Fern Canyon: The Socks

I've been sitting on this pattern for quite some time, but thanks to good knitting friends who insisted that I was only imagining that it was impolite to ask them to test it out, Fern Canyon socks are now out in the world.

Fern Canyon is a favorite place to visit. (Insider tip, the fern display is better in summer, but there can be some amazing log debris seen in winter.) It is otherworldly, and I knew I needed to make socks that represented it to the best of my knitterly ability. Teaming the pattern up with Socks The Rock in the Enchanted Forest color way seemed like a no-brainer as well.

The socks themselves are written for both sport and fingering weight yarn. Knit from the top down, they feature a heel flap but that and the recommended toe can be replaced without affecting the pattern negatively. The fern patterning is knit only on the outside of the leg, but can be knit on both sides if desired.

Of course once you've knit the socks, you'll need to take them out on an adventure.

The Fern Canyon socks can be found on bear-ears.com, ravelry, and craftsy.

Fern Canyon

Mum told me the other day, "It's like you are trying to relive your entire life in two months." She is kind of right. I've travelled all over in the last two weeks and spent almost no time on the computer and no time knitting. I'm sure there will be time to catch up, but the time is not right now. I will try to fill you all in on my recent exploits though.

After seeing my Oma, Mum and I drove to Fern Canyon to do a sock photo shoot. I've been to Fern Canyon several times and I think summer is probably the best time of year to see it.

Looking up the wall of the canyon, it is just so stunning to see all the ferns lined up. I feel like I'm living through the Jurassic Period.

Mum was an excellent model as usual. Some people walked up to us an asked if we wanted our picture together. I had to explain that I design knits and that I was taking pictures of socks on purpose. We saw them later on and they cheekily offered to model.

When we saw the water running down the side of the canyon, Mum said that it reminded her of Milford Sound in New Zealand. I hope I get a chance to see it when I'm there later on this month.

As usual, I got my jumping photo. These orange shoes have seen their fair share of adventure. I think they brighten up the photo quite well.

As we finished hiking the trail loop, Mum and I noticed that a bunch of plants had been eaten. At first I thought that the banana slugs had either grown to great proportions or that there was an army of them. Then we realized that the Roosevelt Elk that live in the area must of climbed into the canyon and had a feast.

Fern Canyon is quite a ways away from home, but Mum and I decided that we were going to power though and got home around midnight. We actually drove over the road where the Napa earthquake was only hours before it happened. I've decided that my Mum's superpower name should be "Natural Disaster" because weird events seem to follow her.

Knit All The Socks And Sweaters

My Pomme De Pin is finished! Actually, it was finished July 13th, but it took awhile to get some pictures.

I used Cephalopod's Bugga! in the Nebraska Conehead color way. Just days after I finished the sweater, Cephalopod announced that they were closing their doors. I'm just happy that I have a nice sweater out of their yarn.

I made many modifications, the most visual one being the way I changed the collar. All the details can be found on my Pomme De Pin project page via ravelry.

Of course I can't leave out a picture of the sleeve after explaining how it was sewn in.

Just after finishing the Pomme De Pin, I cast on these socks. It is a future pattern design. The fancy patterning is on the other side of the socks. I have one last diagram to draw before they are ready for testing.

I also completed my Something's Rotten In The State Of Denmark socks from Canon Hand Dyes. It had felt like I'd been knitting these forever. I started these on May 30th and finished them on July 20th. Let it be known that the knitter's definition of forever is a month and three quarters.

Of course I always have to have a Canon Hand Dyes sock on the needles. Here is Yoga For Elephants. I wanted to cast on these ever since the yarn arrived, but I'm proud to say that I remained disciplined and finished the Denmark socks.

I've also got Pente on the needles. A group of us decided to do a knit along with each other, which quickly became a knit against. I'm knitting the second sleeve, then I just have the back and some finishing to do. Once you start knitting the sleeves, this sweater quickly becomes a tangled mess. I considered trying to lay it out, but honestly, the way it sits in my knitting basket is the most accurate illustration as to how it feels to be knitting this sweater. It will be worth it in the end though.

What has everyone else got on the needles these days? Any crazy, tangled knitting going on?

California Coast Road Trip Pt.1

Before Stitches, my family and I went North for my Opa's funeral. The weather had closed in around our usual route home, so we opted for a two day trip down the coast instead. It seemed appropriate since my Opa was the one who would take the family on road trips. It was the Opa Memorial Road Trip.

On the first day, we saw a wide range of sights. I live in a bit of California that doesn't see much snow, if any, so this sight is quite unfamiliar to me. The weather had warmed up just enough that the trees were dumping their cold burden.

Everywhere we looked for a good hour or two, there was mist and crashing snow. This picture is probably the best one I've ever gotten while the car is moving.

As we edged out of the snow zone, we stopped to visit the Darlingtonias around Gasquet. It isn't often I am in that area, so I insist on stopping whenever we pass by. Dad had never seen these plants in the wild, so we did the short walk to have a look. I've never seen snow in this area before. I didn't even know these plants could survive such cold, but they seemed to be doing just fine.

Hours later we decided to stop to have a look at Fern Canyon. Roosevelt Elk like to hang out in the area, although we weren't sure we'd see any. Guess we were wrong. Mum calls this my "postcard shot." This guy must be used to cars slowing down, because as we did, he looked up and gave us his most photogenic look. His herd of ladies were down the road with their calves.

 Nice rack!

Fern Canyon is usually much greener and the path isn't usually so littered with dead trees. Although Dad was less than enthusiastic, Mum and I insisted on scrambling up the canyon to the hiking path. It was pretty tricky getting around everything. Dad was a little indignant that I didn't get my shoes wet. At some point he gave up on dry shoes and ran across the stream like one of those Jesus Lizards. Dad verified that he is unable to walk on water.

 This is close to the area where a part of The Lost World: Jurassic Park was filmed

Although it isn't an easy drive or an easy hike, Fern Canyon is one of my favorite places to visit. There is a recommendation for 4-wheel drive because you have to ford some streams. We don't have that. Mum almost got the car stuck in a stream and all Dad could think about was that he was going to have to get his feet wet again.

As night closed in, we moved off of Highway 101 and onto 1. We wound through the trees and mist. When the forest finally broke away, the Moon glowed above, illuminating the clouds and surf. With the heater on full blast, I opened the window and breathed in the salty air. It was quite late by the time we made it to Fort Bragg.

To be continued...