In Memoriam - Bearmagnet

“Sorely missed but never forgotten”

“Me, too.”

“How many different places did you people dump bear?”

“lol he is still going around. I think he made two trips here in NY.”

“Bear's ashes have been to North Fork Mountain, Pine Creek Gorge (Black Walnut Bottoms), Central Park, Maple Leaf's house, Catskills, Adirondacks. I still have his ashes and I promised Dani to take them to beautiful places.”

“I miss him too...he always made me laugh! and laughing is very important to me!”

“I want to lead a trip this spring on Old Rag Mountain in Shenandoah NP in Phil's honor. In April 2005 we did a trip on Old Rag, pretty good group of TTers were on the trip. It was the first TT backpacking trip Phil did and I remember he thought that was very funny. That was almost 5 years ago. Hard to believe. Sometimes it seems like yesterday. We camped on the backside of Robertson Mountain. We broke some rules that night. We had a fire and no fires are allowed in SNP. We had beer and didn't bear bag the empties. The next morning a ranger woke us up first light in camp and she was mad. She was ready to haul us all out of the woods, but bearmagnet took her aside, told her what we did, how we did it and that although we had a fire, it wasn't on the ground, it was in a grill and we would clean up the empties and fully intended to do so. She calmed down and let us off with a warning. It was one of my favorite memories on any TT trip. I remember thinking Phil is the man. It's hard to believe it's been 2 years since he left us. It's hard to believe it's been three years since I last saw him.”

“Phil's ashes also went into the big fire at Masten a little over a year ago.

That's a great story about Phil talking to the ranger.
He was a very charming man who loved women.”

“Rob, was it summer 2004 that I met Phil, Matt, Richard and you at that bar on Capitol Hill?”

“His ashes were also spread at Elizabeth Lake in Glacier National Park by Squilax, Foggy & company.

MsKB & her husband spread some at Old Rag.

Some more will be spread in Yellowstone by Monty. My husband and i have not spread the ashes we have yet because the only place acceptable (for us) is Banff NP in Canada and we haven't had a chance to get up there in the last 2 years. Hopefully in the spring or early summer. :)

I miss that sh*t. lol”

“here's to Bear Magnet!”

“What was the name of that tacky Italian joint on New York Ave, LGM?

That was where a bunch of us gathered for a successful surprise birthday party for Phil.

The room we were in had a huge pink marble bar.

A V Ristorante Italiano ??

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/25/AR2007072502335.html

Yup!

When was that?
March, 2007?”

“Ha! That was it. Good memory...I couldn't think of the name. March of '07 indeed.

That night turned into a loooong one after we left there. Phil, Dani, Erik, myself & someone else ended up at a few bars before landing at Ben's Chili Bowl. The morning after was not pretty. lol”

“I think about that Old Rag trip a lot. The only time I met Bear in person, and it stands out as one of my most favorite trips. Partly because of that wake-up call. Remember how we first had to talk her down over the fire issue, and she was about to leave when she then saw the 2 cans - the only 2 cans out of several cases - that didn't make it into the bear bag? Someone was just too drunk to care the night before, lol. No, it wasn't me.

I never met Dani, but I helped out with what I could. That's the kind of place TT is.”

“Perhaps the someone else was Andy, LMG.

Janet and I really liked Andy who is one of Phil's home boys from Fredonia, New York, if I ain't mistook.”

“Ah...there was no Eric. It was Andy - duh! The "someone else" was the person I was with that I didn't feel like naming. ;)”

“I just went to Ben's chili bowl the other week for the first time. It's about a mile from my bro in laws.

I'm sorry I never met Bear in person or even really got to know him very well on here. He has many friends and that says a lot.”

“Roger dat, LMG. When is your due date?
>8^]

Rosey, when were you in D.C.??”

“Sorry MarkO. I thought about giving you a buzz but it was a whirlwind tour over TurkeyDay and I figured you and I both had stuff going on. We beebopped around to relatives (my sis lives in Bethesday) and stayed downtown at her bro's place, also some friends in Chevy Chase. It was great to explore the city a little tho the weather was crap. No doubt, we'll be back again soon and when I do, we'll def connect.”

“Ah.............I was on the high plateau of Wes' Varginny with my TT friends for ThanXG.

I'll let this one go!

Please give a holler next time, I need excuses to visit my hometown and I could show ya a good tome.

Ha ha, that's a library joke!!”

“I have a son in Portland now so I will perhaps grace the West Coast with a visit next summer.”

“Anytime!”

““Roger dat, LMG. When is your due date?
>8^]


January 11th. Not soon enough! :D”

“I think it was June or July of '04 we all convened on Capital Hill.

That was the first nigt I met you and Phil. I had already met Y2 and Matt (bison).

That was a fun night.”