#everyone around MY little campsite has safe and fresh water because I am a little weirdo 😌

[blujayonthewing]

weird to be a person with anxiety and also, separately, a person with a lifelong fascination with wilderness survival

I feel like people catch wind of my desire to have, like, a backcountry water filter or multiple firemaking methods with me for car camping or day-hiking or whatever else and think I'm catastrophizing and overpreparing because of The Neuroses but I can't emphasize enough that I don't actually have any fears about The Shit Hitting The Fan or whatever preppers are on about, I just really really really like the idea of drinking out of a river or building a little fire

[lianneoelke]

Yukon Gold, Part 2: An Involuntary Dismount From the Canoe

Good morning from Fort Selkirk!

With bellies full of hearty chilli and a sky full of smoke, JJ and Falcon Heavy were ready to hit the river for our fourth day of canoeing down the Yukon River.

We were only five minutes past Fort Selkirk when JJ realized we forgot a radio and both cans of bear spray. We couldn’t just turn around and paddle upstream, so we had to land so Brian could run up the beach and grab everything (which was left on the above picnic table). After that, we were well on our way to an 80km day.

We spotted a black bear munching berries on an island.

We weren’t the only group on the river making a pilgrimage to Dawson City for the music festival. We’d play leapfrog with the same groups so often we came up with nicknames:

Spanish Armada: the group of nine Spaniards that made giant Spanish omelettes for breakfast and tied two canoes together because they had an odd number of people.

Walmart: the family that travelled with camping chairs, big tarps, and coolers. JJ disliked Walmart. JJ thought Walmart was American. Those are two separate sentences. Walmart was actually from Whitehorse. 

Gold Diggers: a husband and wife that would set up on islands and pan for gold. Or so it seemed. 

Reckless Youth: a handful of twenty-somethings from UBC with an aversion to life jackets.

Father & Son: they had little to say, to us or each other.

Frenchies: two French guys. That’s it. 

Christmas Trees: a red and green boat of women having a jolly old time.

We learned the Spanish Armada planned to camp at the site we were aiming for that night. We could have joined them, but I, for one, did not travel all that way to the middle of nowhere to make new friends. So we had to find somewhere else. We came across another good campsite early in the day, but the weather was beautiful and we wanted to get more kilometers in, so we kept pushing. This moment would be remembered as the time we “got greedy”.

Storm clouds blew in fast. When thunder started booming, Brian told us all to get off the river. So we did. And we waited. Then the rain started. And we waited some more. 

Brian (very reasonably) didn’t want to get back on the water until thirty minutes after the last thunder, but the thunder wouldn’t let up. Things were looking grim. Then we remembered we had snacks. We survived on gummy bears, chips, tea, toasted pita and hummus, and craft hot chocolate from Portland, for the two and a half hours it took for the storm to pass.

Spirits wavered but never failed. 

By the time the storm passed, we still had another ten kilometers to paddle before we reached our goal of Brittania creek, and we found ourselves in the curious position of chasing the storm we had just weathered. When we finally arrived, the site was full of bugs, but at least there weren’t any new friends buzzing around.

For dinner I made a bastardized version of Pad Thai, using the canoe as a table while being swarmed by mosquitoes. I quickly realized why this particular packet of curry paste was left untouched in our cupboard for years.

By this point JJ had given up on the trappings of individuality and had matured into a fully realized single entity. So when JJ cast a line and caught their first decently sized fish at 11.36 pm, the three of us celebrated the incredible testament to JJ’s speed, momentum, and finesse. Considering all the rain we endured, we figured it was safe to build a small beach fire to cook the fish. 

We all came to regret this decision, as the fish remains and fish-smoked clothes had to be dealt with before we could finally go to bed, in order to minimize bear attraction. However, since I cooked that night, I was able to dodge clean up. I went to bed without a care in the world.

