, then Iceland, and then Seattle. From Seattle, it's going to be a lot of traveling for the next month as I make my way through Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, and South Dakota. This thing will probably become dormant again, so if you need an update, call me or come find me on the open road...

title not necessary

the glow of fall,
deep sunsets, leaves on fire.
through a changing season
low-angle light.

when the sun hides
behind distant ridges,
brisk air creeps in
alive.

the cycle continues,
winter is coming.

I am alive, feeling the change of the seasons. Cold air has returned and my body begins to recall the joys of the winter season. My senses constantly look for signs of freezing: the thermometer in the morning, dew now frozen into frost; the need for an extra layer, even with the sun shining bright; the evening star winking as I drive home, high hopes to see the winter constellation of Orion; a smell in the air and a feeling in my bones. I am yearning for the change of seasons. What would life be without this predictable change? It occurs everywhere in the world, in many different forms. The rainy to dry season, summer to winter with spring and fall in between. Every individual feels the change and experiences it as a community with the surrounding landscape. Winter is coming...

This last week has seen some action happening. The new dog kennel has moved forward with most of the walls being put up and new we are just waiting for door panels to arrive and it will be complete. A large stack of fire wood has been moved to make room for a future cabin. We're also starting to see the first signs of fall and preparations for winter are creeping into our thoughts. Birch trees have begun turning to shades of gold and yellow. A familiar coldness accompanies the night time and the smell of wood smoke drifts though the valleys.

A boy scout group from the UK is arriving in a couple weeks, so we have been preparing the property in Morka to serve them as a base camp. This has included setting up a rather large tipi with 8 m long poles and a diameter of roughly 10.5 m. The canvas is almost too heavy for 2 people to lift and it took 6 of us to set everything up. There are a ton of metal clasps and whatnot, which led me to the realization that this was another instance of the white man taking a perfectly good idea, making it "bigger and better," but really only making it more difficult and cumbersome. Let's just say I'm not looking forward to taking the bloody thing down...

I've decided to take my experience with scooping dog poo and building dog houses, combine the two, upgrade the concept, and build a cozy outhouse complete with magazine rack and windows. The frame is up now and the rest of it will come together in the next few days. Photos to come as another Swedish masterpiece is created! In other news, the fishing at Morka has proven worthwhile. Dave and I each caught a grayling and we smoked them using the newly constructed campfire oven/grill/smoker. The set up was tested and approved with some tasty steaks and pork chops coming off the grill.

That's it for now, more to come as the story unfolds.

Norway

I'm back in Slussfors, recovered from my first time in Norway. The trip started out with a hopeful weather forecast, but quickly descended into a dull mood matching the low gray clouds, fog and rain that greeted my entrance into Norway. The border could easily be missed by the unobservant, for it consisted of a small sign in a language I don't really know and a change in the paint job on the houses. The entry into Mo i Rana marked my return to something resembling civilization and the quick stop at the market/hardwear store/mall was more than enough for me. With less than ideal weather, Dave and I spent some time in the car exploring the roadways around the Rana fjord before heading into Nesna. Docked in the harbor is Dave's new sailboat and it would serve as our home away from home for the next few days. We quickly shuttled our gear below deck and dug in as the weather worsened into chaos. Periodically braving the weather to relieve ourselves horizontal rain drenched us and made dry clothes a rare thing. We began getting things ready between downpours and during the worst of it made dents in our books and a bottle of Laphroaig, a single malt from Islay. Friday provided enough sunshine to climb a nearby mountain and gain some perspective on the surrounding landscape. The client for the trip, David, arrived on Saturday and we finished all our packing. Sunday morning found us on the ferry to the island of Tomma, where we launched our kayaks with sunny and calm weather. Paddling around Tomma, in and amongst many small islands with crystal clear water, it sometimes felt like we were somewhere tropical. Selecting a small island west of Tomma, we camped for the night and caught a beautiful sunset with Lurøy and Træna in the distance. Monday had overcast skies and gusts of wind coming off the coastal mountains. We made some progress north, spending some time in rough seas, before finding shelter on another island. The poor weather continued into Tuesday, so we took the day off from paddling and explored the island. Well rested, we awoke on Wednesday at 4 am for a wonderful sunrise and paddled over perfectly calm water to the small village of Sleneset. Making a quick resupply, we then hopped on the ferry and returned to Stokkvågen on the mainland, from which we paddled into the fjord and camped along the shore in Sila bay. On Thursday we crossed the Rana fjord and made our way back to Nesna. The weather went sour again on Friday, but by then we were on our way back to Slussfors. That pretty much sums up the last week or so.

quick one

Flickr has been updated with a few quick photos from recent explorations in Norway. Blog update to hopefully come in the next few days...for now, back in Slussfors, back in the rain, and back with the dogs.

post it

Dear computer,

I do not appreciate all the time you waste as I sit here typing this forsaken blog post. I do not appreciate that fact I have been sucked into the abyss of social networking and the facades of cyberspace. I do not like creating avatars and fake personifications of my true character and personality. I do not appreciate your little white screen starting at me before I go to bed and waking me up in the morning with a cup of coffee. I am addicted to your bloody modern technology and the speed and complexity at which you bring a false sense of connectedness to the 'global' community. As this could stretch on ad infinitum, I'm going to get straight to the point: I am initiating a 10 day boycott of this infernal machine. I am leaving the country, going to Norway, and not caring about what happens on Earth unless it directly affects me in the next 10 days. Do not check this until August.

