Saturday, August 14, 2004
I Want to Hear Footsteps
08/14/04
As I continue to journal, Apple Pie and Spur are still not here. I'm keeping an ear cocked for their approaching steps, but haven't heard them.
I saw some great mountain lion tracks today along the trail. It looked like it was hunting and using the trail to get around. When I first left the parking lot, some deer came running toward me. After seeing the tracks, I wonder if I disrupted a hunt.
Walking through a burned area with a view of Heart Lake, I ran into a northbounder, the Animal, named by Garlic Man. Since I was waiting for Spur and Apple Pie, and he said he had a low-mile day, we decided to chat a while. He's on his first thru-hike. It's amazing to think that people can start with the CDT.
I also saw more frogs today, which I take as a good sign.
This camp, 8C5, was hard to find because it was in the wrong place on Jonathan's maps. I had to backtrack to a non-CDT trail to find it. With my injured foot, I was trying to minimize my steps, so I was less than enthusiastic about backtracking. I arrived around 5, so I have a leisurely time in camp. I've set it up so it's easy to elevate my foot, and I've taken several trips to the nearby river to soak it. I can't take it for 20 minutes, but I do it as long as I'm able.
Here in camp there's a woodpecker family eating. The adults are showing their young how to find food. They fly to a spot, eat something, then step aside for the youngster to give it a try. The adults fly on to get other food while the little one eats away. Very cool.