Day five dawned sunny and misty. We knew this would also be a big day, but for a very different reason. This was the day we’d reach the bakery. Yes, somehow there was a bakery in the middle of nowhere on the Yukon River. 

Power strokes would get us there quicker. 

Of course we had to stop whenever we came across moose trampling through the bushes, beavers smacking their tails, and bears ambling down the beach.

The bakery turned out to be less of a bakery and more of a family home that sold $18 omelettes and saran-wrapped cookies (we bought them all). We payed $8 each to stay the night. Camping in someone else’s backyard to listen to their kids blast music and play in their pool felt strange after the solitude of the river, but we knew the daily thunderstorm would hit us soon and the last thing we needed was to “get greedy” again. So we settled in, washed up, and tackled laundry.

JJ waiting out the 6 o’clock thundershowers. 

Of course, no camping trip with JJ (formerly Rob) would be complete without curry. JJ made us a heaping pot, just in time for more rain showers. 

The next day we found ourselves fresh out of fresh ingredients, so we climbed aboard the COUS COUS train and headed for dehydration station.

Rafting up for snacks and map checks.

We had lunch at the island right before the White River, which poured all its glacial silt into the Yukon. The two rivers blended like miso soup. JJ made ramen while Brian flew his drone for a better view.

After lunch, we found a short but steep trail to hike. 

After the merge we could no longer filter our water from the river, which was so thick we couldn’t even see our own feet when we dipped them in. All the silt brushing against our canoes made a constant fizzing noise, like a never-ending glass of coke being poured. 

Just a couple bros enjoying happy hour with river-chilled beer.

After the relative business of the “bakery”, we decided to camp on an undesignated island covered in moose tracks. While the views and privacy were top notch, all the silt made for very muddy shores.

Brian made delicious minestrone soup for dinner, then treated us to freeze-dried ice cream sandos in honour of the 50th anniversary of the moon landing.

You can only get dishes so clean in the silty water, but on day six, cleanliness was no longer a priority. Brian had bought a last minute gold pan in Whitehorse, and while it didn’t find us any gold, it did make an excellent vessel for washing dishes and laundry.

The sky was still light at 1 am, because the sky was always light. We went to bed when it was light. We woke up when it was light. Time had no meaning on the river. It created (for me, at least) a sense of security. Openness. Like the Yukon had nothing to hide. But the truth was, we were in the middle of nowhere, hundreds of kilometers from the nearest town, on a muddy river where every island was covered with bear, wolf, and moose tracks.

We woke to the sound of splashing outside our tent. I immediately thought the moose had come to do us in, but instead of moose on the loose, we saw a gaggle of goose. 

These banks were home to countless cliff swallows that zipped along the river, eating bugs. Yum. 

“JJ first.”

There’s gold in them there hills. But not really.

Our last night on the river was spent at the Mechem Creek site. We set up camp as Brian howled in the cold cold creek, washing off the heat of the day.

Fire bans don’t count on the last day of the trip. Not if it’s been raining every day and you’re careful. JJ struggled to get the fire going (which Brian and I found slightly concerning, considering how dry the sticks were), but all’s well that ends well. 

I made a pesto surprise COUS COUS dinner with brownie bear poo for dessert. Everyone saved some sort of fun surprise for their last meal.

“Very good food on this trip. Every meal has been at least a solid 7.5 out of 10.” - JJ

The site at Mechem creek turned out to be my favourite camp site, not least because we saved a bag of wine for that night. 

We woke up at 6am up to a brilliant, clear sky.

JJ treated us to one last meal on the river.

There’s nothing better than a well packed canoe! 

River travel is tiring work.

We rafted up for one last ceremonial flip of the map, which brought us to our final page. Spirits were high. Jokes were shared. We were finally on the home stretch of our 8 day, 400 km paddle through the Yukon wilderness.

Minutes away from Dawson City, disaster struck.

