Greetings!

Welcome to the virtual home of Dan and Lin Dzurisin. You can see more of our favorite photos like the ones below by clicking on Photography in the Navigation Bar to the right. Read about our latest adventures in the Blog below or in the Trips/Adventures section. The Genealogy Project section (password required) has lots of information about family members, including biographies and photos. Check back often to see what we're up to, and please sign our Guestbook!

What Does Our Son Do All Day?

Recently Notre Dame put together a feature video snippet on the work that Jason is pursuing in Dr. Jessica Hellmann's lab. 

Click HERE to view it.

VISIT WITH DERRICK ESQUIBEL at FAIRCHILD ~ July 6,2009

 Mom and Jase left about 11:30 for Yellowstone in Jase’s Ford 150 field vehicle from ND.  While at the park they are going to pick up and install Dad’s receiver at the Hayden Valley site. They drove by way of Spokane and arrived around 7:30. They visited Derrick Esquibel, a family friend, at Fairchild Air force Base. He picked them up at the Days Inn in his Dodge Ram 2500, it’s on lifts.  Derrick gave them an incredible tour of the airbase. It included his medals, his office, and his classroom. In his class, he teaches 4 airmen at a time (out of a class of 20) for 8 weeks about maintaining and deploying KC-135 tankers to fuel other Jets and tankers.  We ate at the Rusty Moose with Derrick in Spokane, Wa.

Click here to see pictures of our visit at Fairchild with Derrick.

 http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir?uname=lin.dzurisin&target=ALBUM&id=5360353564977794801&authkey=Gv1sRgCPfrndmCrarAQA&feat=email

Jase's Visit Home ~ June 30-July 5

• While Jase was here we went to Ridgefield Wildlife Refuge a couple times and took pictures there.

• On July 2, Thursday evening Jase went with Dave to Drum corp practice at

• Jase, Mom and Dave Meyer went to Cascades Drum and Bugle corps  performance for Portland Summer Music Games at Hillsboro Stadium on Friday, July 3, 2009 at 7:30.  We saw the Santa Clara Vanguard: Santa Clara, CA,  Troopers: Casper WY, Blue Knights: Denver, CO, Cascades: Seattle WA., Oregon Crusaders: Salem OR and The Brass Attack: Seattle WA

• While here we ate at Hula Boys, Billygans, McMinnaminn’s by the Columbia and Vancouver Pizza Co.

• fireworks at the Fort Vancouver didn’t happen this year for several reasons including lack for funds

• 4th of July fireworks at Jill’s mom’s house with Suzie, Dewey, Hunter & Jim. We took fireworks and Dewey & Hunter blasted them off with help from Jase & Jim.

• We went to dinner with Jill’s Dad & Eleanor at Vancouver Pizza ~July 5, 2009

To see pictures taken while Jase was home please go to: :http://picasaweb.google.com/jdzuris2

Lin, Dan & Chuck's ~ YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK ~

June 15 -28, 2009

Dan, Lin and Chuck Wicks left Vancouver about 10:30 on June 15. We packed the truck with all our gear to come to Yellowstone to reinstall the 6 GPS instruments they initially put in last year (in 2008).  They are going to locate 3 additional sites for GPS’s they’ll install in July. The guys are getting interviewed by National Geographic & CNN.  On the way out, we saw a herd of about 15 bighorn sheep in the Columbia Gorge near the John Day Dam. One day while watching a grizzly from an overlook in Hayden Valley, Lin saw and photographed 4 wolves attack a huge grizzly as it was grazing on plants in the meadow. We also saw grizzlies and black bears, bison calves nursing, antelope and twins. 

To read the rest of our trip blog please click here. 

Pictures will be added later.

SUMMER LAKE ~ June 11, 2009

LAVA BEDS NATIOnAL PARK ~ June 10, 2009

MALHUER WILDLIFE REFUGE ~ June 6-8, 2009

LOWER KLAMATH WILDLIfE REFUGE ~ June 9, 2009

JASE'S SUMMER FIELD SEASON In ASHLAND, OR ~

~ APRIL - JUNE 30, 2009

~~To see pictures of Jason's crew this summer in Ashland, Oregon during their field season please go to his website: http://picasaweb.google.com/jdzuris2

On April 4th & 5th 2009 we traveled to Ashland, Oregon to return Jason’s weather monitoring instruments that we stored for the winter. We met Derrick & Jase's field assistants, Shawn O'Neil, Adrea and  We had pizza with them for dinner. While Jase was in the field, Lin and Dan traveled to Lower Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge near the Oregon-California border.

