Lucy Goes Wandering… It’s the Final Countdown!

 

A period in which we made last minute changes, drove a lot, watched a lot of Arrested Development, made a lot of Arrested references, counted down days and hours, reunited with old friends and made new ones, and finally packed up the tent for last time (at least for a few months). It’s been a long road- 2 months and 2 days- and I have to admit, there were some tears shed. But there’s adventure ahead, and so far in life, big leaps of faith have worked out well for us. On Wednesday we fly to Australia, for weddings and family and more reunions, and then off to Thailand/Malaysia/Indonesia for 2 months of relaxing and finding different things to do besides run all the time. The road continues on, it just gets sandy for a little while.

August 18- After a lazy morning of coffee shop and editing, we headed to the Bozeman Hot Springs for some relaxation (okay, and a real shower). For $8 each, we had access to a dozen or so pools of varying temperatures, both indoors and out, plus saunas, steam room, showers, and a big screen above the indoor pool showing the Olympics. It wasn’t Scandinave at Whistler luxury, but overall a cheap and happy way to kill an afternoon without any serious physical exertion. We napped on big chaise lounges in the sun, dipped, soaked, and enjoyed. Then we decided driving sounded too strenuous, so we headed into Bozeman to catch their Thursday night music in the streets thing; it was awesome! Hit up a divey place for cheap happy hour drinks, took them with us to enjoy the band outside, grabbed some dinner and headed off into the sunset towards Idaho.

A last minute change of plans found us skipping McCall and going straight for Bend, OR instead (a 500 mile detour). Why? Well, when we realized McCall wasn’t going to work out, Justin immediately brought up the fact he hadn’t gotten a sticker in Bend. Also, his good friend Nick lives there, and I think he was jonesing for some adult company that wasn’t, well, me. 2 texts later and we were on our way. We slept in Idaho Falls, at a city park that allowed overnight parking and also apparently a lot of on the DL M4M hook ups for the LDS crowd (according to Craigslist). We got out early.

August 19- This was a boring day! We drove 600 miles or something stupid like that. We got annoyed with each other, got annoyed with driving, ate some good pizza in Boise, and continued on to crash at an RV park in Burns, home of that silly armed occupation early this year.

August 20- Went for a run in the high desert on our way into Bend, and it was hot and sandy and flat and borrrrring. Probably enjoyable mid-winter when all the trails closer to town are snow-covered, but not so much on a nice summer day. Then we caught up with Nick and his amazing girlfriend Katie, who was generous enough to host us for the second time this summer. Beers on the back porch, then a float down the Deschutes, a barbecue, then hopped on bikes to check out some of the breweries and night life scene around the Bend area. First night in a bed since we left the exact same one back in early July. It was as satisfying as it sounds. 

August 21- Woke up at 9 to a fancy breakfast and some really really nice coffee (told you she was a great hostess!) and then the four of us headed out to the National Forest to do some mountain bike riding. Rode some easy singletrack from Big Eddy to the village at Sun River, then road back. It was my first time on a mountain bike, and after working out the jitters and the capabilities of the bike in the initial miles, I was in love! I think if my knees ever blow out, I could get seriously into endurance mountain biking. After our ride, we dropped the bikes back at the rental shop (Pine Mountain Sports- nice and helpful except when the tech isn’t hung over and forgets to attach your pedals and they fall off on the side of the road). Showered back at the house and headed over to catch Lord Huron and Trampled By Turtles in the oddly-awesome venue of the local fancy athletic center. 

August 22- Said goodbye for now to our sweet friends and after a few errands around Bend (groceries, hostess gifts, fuel, magic ginger beer), we headed north towards Hood River. After a few hours of driving, a mildy-annoying search for camping, we ended up at a trailhead and relaxed for the afternoon. Of note, while searching for camping, we stumbled upon a photo shoot for some outdoorsy company/venture- a guy coiling rope, a girl stirring an (empty) pan, with lots of products lying around for future magazine identification. It was like our lives, but commercialized and reenacted over and over with big reflectors all around.

August 23- Woke at our unscenic trailhead and drove into Hood River, so we could cook some breakfast somewhere nice with access to bathrooms and water (this has become the daily grind). Went for a walk, stretched in the soft morning sun and watched the people walking along the Columbia. Across the river was Washington, and seeing our home state stirred excitement for the final leg of the journey. We’d planned to run with our friend Ben, but he was stuck waiting for a fridge delivery, so we headed to Punch Bowl Falls for what turned out to be a 10/10 run for both of us, with a great swim on top of it all.

On the way back to Hood River, I suggested Justin could climb Mt. Adams, and he said he’d been thinking the same thing. After grabbing a coffee and doing some research into the climb, we wandered around town for a while and finally caught up with Ben at the distillery/bar where he works. He made us some very incredible cocktails (perks of knowing a real professional), and we schemed an Enchantments run next week (with me as shuttle driver, since someone has to and I’m the one doing 100 miles this weekend). We took off when business started to pick up, cooked up a quick dinner in the same spot we made breakfast, and then drove up to the South Climb trailhead. 

August 24- An eventful day for Justin but an uneventful one for me. He climbed Mt. Adams and was back to the car before I’d even finished my campsite pedicure, and way before I’d made lunch and cleaned up the camping stuff. 6.5 hors roundtrip to climb and descend 6700 feet with snow fields and talus and scree and all that. I was shocked, and super impressed. All I did was tie flies and go for an hour long walk and drive. Camped in the Yakima Canyon (one of the most underrated spots in this whole state), in the same spot we’d stayed for my birthday weekend and just a few miles from our first solo night camping on the road trip. It felt very full-circle and warm and comforting. 

August 25- Made our way up the canyon and out to Easton, but way too early in the morning and ended up with an entire day to kill. After an unsuccessful fly fishing lesson (I’m a bad student), we made some lunch, Justin napped, and I hung out at the beach on Lake Easton. Several swims and hours later, I got my butt kicked at handball (a great reminder of why I’m a runner and not a tennis player) and then we paid a visit to the always-delicious Dru Bru for some editing/reading /imbibing time, and finally out to the camping spot so kindly secured by the race organization for runners to use this weekend. Sure, it’s a weedy gravel parking lot, but there’s a toilet, and some shade, and we don’t have to move ourselves for 4 days, so it’s about as good as it gets.

August 26-28- Cascade Crest weekend, detailed here, but we ended the weekend with Thai food and beer and a shower at Joel and Liz’s place in Bellevue.

August 29- Lazy morning, hobbling around, petting Molly and drinking coffee, then I went to one last XC practice and said hello to Miles and V and Silver, and of course all the kids. Beers at Chucks with Liz and Joel and Colton and Margo and Andrew, which was as amazing as it sounds, except I tried to eat everything and ended up sick. Stayed with Margo and Andrew and gazed out their awesome window at our pretty home city.

