I'm too busy to be writing. And I hope to be able to post some photos, but I don't want this journal to own me. I don't think it's going to be a daily blog as it's started out to be.
But today was great fun. Janet, Yonder and I went up to Garenflo Gap just south of Hot Springs and fed 8 hikers pizza cooked in the back of the truck, hot dogs and bratworst, fruit, candy, chips, and soda. We couldn't believe that 2 of the hikers had bear stories! One of them was approached by a bear as he was cooking his dinner. He grabbed his food and ran down the trail to another hiker's site where he hung his food with the other guy's. When he went up later, the bear was gone. The other guy saw a mama and cub come right through his site. He was in his tent and could hear her claw at the tree. She got his food bag down, broke it open and tore through all his food. When he finally got nerve to go out and see what was left, there was nothing left of his food bag, but the Mountain House meals were left behind - not a favorite he guessed!
I can't tell you how much I wanted to just walk off with those guys heading north. And to be able to get just a whiff of hiker funk was a real treat. It's surprising what things you miss.
Off to Atlanta tomorrow to spend the night with E. Z. Duzit, then he's riding with me down to Florida on Monday.
I'm happy to be wandering again. Photos will have to wait until after the canoe trip.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
The Drama Continues April 3
Well, as if I didn’t have enough suspense yesterday, today I had the usual problem of remembering to get gas. Even after I thought about it, I just as quickly forget that I needed to get it. And I found myself driving through the mountains of North Carolina with the fuel light on (who knows how long) and the needle below empty. Dang it! I’m going to have another catastrophe today. I’m going to run out of gas miles from nowhere. Just keep driving. Keep driving. There’s got to be gas soon. Miles after mile of rolling mountains and no signs of civilization. How long can I go? What will I do if I run out? Is that a sign? Yes. Can I get there? Sputter, sputter as I exit the highway. Keep running. Fumes. I made it on funes. That seems to be a theme for me. I did it 5 times on my trip to Minnesota last fall. The 5th time I ran out. Had to bike to a gas station, buy a gas can and gas, and bike back to my car. Didn’t really want to do that in the mountains.
I had a technology breakdown. I got this gadget that plugs in to the lighter and provides a household outlet for charging all my "things", but when I went to use it....nada, nothing, no power! Found out here at Janet and Yonder's that my lighter doesn't work and it's not a blown fuse. But, aha, this gadget also clips to the battery and charges stuff, but I have to be stopped and sit around while it does its thing. That's not as efficient as I was hoping, but it does keep me powered....and that option does work.
The drive today through the rain was quite beautiful. I saw my first blossoms in WV. The woods and mountains were tugging at my heart. I do love them so. So many trail memories came flooding back. And as I looked at those mountains that I hiked through, even I couldn't believe that I had hiked 2175 miles two years ago. It just seems so formidable.
I had a technology breakdown. I got this gadget that plugs in to the lighter and provides a household outlet for charging all my "things", but when I went to use it....nada, nothing, no power! Found out here at Janet and Yonder's that my lighter doesn't work and it's not a blown fuse. But, aha, this gadget also clips to the battery and charges stuff, but I have to be stopped and sit around while it does its thing. That's not as efficient as I was hoping, but it does keep me powered....and that option does work.
The drive today through the rain was quite beautiful. I saw my first blossoms in WV. The woods and mountains were tugging at my heart. I do love them so. So many trail memories came flooding back. And as I looked at those mountains that I hiked through, even I couldn't believe that I had hiked 2175 miles two years ago. It just seems so formidable.
An Auspicious Beginning April 2
Got the car packed, the house cleaned, and the food from the fridge delivered, and the return trip to the house to fetch a forgotten item completed, I was now on the road. It was a good drive east towards Erie, Pa, then south toward Pittsburgh and beyond. I had great new music and audiobooks on my iPod. I was all set. And it felt so good to be traveling again. New adventures! I’m most myself when I’m traveling, on the road to somewhere new.
The canoe strapped to the top of the car is rumbling and humming. The bike on a rack on the back is rocking to and fro. The interior of the car is filled to the brim. I think I have enough stuff to be gone 6 months to a year, not just 6 weeks. Well, maybe....
