For so many people camping in such a close area, it was very quiet when people started waking up. We barely heard the 70 year old guy camped right next to us pack up and leave. He was gone by 6:30. I started packing up by a quarter to seven. Bunny wanted every minute possible. She started stirring at 7. Bear and Sassy were out of their tent and ready by 7:30. I was stunned. I was shocked. I was humiliated. They are getting faster and we’re getting slower. I was accepting with the fact that they hike faster than us. As long as we get ready faster, it’s all equal in the long run. Now, we are officially dead weight.
The first half mile of today’s hike was actually the fifth time we had walked the section of the trail. We headed to Seiad Cafe for our third and final visit. Yesterday, Sassy had told the owner we would be back for breakfast today. She was ready for us. She closes every day at 2 in the afternoon. She knew Sassy was gluten sensitive so she had run to the store, an hour each way to Yreka, to get gluten free pancake/waffle mix so Sassy could have a surprise today. We drank a couple of carafes of coffee and spent more time at breakfast than we had planned, but everyone was so friendly, we just couldn’t peel away.
The fact remains, these road miles aren’t just going to disappear. We can’t just hop in a car and they’ll all be behind us in 10 minutes…hey, wait a minute. This is 2020. Automobiles have been the fashion for well over a century. What’s keeping us from yellow blazing? In a word, integrity. Thank our lucky stars our group has me in it. There was talk of hitching (mainly heat induced delirium) but I put a stop to that. Bear came up with the idea of slack packing the road walk which was a great compromise we could all get behind (meaning, I’d agree to it).
Breakfast ran a bit longer than we had planned, but it’s all good. We had less than 6.5 miles to go, we’re wearing sunglasses, and not carrying packs. We should be done in two hours unless something holds us up. Something like a Great Pyrenees dog walking out of the first drive to divert our (my) attention and slow me down. I’ve had 6 of these gentle giants over the last 20+ years. As a reminder, I’ll list their names and see if anyone can find a pattern: Nahani, Amangi, Holpe, Allumes, Nutiket, and Ilana.
By the time I got done cuddling, everyone else was 1/4 mile ahead of me. No one even noticed I was gone. I think my name is very appropriate. I ran to catch up with the three forgetful people I’m hiking with just in time to enter shade covering the road. Part of the reason we were doing this slack-pack day was because we had all envisioned 6.5 miles of road walking on a busy road in full sun. It turned out to be a very pleasant, shady walk on a “not too busy” highway for the first 2 miles followed by a 4.5 mile country lane walk through Trump Valley with Dos Equis emblems everywhere. This is true America where loyalty to Trump is more important than country (as evidenced by Trump flag on top, State of Jefferson flag second, and if there’s space remaining, the American flag third.
There was a fair amount of wildlife along the road. They clearly cannot read all the “no trespassing” signs posted. Or the “forget the dog, beware of owner” signs. We did pass one yard with a “beware of dog” sign where the dog was so happy to see us, but the owner wanted nothing to do with them “damn liberal hippy hikers” walking by his property. The dog barked hello and wagged his tail. The owner wouldn’t acknowledge us when we said “hi.” After we passed, we heard him kick the dog to toughen him up.
Bear had arranged for Cat to pick us up at noon. We had visions of being taken to our hotel in Happy Camp, CA and luxuriating in a cool pizza palace for lunch before retiring to a cool hotel room for a nap. We were done hiking a full 30 minutes ahead of schedule. Bunny started searching for an open privy to kill some time when Cat showed up a full 20 minutes early. Our vision looked to be coming true. We piled in and headed to what must be the most enjoyable place in California (outside of Disneyland)…Happy Camp.
During the gold rush years, Happy Camp was a bustling little city of over 10,000 residents. It was exciting. It was rowdy. It was known for its high murder rate. Today, it’s known for its most famous, albeit reclusive resident—Big Foot. Like Chicken Man, he’s everywhere, he’s everywhere. The first thing you see upon arriving in town is a 20’ statue of him (complete with face mask, Big Foot is old and falls into the high risk age group).
The owner of the hotel met us as we pulled into the parking lot. She had our rooms ready with the AC turned on high. She knew what we wanted. After she checked us in,she said she’d take us on a tour of town. She motioned for us to follow her out the front door. We obliged. She walked 50’ to the middle of the drive where we could get a good view of the highway and crossroads. She pointed out the pizza place, post office, and store. Thus concluded our tour of Happy Camp.
We dropped our packs in our rooms and headed to the pizza place. We had hopes of AC, salad, and pizza. We got pizza with the option of sitting outside on the patio in full sun on a 107 degree F day. There weren’t salads, the lettuce wilted a while back. They didn’t have gluten free options. We got our pizzas to go and Sassy got a bag of Cheetos, the cheese that goes crunch, the only gluten free option (that wasn’t even on the menu).
As soon as we got in our cold room, I could tell I wasn’t going to stay awake long. I ate 2 slices of pizza before I was about done for the day. I told Bunny I’d finish up the shopping now because I knew if I took a nap, I was done for the day. I went to the surprising well stocked grocery store and got a few items for supper (to go with the leftover pizza), a few items for breakfast, and the few remaining items we needed for the 50 miles remaining to Etna. I came back to find Bunny already snoring. I quickly followed. It was not even 3.
Bunny woke me up at 7. She said we needed to eat supper. She also quizzed me on what I had bought earlier. When I said yogurt for breakfast, she wanted yogurt for supper as well, so we made the trek back to the grocery store. It had cooled down to 95. We got the yogurt and some popcorn for dessert. Back in our room, we finished the pizza, the chef salad I had bought earlier at the store, our yogurts, 3 bags of popcorn, and a bag of powdered donuts. I drank a half gallon of iced tea. We were back asleep by 10 (yes, the nap empowered us to stay up much later than usual). Since getting into Happy Camp, I drank 2-32 Oz Diet Pepsis, a liter of water, and a half gallon of iced tea. I went to bed without peeing and slept, undisturbed, throughout the entire night.
EFG
Curtis,
I am envious. Gale and I would love to be doing exactly what you guys are doing. But, not sure we have the stamina to just jump into it. We may need to do some practicing first!
Bob, you are both already in great shape. The biggest challenge is really accepting the hygiene flexibility required. The trail will get you in shape if you start slow.