Love and kindness are the very basis of society. If we lose these feelings, society will face tremendous difficulties; the survival of humanity will be endangered. - Dalai Lama
I get a kick out of being an outsider constantly. It allows me to be creative. - Bill Hicks
The status quo sucks. - George Carlin
“If the fool would persist in his folly, he would become wise.” – William Blake
Today I felt like exploring. So I biked to The Mill Ponds in Seaside Oregon. The ground was soggy, so I had to pedal lightly to avoid getting sprayed with mud from my tires. Hearing the blue birds chirp relaxed me instantly. Beats traffic noise.
Right before I got to my favorite spot, I noticed a park bench upside down in the water. I wondered where it went. It’s been a few months since I sat on it from the lookout. Without hesitation I laid my bike down, and tromped through the sticker bushes to get to it. I had seen 2 homeless teens camping there before, and I’m pretty sure they trashed the place.
I yanked that bench out of the pond, and brought it back to its home. Now everyone can rest and enjoy that epic view again. The seat wasn’t in bad shape, or soaked entirely, so I chilled there for a few. Just another reminder that you can either make the world a better place, or screw it up for the rest of us. There aren’t many public spaces left, so treat them with respect.
It’s my pleasure to bring to you, my hike on Saddle Mountain in the snow, at night, solo. I love doing extreme stuff in the outdoors. It’s a rush, and you’ll get one watching this HD movie. This is the longest video I’ve produced to date, but it’s packed with action, and epic views. I will update this post with the details of my journey, and my full review of the LED Lenser products I tested. Thanks for visiting Survival Bros!
The short version of my hike!
Produced By Cameron McKirdy – Survival Bros Founder
I’m starting the new year, 2013, with a healthy total body cleanse. I began today with a raw juice drink. My Jack LaLanne Power Juicer muscled through garlic, ginger, organic celery, green apples, carrots, lemon, limes, and cucumber.
Right now I am six feet tall, and 225 pounds. I’d like to drop down to around 200 lbs, or less. I was 185 in high school. I will be eating some organic vegetable soups, salads, fruit, nuts, seeds, and juicing. Plus, I really like the raw whey, and vegan protein supplements I have, so I will be making mad smoothies with that goodness. I’ll be drinking hemp, almond, coconut, soy, and 7 grain milk too. I also love aloe water with the chunks, and coconut water.
I plan on training hard immediately. I’m going to be speed walking hills, playing basketball, mountain biking, doing yoga, weightlifting, and running. I will also be using my foam roller for massage and more. I plan on taking vitamins too, with gallons of natural spring water. Stay tuned. This is a live blog. It’s on. I can’t wait to feel, and look better. Good luck!
Day two: I was a liquidarian today. I didn’t chew anything. In the AM my diet consisted of cranberry/goji juice, 2 Odwalla Monster protein drinks, and coconut water. Later I had coffee, which I will be weening myself off of. It got the bowels moving. In the afternoon I made another green juice, with mostly cucumbers. Finally, I sipped kombucha. I consumed spring water throughout the day, and enjoyed hemp milk too. I felt lighter, and leaner today. It’s nice cutting out most of the dairy. I feel like dairy makes me bloated. I plan on pounding more liquids tomorrow, and maybe raw cashews, and salad. Life is good. I will weigh myself again in the morning.
Day 3: I’m doing all liquids again today, minus a mushy banana. Maybe I will eat a fruity Larabar and seeds tomorrow for fiber. However, the juice I got at the health food store did have added fiber. Today I started with kombucha tea, and had a little espresso. I’ve guzzled various natural juices without high fructose corn syrup. And I picked up an aloe water, and organic apple cider vinegar. That’s it, besides more cold water. I feel fine. I have a little less energy today, because I don’t have food energy, or excessive amounts of caffeine in my system. When detoxing it’s important to get lots of rest and relaxation, in my opinion. Do what’s right for you.
OK, I used a fork tonight. Mom made veggie stir fry, and you don’t turn that down. She’s on her own cleanse now. Mom wrote a blog for Survival Bros on going gluten free, and food allergies. Coming soon!
This weekend my buddy Mac and I biked from Astoria to Fort Stevens State Park located along the Oregon Coast. It was dumping rain. Nearly two hours later, we checked into hiker biker camp, and begun another wild Survival Bros adventure.
Luckily, Mac’s wife Shauna was kind enough to drop our gear off at camp. Riding in with a 50 pound backpacking bag would have been brutal, and unsafe since we had to negotiate the narrow shoulder of the Astoria bridge. Semis were seeing how close they could get to clipping us. Setting up the massive 8 person tent was easy. The only break we got in the weather occurred when we made camp. After our gear was setup, lantern hanged, and sleeping bag unrolled, we tightened up our boots and peddled deeper into the state park.
Along the path we stopped to identify many mushrooms. The park was exploding with life. Fungi hunting season is far from over. There were huge patches of fresh Amanitas everywhere. One had a bite taken out of it, as we could see teeth marks. Must have been a deer, or a crazy person.