~~I hope you enjoy the pictures of the house Jase is staying in in Ashland for the 2009 field season.

MALHUER WILDLIFE REFUGE ~ May 22 - 31, 2009 ~1st trip

HAWAII VOLCANO NATIONAL PARK ~ April 20 - May 12, 2009

Hawaii Volcano Observatory (HVO) staff has been stretched thin and very busy covering both eruptions. Dan was asked if he’d like to be Jeff Zurek’s escort while he completed his gravity survey at Kilauea Caldera.  Jeff is working on his Masters Degree at the University of in Canada. His gravity survey had 250 points to be measured at Halamaumau Crater. We told Jim K. that Dan would be happy to come and be Jeff’s escort. We stayed at the visiting scientist’s house while there. This is the same housing we lived in while we lived in the National Park. We worked with Jeff last year at Three Sisters doing a gravity survey. They started the work on April 23, 2009 and ended on May 6, 2009. Lin toured the island during the day and took pictures. We caught up with old friends including the Puniwaii family and HVO staff.

We've finally gotten the photos from our April-May 2009 Hawaii trip uploaded to Flickr. You can see them as a slideshow here (90+ photos). Or you can click through them at your own pace here.

CATHERINE CREEK , Columbia Gorge ~ April 19, 2009

on April 19, 2009, Dan & Lin went to Catherine Creek along the Columbia Gorge and hiked the trail between the road and river. They took pictures of wild flowers.

KLAMATH WILDIFE REFUGE~April 4 & 5, 2009

On April 4th & 5th 2009 we traveled to Ashland, Oregon to return Jason’s weather monitoring instruments that we stored for the winter. While Jase was in the field, Lin and Dan traveled to Lower Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge near the Oregon-California border. The refuge is a stopping-over place for many ducks and geese as they migrate north in the spring to have their young. 

For the rest of our story and other pictures that Lin wants to share with you…

Please click HERE. THANKS!!!

OREGON COAST AQUARIUM ~ Newport, Oregon ~ February 28, 2009

On February 28, 2009, Dan and Lin went to the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport, Oregon. They have an amazing variety of exhibits including several full wall, floor-to-ceiling aquariums with many types of fish in each one. Puffins and oystercatchers live in a walk-through aviary.  Lin got to touch a stingray, baby shark, and various tide pool creatures

For the rest of the story and other aquarium pictures that Lin took to share with you

PLEASE CLICK HERE.  THANKS!!!

OAK CREEK WILDLIFE AREA ~ February 14-16, 2009

Over President’s weekend, Lin & Dan went to Oak Creek Wildlife Area near Naches Washington.  This Wildlife Area provides additional food for Elk & California Bighorn Sheep during the winter months when snow covers their usual food sources. Thousands of elk travel down from the surrounding hills to consume tons of hay provided each day for them.  A herd of about 60 Bighorn sheep gets their diet supplemented by Alpha pellets each day, too.

For the rest of the story and more pictures to share please click on the word HERE.

Ridgefield Wildlife Refuge & Sauvie Island OR, January, 2009

Sauvie Island ~January  4, 2009

 On January 4, 2009, Lin and Dan drove out to Sauvie Island.  At Sauvie Island we saw cormorants perched along the river and Sand hill cranes that are wintering there enjoying left over corn. Lin snapped these shots while riding shotgun.

To check out Sauvie Island pictures we took Click Here!

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK ~ 2008

Lin and Dan spent an incredible 10 days in Yellowstone National Park. We flew to Bozeman MT, ate at the Pickle Barrel there and then drove a rental car to the Park. While we were there we downloaded data from the 6 GPS instruments Dan deployed with Chuck Wicks in June. We also went to various places to hunt for benchmarks that Dan needed to locate. We were fortunate enough to see lots of wildlife, including: 13 bears, an elk and her calf, mule deer, and chipmunks. The bison herd was in rut (it's mating time) and the bulls were going bonkers trying to protect their cows from other bulls. There's a challenge ritual the bulls do to impress females and warn off other bulls. They paw the ground fiercely, roll in dust bowls, rub their chins on the ground, then stand up and wildly shake off a huge cloud of dust.  All day and night, they bellow deep, resonating sounds from their throats (almost like a tiger growl), stick their blue tongues out and drool. Many times these challenges result in a charge from two bulls and a head to head confrontation, in which they joust with each other with horns locked in combat.

