Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Bibbulmun Track - week 6 continued

October 16, 2015
Mt Chance Campsite

One of the first sunsets I saw tonight from the top of Mt Chance, a large granite rock with 360* views of the Pingerup Plains. Don't often get to see sunsets because I'm usually deep in the woods. Maybe that will change now that I'm nearing the ocean. One can hope:)

In the last few days we've spotted black, wild piglets, a blue-tongue lizard and my first snake. Others have seen upwards of 14 snakes so far. Mine was a baby...up on a dried stump. A training snake. I'm not ready for the bigger ones. Today a guy here at the shelter told of being nearly attacked by a tiger snake that he almost stepped on. As it flared up he whipped it away with his pole. No thank you. And me in sandals. Scary!

The wildflowers continue to be amazing. In the plains today we found so many new varieties. It's almost overwhelming trying to photograph them all. So many different types of blooms and stalks and leaves. Orchids are the hardest to spot. There's a couple now ahead of us by a day that have wicked orchid hunting ability. And they mark the sand with notes and arrows showing us the ones we'd have walked right past. I'm calling it the "Orchid Tour". Hope they keep it up!!

Yesterday and today we were on a diversion due to Feb's fire. This meant lots of road walking. But the diversion was shorter and that pleased us. But road walking is never easy and the temporary campsite they put up had a water tank and a porta-potty. We get in tonight and see notes in the journal that Lorna and Sam didn't do the diversion and the old site had a new toilet, picnic table, and fire ring. The just don't open the route because you have to wade through a river. Wish we'd known that:(.

Oh well. Phone is dying. Better sign off.

October 17, 2015
Woolbales Campsite

My anniversary of the completion of the Appalachian Trail...8 years ago!! Where has the time gone? And what a full life I've had since then. Oh the places I've seen!! And 8 years later I'm still plodding my way down a trail with a pack on my back, bitching and moaning about how hard it is, how my body hurts, how I wish this day would end, how lucky I am to be where I am doing what I'm doing....

Quityourbitchin:)

But my aging body hurts a bit more. My back aches through the shoulders. My feet hurt. Through the muck and the mud I plodded today. Black mud. Slippery mud. Sandal sucking mud. Heavy mud. But luckily the water levels are low or I could have been wading through waist high water. That's what the trail notes said.

And it's getting warmer. By 10 am (and I've been hiking 4 hours by then), it's hot. The umbrella seems heavy to hold. A rest break is torture because the marchflies find you and bite you...hard...painfully. Swish. Swish. With a small branch of leaves. Trying to keep them off my feet. I'm so exposed in a dress with bare legs. And sandals with socks. They bite through the socks. They were white. They're black now. From the black mud. The socks are worn to ease the rubbing of points on the sandals. They also help the bottoms of my feet feel a bit less tender. And I think they help protect my feet from sticks that jump up and stab my toes.

Yesterday we met a north bounder from England who had the biggest kit. He was carrying a 2 person Hubba Hubba tent. 6 lbs I think. He had had a military bivy sack to but ditched that. He had 2 stoves: a canister one and a Jetboil. He said his pack weighed over 60 lbs when he started. He might be down to 50 now. Yikes! He'll learn I guess. Makes my measly 28 lbs a breeze. But it feels heavy to me. And the only luxury it is a deck of cards...which had gotten quite a but of use. Waugal and I play gin rummy most nights. I'm winning:)

To keep my weight down I'm packing a minimum of food. So minimum that I worry I'll run out. I'm constantly hungry. And I have to stop eating just to save some for the days left until town. 6-7 days of food is heavy. Estimating how much snacks you want is challenging. Two days, one night left. I have 3 oatmeals, a bit of coffee, some almonds and a couple of dried fruits, a couple of crackers for lunch tomorrow and nothing for the day after, and noodles and instant soup for dinner tomorrow night...and half a large chocolate bar for desert. Pretty slim pickins! Food in town will be so appreciated!! Just 2 more days if we double hut the last day. Waugal says he has a bit extra food if we don't double hut that would see us through. He's saved my arse so many times this hike. He's carrying so much and I'm the ultralight moocher!! Always short on something. He gave me an apple today. How sweet was that?!?!

I took a 2 hour so this afternoon so I'm not ready to sleep tonight even though it's after 8 pm. I should though. 5:30 comes too quickly. And besides my phone battery is low again.

Bonne nuit!!

October 18, 2015
Long Point Campsite

The Ocean!! I made it to the Southern Ocean!



Quite exciting, I must say! But oh, the sand dunes are exhausting to walk on. And I'll be walking for the next 2 weeks on coastal dunes. Beautiful but challenging.

And today in the beach a wave caught me by surprise and soaked my feet. Then the sand stuck to them, chaffing under the back strap. So I switched to my crocs. Only problem with them is no back strap so there I am trying to scramble up loose sand in the dunes where each step slides down the hill anyways, and I'm sliding out of my crocs too. So I took them off and climbed barefoot. Which was fine when there wasn't scratchy pokey things stabbing my feet.

I made it to the campsite just the same. Waugal was already here. And it wasn't 30 minutes later that the skies opened up and it rained all afternoon. A coastal storm. So glad we were cozy and dry in a shelter:)

I just had enough food for this section. Dang I call it close. Too close. So hungry. Town tomorrow. But a 22 km double hut day to get there. I wouldn't rush but I have nothing left except a few nuts and 1 Snickers bar. It's been a week since I've had fresh veggies. Oh I want the biggest salad.

I'm really looking forward to walking this gorgeous coast line for a couple of weeks. I have 4 inlets to cross. One by canoe. The others depend on whether they've been recently dredged out. They may be walkable. Just have to wait and see.



Waugal and me at the ocean!!


Livin' the dream,

BagLady

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