August 30- Made our way out to Leavenworth, slowly but surely, stopping for errands and coffee and such along the way. Got our site, got beer and a pretzel, and then made a delicious curry and tucked in for the evening before the sun even set. At some point I had wanted to hike, but it was smoky and cold and my legs still hurt.

August 31- Ben drove up from Hood River late on Tuesday night after work so he and Justin could do the Enchantments, and I played shuttle driver and tried to amuse myself in between drop off and pick up with restorative and productive activities. I was not very good at this, and would make a terrible stay at home mom. I did get two new books and lose a fly up a tree within 10 casts of getting to the river. I drove back to the trailhead, went for a walk up the Snow Lakes trail, got rained on, so I ran down, then stretched by the river and wrote a long term training plan for Hardrock 2018 (I clearly had too much time on my hands). Then we went out for a nice beer and dinner and said goodnight.

September 1- Early wake up for a long trip out to Orcas Island- left at 7:45 and got to Moran State Park at 2:30. After some silliness with campsite assignments, expertly handled by Ranger Jeff (who we knew from Orcas 100), we settled down and went for a short run around Mountain Lake. Legs felt a little tight but better than expected, and a good stretching session afterwards got rid of all the long car ride stiffness. It was drizzling slightly as we made an early dinner, but our last night in camp, so we didn’t mind. Chatted with a lady next to us who was celebrating her 70th birthday- she took up climbing in her 50s and still climbs Mt. St. Helens every summer and still plans to do Mt. Baker! She was full of life and lamented having to put a 7 in front of her age, because she said “I’m not really 70!” Drove into town to watch the start of the Seahawks game and get out of the rain, but made it back just at dark to crawl into the cozy tent one last time.

September 2- A lazy sleep in morning, then coffee and an emotional chat about leaving the mountains. I’ve been fluctuating between excitement and anxiety and sadness, but the closer it gets, the more the balance shifts towards the happier side of the spectrum. Cruised around for bit of baby/wedding shopping before meeting up with others out on the island for the wedding. We’re sharing a lovely little house with a peek-a-boo view out to the bay, walking distance from Eastsound, and more importantly, it has a great kitchen! Hosted a barbecue that started out little, got big, got silly, and then got little again. I finally drank some Rose, which I’ve been craving since about Aspen. We slept in a very soft, very plush bed (actually, two beds, two twins, which meant so much space compared to sharing a tent or Lucy!)

September 3- A morning yoga class, a solo brunch at the co-op and a lazy afternoon before a gorgeous sunny wedding by the bay.. a pretty perfect day. There was dancing, drinking, and all sorts of bread and butter eating.

September 4- Post-wedding recovery meant sleeping, running, and grabbing a good coffee and slice of Spanish tortilla in town. Headed back to Seattle on the late afternoon ferry and crashed with Lara and Jeff after a good catch up.

September 5- Labor Day! Had plans but everything was closed, so we ran and shopped and barbecued with friends instead. Tried to polish off the last of our bar box, and although we didn’t quite succeed, we put up a good effort. Ate a ridiculous amount of ridiculously good food.

September 6- Hustled to get everything done (everything meaning move out of storage unit, pack half of worldly possessions to Australia into four bags under 50-lbs, put the rest into the back of Lucy, pick up Garryana bottles from Westland, get a Seahawks jersey, and not kill ourselves).  Amazingly, we finished up at 2 pm and had time to relax and go say goodbye to a few pub friends before a bittersweet dinner celebrating Margo and Andrew’s new apartment (and our departure). Hugs and a few tears all around, but good plans made for future fun reunions!

September 7- Breakfast of crepes on the first day of school for Jade and Lara and breakfast again up in Marysville. And what a breakfast. And then we said goodbye! And airport! And tears.

 

Big Fat Slice of Humble Pie- Cascade Crest 100 Race Report

First, I have to give some thanks. First and foremost, to Justin, who not only drove around all night and day just so I could rush throughaid stations, but put up with countless long run logistics and SNAFUs, made sure I stretched all summer, tolerated my taper tantrums, and was my sole outlet for pre-race anxiety. There aren’t adequate words to thank him. To my pacers, Liz and Alicia- such positive people!! There was no one else I’d rather have out there trying to force food down my throat and playing me old pop songs off their phones. To Meghan and Joel, your crewing and support were so appreciated, and sorry for making you take my food orders and pick up my sweaty pack! Phil and Glenn and Elisa and everyone else at Seven Hills Running Shop- you guys kept me in good gear and well fed all summer long and throughout the race. Proud to represent Team 7 Hills! Thanks to the race organizers and volunteers- Rich, Adam, Kelly, Rachel, etc. etc. etc. and all the runners out there, those with whom I shared miles or just the same silly goal: get it done!  Thanks to every person who came out to cheer and support- there’s too many to list but every darn smile was appreciated! More than anything else, Cascade Crest is about the community, and I needed you all this year, so thanks for being there. Emotional part over.

Second, I want to acknowledge up front that I had a good race at Cascade Crest, and that the stats (24:01, 6th female and 21st overall) are NOT a real problem, so I have no room to complain. But here’s the the other thing: I didn’t just want a good race. I’d run two 100s, I had proven to myself that I could cover the distance. And I’d done pretty well despite going into the races totally clueless. This time, I wanted to see what I could do with some experience. I had confidence that I’d cross the line, get my buckle, my Hardrock ticket, all of that, but I wanted to see if I could do it better (aka faster). I let my past performances and the relative ease with which previous races went by lull me into thinking I could race better just as a fact of knowing a bit more about what I was doing. In short, I got kind of cocky.

And then I got my butt kicked.

A Place to Call Home: Build Out for a Subaru Outback

When we started planning our road trip for this summer, we knew that our normal sleeping in the car routine wouldn’t work. Lucy is long enough for us to be comfortable if we take out the back seat and lay out flat, but the nightly shuffle of gear from back to front seats wore us down after 1 week, and led to many pointless arguments about who made what mess of a shabby organization system. We decided to build a sleeping platform with storage underneath, so we could easily roll up to a safe spot, spread out our sleeping bags and crash for the night. While there were plenty of similar styled car platforms out there, I didn’t find many great guides on doing this for a Subaru Outback, so I figured I’d share our process and design (preview: it’s so easy!)

Lucy Goes Wandering: It’s already mid-August???

I think last time I checked in, we were in Jackson, having a down day and enjoying some coffee in the comfort of shelter from rain and such. In the week since then, we’ve had more than a few dips in beautiful bodies of water, relaxed more than I thought I was capable of, delved into fly-tying, battled the hoards of people at Yellowstone, and finally made it to the mythical Bozeman, which is turning out to be as great as reported (although maybe not quite Mammoth-level).

