Aaron "Beartooth" Erickson

More Golf Pictures

2008-03-28T20:49:00.005-05:00

I just can't help it. Even though my yard is covered in snow still, I'm eagerly anticipating golf. Enjoy these pictures from recent golf trips to Brainerd, MN.

The first one is from the Pines Golf Course, hole #4 on the Lakes 9:

This is hole # 5 at the Madden's Classic course:

This image is hole #12 at Deacon's Lodge:

In case you hadn't guessed by now, those are the 3 courses on the docket for this years trip.

Blog Updates

2008-03-11T08:49:00.004-05:00

Well, It's been awhile since I've posted anything on this blog. In fact, since I last posted, I've been skiing twice, and am finally tired of winter. I think I'll have to find some golf pictures soon. It's almost golf season. Of course, I say that with over a foot of snow on the ground still. So, it may be awhile. But I can hope. Here's a picture to jog memories of what green grass and unfrozen water look like.

That's a picture at Cragun's Resort near Brainerd, MN. The courses up there are good reminders that I have no chance for a professional golf career.

Snow Coming

2007-11-30T11:59:00.000-06:00

Since Minneapolis is supposed to get about 6" of snow tomorrow, I thought I'd celebrate the news with pictures of where I'd like to ski. This one would make me twitch a little, but I'm still stupid enough to do it.

This next picture is from one of the back bowls at Vail, which I have skiied. Good stuff back there. I need to get back to Vail.

Christmas Eating

2007-11-29T10:26:00.002-06:00

by Craig Wilson (USA Today columnist)

I hate this time of year. Not for its crass, commercialism and forced frivolity, but because it's the season when the food police come out with their wagging fingers and annual tips on how to get through the holidays without gaining 10 pounds. You can't pick up a magazine without finding a list of holiday do's and don'ts. Eliminate second helpings, high calorie sauces and cookies made with butter, they say. Fill up on vegetable sticks, they say. Good grief. Is your favorite childhood memory of Christmas a carrot stick? I didn't think so. Isn't mine, either. A carrot was something you left for Rudolph. I have my own list of tips for holiday eating. I assure you, if you follow them, you'll be fat and happy. So what if you don't make it to New Year's? Your pants don't fit anymore, anyway.

1. About those carrot sticks. Avoid them. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Christmas spirit. In fact, if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where they're serving eggnog.
2. Drink as much eggnog as you can. And quickly. You can't find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? It's not as if you're going to turn into an eggnogaholic or something. It's a treat. Enjoy it. Have one for me. Have two. It's later than you think. It's Christmas!
3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That's the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with Gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat.
4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they're made with skim milk or whole milk. If it's skim, pass. Why bother? It's like buying a sports car with automatic transmission.
5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Christmas party is to eat other people's food for free. Lots of it. Hello? Remember college?
6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between Christmas and New Year's. You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which you'll need after circling the buffet table carrying a 10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog.
7. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like
frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa,
position yourself near them and don't budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. You can't leave them behind. You're not going to see them again.
8. Same for pies. Apple. Pumpkin. Mincemeat. Have a
slice of each. Or, if you don't like mincemeat, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert? Labor Day?
9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it's loaded with the
mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it all cost. I mean, have some standards, mate.
10. And one final tip: If you don't feel terrible when you leave the party or get up from the table, you haven't been paying attention. Re-read tips. Start over.

But hurry! Cookie-less January is just around the corner.

Funny Break

2007-11-24T09:39:00.000-06:00

I received this in an email from a good friend of mine. Enjoy.
--------------------------------

AMAZINGLY SIMPLE HOME REMEDIES

1. If you are choking on an ice cube simply pour a cup of boiling Water
down your throat. Presto! The blockage will instantly remove itself.

2. Avoid cutting yourself slicing vegetables by getting someone else to
hold while you chop.

3. Avoid arguments with the Mrs. about lifting the toilet seat by using
the sink.

4 . For high blood pressure sufferers: simply cut yourself and bleed
for a few minutes, thus reducing the pressure in your veins.
Remember to use a timer.

5. A mouse trap, placed on top of your alarm clock, will prevent you
from rolling over and going back to sleep after you hit the snooze
button.

6. If you have a bad cough, take a large dose of laxatives, then you
will be afraid to cough.

7. You only need two tools in life - WD-40 and Duct Tape. If it doesn't
move and should, use the WD-40. If it shouldn't move and does, use the
duct tape.

