In the Pines
In the Pines Recent Blog Posts
bears and bells
on Oct 18, 2009 in ecology forest wildlife environmental change IMG_6093, originally uploaded by taintus.There has been a lot of talk about bears in the village recently. I've heard that there is an overabundance of chestnuts and acorns in the Kiso area this year (though I've heard conflicting reports of low vol...
first snow
on Oct 18, 2009 in Ontake weather During a walk in Otaki's backcountry today I was greeted with the wonderful sight of Otake-san donning its robe of white for the first time this season. Rain yesterday in the village had translated to a light blanket of snow down to about 2,500 mete...
Rice
on Oct 5, 2009 in resources Takigoshi landscape rice environment cultural ecology The days have cooled considerably here in Otaki, and the hillsides are beginning to blush. Stalks of rice, which were planted in May, have begun to hang their heavy heads. They look tired, having spent their days stretching to grasp the sun, which...
Ontake-san in fall 秋の御嶽山
on Sep 23, 2009 in spiritual ecology pilgrims Ontake sacred Buddhism hiking Over "silver week" (a series of holidays that lined up this week in Japan) Aki and I climbed Ontake-san with a couple of friends. This was our first time staying in one of the mountains several lodges; it was a great trip.The 20th boasted...
a rememberance
on Sep 14, 2009 in Ontake earthquake On the way to my job at Otaki's combined elementary/junior high school I stopped to take a shot of this buckwheat (soba) field. It was a beautiful morning.Today marks the 25th anniversary of the nagano-seibu-jishin 長野西部地震--Western Nagano...
stability and turbulence
on Sep 10, 2009 in weather rice environment After a turbulent summer of rainy weather the skies over Otaki have stabilized, bringing to the heavens blues as deep as lapis lazuli.Temperatures, on the other hand, have de-stabilized, a pattern I recognize from last year's fall and this year's spr...