Friday, August 20, 2004
Muddy Morning, Strawberry Noon, Crik Afternoon and Cross-Country Night
08/20/04
The cars along the highway didn't bother me at all last night. I only heard them when I was awake, which seemed to be a lot.
I had two timid mouse attacks, but I hissed and banged, and they went away.
Morning was cold and damp, so I got a late start. I had a short cross-country to start out. I'd missed the road (if it was even there, which I doubt) last night in the dark. I had to get one foot wet right away, which was a bummer. I followed elk paths through tall willows, crossed a stream, climbed the STEEP bank on the other side and quickly found the path I wanted to be on.
The morning's route was to create a continuous walk. I came out to the highway at Togwotee Mountain Lodge and was now walking to the CDT.
If I had it to do over again, I would have walked the CDT to Togwotee Pass. The mountains on the north side of the pass looked spectacular from the road and from the trail this morning. Spur, Apple Pie, and I made the decision in Yellowstone to take a purple route that cut out the last of the route to Togwotee Pass. The decision determined how much food we carried. To do the red route, I would have needed an extra day's worth of food. I spent a lot of time navigating today, especially this morning. The map shows roads and trails that are not there, and the land has road and trails that are not on the map. The further I got from the highway, the simpler the choices became.
The morning's walk had lots of mud, the kind of mud that built up on my shoes. This type of mud is also very slippery. It was mostly annoying.
Strawberry plants have lined the trail most of the way so far. Some plants were in bloom, other sending tendrils across the trail. I've seen (and eaten) a very few strawberries so far. Today was a relative bonanza of red ripe strawberries.
I was torn between doing my miles and stopping and picking the tiny little flavor explosions. I passed many that I did not eat, and enjoyed every one that I did eat.
As I was taking some photos of some strawberries, I was reminded of what we used to say when spear fishing in Micronesia, "What a pretty fish. I think I'll kill it." Today had an extra part: "What a lovely strawberry. I think I'll photograph it, then eat it."
I spent some time just before lunch resolving a particularly confusing junction. It was the actual spot that I rejoined the CDT, so the time was worth it.
I ended up doing some cross country at dusk. It was a purple alternate route that looked easy on the map, and even had a note to that effect, but as it grew darker, I began to doubt I'd be back on the CDT before camping.
And that came to pass. I'm now camped on hill. I kept on heading toward what looked to be the Divide only to find myself not there. It was pretty much dark when I summitted for what I thought would be the last time. In exasperation, I saw I was on the top of a hill. Out of energy, I was pleased to find a non-sloping space on top. The GPS tells me where I am, so I have no worries.
I have almost no worries about my toe either. It feels fine. The stiffer shoes keep it more immobile, and the medication seems be helping with the swelling and pain.
All is well.