(All good photos below are by Justin)

August 12: Went for an incredible hike up towards Disappointment Peak, where the views of the Tetons cemented my resolve to get back into climbing when we’re settled in Australia. I’d originally just planned to go up to Amphitheater Lake, but made it up quickly and had some time to kill, so I kept heading up. Most of the approach towards the saddle below Disappointment was Haystack-level Class 3 scrambling, but there was a tiny sketchy traverse on the way up (2 low-Class-5 steps across a 30′ face) that I tried to avoid on the way down. Things never look as hard from above as they do once you’re on them, and I ended up downclimbing a lot more Class 5 stuff than I’d missed, albeit with 15-20′ of exposure instead. Luckily a crew of hikers watched from below in case of a slip, as I merrily implored them to NOT come the way I was, and let out a chorus of expletives each time I reached a move I wasn’t happy about. I flew down the switchbacks back to the car, then Justin and I checked out Teton Village and spent the evening at Snake River Brewing- good beer and really really really good pizza! As we left we heard some rowdy sounds coming from the fairgrounds and went to investigate. A rodeo was on, and being mostly over, we were able to walk in for free and catch an hour or so of barrel racing, bull riding, and shenanigans like dance contests and frisbee tosses.

August 13:  We found it hard to leave Jackson.. there were endless hikes to do, the camping was prime, and plenty of creature comfort in town (if you could avoid the tourist crowds). Also, we’d been out late at the rodeo and waking up early to tackle Yellowstone didn’t sound appealing. So we slept in late, hung around camp reading, and then went into town to book some things for Thailand. Then we grabbed some groceries and headed out to the Snake River to enjoy the sunshine, make some lunch, and take a few trips down the quick moving river from one put-in to the next. As low-key as it was, this ranked as one of the best afternoons of the trip so far- no time crunch, no schedule, plenty of food, only sunshine and fun on the agenda.

Ariel-style. Fork as hairbrush.

Always the buffalo. Such imposing and beautiful animals.

Nightly tent view. Thus the desire to stay forever.

 

August 14: Woke up at 5 am and packed up to head to Yellowstone, getting on the road by 5:45. We knew the park was 40 miles away but didn’t know that it was another 40 slow miles to Old Faithful area, so instead of arriving before 7 as planned, we actually arrived around 8:15. Checked out Black Sand Basin, which was calm and nice, then headed to Old Faithful area to grab another coffee and walk around the geyser basin. Before 9 it was fine, and walking just a quarter mile removed us from most people, but by the time we were back at the car around 10:30, the crowds were building. An eruption was scheduled for 11, so we made some sandwiches at the car and went back to watch the iconic Old Faithful. More impressive than the geyser itself were the masses of people, and the infrastructure built to accommodate those people. With trepidation, we headed to see Grand Prismatic, the one thing on my bucket list for the park. It was a mass of cars, honking, brake lights, people cutting around each other in search for parking spaces, pulled off to the sides of the road, yelling… absolute chaos. It was almost impossible to walk on the boardwalk because so many people with selfie sticks were taking photos. People’s hats and other trash had blown into some of the geysers, marring the natural beauty. Justin took some photos to document the madness and we booked it for the calm of a riverside campsite on the Taylor Fork of the Gallatin River. I set up a hammock and started reading Super Sad True Love Story, which I then devoured before bedtime- something I haven’t done since high school probably.

August 15: Checked out Big Sky, which was essentially a new age shopping mall development. Like Bellevue but built into the mountains. Nothing about the town seemed genuine, and it was all construction trucks and luxury SUVs, so we left quickly and retreated to our hideout along the Taylor Fork for an afternoon of camp chores and fishing and running and swimming in a perfectly cool creek.

Post-run cooldown, 10 feet from camp.

Also a good spot for fishing.

Gorgeous little natives.

August 16: Bozeman-bound! After a lazy morning around our Taylor Fork campsite, drove the hour into Bozeman and looked for a spot for Justin to do some edits while I delved into Cascade Crest planning (NOT the fun part). Found International Coffee Traders near campus and they had great coffee and $1 homemade ice cream sandwiches. YUMMMM. Walked around downtown, browsed books and dresses and fly shops and eventually made our way to White Dog Brewery, and then over to MAP Brewing, where I had a Midas Crush, which has been the best IPA of this entire trip. Citrusy, complex, rich and clean. We’ll get a growler before we leave. Then made the long drive up to Fairy Lake Campground and rejoiced in the rarity of FREE developed camping.

August 17: Woke up early to a soft pink sunrise and set about making coffee. No matter what the exact camping set up we’re using, it always takes almost exactly 50 minutes to go from crawling out of bed to starting up the car via brewing coffee and making brekky. After 7 weeks, I still think we should be able to do this faster, but alas, we don’t. Made the quick drive over to the Fairy Lake Trailhead and started up towards Sacagawea Peak. Justin was tackling the entire Bridger Ridge route, 20 miles and ~6500′ of elevation gain over technical and exposed terrain. I planned to do the first hour and half out, then head back to the car and drive to the southern trailhead and pick him up. The trail was gnarly but gorgeous, and I was equally jealous and mom-level-proud to be handing over the long adventure run reins to Justin for the day. I watched him disappear across a talus slope and focused myself on getting back to the car without breaking an ankle or getting eaten by a grizzly.

I grabbed some groceries in town, then set up at the trailhead and tied a few more flies while I waited for Jus to finish. I saw him coming down by the huge M that’s been installed in the mountainside and ran up with water. He’d been out an hour longer than expected and I knew he’d be dehydrated. Spent an hour or so recovering by the car, cooked up some egg sandwiches, then headed to the lake by MAP brewing to swim and relax for a bit. I rented a paddle board and went in circles around the little lake, then swam back across to the beach with two elementary-aged girls who’d decided to swim across and then gotten themselves freaked out and stuck on the far side of the lake. Met up with Justin again, swam back across the lake to the brewery, enjoyed an IPA and some fries, then headed to another brewery (Outlaw) which was, sadly, near a Target and some strip housing and was not nearly as good as MAP. Then camp, our second campfire of the trip, and a chance to tuck into a new book! 

 

Taper means time to learn a new skill: fly tying! I’ve got a long way to go!!

