Wednesday, September 01, 2004
Sleeping With Elk
09/01/04-2
Tonight's vastness contemplation thought: I can't get any closer to all this vastness than I am right now.
Just before laying out my bag, I pumped water in the dark from a bog near known gross ponds. And I'm drinking it. I think of it as preparation for New Mexico.
Actually, Yogi pointed out the best place to get water at this location, and bogs are good filters, I think. Nevermind that I saw a herd of elk and a large herd of wild horses in this area as I arrived. Gotta have water, and I was out, out, out, having used the last of mine to cook dinner that I couldn't eat. Some of my homemade kitchree is too spicy.
I was trying to hold out to cook at this water, but I get clumsy when I get too hungry. Plus, snacks can only go so far toward feeding a hungry hiker. I'd done maximum snacking trying to get in the miles to water, but couldn't make it for dinner.
So now I'm sleeping by water, which I don't like because of the condensation. I don't like that I'm sleeping by water in the desert because so many animals will be coming by. I don't want to be trampled during a turf fight between the wild elk and the wild horses.
I want to avoid being clumsy, particularly right now. I'm out of my fancy anti-inflammatory and pain reliever, so I'm feeling a bit more, especially the broken toe. It's not bad if I treat it with a little care. I'm hoping to have a prescription waiting for me in Rawlins. If not, I'll switch to ibuprophen. Between the two drugs, I'm not taking anything to see how the toe feels. I may not take anything the way it felt today, the first day with no pain relief.
I saw two horny toad lizards today. They are so cute!
The sky provided some shade today in the form of clouds. There's nothing tall enough to provide shade otherwise.
I like hiking in the Divide Basin more that I thought I would. It's nice to be able to see the trail ahead and use that information in conjunction with the maps.