Sincerely,
d. cembalski

new life

Zulu and Makalu are happy to announce the arrival of 7 new puppies to the kennel today! This is the second litter to come from Zulu and Mak. The newborn puppies are already big and strong and will be pulling a sled down the trail before too long...

mid-July

So it's finally warmed up enough to wear shorts, although I haven't taken the step to shorts and a t-shirt. However, if you choose to walk outside with shorts on, your legs will soon be black with flies and mosquitoes, hungry for your blood. Short wearing time only lasts for a couple hours in the evening a couple days per week. When it's not sunny and hot, it's over cast and raining, verging on a down pour. Apparently August is a pretty damp month, so I'm enjoying the sun while I can.

Last week I had a real cultural experience when Sibylle and I went to watch a Sami tradition, reindeer ear marking. The Sami are the native people of Lappland (northern Norway, Sweden, Finnland, and eastern Russia) and have relied on reindeer herding as a livelihood for generations. For most of the year, the reindeer roam free through the forests and across the fjälls. Every single reindeer is claimed by a Sami family, so people here consider reindeer domesticated. After calves are born in the spring, local Sami families plan times for herding and ear marking during the summer. Every family has a certain marking they put on the ears of their reindeer and many often have multiple marks. The whole deal is similar to branding cattle. During a cold night without rain, everyone hikes up into the fjälls where an area has been fenced off. The reindeer are herded up a valley and into the fenced area and this is when the fun begins.

Cold nights are chosen because the calves are more likely to stay close to their mothers. Being as far north as we are, there is no problem with seeing at any given hour. By watching which calf goes to which mother, the Sami are able to determine who the reindeer belong to. The mothers have already been marked and tonight is time for the calves rite of passage. When the Sami see a calf following a mother who is theirs, they fling a tightly coiled loop, lassoing the calf around the neck. Keeping a tight hold onto the rope, they go down the line hand over hand until they can pin the calf on the ground. Equipped at the hip with traditional knives as sharp as razors, they quickly holds the ears as they cut out notches, effectively "branding" their reindeer. Once done, they release the calf and begin looking for another one.

Keep in mind, that while one is focused on marking an ear, there are hundreds of reindeer stampeding around and numerous other families marking ears. If the Sami get tired, they can go outside the fence where multiple fires are kept lit and stocked with wood throughout the night. The native vs invader mentality exists almost everywhere and Lappland is no exception. The Sami and Swedes don't get along very well and generally keep to themselves. One of the few ways to see the ear marking tradition is to know a Sami who has invited you. We were lucky enough to have such a friend through Dave and Annette. After leaving Slussfors at 17:00, I finally returned around 6:30, the next morning. It had never gotten dark, I hadn't slept a wink, and I felt like I had seen something special in life.

new view on summer

So it's now July 5 and I think about time I accept that this is what summer is here in Lappland. A really warm day is 20 C, which about 70 F. Coming from Montana and other places where it can get quite hot outside, I have yet to use the two pairs of shorts I packed. I'm beginning to think the space would have been better used for an extra pair of Carharts. The last couple days have, however, warranted chacos and a t-shirt, at least for part of the day. I've adjusted to falling back to sleep at 3 am with the sun blazing through the windows and I've now adjusted to the fact I just might not wear a t-shirt and shorts at the same time in 2010.

Thunderstorms and heavy downpours of rain have been occurring almost daily and it always reminds me of home somehow. I have now built 11 dog houses, which the dogs happily enjoy when the sky opens up with buckets of rain. The World Cup is coming to a close soon, but the Tour de France is picking up, with stage 2 already complete. On one hand, it's nice having these great sporting events on throughout the day and evening. On the other hand, watching Tour stages for 4 hours every day can really cut into your work time.

I pulled out an old bread machine yesterday and made my first loaf following directions in German and using Swedish ingredients. It would have been awfully confusing had I not done it before. If you're looking for some summer time reading, take a look at All the Little Live Things by Wallace Stegner, North to the Night by Alvah Simon, A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn or The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. The first two I've read and enjoyed. The last two I'm in the middle of and highly recommend.

