Damn that's an impressive operation! I don't know about BT and Lake, but my eyes went right to the snowshoes on the wall! Very cool!! I never used show shoes growing up in NE PA but I did use them in Antarctica. Took me a minute to get my coordination with them but after a bit i was cruising pretty good in them!!

Sweet operation! (see what I did there?) Don't I remember last year, you talking about being too old to tap your trees and you had signed up for fire watch at your neighbor's? lol How'd that work out for ya? And now you have a nice new evap unit. 

lol Yep, my eyes went straight past the shiny stainless, right to the snowshoes! Which is odd, 'cause, usually us scar heads are attracted to shiny stuff. Or maybe after making beer for 30 yrs, I'm immune to stainless. Do you like the wood frames or titanium/aluminum better? I got lil' Suzy the "modern" plastic/aluminum shoes 'cause they're a little lighter. They work fine for her 100 lb mass, but I'm not convinced they'd keep my bulk from sinking in up to my knees. Maybe they'd work, if I wasn't always the trail breaker, but for some reason, no one else wants that job.

Down this way, Maple Weekend(s) are the middle of March. Last year they cancelled it out. This years was pancakes & syrup ta go!

Just like fallin' off a bike Navy! Once you figure it out, it stays with you for life.

Holy Shit NL, what the heck were you doing in Antarctica?? Now I know why ya live in FLA.  You nuts probably still aint thawed out from that place.

BT: I like the looks of wooden frames better but I have to admit that the aluminum ones are much better in regards to practicality. I'm old school though, all my firearms have wooden stocks and such.  They can keep the synthetic crap.  My stint as chief cook and bottle washer was short lived. You know the old saying "too many chiefs and not enough braves"

I hear ya w/ the wood and old school. I only have two rifles w/ plastic stocks, my .17 target rifle and my AR.

I took a part time security job to help pay for some of my toys. Boss told me I was supposed to "watch The Office". I'm on season 7 now and still have no understanding on what watching TV has to do with security.

@tsuga I spent 4 years in Antarctic Development Squadron 6 (VXE-6) We flew C-130 Hercs and H-1 Hueys which you both are most definitely intimately familiar with! I did 4 6 month deployments to the ice and Christchurch New Zealand 1992-1996. Most awesome tour of my Navy Career. Got to go to the South Pole multiple times, actually lived there for 3 weeks. Camped out in a snow field for 2 weeks in tents fixing a Herc. Actually got some stick time in both the Herc and Huey. The Huey is a blast to fly!!.

I'm in the middle row second from the left

@navylion. My goodness brother that place looks 🥶 cold lol. That’s some awesome pictures guys

@southern-psu-fan lol Must be summer time SPF or you wouldn't be able to see their exposed faces.

@been-there-ii That was actually the end of winter a couple of weeks after the first sunrise. It's dark the 6 months of winter and light the 6 months of summer. We went down about the middle of August to do open up for the season. We operated from September to February every year. My second oldest was born July 15th 1992, I reported to the Squadron the beginning of Sept 92, deployed 2 weeks later. I never spent my first Christmas with her until she was 5 years old due to our yearly deployments in that Squadron. 

@navylion Ah. So it was spring time! They grow up pretty quickly, bummer you missed so many Christmases. Most folks don't even think about the "little" sacrifices Vets make. But they'd be howling & screaming if they had to do the same.

Posted by: @navylion

@been-there-ii That was actually the end of winter a couple of weeks after the first sunrise. It's dark the 6 months of winter and light the 6 months of summer. We went down about the middle of August to do open up for the season. We operated from September to February every year. My second oldest was born July 15th 1992, I reported to the Squadron the beginning of Sept 92, deployed 2 weeks later. I never spent my first Christmas with her until she was 5 years old due to our yearly deployments in that Squadron. 

 

Thanks for your service brother.  Like BT said, we've all made sacrifices that many take for granted. 

Always loved seeing those choppers zipping into a LZ.  You flew them bad boys??  My hat's off to you and all the boys that flew us in and out, that took balls to drop down while taking fire from all around.

Posted by: @been-there-ii

Sweet operation! (see what I did there?) Don't I remember last year, you talking about being too old to tap your trees and you had signed up for fire watch at your neighbor's? lol How'd that work out for ya? And now you have a nice new evap unit. 

lol Yep, my eyes went straight past the shiny stainless, right to the snowshoes! Which is odd, 'cause, usually us scar heads are attracted to shiny stuff. Or maybe after making beer for 30 yrs, I'm immune to stainless. Do you like the wood frames or titanium/aluminum better? I got lil' Suzy the "modern" plastic/aluminum shoes 'cause they're a little lighter. They work fine for her 100 lb mass, but I'm not convinced they'd keep my bulk from sinking in up to my knees. Maybe they'd work, if I wasn't always the trail breaker, but for some reason, no one else wants that job.

Down this way, Maple Weekend(s) are the middle of March. Last year they cancelled it out. This years was pancakes & syrup ta go!

Just like fallin' off a bike Navy! Once you figure it out, it stays with you for life.

One year my goal is to be sitting beside that man in the bench shooting the breeze and watching everyone else work.

Looks impressive. Great grandson will have great memories.