It got dark, and now I couldn’t see the canoe but I could hear it being noisier than usual. I was so scared that my overpriced new toy was going to go flying off the car. Were the straps tight enough? Did it matter if it started to twist off center? What’s it doing now? I can’t see it. So stop. Leave your lights on, it’s dark out here. Grab your headlamp to see the straps. Push the button to unlock all the doors. Close the driver’s door. Open the back door to step up and check the straps. Locked? Locked! Driver’s door: locked, too! Shit! What have I gotten myself into? I’m standing here in the dark, on the side of Interstate 79S, in only a t-shirt and pants with a headlamp. Everything else is locked in my car. I’m screwed...royally! What do I do now? Only thing I can do, try and get someone to stop and help me. Start waving my arms while standing near rear of car. 1...2...3...4...5...6...7... cars pass. They even move over to outside lane so as to not hit me, I guess. Move to the front of the car so the headlights might make me more visable. Keep waving. 8...9...10...11...12...13... and 19...20...21 Where’s a cop when you need one? What’s behind me? Oh, wonderful! Someone stopped! I’ll be all right now. Gregory, a plumber from West Virginia. Thank you, Trail Angel. Call 911 on his cell. Oh, the police can’t help me. Do you have AAA? (and I thought several times about getting it before I left mostly for the maps....sure could use it now!) No. So how are you going to help me get off the side of your highway? I can’t stay here. Call a tow truck. Where are you? I don’t know. Gregory and I try to remember what signs we might have seen recently. I think we’re 20 miles north of Morgantown WV. Greg thinks he saw a sign for Kirby. It will be 30 minutes. Greg says he’ll wait with me til they arrive. I”m sure glad because his truck is warmer than outside.. He just built a house. I hiked the Appalachian Trail. He loves his grandkids. I don’t have grandkids. And on, and on. Where is that tow truck? We call. They can’t find us. We tell them what we know. They’ll keep driving further up the highway. Finally! And $50 bucks later I’m back on the road.
Just like on the Appalachian Trail (AT), there are good people who help you when you need them. Trail Magic. It’s still happening. The world is a good place. Please believe it.
So on I drove another hour to a rest area to spend the night. It was getting quite late by now. A special friend kept me company on my cell phone while I got to where I was to spend the night and settled in. I felt safe, connected, appreciated, and free.
The lights were sure bright, but post it notes properly placed on the windows blocked the direct lights. Comfy mattress, my own bed pillow, and a sleeping bag. Zzzzzzz. Nightie night.
Oh yeah, as suggested by someone dear to me, I’m now wearing my extra key around my neck. Not going to have that problem again...I’ll have a different one, I’m sure.
The canoe strapped to the top of the car is rumbling and humming. The bike on a rack on the back is rocking to and fro. The interior of the car is filled to the brim. I think I have enough stuff to be gone 6 months to a year, not just 6 weeks. Well, maybe....
It got dark, and now I couldn’t see the canoe but I could hear it being noisier than usual. I was so scared that my overpriced new toy was going to go flying off the car. Were the straps tight enough? Did it matter if it started to twist off center? What’s it doing now? I can’t see it. So stop. Leave your lights on, it’s dark out here. Grab your headlamp to see the straps. Push the button to unlock all the doors. Close the driver’s door. Open the back door to step up and check the straps. Locked? Locked! Driver’s door: locked, too! Shit! What have I gotten myself into? I’m standing here in the dark, on the side of Interstate 79S, in only a t-shirt and pants with a headlamp. Everything else is locked in my car. I’m screwed...royally! What do I do now? Only thing I can do, try and get someone to stop and help me. Start waving my arms while standing near rear of car. 1...2...3...4...5...6...7... cars pass. They even move over to outside lane so as to not hit me, I guess. Move to the front of the car so the headlights might make me more visable. Keep waving. 8...9...10...11...12...13... and 19...20...21 Where’s a cop when you need one? What’s behind me? Oh, wonderful! Someone stopped! I’ll be all right now. Gregory, a plumber from West Virginia. Thank you, Trail Angel. Call 911 on his cell. Oh, the police can’t help me. Do you have AAA? (and I thought several times about getting it before I left mostly for the maps....sure could use it now!) No. So how are you going to help me get off the side of your highway? I can’t stay here. Call a tow truck. Where are you? I don’t know. Gregory and I try to remember what signs we might have seen recently. I think we’re 20 miles north of Morgantown WV. Greg thinks he saw a sign for Kirby. It will be 30 minutes. Greg says he’ll wait with me til they arrive. I”m sure glad because his truck is warmer than outside.. He just built a house. I hiked the Appalachian Trail. He loves his grandkids. I don’t have grandkids. And on, and on. Where is that tow truck? We call. They can’t find us. We tell them what we know. They’ll keep driving further up the highway. Finally! And $50 bucks later I’m back on the road.