Cold Springs Wildfire, Mount Adams Near Trout Lake, July 2008

While joyriding in the Mercedes, we happened upon the Cold Springs Fire a few hours after it blew up in strong winds on July 13. The smoke plume was very impressive, and was mistaken by some for an eruption plume. The fire glow at dusk provided some very nice photo opportunities.

Yellowstone, June 2008

Dan spent 10 days in Yellowstone National Park with Chuck Wicks, a USGS colleague, deploying GPS equipment to monitor ground uplift and subsidence. It had been a high-snowfall winter, and streams were bank-full. There was plenty of wildlife, too, including a total of 10 bears (5 black and 5 grizzly). There will be follow-up trips in August (with Lin), September, and October. I love my job!

ALOHA From Hawaii May 2008

ALOHA!!

Just wanted to share some of the awesome things we  saw in Hawaii.

April 2008: SPRING HAS NOT YET SPRUNG AT MALHEUR NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE

This spring included a return trip to Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in southeast Oregon near Burns for the annual Migratory Bird Festival. The festival was one week later this year than last, and our experience was a total opposite to our initial visit last year.

Please  click here to share our adventure. 

March 16-22, 2008- Sauvie Island, Ridgefield

The past two weekends have included some spring-like weather, and we used the opportunity to visit the Sauvie Island Wildlife Area and the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge. Here are a few of the photos from those trips.

March 15, 2008 - Sauvie Island, Oregon

The Ides of March brought showers and sunbreaks to the Portland-Vancouver area. We spent the day on Sauvie Island, at the confluence of the Wilammette and Columbia Rivers. There were snow geese, Canada geese, and lesser sandhill cranes in abundance. We also saw several mature and immature bald eagles, including the one pictured below, perched in trees with swelling spring buds.

March 2, 2008 - Oregon Coast Aquarium, Newport Oregon

This weekend we visited the Hatfield Marine Science Center and the Oregon Coast Aquarium, both in Newport, Oregon. Lin was able to shake hands with a giant Pacific octopus at the science center and get even closer to a prehistoric shark at the aquarium - as you can see in the photo below.

February 24, 2008 -Columbia River Gorge

On a trip up the Columbia River Gorge this weekend, we saw a group of about 20 bighorn sheep near John Day dam. Most were juveniles like those in the photos below; the group was led by two young rams. We've seen bighorn sheep in the same location several times before.

January 25, 2008 - Artic Loon of Clatsop County

A lone arctic loon in Blind Slough, near Brownsmead, Oregon, has been causing quite a stir among birders lately. The species breeds during summer in Alaska and across northern Canada. Its winter range includes the Pacific Coast from Alaska to Mexico, but it typically rests on open ocean during migration. We were alerted to its presence in Blind Slough by a friend, Lyn Topinka, who provided detailed directions that enabled us to find and photograph the bird today. It was cold enough that smaller sloughs and ponds in the area were frozen, but Blind Slough was open and we were fortunate to observe the arctic loon feeding there between the boat launch and fish pens. On the way home, we stopped at the Tillamook Cheese Factory for some ice cream and curds - a tasty ending to an eventful day. Here are a few of today's photos. 

January 23, 2008 - Dan was in the field at Mount St. Helens today

The USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory took advantage of a sunny day today to do some long-overdue field work at Mount St. Helens. Dan and colleague Jon Major repaired time-lapse cameras at Sugar Bowl and Brutus, two sites on the northeast rim of the crater. Here's a view of Mount Rainier from Brutus. I love my job!

January 21, 2008 - A sunny, brisk day at Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge

For the first time in weeks, today dawned clear and brisk, with temperatures in the 20s. We made three circuits of the Auto Tour Route, River "S" Unit, Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge, and brought back good photos of ice-skating coots, a great egret taking a vole, red-tailed hawk, and northern flicker. Spring is just around the corner!

December 31, 2007 -- AWESOME---INCREDIBLE---TOTALLY SWEET---RAD---KICK B----End Of Year !!!

