On the trail again...

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OD
All equipment was packed by 11AM and our ride arrived to shuttle us up to the
trail. The owner of Weasel Creek Outfitters got tied up and he sent his
assistant. Driving up to the park we chatted, turns out she was also from my
home county in CA. What a small world. We hit the trail at 12:30PM and headed south
again. It was nice to feel the straps bite into
my shoulders and the trail crunch under the soles of my boots. We made very good
time and finished at the Gravel Spring Hut, 8.4mi in 5.5 hours. CC was a real
trooper, her feet were giving her a bit of trouble.
The wind started to pickup just before sunset. There was a family on Spring
break at the shelter when we got there. We opted for a tent site to sleep at.
This is our first night in "Bear Country" with places to hang your food out of a
bear’s reach. After dinner we tried to settle into the tent for the night. I could
hear CC giggling inside. She is not a big fan of shelters as mice are known to
roam them in the dark. She told me there was no way we could sleep in the tent
as the slope was too great. We gave it a try but it was to no avail. We ended up
in the shelter with the family. The wind picked up and the temp dropped.
CC
It was nice of the man who owned the Outfitters to run us up to the trail
at no charge. The weather started out cold but warmed up some once we started
walking. Did about 8 miles, put up the tent on the flattest site we could find.
It was too funny trying to find a semi flat spot to go to sleep. No way could we
sleep there, so it was sleeping bags and pads down to the shelter. It will be
interesting to see what the creature situation will be tonight.

Patrick, Deborah Mooney aka OD & CC
All Who Wander Are Not Lost

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