Brian wanted to stop for a drone shot of Dawson before we paddled in, so we radioed JJ to let them know to land at the tip of the next island. Unable to reach the point in time, JJ decided to land mid island, where the strong current had eroded the bank, causing several trees to topple. It was a bad place to land, and they came in hot hot hot.

Official statement from JJ:

“JJ experienced an involuntary dismount resulting in minor losses from the deck and a minor intake of water. However, the landing was successful.”

JJ thought the word “capsize” was too passionate for the encounter, but Falcon Heavy disagreed. When JJ’s canoe met land, the current hit from underneath, tipping the canoe and its contents upstream. Brian turned to me and said “They capsized. They did exactly what I told them not to do.” No one was injured, although Jordan’s solar panel and Rob’s hat and beloved binoculars were lost to the water. Falcon Heavy found a safe eddy to pull in, then Brian brought out the drone while we waited for JJ to get their shit together.

The paddle of shame.

We had just got back in the water when we heard the unmistakable rumble of thunder. We were faced with a dilemma: get off the water, like all Brian’s experience suggested we do, or “get greedy” and paddle hard to race the storm.

We paddled hard...

... but not so hard we didn’t have time to admire the first and only fox we saw on the river.

That’s Dawson City at the top.

This time our gamble paid off, and we made it to the docks with nae drama (except for the paddleboat that honked at us to get out of its spot).

Safe and sound in Dawson City, it was time to look back at our favourite and not so favourite moments of the canoe trip.

JJ (Jordan)

Highlight: Fort Selkirk. Just the whole fort. So cool.

Lowlight: Involuntary canoe dismount and loss of solar panel. 

Gold Star: Gold Pan/Brian Shaw for getting the gold pan.

JJ (Rob)

Highlight: The River (as a tangible entity and metaphysical being) The colours, the current, the curves...the feeling.

Lowlight: Involuntary canoe dismount and loss of binoculars. 

Gold Star: JJ. The physical embodiment of speed, momentum and finesse.*

*In all my years of highlight/ lowlight/ gold star, I have never seen someone award the gold star to themselves. 

Brian

Highlight: All the Yukon cabins. The history of the Yukon Crossing, the trees growing out of Thom’s Location cabin roof, the historically intact cabins of Fort Selkirk (inside and out), and all the private cabins we saw in between.

Lowlight: Cleaning up the fish & fire at Britannia Creek between midnight and 1am, exhausted from the long day, swarmed by bugs, still stinking of fish, right into the tent.

Gold Star: Jordan, for making the trip (and JJ) happen by stepping in at the last minute and filling the spot, prepared and enthusiastic, and a strong paddler.

Lianne

Highlight: The beautiful site and tasty food at Mechem Creek. Also the fact that none of the canoeists that stopped by the creek for water decided to stay the night, because sharing the site would have really killed the vibe.

Lowlight: Spending hours waiting out the day four thunderstorm under a tarp.

Gold Star: The map. Following along and “staying found”, as Brian would say, was easy and delightful.

Bonus Gold Star: Brian Shaw. The unofficial leader of our canoe trip, Brian looked after us all with his experience, well-muscled arms, moon landing trivia, sexy beard, and positive attitude. 

As always, most of the good pics were taken by Brian. He put together an album of the 2019 Yukon River greatest hits: 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/22674099@N08/albums/72157710102335767/page1

Stay tuned for the third and final part of Yukon Gold. Dawson City will bring a music festival, rowdy casino, epic hike, and a real life Yukon character known as “the Ghost”. 

[a-mad-scientist-approaches]

Multiverse is a Curse Word (6)

Okay, hiatus time after this one, but I’ll try to get the next one out as soon as I can. Everyone who has been keeping track of this crazy thing so far, it has meant so much to me. Thank you!!

As always, Adeline Marks is @hntrgurl13‘s awesome OC, and the Dimension Jumper and Drifting Dimensions AUs are her creations also.

