I’m finding my way back. Hello self.

Each day peels off heavy layers of the other life. The life that has deadlines and commitments,  goes grocery shopping and has to make appointments. The self I find out here is different. She is getting older, getting better, but also more me than ever. Does that make sense?

I start the 1,000′ climb out of the canyon with this song today.

Slow and steady up the grade, and something clicks into place: the climb…the flow. I found it.

My legs start floating my body and heavy water-ladened pack up the grade, and the music is banging, and it is fabulous.

I tend to do better on the climbs and here I am, finally feeling this walking thing on a long and protracted 1,000′ climb. Ok, let’s go!

Up top I transition to chacos. Over the years I have found that chaos are a superb dirt road walking choice for my feet. They love it. The air dries out the one linering hot spot, my toes wiggle with glee, and the cold air doesn’t give them any bother…except to maybe give them more vigour.

Have I said “let’s go!” Yet?

It was a morning of smooth and silky miles where my brain sat back and watched the world move by as my body walked and danced down the road. If there isn’t a dirt road dance, did you even hike?

I tried to read the sky today but finally gave up. There was too much movement. The dark clouds full of rain and snow were intermingled in the sky so that it could be sunny and sideways snowing at the same time. What was inevitable was the snow, sun, and bitter, bitter cold.

At the first large patch of sun, I stopped for a morning break. Maybe the sun would ward off the biting cold enough so that I could to stay still for a few minutes. And it worked! I could feel the vitamin D coursing through my veins, or whatever happens when the skin sees the sun for the first time in a while. Basking might have happened. Then, four minutes later, it started snowing. I packed up and kept moving.

By this time, I had already gotten pummeled by a few of the snow storms. They came in fast and hot…only lasting five or ten minutes, but wow, when they hit… I would have to cover half my face to protect it from the sharp stinging flakes. Then it would stop, and the sun would come out, and the snow would melt, and the dirt would get sticky on my chacos for a minute before it dried out again.

Repeat.

I found another of those sunny patches for lunch. The very satisfying lunch I’ve been having this week is a garlic nann with hummus and a packet of hickory smoked tuna on top. Delicious!

Then the storm. I covered up with my tyvek (I usually sit on my tyvek at every break…I’m a dirt sitter, but the tyvek keeps me a bit cleaner…and is waterproof!) and wait it out.

It made for some stunning skies today…so dramatic.

My head was down for much of the afternoon, hiding my face away from the biting wind, so I didn’t get to take in a lot of my surroundings, but I did see a few more pronghorn, no people. The birds though! Every day there are more meadowlarks.

I am contributing to several iNaturalist projects on this trip. In an effort to be intentional on this hike, I searched for iNaturalist projects in the Idaho desert and came up with many more than expected. I joined 5 or 6, although there are overlapping studies going on.

Two of them you may be interested in: the Idaho Flora project and Idaho Amphibian and Reptile project. I will take photos of flowers for the flora one; that data gets reviewed by the Ray Davis Herbarium and Idaho Museum of Natural History. Frogs and toads? Those observations are for the curator of herpetology, again at the Natural History Museum.

Cool, right? But I haven’t seen any reptiles, and just one type of flower. The cold and snow are taking a toll on the number of my observations.

Back to the walking.

I was reaching the end of my desire to walk for the day. The desire to sit was growing. Sit and snack and read. These were the other elements of backpacking that I loved: the chillaxing.

I found a patch of ground in a sagebrush neighborhood. As soon as I got tucked in, another storm rolled in. Then sun, and repeat. It’s a perfect time to read.

The book? I downloaded several books, and the one that is hitting a chord on this trip is Pachinko by Min Jin Lee.

Dinner was provided by Itacate Foods, dessert by Stroopwaffle.


P.S. thank goodness I brought my old lady stick roller….the ghost of my former plantar fasciitis past is visiting,  and I’ve been rolling out my calves and shins to keep him at bay.