Just like on the Appalachian Trail (AT), there are good people who help you when you need them. Trail Magic. It’s still happening. The world is a good place. Please believe it.
So on I drove another hour to a rest area to spend the night. It was getting quite late by now. A special friend kept me company on my cell phone while I got to where I was to spend the night and settled in. I felt safe, connected, appreciated, and free.
The lights were sure bright, but post it notes properly placed on the windows blocked the direct lights. Comfy mattress, my own bed pillow, and a sleeping bag. Zzzzzzz. Nightie night.
Oh yeah, as suggested by someone dear to me, I’m now wearing my extra key around my neck. Not going to have that problem again...I’ll have a different one, I’m sure.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
The Night Before I Leave
It's the night before I hit the road. I'm taking off for 6 weeks, driving down to Florida with all my toys. I'm taking my bike, my canoe, and my backpack for what I'm calling the Southeast Trifecta. Someone else suggested it was a triathlon. I like that better. My plan is to canoe 4 days on the Suwanee River with friends from my thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail in 2007 - Thumper and E. Z. Duzit. Then I'll head over to St. Augustine to visit with my daughter, Dana and her boyfriend, Joe. When they get tired of me and kick me out, I'll hop on my bike and pedal over to Sarasota to visit a dear friend, Kim. It's about 250 miles across the state and this will be my maiden voyage of a solo loaded bike tour. I'm excited and scared. It's been nearly 20 years since my last tour and I was not alone. But I feel like I can do anything after hiking from Georgia to Maine! My only concern is finding a place every night to set up my tent, but I guess I'll figure it all out once I get biking. After spending a few days in Sarasota (friends and fish smell after 3 days), I'll bike a different route back to St. Augustine. I'm also hoping to hook up with another trail friend, Hammock Hanger, who lives in Jacksonville. We're planning on paddling the Intercoastal Waterway some, maybe a couple of days if we can work it out.
I forgot to mention that on the drive down to Florida I'm going to be staying with other trail friends, Janet and Yonder, who live in Asheville, NC. Then I'm driving to Atlanta to stay over with E. Z. Duzit and his family. It's really fabulous the wonderful friends I made while hiking the AT and I love the fact that we've been able to keep the friendships going. The friendships were made easily out there, bonding quite quickly. And long times can pass, but a quick phone call and the close connection is made again. It's so special to me to have these dear friends all over the country.
Then after the canoeing and biking and visiting with Dana, I'm going to mosey up to Virginia and hike from north of Damascus down to Trail Days (hiker reunion) with Thumper and E. Z. Duzit. If I have extra time, I may hike a few days alone and catch them closer to Damascus...just cuz I can! Might as well enjoy this free lifestyle.
And thank goodness for a dear friend back home who is caring for my house, yard, plants, and mail. Bonnie, you are a godsend.
So all I have left to do tomorrow is get everything loaded up, fret about what I've missed, perhaps get one more CrossFit workout in (I'm going to miss that place), and clean the house. All this while not pissing off my left knee which has been a bit irked lately. It prefers resting, stretching, and icing. I'll try and accommodate it as much as possible.
Well, I'll try and use this blog to keep everyone up to speed on what I'm doing. Now I won't be writing every day like I did on the AT. For one, I don't have the same device with me. I'll do the best I can when I get to a computer.