@the-subpar-ghost made the Adrift AU, a goldmine of feels, angst, and Ford-Mabel bonding.

The Addiford ship is from the mind of @scipunk63. I think you’ll like this chapter.

@deadpool-demon-diva and @thejesterlyfictionista. Here’s a new one, enjoy.

Minor spoiler: There’s flashbacks to alternate lives, and in one of these Stan is mentioned to have read Tolkien. This is from @amolecularmachine‘s brilliant fic By the Skin of Your Teeth. Go read it.

AO3  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11

Chapter 6: Naturally-Occurring Nerdy Stuff

Addi felt guilt begin to crush her as soon as she heard Mabel whimper in her sleep. She had given Stanford the sword; she hadn’t tried hard enough to convince Wesley she could handle the job; she had encouraged her two companions to stay with the resistance even though she knew Wesley might try to get them involved; she had become entangled in the resistance herself. Addi sighed. The mistakes just kept piling up.

At another whine from Mabel she abandoned her position on watch and padded through the silk-soft green grass to where the girl was sleeping. The beauty of this planet’s forests would be a sight to behold in the morning.

“Hey, sweetie,” she said gently, running a hand through Mabel’s short brown curls, “hey, it’s okay, you’re safe, you’re safe …”

Mabel opened her eyes and looked around, reorienting herself. Addi continued to stroke her hair until her breathing evened out. The sound of wind rustling through delicate leaves soothed them both.

Eventually Mabel sat up and rested her chin on her knees, shifting her blanket so that it wrapped completely around her. Stanford hadn’t been eager to retrieve their supplies from the shuttle (delaying their departure through a portal), but Addi was now glad she had insisted. Having a halfway decent campsite encouraged a feeling of safety and homeliness, something they all needed.

“Not sleeping tonight?” she asked. Mabel shook her head silently and leaned against Addi, who enveloped her in a hug.

“You know it wasn’t your fault, right?”

Mabel remained quiet for a few seconds, then replied, “I keep going over and over it in my head, but I can’t see it happening any differently. I mean, when I swung the sword I didn’t know she was there, and I needed to shut the security doors.” She turned to Addi with anguish in her eyes. “Am I missing something? Was there anything I could have done to make it go right?”

Truth be told, Addi had no idea. Thirty years of travelling through the multiverse had pretty effectively demolished all her certainty and guarded scepticism. There was undoubtedly a universe where everything had gone right for Mabel, where no one had died or come near to death. There was also a universe where nothing had gone right. The chaos that perpetually engulfed the multiverse meant that Addi had rarely been able to do more than hope like hell she was not part of the latter, and wish that she occasionally caught a glimpse of the former.

“No. I think that was entirely out of your control.” Addi answered. “Everything has to happen somewhere, and that was what happened to you … but let’s play out a hypothetical situation: if you had missed that guard, and hit the control panel, what do you think would have happened afterwards?”

The teary girl thought. “She still had her gun … and she was definitely not afraid to use it,”

“Right. So regardless of whether she was simply trying to do her job, or protect her friends, or was hyped up on adrenaline, anger, or fear, she was also trying to hurt you and your great uncle. You were trying to keep yourself and your family safe.” She let that soak in for a moment before continuing. “Mabel, it is wonderful when you can find a win-win scenario, but they are not guaranteed all the time.”

The girl sighed as though some of the weight had been lifted from her. There was still a long way to go, but it was a start.

“It’s not your fault either, Addi.” She said unexpectedly. “Blaming yourself for being betrayed is something overly-dramatic TV action heroes do to gain tragic sympathy from viewers. It’s compelling, but silly. And you’re not silly, Grauntie Addi.” She finished sternly. Then she nestled into the speechless woman’s lap matter-of-factly.

⃝

Ford was awoken by daylight streaming through a parting in the trees to hit him precisely in the eyes. Rolling over to avoid it, he found he was the last to wake. Adeline and Mabel were both enclosed in a blanket, softly playing a hand game.