 

10 Essentials and a Few Luxuries for Life on the Road

Traveling for a long period of time is an incredible experience. You get to explore places as quickly or as deeply as you want, you learn to live with less and appreciate more, and if you enjoy the outdoors, you get to play in them daily. But it’s not all sunshine and mountains. There are days when your adventures get rained out, days when you feel the dirt seeping into your bloodstream, days when your traveling partner becomes the most annoying person on the planet. Those days only make up 5-10% of an entire trip, but surviving them is key to enjoying the experience of traveling as a whole (and also not committing murder, blowing your budget on hotel rooms, or dying of dehydration). This list, though by no means comprehensive, is intended to help mitigate the small stresses that accumulate and cause shitty breakdown days, thus leaving you with more time to enjoy your journey.

GOAL: More of this.

Inherent Assumptions:

1) You have NOT purchased a $50,000+ vehicle/camper/trailer in which to travel. If you have, you probably have a lot of these already included in your fancy schmancy rig. This one’s for us poor folks.

2) You already know the basics of what you should bring on any trip (stove, tent, toiletries, etc.)

3) You, in general, are traveling on a budget, and do not plan to eat out every meal, stay in hotels, or go paragliding in every town.

4) You plan to be outside, a lot.

 

The 10 Essentials:

1) A strong, yet flexible organization system. You will access your stuff a dozen times a day or more. In order to not have this drive you insane, you need to know exactly where everything is and be able to get to it in less than 30 seconds. Our system was detailed in my very long post about kitting out the Subaru, but the essentials are this:

– Like with like. Our boxes were: toiletries, first aid, cooking equipment, pantry food (rice, sauces, cans), backpacking goodies, hats, and then a bag each of clothing.

– Most frequently used stuff is easiest to reach.

– Each person has their own box for personal gear/equipment

– Hard sided containers are easy to arrange and take in and out, but some soft sided storage is good for weird spaces or things that fluctuate in volume (clothing, snack foods)

 

With good organization, you can even carry passengers and a trombone

2) Means for separation from traveling companions (if applicable). If you’re traveling alone, more power to you. If not, read on. No matter how much you love your traveling companion, you will eventually drive each other crazy. The stresses of being confined to a small space and sharing decision making build up over time and at some point, one or both of you will break. Expect and plan for this- on a regular basis, spend a day doing different things (a bike comes in handy, but you can also arrange for drop offs), then come back together and recap. You’ll appreciate your time together more, and still feel like you’re your own human.

3) Water carrying capacity of 10 L or more. 10 gallons would be better. Water can be surprisingly hard to find, especially if you’re traveling through remote areas or away from towns. Having a big container that can be filled and used for several days cuts down on the chances of realizing you don’t have enough water to make coffee. A container with a pour spout can double as a shower- a hot shower if you leave it baking in the sun for an afternoon.

4) Folding table and chairs. Why? I can’t exactly characterize the superior comfort of cooking at a table vs. on the ground, or sitting in a chair vs. on the ground, but trust us that the $50 investment will pay off the first time you reach a dispersed site and want to hang around for a few hours.

Cooking on a table even looks better!

Also, you can take the chairs to outdoor movies, concerts, riverside picnics, etc. Make sure to test out the table before you commit to it- some are more stable than others, and a wobbly table is a pain.

5) Good maps and guides. Navigation and planning are equal parts fun and infuriating. While Google Maps is great, being able to see the big picture on a paper map is pretty priceless. You can usually pick up a basic state road map at visitor’s centers, and use Google to fill in on the go. For hiking and trail running, a combination of NPS/USFS brochures (often available for download online and in paper at visitors centers) and a good GPS app on a mobile phone has worked well for us. I highly recommend both Gaia (DIY and on-a-whim navigation) and Trail Run Project (better for established routes). A guidebook of free and cheap campsites is helpful (The Wright Guide is no-frills and awesome) because free-campsites.net is not comprehensive and doesn’t work when you’re in the middle of nowhere without cell service.

6) A Utah-heat-proof cooler. I’m not saying you have to buy a Yeti (but if you do, you won’t be disappointed), but a $20 Coleman was NOT cutting it for us. Shelling out for a cooler that holds ice for more than 2 days means, obviously, buying less ice, but also, less food waste, an ability to be out of a town for longer and still eat fresh.

7) TOYS. Cards, books, dice, Frisbee, bikes, blow up floats, etc. Bring as much fun stuff as you can without crowding out your car. Hopefully, your journey will be a mix of big epic adventure days and downtime. Toys not only expand your fun quotient on off days, they create socialization opportunities with other humans, and you’ll be able to float down a river on a whim*, or take a bike ride in a new town, without bothering to rent anything. Plus, cards, books and dice might save your relationship when you’re confined inside by rain for days on end (see below).

*I’d almost consider a watercraft or flotation of some sort a mandatory item in itself. An inflatable kayak or SUP offer loads of fun opportunities, but they take up space. We bought these two little floatation tubes for $3 apiece and they’ve lasted 3 summers of fun. Small and light enough to throw in on a fastpacking trip, but they’ve survived shallow rivers and bushwacking down banks too.

 

 8) A place to escape from the rain. If you have a van, or other space in which you can stand up fully, congratulations, you have this one covered. For anyone else, do not underestimate the power of rain to dampen your spirits. Rain itself is great, but cooking in the rain, setting up in the rain, hanging out in the rain… none of those things are great. You need either a good, easy to set up shelter system (a cheap tarp and some paracord comes in very handy!), a solid rain jacket, or a separate part of your budget dedicated to indoors activities on crappy days (happy hours, museums, movies, etc).

Rainy day escape: Arrested Development and cold leftover fried rice. (Note: tupperware is also duct tape delivery device for backpacking trips)

9) Duct tape. If I have to point out the merits of duct tape to you, you probably aren’t emotionally ready to travel.

10) An efficient coffee making system. I’m not stretching for a tenth item here. I regard coffee very seriously as a make-or-break your day item. For early morning starts, long drives, and to battle general laziness, coffee is essential. And if coffee takes too long to make, then you will try and skip it, and you will end up regretting it. A simple pour-over drip cone has been the easiest for us, but if you want to go SUPER easy, you can do instant coffee. For lazier mornings, we also have a plastic French press, but a daily ritual of cleaning out the press gets old, so it sees less frequent use. (Yes, if you read that carefully, we have 2 coffee making systems. This is serious business.)

Essential: Backpack-Friendly French Press

 

 

 

 

…And a Few Luxuries:

1) A Mini-Bar- Beer and whiskey are essentials before essentials, along the lines of a tent and sleeping bag. However, it is very easy to step it up a notch and keep your fancy tastes from ruining your budget by packing along the necessary ingredients for making your favorite cocktails on the road. We love margaritas, Manhattans, and Negronis, so our kit has: sweet vermouth, Campari, bitters, simple syrup, lime and lemon juice, decent gin, decent tequila, decent whiskey (but that’s on the “bedside table” for nightly access), and some very good Westland whiskey for special occasions. Being able to concoct something resembling a margarita on a sunny afternoon, or making a perfect Manhattan on a cold evening, is a luxury well worth the cubic foot of space the box takes up. Plus, having a little bar means it’s easy to make friends around a campground.

