Hidden Cabin

In the book I'm working on right now. The main character hides out in a hidden cabin in the mountains. I got the idea from a place in the Wasatch Mountains. My ever-so-great-grandfather Green discovered a basin long ago, which was named Green's Basin after him. It has a beautiful meadow with a kaleidoscope of sweet smelling mountain flowers. In the pines on the far side of the meadow is a hidden dug-out cabin. It's really hard to tell it's there except at a certain angle. Here are some pictures.

West side of cabin.

East side of cabin.

Front of cabin.

Step Back in Time

I spent all morning at This is the Place Heritage Park. It is a wonderful place in Salt Lake where they've got authentic pioneer houses and cabins. Yes, the actual ones used by the pioneers that have been preserved and moved up to the park along with authentic furniture and tools etc. It's like a living pioneer village including a blacksmith, barbershop, carpenter shop, print shop, hat shop, shoe shop, grist mill, gardens, livestock, houses and more.

As a fantasy writer I find it an excellent place to do research because it provides all the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and feel of pre-technology life. I go there often, and always learn something new. Here are some pictures from today's visit.

The general store.

Pioneer kitchen

Some of the animals.

Carding wool.

Spinning.

Weaving.

Plants used to dye the wool.

Super Fun Vacation

I just got back from a great vacation to the Oregon Coast. The weather was sunny and cool, just perfect for time at the beach, boating on Devil's Lake, fishing, and attending a wonderful contracts and copyrights workshop. Here are some pictures. :)




Devils Lake where my son caught a beautiful (and tasty) rainbow trout.


The Beach Haven House we stayed at for a week.


The Newport Aquarium we visited.


The beach on a beautiful day. Not crowded. We had this whole section pretty much to ourselves. Flew a kite, built a sandcastle, found a bunch of seashells.


A sea otter at the aquarium. They were so very cute.