And so it begins...: Day 127

October 13, 2017 Day 127

Last night I was actually somewhat warm adn woke up around 06:00. It was still raining outside when I climbed out of my cmaper and brought my cmaping stove and covffee inside my vehicle. I washed out my coffee mug in the bathroom sink and then made coffee inside my vehicle with a window down. While my coffee was steeping I bent down to tie my hiking boots up and when I sat back up I noticed that these two young girls were staring at me from outside my vehicle. I opened the door and as I stood before them I felt like I was towering over them and also felt like I was so much older than me; though, I couldn't have been but a few years older. Anyways, they wanted to talk to me and give me a pamphlet about surviving natural disasters which turned into, of course, dealing with God. I was polite and took the pamphlet and listened to what they had to say and then since it was raining out and I was slowly getting wet I apologized and said I should be getting back on the road.

Leaving the rest stop, I called my mom and left a voicemail with a woman whom I have been in contact with for months now about joining an online fitness program (potentially becoming a coach?). More about that later. From there I had a relaxing drive towards the Silver Falls State Park which was about an hour away and like normal had no cell phone service. After speaking with a ranger and acquiring a map of the 10 falls trail I wanted to do I parked over at the South Falls lot and paid $5.00 for the day. I was one of only a handful of vehicles there for it was only about 09:00 and still misting out. Starting off on the trail did not go so well for first I went the wrong way that cost me two miles round trip and then I go to take a picture with my camera to find out I didn't replace the memory card! Sigh...so I had to walk grumpily back to my vehicle to retrieve it; though, I will say the thought of saying fuck it and not going to get it crossed my mind but I knew me and if I didn't go get it I would regret it later on in the hike.

Once I was finally on the correct path and had all my stuff together the now 10.7 mile hike was breathtaking! The falls were magnificent and the landscape was alive with color. there was every single shade of green one could possibly imagine and all the trees were completely covered in moss.s The trial was littered with colorful leaves and wiht the river running thru it it was exactly how Fall should be. I couldn't have been happier nor wished for a better way to experience my favorite season. Unfortunately, my blissful experience was ruined for a short time when a wasp decided to sting me and I had no clue whether I was allergic to them or not. Luckily, I am not which I found out the hard way. In the end, all I can say is that I could go on and on attempting to describe in detail the pure beauty that befell my eyes and thunderous roar as the falls pounded into the rocks below but nothing I could say would truly capture it.

When the hike was over I made some rice at my camper to the stares of many a passerby. Once the rice was cooked I then added a can of corn, cumin, black pepper and sea salt. To my amazement when I sat down in my vehicle to eat this meal it was actually really delicious and I couldn't stop eating it! I also need to do dishes and clean up my camper some but it has been cold and I have just been lazy. My camper is also leaking again near the back hatch area but thankfully nothing is being ruined...well besides the actual wood of my camper. So I will have to address that once again.

Pulling out of the park, I had no cell phone service so luckily I am great at reading a map and just used the maps I carry with me to get in the direction I wanted to be heading. Once I did obtain cell service I typed in my destination, the ZigZag ranger station, and then used my phone to take me the rest of the way. Stopping at the ranger station in ZigZag (I just love that name) I inquired about the hikes I was thinking about doing and I found out that they were already covered in snow which I figured would be the case. The lady I was talking to was very helpful and offered up some other hikes within the area that are not yet covered in snow and are decent. I then asked her about where I was orginially interested in camping and she said that Government Camp, which was ten minutes up the road, already had quite a bit of snow but I should be able to get to Still Camp to spend the night.

It turned out that Still Camp was not accessable and so I pressed on and turned onto the road to Trillium Lake Campground. I immediately regretted my decision to do so but there was no where for me to turn around so my camper and I slowly made our way down the snow covered road. There was no dispersed camping like my app told me there would be and there was also no where for me to turn around without running the risk of getting stuck. So I really had no other option but to press on. Soon I entered the day use area but there signs stating no overnight camping and the ground had a good couple inches of snow already. Since I had no where else to go to camp nearby and the light was fading quickly I figured I drove all this way I wise well go and see Trillium lake that everyone talked about. So I drove yet a little further down the forest road to the dam but I could not make out Mt. Hood in the backdrop with the overcast sky.

A woman I had seen earlier came up to me and asked about the road conditions coming down and I told her that my vehicle did fine though I am worried about heading out since it will be mostly uphill. I also mentioned that I was trying to find a place to camp but had no luck thus far. She then told me that she has been staying in her van just 100 yards up the road and I should have no problem getting my camper there and that there was also another person camping up there in a tent. So I followed her down the road and was able to pull into a small clearing and park my camper with the snow coming down all around me.

It was freezing cold when I stepped away from the warmth of my vehicle to move into my camper for the night. It was only 17:30 when I climbed into my camper to escape the snow but not the cold for that followed me inside. It was so cold that I didn't bother to change out of the clothes I had been wearing and hiking in the last couple days. I did change out my socks and added a wool pair on top of my new ones. As I hunkered in for the night I cracked my window like always and worried that my camper door would freeze during the night from the snow and rain that was coming down. As I wrote in my journal before going to bed I began to lose feeling in my fingers and had to stop to cover them up. Tonight was by far the coldest night I have yet to endure and I did not sleep well at all. From waking up due to nightmares, the cold and at one point a rife shot going off close by it was quite the restless night.