Day 29. March 29. Mile 370.8 to 386.5

Day 29. March 29. Mile 370.8 to

Day 29. Wednesday, March 29. From Mile 370.8, elev. 5865, to Mile 386.5, elev. 3436. Walked 15.7 miles, 1507 ft up, 3931 ft down, total grade 337.5 ft/mile. 

Dear Trail Friends,

I am writing today during my second rest stop. It is 1:45pm and I am sitting beside a lovely stream listening to the music it makes near what I think is a cottonwood tree. Some birds are accompanying the stream with occasional calls. 

This has been a special day so far. It was a relief to walk quite a few miles on road with its nice even tread - I could fall into a stride and reverie and did not have to focus every minute on the trail. My first 5 miles took 2 1/4 hours - very different from yesterday. 

Then when I left the road for a single track trail I had a powerful experience of becoming a part of the environment again. Like diving into a lake. I realized that the reason the road seemed lonely to me was that it was a wide swath of civilization carved into the environment. When I walked on it I was separate from the world around me. The trail though man made follows the contours and textures and composition of the environment closely. There is not a sense for me of separation. When I was a girl and doubted that I wAs loved, it was when I descended into the wild canyon near our house, or crawled into the shade under a juniper shrub, that I felt no doubt about being loved. 

Photo 2 shows the beauty I felt again part of not separate from as I turned onto the trail. 

 

The morning was cool and windy. Even after my first rest stop when I began walking about 10am I kept my jacket on. Then suddenly at 11 I was hot. I took off my jacket and decided to try my new sun umbrella for the second time. It worked beautifully. I fell in love with it. Even dipping and turning to dodge branches was fun. When it did strike a branch, it spun a little in a way that made me think of aikido, how one moves always with not in opposition to the other. (It is the peaceful martial art. The goal is to keep both oneself and one's assailant safe. ) here is me with my wonderful moveable shade. Photo 2. 

 

I also had my first encounter with cat claw impinging on the trail. When I could, I gave it lots of space but when it grew into the trail from two directions I thrust forward my sticks to part the thorny waters  and passed through unhurt. A happy surprise after stories I had heard (and my own experience). Here's a photo 3 of cat claw so you can I hope see the tiny thorns.

 

Oh one more photo taken this morning. I titled it "tree, rock, shadow."

 

Now I am in my tent. The statistics show it was an easy 15 miles - most of it downhill, and not as steep a grade as the last couple of days. I was really beginning to relax and enjoy my new 15 miles a day plan. 

The only photo I took was of this tangle of dumped cars thst look like they have been used for target practice. A reminder that this wilderness I walk exists in very close relationship with civilization. I could not figure out how the junked cars got there. I saw no road anywhere. A mystery. Not exactly spring flowers but a kind of blossoming. 

 

Then of course in the afternoon I found myself at a genuinely scary creek crossing and unable to locate the trail. This shook me up a bit and I spent a half hour consulting my gps and maps before finding the trail and choosing a place where I did successfully cross without wet shoes or a fall. The next drama was - will I find a tentsite? The terrain was not promising and I found it both exciting and scary to wonder what if I didn't find one? When a site appeared, slightly hidden from the trail behind brush and dead trees, I felt thrilled. Some people just smile and say "the trail provides." I'm not that kind of a true believer but this is Day 28 and with the exception of my few nights in hotels and peoples' homes, I've found a site every single night. 

Tomorrow is uphill and the whole rest of this section is classified as "strenuous" which is as I understand it the rating beyond "difficult."  So we will see how my 15 miles feel on a strenuous hike. 

Thanks as always for walking with me and thank you so much those of you who have responded in comments or by email.