Wow. Sorry ya'll. Didn't mean to kill the blog with my Halloween pictures! Sheesh!

Torin likes 80's Rock music

I forgot the best picture.

Hey everybody, hope life is well for all of you. Here are some pictures from my latest adventures in the Afghanistan.

 I love the smell of jet fuel in the morning...

 This is on the New Zealand FOB. Can you imagine coming from the green lush scenery of New Zealand to arid desert Afganistan? Those guys have dedication, and they're fed well, I know from experience.

 Smile Hojie, I can see you in the dark... Even though its not dark right now, I just look like a pimpin stealy eyed killer with my NVGs.

(That may just be the apache pilot arrogance in me sneaking out. Also, I may have broken some english rules with that many adjectives chained together in one sentence,

sorry Mom)

A-10's at Bagram Airforce Base. I had to through this one in for Tom. Eat your heart out man.

 Can you say tight canyon? And yes we went through, not over... something about the engineers needing a "route reconassaince" at "no more than 200'." Anything for the mission.  

 One of the many castles that mother nature has started to take back.

 Where the Bahmian Budah statues used to be before the Taliban decided that they were "idols" and blew them up in 2001. Built in ~600 AD and carved directly out of the rock face. The hole it left is still pretty impressive.

 Its almost like back home at the wedge. You even here random gunfire.

 Ghengis Khan castle near Bahmian. If you look close it looks like people still live in the caves around the base.

 Look, I can make an Apache completely dissapear...

 Guess who found the ONE ditch on the entire landing area and picked it to set down in. Thats right, the black hawk pilot.

 Now he's trying to make up for it bystanding in front of a real aircraft.

 Hmmm, somethings not quite right with this background...

 Okay, we're good now.

 Another castle, this one in pretty good condition.

 Closer picture of the Ghengis Kahn Castle.

Smile, you're on Al'Jazir.

You want to take a picture of me? I'll take a picture of you.

 

As a bonus to checking the family blog and sending me an email, I am willing bring anybody back a souvenir, you just have to let me know what you want, other wise I'm just bringing rocks. I sent Kristen some stuff if you want to see what I can get ask her.

Till next time,

Tel

 

 

 

 

Sick of Apache picts yet?

Cause your gonna see alot of them by the time I get back to Utah. Here is some highlights:

 White caps of the Himalayas

 Check out the fields all the way to the cliff edge. The nearest mud hut was around 2000' below, imagine that climb everyday to tend your fields. Suddenly the Point doesn't sound that bad.

 Village made out of mud. Pretty typical, we marvel at the biuldings that have actual do have roofs other than mud.

Hojie plowing his field at 9000' above sea level on a 30 degree hill. (No RPGs, I checked)

 One big mountain

 Looking into Tajikistan, for afgans the grass really is greener on the other side.

 Tajikistan/Afganistan border... are we allowed in that country? Oops, here comes WW3

 Pretty cool little box canyon off the tajikistan border.

 Mother earth trying to swallow afganistan, I kid you not, the rock strata is at a 45degree angle to horizontal

 140 knots, 20 feet AGL, also known as a "panel check"

 OOOHHHH crap he's pulling up, guess I better stop taking picts and man the flight controls.

Nowhere to land... oh gods of aviation don't let my engine die now...

 SICK

 OF

 APACHES

 YET?

 Briar Patch

Hey look, its the back of my head.

By the way, did you hear that the #3 dude got his a couple days ago... :)
Hope all is well back home.
Tel

Rhian's Dance Recital

She's got a future as a dancer...