waiting on the lasagna

it seems that evenings around here just fly by. there's no tv - one of the supposed perks of the hostel, and therefore i can't fall into my usual boob tube stupor by 8pm and just coast all the way through the local news.

the ropes course was a blast - it's held at this place along the road to st. mary's lake where we've been doing the rock climbing. a couple of guys - cam and dave - set us up and led us through the 'ropes' as it were, a series of obstacle courses where we were to learn various aspects of team spirit and the like. it's all good. one of the set-ups involved crossing a tight-rope perched a mere two feet off the ground but strung between two trees about twenty-five feet apart. a rope was affixed to each tree and met in the middle of the tight-rope forming a kind of tee-pee in the middle. anyway, we had to cross the entire tight-rope without falling, and maneuver our way around the middle part - not an easily accomplished task. after teetering back and forth for a while i did manage to make my way across but my knees were jelly.

anyone else have interesting training exercise activities they'd like to share?

well, the coup de gras of the ropes course was the blindfolded obstacle course. we all went up in order, hitched into a climbing harness and belayed to terra firma, in total blindness. perched about ten feet above the world we made our way across a series of tight-ropes. first there was the single line... then the double, and finally the long single without guide rope but a series of rope loops hanging in the ether above our heads. i took a header on the final stretch - bobbed for a minute and then righted myself and finished the course. apparently there are pics so i'll be posting them when available.