Enjoy the spring!
Monday, March 9, 2009
Day One of Blogging
I've finally done it! I've created a blog. Does that make me one of the cool people? I sure hope so. Here I am, nearing 60 (ouch! can't say that number out loud), the most fit that I've ever been, the most detached that I've ever been, the most useless that I've ever been. So the only way from here is up, yes? I have no job, no lover, kids grown and gone...a drift on the sea, not sure where to go or why. I'm pondering the big question: Why are we here? Are we just here to fill time? Right now, most days, that's what it feels like. And I'm able to do that quite well, with nothing really accomplished at the end of the day. And I'm told "That's ok". I'm waiting for a sign from the universe as to what's the next step, the next big adventure. Maybe I'm already on it! This is a pretty scary trip I'm on, direction unknown.
I've planned some distractions for the next couple of months: a canoe trip with friends down the Suwannee River in Florida, a bike trip looping across Florida solo, hiking in to Trail Days in Virginia, and hiking rim to rim in the Grand Canyon with friends. I've even signed up for RAGBRAI (the bike ride across Iowa) but have to wait to see if I get in through the lottery.
So I'm staying busy while I heal. Heal from a broken heart. Heal from the transition into retirement. Heal from the loss of an elderly loved one (106 - can't feel sorry for her!). Heal from the state of the economy and mood of the country.
I'm not sure why I set up this blogging site. For one, I've wanted to learn how to do this to use it when I travel (and I'm planning to travel a lot... running away some may call it.... call it what you will, but I'm getting out of town!) For another, maybe a place to write about aging gracefully... or not! I'm fighting it every step of the way. I feel about 49 turning 50, not 59 turning 60. I think I look it too. Others may or may not agree. I workout 3 days a week with weights. Heavy weights! And lots of other tough moves like squatting and pushups and jumping and pullups and rowing and throwing. It's called CrossFit and I love how hard it is. It gets me out of my head. And I am the oldest woman in the gym. And not the slowest! Go Bag Lady! Whomp those young things.
I also like to ski (nordic and alpine), hike, backpack, canoe, and bike. Am I missing anything? And when I'm not depressed, I like to cook, garden, read, watch movies (I even do that while depressed), decorate my quaint canal home, and spend time with friends. This last year learning to live all alone has been the pits and I still don't really like it. I've discovered what a social being I am. Some alone time is okay, but alone day and night really gets to me. And I don't have many friends that are comfortable just hanging around informally... the drop-in type. But I do have one and she's been my life saver! It probably helps that she lives a couple of blocks away.
So on the topic of aging. I've been able to fight it off physically, but not mentally. The number 60 is depressing. It signals Senior Citizen. How did this happen? How did I get this old? I have a daughter turning 32 this month - she's almost caught up to me!
Sunday, December 31, 2000
Glasgow and Setting Off
July 6, 2014
Somewhere north of Glasgow, Scotland
I can't remember what I wrote last or when...and I don't have access to my posts right now so I may have a skip in time. I have no internet because the SIM card I bought doesn't have service up here (but April does thank goodness so we have some mapping capability). I'll manage without, I guess. Do me good:)
So our bikes went on smoothly in Lisbon and we managed to cycle from the airport to our hostel, 10 miles away. I think I've written all that. And about our quick tour of London.
So next was our train trip to Glasgow. We were advised by a local friend not to cycle the Cornwall peninsula this time of year due to tourist traffic and narrow roads...she said Scotland was the place to go...all be it midgies' season. You know...no-see-ums!! So here we are in Scotland at the worst possible time and on bikes and camping, no less. Tonight they attacked for our first time...but then it's only our second day out of Glasgow. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
We stayed at a new hostel in Glasgow that had just opened in an old church. Nicely done! It was about a mile from the center of town, but we found not much to really see there. We got our first day of rain in awhile. The gloomy old buildings combined with the gloomy weather we found a bit depressing. We did explore their cemetery (on the way into town) and the Glasgow cathedral was interesting because it had churches under the main church. Never saw that before. We are a tad tired of seeing old buildings and have lost our enthusiasm a bit...yawn. And since we aren't spending any money, or trying not to, because the exchange rate is killing us, we don't go where there's a fee unless ISPs really spectacular...and nothing in Glasgow really grabbed us. We heard Edinburgh is better but we won't be going there. Can't see everything.
