I did it. I got up at 4:30 in the morning and got moving. I ate breakfast and I left the house before 6 am, but after 5:30 which was my goal departure time. At the bottom of the hill, after the turn, a fox ran out in front of my car. It dashed across the road and then looked at me for just a few moments, not quite long enough for me to snag a picture.
I turned into Pine Creek road from 71 to take a picture of cows on the road to show my parents. I got to the trailhead about quarter to 7. I thought it was weird that the parking area looked like it had been churned up by a lot of vehicles, and then I saw that someone had installed a giant tank near the trailhead. As I hiked, I could see a sturdy hose going up alongside the trail. After the stream crossing, the hose went down in the direction of the creek and disappeared from view.
I was feeling tired for the first mile. But it wasn’t like last weekend when I felt tired and like I couldn’t safely continue. This time was more first mile blues. Ambrose used to tell me to get past that first mile before making a decision when I felt crappy on a hike or run. And when I got past that first mile I knew I had it in me to make the peak.
This wasn’t going to be my fastest time though, because I had to stop at the first junction to dig a hole. That usually takes me ten to fifteen minutes, though I didn’t time it. I pushed through to the next junction, and then I was almost there. I took a break with a view of the Wallowas shrouded in wispy clouds. And there was no snow on my path up to Cuddy point, although I could see patches of snow off the trail.
On the way down, between the two junctions, I came upon a trail runner headed up. I stopped to let him go by and exchanged a few words. I’m going to run that trail someday. I had to dig another hole at the first junction, and I ran into a couple with two very protective dogs not far from the trailhead.
The drive back to Cambridge was uneventful. I parked at my dentist’s office since they aren’t open on Saturdays and went in search of a burger at Hells Canyon Days, which is Cambridge’s annual summer celebration. I had a very good burger, bought a spoon rest from my neighbor and chatted with her and her daughter, and then went to the library book sale. I bought 8 paperbacks that I probably don’t need, and then bought a skirt at the Bohemian clothing stand that was set up in the library parking lot.
After that, I went home and did the trash. I had some very stinky stuff to get rid of, plus the oil from the lawnmower, which was leaking out of the pump that I’d used to get it out. I drove out with my windows cracked so I could breathe. They charge at the transfer station to get rid of used motor oil, but they charge by the gallon so they let me put my less than 500 mL in without charge this time.
When I let my neighbor know they didn’t charge me, he asked if I wanted some more onions and some lettuce. I said yes and decided to ride my trike down to get it. I pulled my trike out and tried to ride it, but something felt off. The left rear tire had gone completely flat. I thought about giving up on the trike, but instead I just pulled it over to the car and used my air compressor to fill it up. I was able to avoid the banana peel in his driveway on the way there and back. Now I have a lot of lettuce and green onions to eat and cook, which isn’t a bad thing.
I feel like I didn’t take good care of myself in the evening. I was feeling hungry but also not wanting to eat and I didn’t drink enough water to recover from the hike. But I climbed that mountain again. And I talked with Ambrose. And it was a very good day, even if nothing out of the ordinary happened.