Guess that's it for now. I realize no one probably reads this on any kind of regular schedule (cause I don't have a regular schedule for posting), but it seems any time I don't post for more than a week, I get an email from someone asking why I haven't posted anything. So if I'm posting, there's either something interesting going on or I'm just bored. If I'm not posting, then there's either nothing interesting going on or I'm too busy. So there you have it. Stay tuned, but not too closely...

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summer storms stimulation

The rain comes and goes, creating numerous shades of green, stimulating sight. Moss grows everywhere and the forest smells organic, stimulating smell. Breezes blow down the river, born in the mountains of Norway, stimulating feel. Birds talk, dogs howl, and plants rustle their leaves, stimulating hearing. Holding all the hope of future generations, berries release sweet juices, stimulating taste.

it's all downhill from here...

It's a week after the summer solstice, which means the days are getting shorter and we may even have this thing called 'darkness' before too long. I still find myself waking up at 3 am and forcing myself back to sleep. The official Midsummer celebration in Sweden was this last weekend and ninety percent of the country will take the next month off, so it's important to make sure you have almost everything you'll need to do projects in July. We don't have the luxury to take a month off, but I'm still finding ways to enjoy myself. On sunny days like today, I usually take a kayak out and paddle around the lake for a couple hours, finding little coves and inlets to explore. I also continue my daily walks around the 'fake' island, continually checking on the progress of the wildflowers. I seem to find new ones every couple days or so. I reset the birch poles for the new dog kennel today and we'll be getting lumber for new dog houses this week, so I'll be able to start chipping away at making 30 new houses. July should be fun, as I will get to spend some time out on the Norwegian coast. The new sailboat is in Nesna and before too long, we'll go for a long weekend to Norway to make some repairs on the boat and scout out some logistics for sea kayaking trips. A new litter of puppies is expected around July 24 and before I know it, it'll be August. I'm moving into a real house soon, so Dave can have his cabin/office space back. Between all the other projects, we're going to start building a handler's cabin, similar to the one I'm in now, but better suited to stay in for the winter. I guess that's it for now, but I'll post again when something interesting happens.

out and about

The last two days have provided time to get out and discover some of Västerbotten. Turns out Slussfors has about 160 people. It consists of a couple houses, a school, and a gas station/market. It happens to be on E12, a paved road which is a rarity in these parts. Last night, we got out the cart and took Toby's greenland huskies for a little run. Through breaks in trees, you get views of snowfields on the mountains that border Norway. Today, we finished setting birch poles for the new dog pens, digging the last 3 holes by hand. The early day sun has turned to overcast with occasional rain showers. The Slussfors market proved inadequate for our dinner plans, so we drove 30 km to the larger village of Dikanäs, population probably 300. Needless to say, most of the drive was on a single-lane gravel road, with lots of ups and downs and it can get quite exciting going 70 km/h and having to swerve to miss logging trucks! Dave and Toby's wife, Susan, are currently stuck in a small island harbor off the coast of Norway. They are sailing Dave's new boat from Trondheim to a port close to Mo i Rana, but have been pinned down by bad weather. Well that's Sweden for now. Stay posted.

p.s.
GO ARGENTINA! With the 4-1 win over Korea today, looks like the world cup semi-finals are in reach!

Well I think I am still adjusting to entering a kennel with 30 loose dogs and the mayhem associated with all the excitement. It makes kennel chores a little difficult with all these dogs swarming around your feet. Swedish law is different from the US in that dogs are not allowed to be staked out. This means all our dogs get to run around in a couple big fenced areas. Surprisingly, not too many fights occur and the dogs seem to enjoy playing with each other. It can be intimidating though, opening the gate and trying to get in without dogs getting out, everyone barking and jumping on you. At about 12:30 last night, still very light out mind you, I heard the pitter-patter of feet on the deck. Looking outside, I saw three dogs running around the property and having a jolly ole time. On went the clothes and with bleary eyes we put the dogs back into the kennel and searched for the escape point. Sure enough, a hole about half the size of a dog was found and is in line to be repaired today. A new kennel will be built in the coming week, so hopefully that will put an end to the midnight escapes. We've got some exciting news with the two new additions to the pack last night! I'm still remembering names, but another brother and the mother of our six youngest dogs are now here. I'll post more when I can remember their names...