We're headed up to Isle of Mull. Slow as we're going (about 30 miles a day), it's going to take us a couple more days to get there. Coming out of Glasgow we ran into a parade. The first girl I asked what it was about I could not for the life of me understand her strong accent. I kept asking until I found someone who spoke "English":). Orange Walk. Something about the Protestants and they do it every year. Bigger parade in Belfast, I was told. Was fun to see just the same!
And then we found the canal path. Thought I was home! There was a canal path for 20 miles until we got to Loch Lomond. ( not sure about a lot of spellings, but with no maps or internet to check myself you'll have to suffer.). " You take the high road and I'll take the low road, and I'll be in Scotland 'afore ye...for me and my true love will never meet again on the bonnie bonnie banks of Loch Lomond." My mother singing this keeps playing in my head! And what a beautiful lake it is ringed by mountains! 23 miles long and not built up along its shores. Scotland is rural. Few roads. No shoulders. No turn offs. Nothing but cars, and trucks, and busses, and caravans, and other loaded cyclists on the roads. And nowhere to get away from them. But before we got to having to cycle on the road, we spent about 15 miles on a cycle path along the lake that was undulating and wooded and quiet. Too bad it came to an end.
The people who come up to chat are all curious, as usual. About the bikes and about us. It's nice to have someone else to tell our tale:).
In a new country it's always an adventure to figure out the wild camping bit. Like I said we've had few places to pull off, but last night found a nook on the edge of a field that was behind a golf course. It did have a sign that warned about the that but we decided the dense woods between us and the tee gave us some protection. And in the evening we took our chairs up and enjoyed the view after the golfers had gone home. Tonight we lucked out even better we a turnoff that took us to an isolated road that overlooked a stunning valley. A pastoral view, like many museum paintings I've seen over the years!
We'll just have to see what to tomorrow brings.
Livin' the life!
BagLady
Somewhere north of Glasgow, Scotland
I can't remember what I wrote last or when...and I don't have access to my posts right now so I may have a skip in time. I have no internet because the SIM card I bought doesn't have service up here (but April does thank goodness so we have some mapping capability). I'll manage without, I guess. Do me good:)
So our bikes went on smoothly in Lisbon and we managed to cycle from the airport to our hostel, 10 miles away. I think I've written all that. And about our quick tour of London.
So next was our train trip to Glasgow. We were advised by a local friend not to cycle the Cornwall peninsula this time of year due to tourist traffic and narrow roads...she said Scotland was the place to go...all be it midgies' season. You know...no-see-ums!! So here we are in Scotland at the worst possible time and on bikes and camping, no less. Tonight they attacked for our first time...but then it's only our second day out of Glasgow. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
We stayed at a new hostel in Glasgow that had just opened in an old church. Nicely done! It was about a mile from the center of town, but we found not much to really see there. We got our first day of rain in awhile. The gloomy old buildings combined with the gloomy weather we found a bit depressing. We did explore their cemetery (on the way into town) and the Glasgow cathedral was interesting because it had churches under the main church. Never saw that before. We are a tad tired of seeing old buildings and have lost our enthusiasm a bit...yawn. And since we aren't spending any money, or trying not to, because the exchange rate is killing us, we don't go where there's a fee unless ISPs really spectacular...and nothing in Glasgow really grabbed us. We heard Edinburgh is better but we won't be going there. Can't see everything.
We're headed up to Isle of Mull. Slow as we're going (about 30 miles a day), it's going to take us a couple more days to get there. Coming out of Glasgow we ran into a parade. The first girl I asked what it was about I could not for the life of me understand her strong accent. I kept asking until I found someone who spoke "English":). Orange Walk. Something about the Protestants and they do it every year. Bigger parade in Belfast, I was told. Was fun to see just the same!