We had an incredible ending to our 2007 year! First, we visited C. Dan Miller and John Pallister at their homes adjacent to Parkside Airpark. What a sweet setup! Every house with a hangar, and every homeowner a pilot with one or more planes and a short taxi to a private runway. Morning fog threatened to shut down any flying, but by midday the skies cleared and we were on our way. C. Dan brought us up to date on his latest project, an RV-8 that he's custom building for a pilot friend, Dave Harlow. Dan is an amazing craftsman, and his passion for flying shows in his work. After the tour, he and Jason boarded Dan's "Volcano Cowboy" RV-8 and rocketed off for a tour of Mount St. Helens and surroundings. We took a quick drive through nearby Lewisville State Park, then returned to Parkview to find John Pallister tinkering in his hangar. When we mentioned that Jason was airborne with C. Dan, JP asked if we would like to catch up with them. We jumped at the chance, and soon we were flying JP's Cessna 210 in tight formation with C. Dan's RV-8. What a kick! Back on the ground, everyone was all smiles as we headed off for the rest of our day.

Check out a slideshow of the flight!

We rang in the new year with a party at Steve and Eleanore Voreis' house (Jill's folks). Good friends, conversation, a highly competitive session of "Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader?", and a rousing set of Guitar Hero 2 made for an enjoyable evening. We toasted in the new year with champagne and sparkling cider - a wonderful start to a promising year!

December 30, 2007 - thedzurisins.com is launched!

With Jason's help, we've become pro jimdo users and redirected our URL, thedzurisins.com, to jimdo. So the ad on our free page has disappeared and users can now access our site by typing www.thedzurisins.com or simply thedzurisins.com. Next...more content.

December 28, 2007

We toured the River "S" Unit at Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge with Jason three times in the past three days, made a trip to the snow near Mount St. Helens, and visited waterfalls in the Columbia River Gorge. A few of Jason's photos are featured below.

December 25, 2007

Merry Christmas!  We now have full possession of our site, created by our fantastic, wonderful, intelligent, spectacular daughter-in-law Jill and her husband Jason. 

December 25th, 2007 - Site Unveiled!

Merry Christmas to all...especially to the new owners of this page! We hope you enjoy it and make it your own. We look forward to seeing it grow and flesh-out over time as your photo gallery and other pursuits continue!

~Your kids (Jason and Jill)

December 24th, 2007

Final touches are being applied before the big transfer to the rightful owners (Christmas!!). Added to the About us section, finished adding the slideshow links, and put in some work on the Genealogy section.

December 21st, 2007

thedzurisins.com is born! Then comes the major hitch. Even though jimdo has ads on all free pages, they still will not allow free users to re-direct from a custom domain. This is less than sastisfactory in my opinion since their competitors, Google, allow this with no issue. So, for now we will have to decide whether or not to upgrade the account to ditch the ads and allow the shiny new domain to be used. C'est la Vie.

December 20th, 2007

Took a first stab at getting the Genealogy Project section navigation fleshed out. Currently it takes advantage of all 3 layers of navigation offered. We could probably use a 4th, but I think that this makes good sense as is.

Also, we have been working on including full-screen slideshow links to each of the photo gallery offerings. This is really nice in that it will allow users to get even more resolution if they so choose. So, keep your eyes out at the bottom of any gallery for the links.

December 18, 2007

Found these great videos (1, 2, 3) of some of the bird species of one of our favorite places, Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge! Great work Cathlapootl!

December 17th, 2007

Trips section gets some attention. Another neat aspect of the content selection here is that we are able to lay out our photos in several different "themesets". So, the grand concept is to have them linked by date in the "Photography" section, and then be able to go into more content depth in the "Trips" section. So, if you want to see what we have been up to lately, check in on the Photography galleries. If you want a little bit more content and background or a more "theme" based experience, check the "Trips" section. The "Oregon Coast" section has gotten most of the attention thus far, but the others will be coming along shortly!

December 6th, 2007

RSS Feeds section added and About Us section fleshed out. The RSS feeds section is another neat deal in that content that we are interested in will automatically be streamed to that page for easy consumption. Current content sources are Notre Dame Athletics from ESPN and the science page of the New York Times. Brilliant!

December 5th, 2007

Trips, and Photography sections added. The more I use this site, the more I love it. The ability to auto-stream photosets from Flickr based on Tags is just plain slick! Also, the ability to password protect certain areas is really a deep feature. Keep it up Jimdo!

December 4th, 2007

This site is live! The grand experiment has begun.