The minibar box. Cardboard separators keep the small liqueur bottles from rattling and breaking.

2) A Foam Roller- While other massage tools may be smaller (and we brought those too), there’s something nice about the way a session on the foam roller works out the kinks from a month of sleeping on hard surfaces.

3) A computer- Sure, you can book things and navigate and make plans from your phone. BUT. A computer makes things easier. It makes it possible to watch a downloaded movie on the 3rd straight day of rain. It makes it easier to write blog posts about watching downloaded movies on the 3rd straight day of rain. Unless your goal is complete disavowal of technology, a computer is worth it.

 

I’m not saying that bringing all 13 of the things listed above will make your trip a perfect success, but hopefully you’ll get a few more hours of fun out of a day. Let me know what you think some essentials to happy wandering are- this list is as flexible as our travel plans!

 

Lucy Goes Wandering: Week 5.5

We spend a long time in Colorado, get rained on for several days, and head north for sunnier skies and easier.

For the visually-inclined, check out http://www.jrichardsphoto.net/blog. 

August 1: Marked 1 month on the road with a 14-er, La Plata. Kyle convinced me to carry up his trombone,  and both he and Justin did awesome on their first high climb. I was so worried with weather-watching and making sure everyone was fed and hydrated that I drank no water and finished the day with a horrific dehydration headache. That cascaded into a full-on meltdown about the issues inherent in living in your car: having to find a spot to sleep, tight spaces, dirt, incessant chores. Not a night I’d like to relive. 

August 2: Fed up with the hustle to find a place to sleep, we crossed our fingers and checked out the campgrounds in Maroon Bells.. success! Scored a nice private spot near the creek for two nights- close to trails to run and unlimited water and a bathroom! Did laundry, cooked some lunch, and just relaxed for a while before checking out Aspen in the afternoon.

Clouds gathering over Maroon Bells

August 3: Ran Maroon Bells, quite an epic day. Raced against the predicted storms, and finished just before the skies turned dark. Beer and a quick swim at camp, then another easy afternoon of eating and fishing.

August 4: A Rainy Sloppy Adventure Day. Forecast was for 50% chance of showers in AM, with heavier rain starting around 2. Needed to do another long run, so I mapped out a route from Independence Pass area back down to Aspen- looked to be about 22 miles with 3000 gain and a lot of downhill/flat at end- perfect to get out before the weather got bad. Or so the theory went.  The first few miles were open alpine trail through tundra and across rocky slopes.

It was misty but I was warm enough from the climbing that I was okay in a tee and windbreaker.  Then I dropped into a brushy drainage, that apart from being hard to follow at times, was choked with head high brush, meaning I got soaked, and soaked again, and soaked again. Temps were in the low 40s and I resorted to grunting like a frat boy trying to max out his clean and jerk each time I hit another patch of brush. As soon as I was out, I stripped off my soaked tops and put on a dry layer and rain jacket, hoping for better trail from there out. The rain relented briefly on a  nice climb, giving me just enough time to dry out before it started drizzling again. The gray skies made it hard to tell what the weather was doing, and I reached a junction in some high meadows where I’d planned to go left, but couldn’t find any semblance of a trail, despite my GPS telling me I was right on top of it. A trail led to the rught, promising to drop below treeline earlier (good with weather) and seemed to be only a mile or so longer. I headed that way, and the trail withered out in about 100 yards. Farther down the valley I could see the trail again, so I picked my way across the slopes, looking for anything remotely resembling human impact along the way. This process repeated itself approximately 10 times in the next 10 miles. At its best, the trail looked like this:

I was running late by more than an hour, my SPOT wouldn’t send the “plans changed, pick me up over here” message or my location, and to make it worse, when I finally reached the last stretch of the route, a dirt road, it turned out to be 5 miles to the trailhead instead of the 2 I’d estimated when reading the map (in the shelter of a tree, with cold hands and in the rain). I started to panic, thinking Justin would head out onto my original route looking for me, I’d have no way to get warm when I finished, so on and so forth. My phone buzzed and beeped and generally went crazy. Service! I called Justin immediately, teary from exhaustion and frustration and relief, and told him I’d see him in 45 minutes. I booked it down the road, and rounded the corner to see steam billowing from  the stove- there was coffee, tea, hot creamy pasta, and a dry blanket waiting for me. Just then, the skies started dumping, also an hour behind schedule… we huddled in the front seats and turned the heater on full blast. Ahhh.. for about 20 minutes, then we had to rush over to Kyle’s trombone master class. Watched and learned a lot about trombone, and then got a private concert! Wrapped up with a visit to Aspen Rec Center- where at 7:30, $6 gets you 90 minutes of indoor lazy river pool, hot tubs, saunas, showers, exercise rooms, and best of all: water slide! Crashed in a parking lot warm and clean! 

August 5:  The day it rained so much… had originally planned to do  Grays and Torreys  peaks, but with drizzle and a forecast of thunderstorms all day, I canned the plan. We headed to Urad Lake area where I was doing some trail work on Saturday, and in the pouring rain, hunkered down for naps and some Arrested Development in the back of Lucy. 

When the rain was still coming down 3 hours later, we decided to head into Idaho Springs for beer and to catch opening ceremonies. Rode out the night with good beer and nachos, nice and dry inside Westbound & Down.
August 6: A soggy start with a sunny finish for trail work, but worked with some awesome ladies and built this staircase:

Afterwards, drank a beer and headed towards Boulder. Trying to find a spot to camp on a Saturday proved to be as frustrating as it sounds; Justin got his turn to rant about how much it sucks to travel the way we are (it’s true that it does suck, about 10% of the time- but the other 90% is awesome).

August 7: Went into Boulder to explore and do some grocery shopping. Went for a great run around town, stretched and enjoyed the sun in the park at Chataqua, then hit Trader Joes to stock up.Sampled the beers at Sanitas, walked around downtown, watched a bit of the Ironman, then margaritas and some Mexican food, an amazing affogatto, and then more beer and Olympics at Next Door. Drove up the canyon to a great spot recommended  by our bartender and slept soundly.

August 8: Another nice breakfast in Chataqua area and we decided to head off to Jackson. Drove all day, then reached our planned camping area at 9:30 to find it closed due to a forest fire. Initially parked at a pullout right near the road, but a house sat across the road, and the floodlights in front pushed us to move further up the road.

August 9: Jackson! What a great area- explored around the town early before it clogged with tourists and RVs, then hung out at camp for a few hours before a nice run around some glacial lakes, some bison and tourist watching, and a delicious campsite curry.