Over the last few weeks, my pals and I have scoured a good chunk of Fort Stevens. It’s incredible how many types of terrain there are. From Coffenbury Lake, to the dunes near the Pacific Ocean. I finally found King Boletes just south of the jetty, west of the road. I hunted down the biggest King growing under a tree branch, in pine needles. I got video of me cutting it, but the power is out in Astoria now, so I can’t edit the HD footage. Here’s a photo of the big boletes we found. The choice mushroom nuggets are going in an omelette immediately, and spaghetti tonight for dinner.
Due to my phone about to die, and the power being out, I’m uploading this blog now. I will complete the story, and add more pictures and video very soon. Stay safe out there. We are getting blasted with 98 MPH winds right now. Peace.
– Cameron McKirdy
This is a picture of Seaside, OR taken today!
Update: Back to the story. Mac and I spent one night in hiker biker camp. It’s $6 per evening. Fort Stevens actually moved the spot, because where they usually stash the gypsies floods this time of year. When we got into our tent we were soaked. I quickly changed my clothes, then we started making dinner. I busted out a Mountain House lasagna, and boiled the water for it in my Jetboil Zip. After sitting for a good ten minutes in the bag, it was ready to dish out. Mac prepared 8 beef hotdogs on his Coleman stove. The warm grub was much needed. We biked around 15 miles that day.
After mushroom hunting on day one, it poured back at the tent. Luckily the spot we pitched our tent didn’t flood. We didn’t realize how bad of a storm it was until we were in it. Thank God we had shelter. The stoves kept the tent warm for awhile, until we passed out. I was also glad I brought my small windup lantern. It was bright for maybe 25 minutes in between cranks. After that, it cast just enough light to not stumble over our gear and dirty dishes.
On day two in Fort Stevens we ate another Mountain House freeze dried meal for breakfast. I love their blueberry granola with milk. I added freeze dried apples too. We had two more hotdogs each, then set out on our bikes again. This time we went out toward the South Jetty. That’s where we found the King Boletes. I was so amped to find those monster mushrooms. We saw other mushroom pickers out there, and duck hunters too.
We smashed through the brush for a few hours, but the storm kept getting crazier. Mac and I were totally drenched. But the trip was well worth the suffering. We put food on the table, and learned a lot along the way. Foraging is so fun! Supermarkets are for suckers. Our ride swooped us, and we made a clean getaway, and broke camp. You know Survival Bros will be out there again soon. Cheers.
Cameron McKirdy Mushroom Hunting at Fort Stevens State Park
Video of our mushroom foray on the North Oregon Coast
Cameron McKirdy produced this in 2011 during the tsunami wave scare! This shows how he prepared for an emergency in real time. If you haven’t created a bug-out-bag for this sort of thing, now is the time. What do you think of the video? Let’s hope the big one doesn’t hit this helpless coastal town.
If you live near the ocean, you should be prepared for a tsunami. NO EXCUSES. Put together a backpack with all the essentials, and have it on hand. Here’s Survival Bros example of a Go Bag, or emergency Bug-Out-Bag. You could survive at least 72 precious hours with these must-have items.
I just blended my first whole fruit and vegetable smoothie with the Ninja blender! Here’s my product review, with two healthy recipes.
I picked up my blender for $90 at Walmart. I like that it’s professional grade, and holds 72 ounces. Plus, the pitcher is BPA free, which is important. You don’t want chemicals leaching into your drink. The built-in pour spout is clutch also! I’m going to use it every time so I don’t spill.
The Ninja is a beast. It boasts 900 watts of power, and has several sharp blades. The base is wide, and sturdy. It even has a place for the cord. It’s great for blasting ice and anything else. I’ve used a Vitamix a lot, and I think this works better. It mixed my protein more thoroughly, and got the powder off the sides of the pitcher. At less than 1/5th of the cost, Survival Bros highly recommends this blender.
I put its power to the test. I mixed kale, spinach, protein, frozen berries, maca, and cold water. It had no problem breaking it all down. Clean up was easy too, and it’s dishwasher safe. The dial control was cool to use and simple. I already want another, more powerful Ninja with the different containers.
Here’s two smoothie recipes to try:
Wild Blackberry and Grape
2 cups of blackberries
1 1/2 cups of organic purple grape juice
1 teaspoon organic raw honey
Add a banana for more carbs
Blend with ice if berries aren’t frozen
Try with spinach!
Hippie Vanilla Raspberry Smoothie
1 cup of fresh raspberries
1/2 cup natural bio yogurt
1 cup vanilla hemp milk
1 heaping scoop of Sunwarrior vanilla brown rice protein powder
Option: strawberries
This is a picture of my extreme breakfast shake, with One World Whey raw chocolate protein powder, spring water, Starbucks Via French Vanilla instant coffee, raw cacao, maca powder, and Adam’s peanut butter. Produced by Cameron McKirdy
Do you know where The Mill Ponds are in Seaside Oregon? Many locals have no idea. Take advantage of the trails, and waterfront views. From Seaside on Highway 101 (aka South Roosevelt Drive), take Ave. S to Alder Mill Road. It’s near the Seaside recycling center.
Watch my bike ride video!
The Mill Ponds are a great walk for the whole family. Chill on a bench and bird watch. It’s one of my favorite spots in town. Please be respectful, and take your trash with you. This is a day use only park. Enjoy the panoramas and photos I took.
Survival Bros by Cameron McKirdy 