“Morning sunshine,” Adeline said when she saw him.

“I’m awake enough to recognise sarcasm,” Ford warned, sitting up.

“Sarcastic? I? Your paranoia is getting the better of you again, Stanford,”

“Here you go, Grunkle Ford.” Mabel deposited a fruit in his lap and crouched next to him. “It’s not poisonous, I ate one before you woke up.”

“You what?”

“She’s just messing with you,” Adeline said, shaking her head.

“Oh, so you have learnt some caution,” Ford said, relieved.

Mabel laughed. “Oh no, I totally ate, like, three. But Addi knew it was okay,”

Still mildly concerned, Ford finished the sweet tasting food.

“Are you okay, though?” he asked tentatively after swallowing. He could tell by the shadow which temporarily dampened her light mood that she knew he was not talking about the fruit.

Mabel shrugged slightly, avoiding his eyes. “I could do with a couple million stuffed animals and a huge family hug pile,” she said, her voice catching because they all knew that neither were possible.

Regardless, he would do his best. He put as much love into the following embrace as he could muster, and the surprised giggle Mabel made when Addi joined in allowed him to believe that they were equivalent to at least a hundred fluffy toys.

⃝

“I wish we could stay here,” Mabel said wistfully as they packed up.

“As do I, however I think it would be safer if we continued to move on. That threat Wesley gave you was decidedly ominous,” Ford directed at Adeline.

“I don’t think he’d come after us.” She frowned. “Then again, I didn’t think he was a flipping insane-” she paused.

“Butthead!” Mabel supplied.

Ford nodded his agreement and checked the readings on his analyser before altering his calculations.

“Another portal should be opening up around here-”

“There!” Mabel shouted. “Bye forest!”

They stepped through the bright blue circle.

Ford had never gotten used to crossing dimensions, and he doubted he ever would. The experience was the same for everyone. They caught flashes of events from their alternate selves’ lives.

… he was in a darkened room and a terrified boy who could only be Mabel’s brother was pointing a memory gun at him …

… he was in a hospital bed and feeling worse than ever in his life, but Stan was making him grin like an idiot by admitting he had read Tolkien …

… he was staring down in shock at the lifeless form of his niece, who had just managed to plunge Adeline’s sword into the control panel before being shot down …

⃝

Addi shivered and took a deep breath, throwing off the lingering feeling that she was falling off a cliff towards the Gravity Falls river. Stanford was looking pretty shaken up too.

“Hello forest!” Mabel said cheerfully. Their new location was rather less pleasant, but it did seem to be another forest. It had dry, browny-green, tough-looking trees rather than the earlier lush, deep green ones, and raw, baking heat emanated from every available surface, reflecting the sun’s glare. The pale pink sky was stubbornly clear of cloud cover.

“We’re going to need water,” Addi stated.

It was almost three hours before they found any. By then, all of them were exhausted and soaked with sweat. They were also extremely tired of the rocky, uneven terrain.

Mabel let out a groan of relief upon seeing the river. Without saying another word she threw off her boots, her black coat, and her sweater, and flopped into the coolness, remembering to keep it away from her face until they knew it was a fresh water current. Addi, too, immediately stripped off her outer layers and sat beneath a tree on the river’s edge, allowing the cool liquid to soothe her burning feet.

Stanford held off his moment of peace, of course. She expected nothing less from the man who would work himself to exhaustion on the portal before he slept. He took out a capsule-like device and trickled some water into it. It beeped and flashed green.

“Okay, it’s fresh,”

Mabel instantly dunked her head into the water and lay face-down. Stanford added his own contributions to the pile of clothes, including a starry, dark blue sweater that Mabel had obviously made. This revealed something that made Addi snort.

“Nice tat,” she laughed. Ford flushed slightly and instinctively clapped a hand over the cheerful little star inked onto his neck. Its yellow colour exactly matched Mabel’s shirt.