August 10: An epic morning running the Paintbrush – Cascade Canyon loop, followed by a picnic and a float and swim at String Lake. Came into town to grab a coffee and do some booking for Thailand (which is only 6 weeks away!!). Visited Melvin Brewing (aka Thai Me Up) and had a great beer and some overpriced egg rolls before heading back to camp. Enjoyed dinner in our neighbors’ van and shared some wine and laughs way late into the evening, with a rainy forecast promising everyone an excuse to take a rest day.

Lucy Goes Wandering: Week 4?!?

The week we fell in love with a new town, and gave up on several things. (You can skip soliloquy below if you just want the recap)

It’s odd how time moves on a trip like this. Although, to be fair, time seems to be moving oddly in every situation, excepting the most boring. An afternoon can go on for ages, but an evening of fishing is done too soon. It simultaneously seems like it’s been a month or two since we were in Yosemite, like we were there in a dream, and that it was just the other day (it was 9 days, actually). Packing in as much as we are, it’s easy to have one campsite blur into the next, to lose a day, to forget something really beautiful until you’re late night scrolling through your photos because you have no cell reception and are bored of your book and can’t sleep. We’re trying to be actively aware of our experiences, but to some extent, you can’t really reflect as things are happening. Reflection is the second round of enjoyment (usually). Part of the “stress” of travel is fearing that you’re not getting enough out of it. Are we on our phones too much? Who do I really need to text? Should we be eschewing social media to obtain enlightenment? Who knows. And we won’t know until it’s all over, so for now, we just go day to day, plan and adjust and deal with things as they come, and try to do what makes us happy. A long introduction just to say, here’s what’s been filling up these days:

July 21:  Ran up to Duck Lake (kind of the classic Mammoth hike), Justin fished, and we hung out at Black Velvet Coffee, our adopted go-to spot for the great drinks (Justin wants me to point out that the espresso was too fruity, but the beer selection was good) and enough space for gulit-free wifi mooching. Also made a killer Manhattan when we got back to camp!

July 22: Fishing day for Justin, lazy day for me. Not a bad view in the whole Mammoth area, it’s insanely gorgeous. But also really hot in the valley, too hot to enjoy the famous hot springs (at least during the day).

July 23: Taking care of business day, mostly- speed workouts (😧), permits, groceries, food packing for our backpacking trip, but we did spend a very enjoyable afternoon at a reggae festival in the Village at Mammoth, replete with a solid happy hour and great people watching. And we got to have another  coffee at BVC, so a great day all in all.

July 24: Backpacking! Yay! after an early start from camp, we lacked enthusiasm on reaching the shuttle pick up, and leisurely drank our coffee and read the news. Got on trail just before 9 am, and it was immediately hot. The packs felt heavy, and we had a big trip planned (40 miles in 2.5 days). We werent feeling it. We tried, we did positive self-talk and ate good food, but the love wasn’t there. 15 miles isn’t a long way to go in a day, but we’re used to doing it fast, and our slow 2.5 mph pace (which, yes, I know is a perfectly good backpacking speed) was killing both of us. By the time we had lunch at Thousand Island Lake, we were ready to reassess our plan. We shaved off a day and 14 some miles of fluff hiking, focusing on just the best spots. Found a nice campsite near Shadow Creek, and settled in for a long afternoon of sunbathing and napping.

July 25: Went for a run up to Cecile Lake, fun alpine exploring (recapped on Facebook), backpacked back out to trailhead, caught a shuttle, went for a swim in Horseshoe Lake, then grabbed a growler fill from Mammoth Brewing and went to Burgers (so tasty after 2 long days on trail). Fueled up with a quad shot Americano,  washed my hair in the forest service parking lot (got my first dirty look of the trip!), and we headed off into the sunset to Utah!

July 26: Got to Provo early, found a nice RV campground for wifi and showers and pool and shade, then went into town, found an arcade and a $5 movie theater, saw Ghostbusters, ate ice cream, groceries, bed.

July 27: The day we spent a lot of money and didn’t get any  sleep (unrelated). Gave up on trying to get Justin’s phone to work so replaced that with a new iphone, and gave up on trying to keep ice in our Coleman in the Utah heat, so we bought a Yeti. Then gave up on being outside and sat at Starbucks for 3 hours planning and editing. Found what looked like great dispersed camping near the Mt. Timp trailhead, but spent the evening like this: 9 pm- pack up for bed. 10 pm-request music to be turned down. We get 10% lower. Okay. We read, try to ignore.  11 pm- teens trying to restart their motorbike, literally 800 times. 11:45 pm- plead, tearfully, with neighbors to stop shooting guns and yelling. Recite list of the last 8 songs they’ve played. They comply, thankfully. 12 am- motorbike gets started, there is yelling, some victory laps, and they’re off. 12:10- asleep. 12:20 am- girl in another campsite starts screaming to just let her go home, she will walk, she doesn’t care if she dies. These histrionics continue across the campground, out onto the road. She threatens anyone who requests her not to scream. Seems to finally run out of energy and sit nearby, sobbing and giving half hearted rants every 10 minutes or so. 1:30 am- Nyquil. Ahh…

July 28: Timp in the morning. Got a late start due to the aforementioned shenanigans. Gorgeous run but kicked my butt. Altitude, heat, and rougher trails than expected.

Took a solid swim in the frigid Provo river to bring me back to life. Justin fished, without much luck. Then I saw a guy, had lots of fishing gear, sent him to talk to Justin. Turns out he literally wrote the book on fishing the Provo, and not only did he loan Justin a fly, he took us out for a night fishing on his friend’s private access, showed us a few holes to check out later and was generous enough to share his vast knowledge about trout and the river with us. Justin caught 4 trout, and we came back to a quiet campground.
July 29: Phew. Today. I should stay on top of these recaps. We drove from our campsite back around to Alta so I could run there – kind of a pain, but so beautiful. Spent 4.5 hours exploring peaks, ridges, cattracks, and wildflowers. Much happier run than the day before.

Then beer and fries at the lodge, an afternoon river float, dinner, and now this:

Off to Aspen tomorrow for familiar faces, cooler temps, and bigger mountains! Whoo hoo!!!

Lucy Goes Wandering: The Backstory

One of my biggest flaws is my general assumption that whoever I’m talking to was party to the minutes/hours/days of internal dialogue preceding the first words out of my mouth. (Or in this case, keys pecked out by my fingers). On a weekly basis, I have to stop, back up, and fill in the plot for whatever scheme or diatribe I’m subjecting my dear patient husband to. And thankfully, someone pointed out that I need to do the exact same thing with this whole trip. While Justin and I have been scheming and planning for months, I’ve generally been restrained in my social media sharing (mostly due to the hectic pace involved in preparing while working, but also partly out of modesty). So here it is, the what and how and why of Lucy Goes Wandering.