And then we found the canal path. Thought I was home! There was a canal path for 20 miles until we got to Loch Lomond. ( not sure about a lot of spellings, but with no maps or internet to check myself you'll have to suffer.). " You take the high road and I'll take the low road, and I'll be in Scotland 'afore ye...for me and my true love will never meet again on the bonnie bonnie banks of Loch Lomond." My mother singing this keeps playing in my head! And what a beautiful lake it is ringed by mountains! 23 miles long and not built up along its shores. Scotland is rural. Few roads. No shoulders. No turn offs. Nothing but cars, and trucks, and busses, and caravans, and other loaded cyclists on the roads. And nowhere to get away from them. But before we got to having to cycle on the road, we spent about 15 miles on a cycle path along the lake that was undulating and wooded and quiet. Too bad it came to an end.
The people who come up to chat are all curious, as usual. About the bikes and about us. It's nice to have someone else to tell our tale:).
In a new country it's always an adventure to figure out the wild camping bit. Like I said we've had few places to pull off, but last night found a nook on the edge of a field that was behind a golf course. It did have a sign that warned about the that but we decided the dense woods between us and the tee gave us some protection. And in the evening we took our chairs up and enjoyed the view after the golfers had gone home. Tonight we lucked out even better we a turnoff that took us to an isolated road that overlooked a stunning valley. A pastoral view, like many museum paintings I've seen over the years!
We'll just have to see what to tomorrow brings.
Livin' the life!
BagLady
St Jean Pied de Port
April 13, 2014
I'm laying on the bottom bunk in a 12 bunk room at Le Chemin Vers D'Etoiles, our refuge for 2 nights. Val, Phil, and April are at church. I need my rest. Yesterday was the bus ride from hell for me. We left Madrid at 10:30 am and arrived her at 7:15 pm. In between I was either spinning from nausea or sleeping from Dramamine. Sleeping was preferred. I don't do buses well. And certainly not sitting in the back. I missed seeing the countryside of Spain but will get to view it on the Camino.
We chose to stay 2 nights in SJPdP and have booked a room just 6 miles up into the Pyrennees at Orrisson. No one in our group (other than Phil) has done much training so we're going slowly. No hurrying needed. Besides I'm enjoying the short time we have in France, where I can understand the language and speak some too:). Even if it had been 45 years since I spent a summer here the feelings, the memories, they all came rushing back. When breakfast was a bowl (not cup) of coffee with milk and bread with butter and jam, I felt like I was back in Mama Jutge's kitchen!
Wow! Lying here, I heard singing outside the window. So I look out to see locals, carrying boughs of greens, walking up the tiny street towards the bridge singing! Quite beautiful! I hope the video will post! No luck with the video, sorry. I've never had luck uploading them. I'll try to post it to Facebook
Livin' the life,
BagLady
I'm laying on the bottom bunk in a 12 bunk room at Le Chemin Vers D'Etoiles, our refuge for 2 nights. Val, Phil, and April are at church. I need my rest. Yesterday was the bus ride from hell for me. We left Madrid at 10:30 am and arrived her at 7:15 pm. In between I was either spinning from nausea or sleeping from Dramamine. Sleeping was preferred. I don't do buses well. And certainly not sitting in the back. I missed seeing the countryside of Spain but will get to view it on the Camino.
We chose to stay 2 nights in SJPdP and have booked a room just 6 miles up into the Pyrennees at Orrisson. No one in our group (other than Phil) has done much training so we're going slowly. No hurrying needed. Besides I'm enjoying the short time we have in France, where I can understand the language and speak some too:). Even if it had been 45 years since I spent a summer here the feelings, the memories, they all came rushing back. When breakfast was a bowl (not cup) of coffee with milk and bread with butter and jam, I felt like I was back in Mama Jutge's kitchen!
Wow! Lying here, I heard singing outside the window. So I look out to see locals, carrying boughs of greens, walking up the tiny street towards the bridge singing! Quite beautiful! I hope the video will post! No luck with the video, sorry. I've never had luck uploading them. I'll try to post it to Facebook
Livin' the life,
BagLady
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