8. Remember: Everyone seems normal until you get to know them.

Daily Thought:

SOME PEOPLE ARE LIKE SLINKIES. NOT REALLY GOOD FOR ANYTHING BUT THEY BRING A SMILE TO YOUR FACE WHEN PUSHED DOWN THE STAIRS

Fire!

2007-11-20T17:21:00.000-06:00

Well, I found the fire video. Nothing but flames for 15 seconds. Enjoy.

2007-11-19T18:43:00.001-06:00

The back end of Rimrock Lake had this waterfall coming into it. Over the small ridge behind the lake is Rainbow Lake, where we spent 3 nights.

Of course, I have to post another picture of a campfire. There's just something about staring into flames that is relaxing. If I can find the video of the campfire I took, I'll post that next time.

Campsite Video

2007-11-16T14:53:00.000-06:00

This video is from the our campsite at Rainbow Lake. The panoramas were amazing. There's no sound, I'm too cheap to buy a camera with it. But use your imagination.

2007-11-14T08:27:00.001-06:00

Another pic from Rainbow lake below. This was taken from near our campsite, and is looking roughly Northeast. Did some fishing from this spot, but wasn't much to catch right here. It's pretty shallow for quite a distance out. Still, fishing isn't really about catching fish. I don't like eating them anyway. It's just something for my body to do while my mind wanders.

This bridge is across Rimrock Lake, the last lake on the trail before we got to Rainbow Lake. There is quite a current that speeds out of the lake under the bridge. It's moving so fast, that when you are on the bridge, the bridge seems to move. At least that's what I was hoping. Bridges don't move on their own, do they? Tim and Andy are on the bridge, and you can see them and the current better if you click on the picture.

Summer Hiking

2007-11-12T10:07:00.001-06:00

From this point on the trail, we are about 5 miles in, and about to cross through a pretty insane rock field. So, it was nice to take a minute to enjoy the scenery around us.

There's just something about a campfire while in the mountains hiking. Not sure what exactly that something is, but I like it. In fact, I'm usually obligated to take a picture of it. Not sure why I do that either. But I like fire. I know that seems weird to people that know me.

Sunrise

2007-11-09T08:54:00.001-06:00

Those that know me, know I can't stand sunrises. But sometimes they are fun to see, like these recent ones from Minneapolis. Although, technically, these pictures are before sunrise. So I guess it doesn't count.

Oh, and in case you didn't notice, I have a new link underneath the "family and friends" section to the right. The link is my Christmas wish list so far. Hint, hint.

Beartooth Hiking

2007-11-07T09:07:00.001-06:00

This wide spot in the East Rosebud River is about 5 miles up the trail, and in the middle of a pretty good climb up to Rimrock lake. A great spot to sit, fill the water bottles, and will ourselves to go on. It's always worth it, though.

Below is a good picture of our campsite. The lake is to the left through the trees, and the creek we were next to is right behind the tents. In fact, if you click on the picture below, you can see my dad and uncle Kent behind the orange tent to the right.

Webcams again.

2007-11-02T09:40:00.000-05:00

Ok. I lied. I found 2 more webcams that just can't wait to be put up. They are both on the right hand side of this blog along with all the other ones. One of them is the Apgar Mountain Webcam in Glacier National Park. Lake McDonald is on the right edge. The other one is from the Red Lodge Mountain ski area. To see a bigger picture of any of the webcams (Firefox Browser only), right click on the image and chose "View Image". If you don't have Firefox, shame on you.

East Rosebud Trailhead

2007-10-23T13:33:00.002-05:00

This is the East Rosebud Trailhead which was the launch point for this years march into the heart of the Beartooth Wilderness. The first 4 miles or so were burned in a fire about 10 years ago, and is starting to recover nicely. Our hike would take us around the cliff at the center of the picture and up into the mountains from there.

The image below is one of the views from our campsite. If you click on the picture, you can see the waterfall towards the left edge coming over the ridge. The lake is Rainbow lake, about 7 miles up the canyon, and about a 1500ft elevation gain from the trailhead. It had decent fishing, although slower than in years past. The fish were bigger than most years, so that was a good thing. We saw very few people again, which is always the goal.

Webcam Additions

2007-10-22T10:53:00.000-05:00

Two more webcams made it through my very strict vetting process to be included on this prestigious blog. On the bottom right, you'll notice the Lake Mcdonald webcam which is on the western edge of Glacier National Park at one end of Going to the Sun Highway. Right below that, you'll see the Saint Mary's Lake webcam, which is on the eastern side of the Park. I'm sure I'll keep finding more and more webcams, but I think I'll stop for awhile. But, if my public wants more, I'm sure I'll find a way. Can't disappoint all of you.