What: Lucy Goes Wandering is the name we’ve given to the roadtrip portions of our longer season of adventure: 7-8 months of travel that bounces us all around the globe for purposes of weddings and exploration and citizenship. We start with roadtrip, back to Seattle for Cascade Crest and a wedding, then Australia for Emma’s wedding, Thailand/Malaysia/Indonesia for fun, Australia for a wedding, then back to the US to finish Justin’s citizenship and see my family for Christmas, then back to Australia when the citizenship finishes.

Why: We’ve had a long term plan to travel this summer, then relocate to Australia. Originally, it was going to be South America for 6 months, but then those plans fizzled and Justin’s sister Emma got engaged and scheduled her wedding for mid-September, giving us 10 weeks to explore somewhere. We realized we hadn’t really seen much of the American West, so we settled on a roadtrip.(Actually, the roadtrip is really two roadtrips: a large loop around the west this summer, focused on mountains and fishing and sunshine, and a second cross-country loop in the winter with a focus on visiting family/friends and skiing as much as we can afford). Why the west? All the mountains and running and fishing our bodies can handle, plus lots of sunshine and good breweries.

And finally, why not???

How: That’s the major category of question we’ve gotten: How did you afford it? What did you do with your stuff? Where are you staying? I completely understand the luxury of not working for 8 months, and that this whole thing may sound absurd or entitled or irresponsible. But let me be clear: we worked two jobs for 3 years- lots of 70 hour weeks, lots of Fridays and Saturdays spent pouring beer instead of drinking it. We were frugal, and we kept our goal in mind. We put aside enough money for a house down payment before we even started budgeting for this trip. Speaking of budgets, we made a realistic list of expenses over a year ago and figured out how much that meant we had to put aside each week. And then we did it. We picked up weeknight shifts even though it meant we were tired for a day or two. And then, suddenly, the years of hustle were over and we were on the road.

As for our camping set up, I’ll detail our Lucy build out in another post (only waiting on good photos). But basically we built a sleeping platform in the back of the car, got a roof box, and can store everything we have either under the bed or on the roof, meaning we can pull up to a spot and be tucked in 3 minutes later. We did this to save money on camping, because money you don’t spend camping is money you can spend on beer and french fries.

As for our stuff, most of it returned from whence it came (Goodwill), and our favorite clothes, nice cookware, and ski gear is in storage, ready to fly to Australia when we do. I don’t miss any of it, except comfy chair, which found a safe home.

Where:

For the roadtrip only: we started in the North Cascades, after a test run at Mt. Rainier, then hit Bend, OR for a visit with friends, then Portland for a wedding. After that, southern OR coast and northern California coast (all those details here: Week 1, Week 2). Then Yosemite, and now Mammoth Lakes to round out week 3. Upcoming : Uintas mountains in Utah, then out to Aspen, CO to see my step-brother, more wandering and running around Colorado (Silverton for Softrock if I can swing it), up to Montana via Wyoming/Yellowstone, then on to Idaho and Cascade Crest on August 27. Then a few days to play around the mountains or Seattle, before the San Juans for another wedding. And September 7 we fly out to Australia. Our plan is flexible, as we really only have a few places we have to be, so we are feeling it out as we go. After years of juggling tight schedules and never feeling like there was enough time for things, the wide open itinerary is so liberating.

So on we travel, for the love of sunshine and new playlists and a clear mountain stream, for the joy of sunset on new peaks and a good Americano after a week of making your own, and for the sake of being, at least for this small moment in out lives, almost completely free.

Lucy Goes Wandering… week 3? I think? What day is it?

July 16: Spent the morning getting our proverbial ducks in a row (internet, groceries, gas, cleaning, etc.) then drove further south, stopping at beaches and lookouts along the way. Found another pull off north of Bodega, CA. 

July 17: woke up early, drove out to a nice picnic area overlooking the ocean, and cooked up a breakfast in the chilly morning fog. Drove a litter further and realized we were only 30 miles from San Fran while grabbing a delicious pastry in Point Reyes, so we did a little research, decided to grab a spot at Pantoll on Mt. Tam. Then napped, ran part of the coastal trail, and visited San Francisco Running Company for tailwind and a really great tshirt. Decided we needed showers desperately, so found  a community pool nearby. For $10 we had a super warm outdoor sunny swim and a shower, plus the lifeguard was the friendliest man ever. Then on to Sausalito for date night: beers and tacos! Caught sunset over the city and tucked in for a noisy night next to panoramic highway.

July 18: overslept our intended sunrise Mt. Tam hike, then lazed about in our sleeping bags, looked at the map, and decided we didn’t want to drive 4 hours to Big Sur for only 2 days and then backtrack north to Yosemite. Tired of driving and relocating all the time. That, and we were getting over the cold coastal weather. Packed up, cooked brekky overlooking the bridge, then headed to Yosemite. Found a site at Yosemite Creek and relaxed in the sun.

July 19: Didn’t want to drive into the madness of the valley, plus the road out of the campground was long and in bad shape, so we decided to run into the valley instead. Explored both ways and grabbed some lunch and snacks before bolting because that place is crazy. Justin bruised his kneecap in a burly fall but was a boss as usual. 23 miles roundtrip with awesome views, 143 switchbacks up to the falls, and lots of good swims.

A perfect spot for a midmorning soak 🙂

July 20: Early wake up to catch the sun breaking into the valley, then cooked breakfast before driving up to Tulomne Meadows visitor center. Got a sticker and a recommendation for Gaylor lakes, which were gorgeous and buggy and trouty. Now Mammoth lakes for a few days for all the activities and some beer. 

Lost Coast Trail: Sandy Success and Fawn Failure

The Lost Coast Trail is really two trails- a northern section that’s an epic 25 miles of beach hiking, and a southern section, 28-ish* miles long that travels up and down cliffs, bluffs and mountains. Here’s a lot more detail that I won’t rewrite: Wonderland Guides: The Lost Coast Trail

Day 1: High tide was around 8:50 am,  so Justin and I took off at 8 heading south. Our plan was to run as far as the Punta Gorda lighthouse together (3.3 miles), where he’d turn back and then drive the  2-hr shuttle to Black Sands Beach at the southern end. The first section of trail that’s impassable at high-tide is after the lighthouse, so I figured I’d have a receding tide in my favor the rest of the day. Lots of sand, so slow going.

 The fog was clearing off already and to our surprise, there were half a dozen elephant seals resting on the beach just in front of the lighthouse. Like the orcas in Alaska last summer, I lost my breath, just shocked to see such amazing animals 50 ft away. We watched them flop and tussle for 10 minutes or so until it got chilly and we parted ways.