“Shut up,” he said irritably, and waded into the river.

“I want one just like it,” Mabel enthused, coming up for air to hear the exchange.

“No. Never,”

“Aw, you’re no fun,”

Stanford narrowed his eyes. “What is this? My niece has suddenly become deluded and irrational! She must have been bitten by the deadly Lunacy Beetle of Madron, whose poison can only be flushed out by,” he surged over to Mabel, “extensive water exposure!”

Mabel shrieked and caught him in the face with a blast of water. This did little to deter him, and Mabel was plucked out of the river and mercilessly dunked back under over and over. Droplets trailed sparkles through the air. The girl’s war cries and vows of vengeance were interspersed with splutters, rendering her as threatening as a kitten. On Dunk Number Five however, she managed to grab onto Ford’s shirt effectively enough to pull him under with her, and when they emerged again they were both coughing up water.

“So is the madness all out of your system? Do you consider me sufficiently ‘fun’ again?” Ford asked once his lungs were clear.

“Yeah, yeah, you’ve made your point.” Conceded Mabel. “BUT, that water fight wasn’t fair. You are way out of your league, old man.”

“Oh, well in that case, maybe I need to enlist Addi’s help. Together we should surely be a match for you.” He turned to look at Adeline, but she was already crashing towards them. Ford’s confident expression was wiped away however when Addi dived at him rather than his niece. Mabel cheered as they went under.

Below the surface it was difficult to discern much of anything, the silt being so recently stirred up, but Addi did see a glint as Ford’s glasses came off. She caught them in one hand and grinned mischievously down at him, close enough to see his matching expression. She was very conscious of how he had not removed his arm from around her waist since they had fallen. Also, she needed air.

“Is that a jet ski?” asked Mabel when they resurfaced. They looked, Addi returning Ford’s glasses.

The river was very broad, so much so that the opposite bank was a blur. However, there was what looked like a small vehicle heading in their general direction.

“I don’t think they’ve seen us. It’s most likely a patrol of some kind. Nevertheless, we don’t want to be noticed,” Stanford said warily.

On the bank they shoved their feet into their boots and Addi hid their dry clothes and bags in a bush. A layer of leaves combined with rock-hard dirt eliminated the need to cover their tracks, so they retreated straight into the refuge provided by the forest, and waited. It was only then Addi realised she had forgotten to grab their weapons in her haste.

She expected the vehicle to pass by on a quick sweep, then continue down the river. Instead, it came to a stop not far from their supplies and the rider dismounted. The amphibian-like person walked unassumingly forward, bulbous eyes fixed on a monitor in their hands.

Seriously? Our luck cannot be this bad, Addi thought disbelievingly as they were forced to back away indefinitely as the stranger moved innocently towards them.

After a ridiculous sixty feet of this, the alien even following their evasive and curved paths, there were more footsteps off to their side. Another person with a monitor was heading their way. Addi stopped breathing as herself and her friends crouched in the middle of some large bushes and waited for the beings to pass them by. Through the leaves, she saw them gesture to a sick-looking tree and compare monitors. Mabel released a breath and Stanford relaxed.

Environmentalists. No threat. Unless you hurt their trees.

She jerked her head towards an outcrop of boulders a reasonable distance from where the scientists were working. Quickly and quietly, the three of them left the site of interest.

“That never happens to us!” Mabel said happily to Ford. “It always turns out to be bounty hunters, or space police, or some other person you’ve upset.”

“I’ve upset? Allow me to remind you of a certain gambler who destroyed half a market square not a week ago,” Ford responded in mock offence.

“Ooh, shiny.” Mabel noticed, deftly changing the subject to look under the gap between a boulder and the ground. “I think I can – ACK!” She suddenly disappeared from view.

“MABEL!” Both adults yelled. Stanford leaped to where she had been sliding into the gap, and he too disappeared.