Arrived and still not speaking a lick of Svenska

The journey is over, or more so, a new one is beginning. I left Seattle with a heavy heart, leaving behind the comforts of my routine life, the ins and outs of a country I know and a way of living I understand. More importantly, I left behind friends and family. Upon take off, we passed through rain clouds, steadily gaining elevation until the plane leveled off above a sea of puffy white. Passing over the Cascades, pesky summits broke through the white barrier and rekindled the my desire to stand among the giants. Clouds covered my view until the central planes of Canada, where I saw only meandering streams, isolated lakes, and unending grass. A shoreline appeared, the land disappeared, and small white dots littered the blue expanse. A new line appeared, now white and cracked. I was over Hudson Bay and the spring breakup was far from over. Clouds once again covered my view, this time ranging in the vibrant colors of a sunset. Except the color faded to white, never to the black that has always accompanied sunsets. As I looked at the whiteness below, shapes began to form. Longs lines of a windswept landscape. Crinkles of tension. Crevasses. The Greenland Icesheet flowed out to the coastline. Rivers of ice flowed down valleys. Windblown snow and rock bands alternated on carved ridges and still more icebergs calved into the ocean. The desent into Iceland was through thick fog, with visibility limited to a couple hundred meters. At least I could see the fields of lupin-like flowers surrounding the airport. The clouds closed in until the coast of Norway, where fjords gave way to glacial mesas. Sweden arrived, looking pastoral and calm. The Stockholm airport offered a few hours of sleep, where I was able to tuck away into a quiet corner. Onto another plane, this one small, but the final leg of a journey. After one short refueling stop, I landed in the Storuman airport, walking the final stretch from plane to building. There I finally met Annette and Dave, the two people responsible for my being in Sweden. Off to the car and a drive to Slussfors, where we could finally talk without the hinderance of email and cyberspace. We grilled moose burgers for dinner and I met a couple from the UK who are also staying here. My accomodation consists of a small one room cabin, about 200 meters off the river and the land is in perpetual daylight. There are 28 young dogs in the kennel, many from good blood lines. There is also a resident cat in the vet and two strong horses out back. Work starts tomorrow, but for now it's rest and relaxation.

Top of the Rockies

May 16, 2010 added a new summit to our growing list. Mt. Elbert lies in the Sawatch Range of the southern Rocky Mountains. Standing at 14,433 feet and overlooking the town of Leadville, Elbert is the highest peak in Colorado and the second highest, after Mt. Whitney, in the lower 48. Around 12:20, we stepped onto the summit and surveyed the sweeping views of the Rockies. Denali reached a new high point and Toren claimed her first fourteener. Summitting via the northeast ridge, we encountered nothing but old footsteps and windblown snowdrifts. Fourteeners are generally known for their lack of solitude, with crowds numbering into the dozens. We enjoyed our time alone and thought of peaks in Montana where wilderness remains true to its name. A rant on Colorado to come later, but for now, we are happy to continue on with new adventures.

soft clouds

draping over

weathered hills.

snow caped mountains

foreboding in appearance

alluring with mystery

comforting through experience

closer to the sky

May 2 has come around and brings with it the joy of gropple! I guess winter is not ready to release its grip from the Rocky Mountains. Snow from recent storms still frames the first green of spring. Today was the last day of work at the kennel. I will truly miss all the dogs, especially the ones who ran on my team. Sometimes called Team Bubba, here's a quick summary of the team: Pretzel, Lucy, Sasha, Stormy, Boots, Daisy, Socks, Bubba, Tango, Dozer, Scaredy, Shy, and Digger. Honorable mention also goes out to Aurora, Happy, Heely, Sienna, and Opher.

Sweden will bring an adventurous new path to my life. My first time across the pond and completely on my own, I somehow feel prepared. Almost a month away, June 10 marks my last day in the US for awhile. Stay posted this summer, through flickr and this site, and hopefully you'll have something to spice up your day...

staying human

As winter wraps up here in Vail, CO, our lives are moving ahead. The snow lies only on the highest mountains or in shadows unkissed by the sun. Our final days at the Winterhawk kennel will be busy as we move the dogs to their summer, and hopefully permanent, kennel. It's location is where we ran tours for the last month, on the way to Leadville in an area called Camp Hale. It was a high altitude and winter training site for the 10th Mountain Division duing WWII. Lots of history and a beautiful place to run dogs. Friends, both new and old, are embarking on new stages of life and I wish the best of luck to everyone. A special thanks goes out Betsy, without whom this road in life may never have been explored. Before things get too deep and philisophocial, I'll pass on a quick update:

Toren has a summer job! She'll be the crew leader for a pika study in the Wind River Range of Wyoming. Life is hard when you're getting paid to backpack 4 days per week. The job doesn't start till mid-June, so we'll have some time to explore Colorado, drop through Montana, and then head out to Seattle for all the Johnson birthdays. My summer plans include some overseas exploring. A couple dozen job applications yielded nothing except a job offer in Sweden. I'll be heading over there for two months to see if I want to accept a long term position. Work time will be spent restoring an old farm to serve as a base for a racing kennel of 30 dogs. Play time will be spent sailing to islands in Norway to access climbing, sea kayaking the fjords, and backpacking under the midnight sun in Lappland. If all goes well, hopefully Toren and Denali with join me overthere!

I'll keep you all posted as this spring/summer progresses.