Hiking 2007

2007-10-18T18:58:00.000-05:00

Just a couple of pics for now of the annual hiking trip to the Beartooth Mountains. More to come. The first picture is Rainbow Lake. Our camping destination was at the far end of the lake. Click on the picture for a bigger view.

This is an interesting cut in the mountain for the trail. My knee was almost done at this point. Had nothing to do with the "golf cart incident" from a few weeks before that. Ahem. Cough.

Ski Season 2

2007-10-12T15:16:00.001-05:00

Jumping the gun a bit on the ski season still, but here's a picture from a trip to the Vail/Beaver Creek area a few years ago. This is the site of my last concussion sustained, so I'm a little sentimental. It was in the group of runs to the right. Scott remembers.

This bridge below was a lot of fun to stand near the edge of. I was just trying to imagine being part of the crew to actually build the thing. Yikes.

New Webcams

2007-10-09T12:22:00.000-05:00

On the bottom right of the blog, I added 3 more webcams. Old Faithful in Yellowstone Park, Minneapolis, and Seattle. Oh, and the Cowboys are now 5-0. Just in case you missed that.

Ski Season.

2007-10-08T14:38:00.000-05:00

Ok, I may be jumping the gun just a bit, but I can't wait for ski season this year. Here are a couple of pictures I took when at Big Mountain in Whitefish, Montana a couple of years ago. Must get back to ski. Don't hate the snow.

Funny Videos

2007-09-28T09:19:00.000-05:00

The video below is why I don't exercise...

And this one is maybe the greatest movie line EVER...

Cowboys

2007-09-26T08:22:00.000-05:00

3-0!

Sorry, it's not every week that I can tell you the Cowboys are undefeated. I know they won't be by the end of the year, but let me bask in the glory for now, alright? And for all those Bronco fans out there, I'm sorry. That's it. I'm just sorry.

September?

2007-09-20T08:16:00.000-05:00

Whoops, almost forgot that I even had a blog to update. And it's been over a month. I DID find a picture I thought I'd share that I thought was funny.

Now, my question is, how is this not funny? The answer is that it IS. Unless you're a liberal. Then nothing is funny. Whoops. Cheap shot. Not sorry. Also, this picture amused me as well.

You know exactly what I'm talking about. Sometimes people say things that create a mental image that you wish you could forget. A cheese grater (above) or some type of brain scrub seems like the only way you could erase that image. That's all for now.

Fires Continue...

2007-08-09T08:53:00.000-05:00

The first two pictures are from a fire near Craig, MT, which is between Great Falls and Helena. I would call this extreme fire behavior. Amazing. All the pictures on this post are courtesy of the Billings Gazette.

The pictures below are from a fire on the southeast side of Glacier Park near Browning.

I am always amazed how much land burns every year, and how much forest there still is afterwards. In fact, when traveling in Yellowstone Park this year I was able to witness amazing forest regrowth after the fires there 20 years ago. Seems as if things grow back just fine afterwards. Almost like it was designed that way...

Speaking of fire...

2007-08-08T07:48:00.000-05:00

These pictures are from the Billings Gazette, and show a fire that was near the Briarwood Golf Course, which is a couple of miles south of Billings.

These views above and below would have been a bit disconcerting if I lived in these houses.

Check out how small the firefighter wearing yellow is in the left hand corner of the picture below. Those are some serious flames.

This is a sweet picture of a burned golf ball from near the golf course. I'd say that the person should have to "play it as it lies".

The fire is under control now, and ended up burning about 150 acres. It was started by a boy playing with fireworks. Good thing I learned a long time ago just how dangerous fireworks are and have stayed away from them in my adult life. You believe me, right?

Montana on fire. Again.

2007-08-06T10:28:00.001-05:00

Looks like a thunderhead, but it's not. It's smoke. Once again, Montana is aflame. I guess no rain, plus hot weather means things burn. Who knew? I'm glad I went on the hiking trip to the Beartooth Mountains in June this year before everything started burning. You can see by the webcams to the right that there is a lot of smoke in the air in the Kalispell and Billings areas from time to time. The picture below is near Seeley Lake in northwestern Montana.

Photos courtesy of Associated Press