What A Long Strange Hike It Was

· Hiking Time --- 1 hours 53 minutes

· Temperature: 30ºF (-1ºC)

· Trail Time in October -- 21 hours 43 minutes

____(starting Oct. 1)
· Weight Loss Goal -- 24 pounds (11 kg)
__________· So Far -- 5 lb.

This afternoon my hike was a little shorter than usual... but darn great it was to be out there. Under the overcast sky, it was rather warm today. No gloves needed! Yes, going up from like 16 to 30(F) is indeed getting a bit warm. Could also unzip my fleece jacket and let some cool air in. Ahhhhh, a warm day on the trail. Ran into 4 moose... well, they were hangin' out munchin' on some exposed leaves or high grass or something, about 8 feet off the trail. Had to wait about two minutes or so while they walked away and then I was able to ease on by without startling them. Never a good thing to be chased by moose who think you're too close for comfort. Haven't had it happen to me, but have seen it a couple times with someone I was hiking with. Usually the baby moose are really young when this happens, mom being protective and all. These guys were all adults or some were like teens so no worries.

In any case, after turning around, daylight faded fast from the sky on my way back. All I could sneak in was just less than 2 hours but hey, that's better than nothin'! Wasn't even sure I wanted to go, bein' tired beforehand and knowing my boots are still new and still needing be broken in. Applied some band-aids and tape to one problem heel and that ended up being no problem at all. So very glad I am that I got out today to hike down the trail through this Winter Wonderland that is central Alaska.

trail tunes...

What A Long Strange
Trip It's Been

The Best Of The

Grateful Dead

[1977]



disc 1:
New, New Minglewood Blues
Cosmic Charlie
Truckin'
Black Peter
Born Cross-Eyed
Ripple
Doin' That Rag
Dark Star
High Time
New Speedway Boogie

disc 2:
St. Stephen
Jack Straw
Me & My Uncle
Tennessee Jed
Cumberland Blues
Playing In The Band
Brown-Eyed Women
Ramble On Rose

For a short time way back, Skeletons From The Closet was the only "Greatest Hits" album for the good ol' Grateful Dead. Then just a few years after that, Warner released WALSTIB -- What A Long Strange Trip It's Been. 4 LP's long, and two cassettes, this became a treasure for the casual Deadhead. Many years later, it was a staple in my tapecase, that's for sure. Probably almost never went anywhere without it. With almost a whole different set of songs, Skeletons was still a must have; it was great for a one tape listen while WALSTIB has a greater song selection, good for well over an hour of listening time.

There really is absolutely nothing to complain about with this release, methinks. But being a Head who listens to live Dead shows means this one really just sits on the shelf getting dusty. Yup, once upon a time the tapes got listened to so much they broke but today I'm not even sure why I got the 2-CD set. This blog is the only reason I gave it a spin and really I'm glad I did 'cause it's a cool bunch of songs. Recorded from '67 to '72, it's a blend of studio versions while others are taken from Europe '72 and the Skull and Roses album which was recorded live in April of '71 (but then edited in the studio.) And one track is from the Fillmore East 1970. Together they weave a perfect picture of early GD. Not a perfect picture of early live GD, but a nice painting never-the-less.

So while the CD case may have been dusty, the music was clean... and a great listen was had!

P.S. what is The Phantom Finger Cult?!?

320 kbps dload right here
WALSTIB - Disc 1 Disc 2 - WALSTIB