 I flew on the harder packed trail for the next few miles, so excited about the seals and the sun and the incredible views. The trail alternated between beach and grassy flat above the beach, but off-beach, I soon found out, did not necessarily mean easy running terrain. There were some short climbs, and longer stretches of really soft sand. 

I met and chatted with lots of nice people, and before I knew it, had reached Big Flat Creek, signaling only 8 or so more miles to go. This last section was all beach, and I was worried I’d be slow and barely be able to run at all. With the tide going out, I was able to find a few stretches of sand that weren’t quite firm, but I wasn’t sinking my whole shoe in with each step. I started a little counting song in my head, running to a count of 100, then again, and again, and again. Before I knew it, I could make out the headland at Shelter Cove a few miles in the distance. I was in such a trance- just jogging/slogging happily through the sand, that I nearly stepped on a baby seal hauled out and hiding behind a rock. As I came past a knee-high boulder, I heard a little yip and looked down to see a seal just 2 feet to my left. I quickly scuttled away lest momma and poppa see me nearby and abandon the baby, then turned around to watch the little guy from afar. He and I stared at each other for a few minutes and then continued on our own ways. 

The last stretch of sand along Black Sands Beach was the softest all day- 2 miles of unrelenting spsshh, spsshh, but I spied the trailhead and didn’t quit running until I got there. Even when it turned out I had to go up a short steep hill to finish, I kept counting and made it there without stopping. Hot and tired and completely satisfied, I promptly drank a beer and found an ice cream cone. The second section of trail started up the road aways, and in talking to a shop girl, found out we could camp at the Naderos campground and connect onto the trail from there, no driving involved. We settled in for an afternoon of reading and stretching, and went to bed early.

Day 2: Mosquitos everywhere. So many goddamn mosquitos. We hesitated getting out of the tent, listening to them buzz. We quickly ate breakfast and ate in the car. Tucked away in the woods, my enthusiasm for the second day’s effort was low. Mostly, I didn’t have a good sense of the trail, and that was making me anxious. I knew that Justin would be able to find me at the end, but I didn’t have a great map or a sense of the sections, so 22 miles felt overwhelming. (Also, it wasn’t 22 miles, but 28, although I didn’t find that out until later). We started off up towards Chemise Mountain, a nice forested climb but not much of a view, besides a lookout. After Justin turned back, again to drive a 2-hour shuttle, the trail rolled along the forested ridgetop, before starting down towards Whale Gulch. 

This section of trail was severely neglected- it appeared no one had hiked it in several weeks. There were weeds overgrowing the trail, lots of down limbs, and the tread was uneven where it had been washed away or trampled by animals when muddy. I picked my way down, losing the trail every now and then, and finally broke out onto the flat before Needle Rock. As I reached the visitor center, I saw humans and was thrilled! Also, lots of nice gum trees. I think gum trees are the most beautiful trees, even if they aren’t technically native here. I saw a sign indicating I’d come 8 miles and was stoked- only 14 to go! Then I saw an informational sign about the trail- perfect! I could find out about the sections ahead, get a better sense for when climbs were and so on. I began reading and reached this line “the trail runs 22.1 miles from Usal Beach to Whale Gulch”.. I’d only passed Whale Gulch 20 minutes ago. I reread the description of each trail section and did the math. 19.4 miles left. I tried again. 19.4 miles left. And a third time? Same result. I sent Justin a message from my SPOT: “Trajl (sic- no autocorrect on a SPOT) is 28, 19 left. Okay but sad. 4-5 eta” I was mildly bummed but kind of excited for an additional challenge. It didn’t seem like there was any way to change the plan, so I just continued to move forward.

The next few miles were a road that rolled along, not especially exciting but fairly easy. I noticed a lot of elk droppings so I expected I’d run into an elk sooner or later. I came around the corner and a small family of them turned around and stared at me from 50 yards off. I clapped in an attempt to get them to move off the trail (I read later that this was a very bad idea). They shuffled forward, and I followed behind, keeping my distance. The trail turned again and suddenly, there was a herd of 70+ elk (I only know the number I could count, but more were in the woods), stretching up the road as far as I could see, and off into the brush and hills on either side. Lots of fawns, their mommas, and a few bull elk as well. I paused, attempted to make some more noise, and… nothing. They didn’t move. They would look at me, then go back to eating. I got closer, but no response. I waited a few more minutes. Loud talking? No effect. I knew not to approach them, so I thought maybe I’d walk around, but in any direction I went, I’d suddenly spot more elk. At one point, as I tucked myself into a thorny bush to stay out of the way, a large cow elk came up from behind and walked within 5 feet of me. I couldn’t believe how large and powerful she was- her shoulder as tall as mine, and her head well above. Staring and snorting, she paused for a second and I calmly begged her not to kill me. Then she walked on, and ate some more grass. I waited another 10 minutes, but the herd showed no signs of moving. Some elk had begun to bed down right next to the trail. I’d been stuck for 30 minutes, still had 17.5 miles to run, and it was already noon. 

Frustrated beyond belief, I sent another SPOT text: “Stuck behind elk 30, dont drive, think I have to turn back”. I loudly pleaded with the elk to just let me through, but I knew better than to try and walk through their herd, especially with the babies right smack in the middle of the trail. I turned around, and jogged back to the visitor center to make a plan. I knew worst case I could run all the way back to the trailhead, but I didn’t remember that section of trail fondly and wanted to be done as soon as possible. A map at the visitor center let me know that with a 4-mile dirt track walk, I could get myself back to a paved road. Fortunately, Justin was still in cell service, so I sent a text to meet at the top of the road and started up. It was a long climb, relentlessly up. I finally reached the intersection and and had just sat down to eat a snack when I heard Lucy rumbling to the rescue.

I’ll be back to finish this southern section another day, but it was good and humbling lesson in letting go. I was immensely frustrated initially, but talking through it with Justin helped me realize that sometimes you just don’t have the option to do what you want, and you have to be okay with that.

Things to note:

Camping at Mattole Beach and Naderos campground were perfect. Mattole was crowded by 6 pm, Naderos was empty all day.

Roads are rough, especially Mattole Rd. and Usal Rd. REALLY rough. Expect to drive 25 miles per hour.

Some sections of the trail are washed away between Spanish Flat and Big Flat. This means there’s more beach walking than expected.

I made a lot of mistakes with the elk, and I’m probably lucky I didn’t get hurt. Momma elk are protective of their young and very unpredictable. Loud noises can spook them or come off as confrontational- I shouldn’t have yelled or clapped. I also shouldn’t have been as close as I was. Don’t let your drive towards something put you in an unsafe situation, whether it’s weather or fuel levels or elk.