El Perro Negro

The spectacular climb yesterday out of the Guarñon valley via the trail known as the "Veredon Inferior" in Spain's Sierra Nevada mountains.

Cons:

1. The SOS button. This is not in the best place and could be maybe be inadvertently pressed, especially when either turning on or sending a direct location message. I'm not sure how long I would have to press it to activate a rescue because I didn't dare try out!
2. Although I had the device clipped to my backpack, it moved around annoyingly when walking. I am going to fix some form of stabilization with elastic or Velcro around the backpack strap.

3/4

First test of the Motorola Defy Satellite Link

We were at 3000m yesterday in a high, remote valley without cell phone signal. Seemed like a good place to give this device a test. I sent two positional messages and then two text messages to two different people, of which I received one (asked for) reply back.

1/4

Yesterday we used the spectacular trail leading down into the Coral del Veleta and access to Veleta (3394m) north face. An awesome place!

A blast from the past ... heading out onto the Aiguille du Midi arête, heart in mouth! The Grand Jorasses behind. Space all around. My first time in the Alps, 1983

Just moved our company project from Github to @Codeberg. An easy migration as it turned out.

Now, I don't really regard myself as a "proper" programmer, more like an enthusiastic amateur, but I am always happy to support open source projects. "A free home for free projects", unlike GitHub which has the giant of Microsoft behind it. I will support and donate

Took delivery of a Motorola Defy Satellite Link today. I dived in so the setup took longer than expected! Initial test message though was super quick to pair, acquire satellites & send. Looking forward to a real test in the mountains next week. For price of the unit and subscription cost it's remarkable. Good safety communication backup for all outdoor enthusiasts especially when cellphone coverage is sketchy. More next week

One amazing thing about our walking group today was that out of a total of 11 people attending, 4 were full time committed Mastodon users. How good is that?

It's 37C outside. You are in the midst of a fierce spanish summer. Either "head for the hills" or as we did today, head to some dramatic local gorges and refreshing, cooling waters. Marvellous!

Rio Santos, Albuñuelas.

As it's 35°- 40°+ here now over the next week (and possibly until mid-August), it's time for my own "summer of coding" to start. Our company website badly needs a long overdue overhaul, so I plan to introduce dark mode, simplified navigation, less "clutter" & revised galleries amongst other things. Using @eleventy, Tailwind and Shoelace.

I'm hoping too that the calf injury will allow me to get some light hiking again (above 2000m+) soon.

My wife candidly snapped this a few days ago during a routine visit to the cardiologist. Clean bill of health!

Find it amazing that he can Bluetooth into my ICD (Implantable Automatic Defibrillator), tweak things & make adjustments. So lucky to have this device.

1. When heartbeat is too slow, it sends tiny electric signals to the heart.
2. When heartbeat is too fast or chaotic, it gives defibrillation shocks to stop the abnormal rhythm.
3. Works 24 hours a day.

Everyday use, I don't notice it

@JimsPhotos I have to say that my favourite is the diminutive and friendly Alpine Accentor. Found in the high mountains here in Spain above 2000 metres

Author and political scientist Ian Bremmer commented, “The idea that we get our information as citizens through algorithms determined by the world’s largest advertising company is my definition of dystopia.”

This is a really interesting article on the present state and likely future state of search.

https://blog.kagi.com/age-pagerank-over

@andrewbriscoe

Not sure. I was trying to identify it, as it's spectacular looking. Due south of Marion Lake. Map says its 7600 feet. Some amazing scenery in that region, despite the flying bugs!

@andrewbriscoe

Mineral Oil/​Huile Minerale, Isopropyl Palmitate, Dicapryl Adipate, Parfum/​Fragrance, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Tocopheryl Acetate, Diethylhexyl Sodium Sulfosuccinate

Source: https://incidecoder.com/products/avon-skin-so-soft-original-bath-oil-spray

Grade 1 calf muscle tear. Puts me out of next week's mountain trip unfortunately 😭. It happened a couple of days ago after a big day in the hills. I felt it go walking up some small steps leading to our greenhouse. Easily done I'm afraid when the muscles are tired and I hadn't done any post exercise cooling down. Lesson learnt. Now for some weeks of post injury rehabilitation

Just treated myself to the new Motorola Defy Satellite Link. Seems like a great cost effective, simple to use, add-on device for the day hiker/ climber/ cyclist / remote worker on land who are simply looking for peace of mind when travelling to areas where they may have limited Mobile connectivity, to keep in touch with friends and family and summons emergency services if needed.

https://gpstraining.co.uk/blogs/reviews/motorola-defy-satellite-link-review

Zamárraga, erigeron de Sierra Nevada (Erigeron frigidus)

We found this at 3460m on Mulhacen in Spain's Sierra Nevada mountain range. Endemic and critically endangered species. Lives on poorly developed stony schist soils in shaded areas. Not usually found below 3,000 meters of altitude but can bloom up to 3460m between June and September.

First harvest of green peppers. They smell and feel so fresh. Freezing some and maybe having fajitas tonight!

The Sierra Nevada Poppy (Papaver lapeyrousianum).

Only grows near the summit of Mulhacén at 3,381 meters of altitude. After the 8 months of snow has melted, and from cracks in the rocky slabs, a small creeping plant with hairy leaves and green stems emerges. A flower of red petals and yellow stamens is born. It blooms only for a few weeks between July and August. Endemic, endangered and precious! Lucky to see these yesterday.