Knowing it probably was not a good idea, but going ahead with it anyway, Addi grabbed a sharp rock and followed. There was a near invisible hole under the boulder with a small, glittering white crystal on its other side. Bracing herself, she dropped into the darkness.

It was like a slide. A really rough, nearly vertical slide. Amid the tumbling of rocks, she heard shouting coming from below her and prayed the others were okay. She hit the floor of a cavern with a jolt, but managed to stay on her feet, and spun around with the rock raised, searching for some sort of cave-dwelling monstrosity. Instead, she saw Stanford and Mabel both gazing around in ecstasy, spouting off half to each other and half to themselves about the wonders surrounding them.

The wonders in question were many, many, larger versions of the crystal marking the entrance to the hole. The entire place was filled with stars. Addi dropped the rock.

“Addi, Addi look! It’s so pretty, it’s like magic! Is it magic? It could be magic! What if there’s fairies down here? -”

“Adeline, the luminous properties of these crystals is amazing! It appears they can absorb and store energy almost perfectly, and only release a small amount as light, creating this wonderful glimmer!-”

“-fairies use them for building houses! Or maybe there’s an underground society of dwarfs that come and mine this place! Or even-”

“-significant usefulness as batteries or even devices of their own! Do you think we could fashion some sort of communicator out of them? Maybe-”

“-dragon treasure! I could probably make a bracelet out of these-”

“”-look, even as we’re speaking they’re growing brighter from the kinetic energy produced by sound vibrations!”

“I need some!”

“I must take a sample!”

“So, I guess you two haven’t encountered endo-ergon quartz before?” queried Addi, amused at their excitement.

“You have?” replied Ford, carefully unearthing some and placing them in a pocket.

“A few times. I’ve never seen a deposit of this size before. You are right, they make good batteries. I use them when I can to power things like Big Bertha, my transmitter, my portal beacon …”

Which reminds me, I should set that up, Addi remembered. She grabbed a couple of crystals for herself.

“Wow, they’re pretty handy.” Called Mabel, collecting some of the smaller ones. “This cave is full of naturally-occurring nerdy things! Except these rocks are actually beautiful and useful, which is completely different to Dipper’s collection at home. I think he has some gravel in there.” She mused.

There was an exit at the back of the cavern which returned them to the forest. Once they were in the open Mabel turned to Addi.

“Grauntie Addi, I’m going to make you a friendship bracelet. And you Grunkle Ford. And one for me too,” With that decision, she began to run back up the incline to where the rock pile was situated.

“Grauntie?” Ford said in surprise.

“Yes. I’m very proud,”

“I guess that decides it,” said Ford absentmindedly.

“Decides what?”

“Oh, er, I was going to ask whether you wanted to stay with us.” He said, a bit awkwardly. “I mean, you’ve saved our lives so many times already, and you are extremely capable, and amazing at, well, everything. I honestly cannot thank you enough.” He drew in a breath. “I know that I’m asking a lot, for you to keep helping us, so hopefully we’ll be able to return the favour at some point.”

Addi opened her mouth to deny the notion that she expected anything in return, to say that it had been her privilege to meet them, and get to know them, and spend time with them. However, Ford didn’t seem to be done.

“Mabel clearly loves you and wants you to come with us. I have to say, it would be greatly beneficial for her to have someone other than myself to care for her, especially someone who actually seems to know what they’re doing with kids.” He gave a quick, but nervous, grin at that. “I, myself, value your company exceedingly, and I would … greatly appreciate it if you decide to remain.”

Are you kidding? She wanted to scream. Of course! She figured that would be fairly alarming however. A shout of joy was all she wanted to do, though, because she could feel a swell of emotions about to explode from her like a volcano of happiness. He couldn’t know how much what he had said meant to her. He hadn’t even known her in his dimension! At home she had always thought of herself as good, but nowhere near as brilliant as her two friends. Yet here she was, and Stanford was telling her that she was the capable one, was nervously asking her to stay with him as though there was any other option she had considered, and above all was completely trusting her with the life of the wonderful child he had in his care when only a week ago he had seen her as his enemy.

“So … will you stay?”

The volcano erupted.

Completely impulsively, but without any regrets, she stepped forward and kissed him, entwining their fingers as she did. After a moment of uncertainty, she was relieved to find him kissing her back.

⃝

Whatever Mabel had expected was the reason Addi and Ford were taking so long, seeing them making out in a clearing full of light was not it. The first thing she did was react appropriately.

“MATCH MADE!” she screamed.

[softupshur]

Imperfect Faith: Chapter 5

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Can also be read here

When her mother is arrested on Lydia Degan’s ranch, a young Marta finds herself amidst the Testament of New Ezekiel in its infancy. As she travels with the other escapees, she watches the church grow, the gospel teachings evolve, and create a close bond with the reverend Sullivan Knoth.

Characters: Marta and Sullivan Knoth

Chapter 5-October 19, 1968:

"Have you ever thought about leaving?”

Marta froze at Jasmine’s question. “Never,” she replied, even as her mother’s face came to mind.

“Why not?” Jasmine asked, a little more gently this time.

“Because we are a flock and Father Knoth is our shepherd. If we do not stick together for the trials ahead, we’ll be lost to the enemy.”

Jasmine frowned at how matter of factly Marta said this, but continued nonetheless. “But are you happy here?” she challenged. “Living like this?”

Marta looked around the tent they sat in. Rather than beds, sleeping bags covered the floors. Water bottles littered the area, and the wind that beat outside the tent chilled with each passing day.

Regardless, Marta nodded. “Others of our faith have had it worse. We should be thankful that we are at least free from prosecution.”

"But what if we’re not?”

“What do you mean?” Marta asked, with a tilt of her head.

“I’m talking about the other week with Jenny. Surely you’ve been thinking about it too.”

“It’s always a tragedy to lose one of our own,” Marta muttered. “It’s only natural to think about it.”

Jasmine shook her head. Before continuing, her eyes darted around the tent, and her voice lowered into a hush. “Father Knoth has been acting strange since that night. Maybe there’s always been something strange and I was too blind to see, but I do know that since that night I can’t shake the feeling that there’s something terribly wrong.”

Marta lowered her tone to match Jasmine’s. “Why so?”

“Because it was wrong to bury Jenny in the wilderness like that.”

“But what else was were we to do?”

"Someone should have been told. We’re never far from a town and her death was natural. There’s no reason for us to fear sharing the news of her death, but still…” She couldn’t bring herself to finish her thought.

“But we’ve buried our own before. It was the same as that.”

“No, it was not.” Jasmine spoke with enough sternness to make Marta flinch. “Our dead lie in consecrated ground. We marked their graves and made them in memorium so anyone could pay their respects, but with Jenny...it felt like we hid her away in shame. Father Knoth wouldn’t even let me bring flowers to her resting spot. Like she was some dirty secret rather than one of our own.”

Marta shifted slightly and her gaze drifted aside. “Why are you telling me all this?”

“Because…” Jasmine’s voice became so quiet, she had to lean in for Marta to hear what she said next. “I’m going to leave tonight.”

Marta gasped, “But Miss Jasmine, that’s...you can’t do that! The only way to salvation is through the Prophet Knoth!”

“But what if he’s not the prophet?” Jasmine snapped, almost too loudly.

Marta’s hands clasped over her mouth and her eyes grew wide. “Miss Jasmine, that’s heresy.”

“Yes, yes, I know what it sounds like, but you must listen to me. I couldn’t forgive myself if I didn’t try to get through to you, so will you at least allow me that much?”

Though she frowned, Marta did nod.

Jasmine put her hands on Marta’s shoulder and looked her in the eye. “What happened to you was wrong. Everyone here knows it. We abandoned your mother and stole you from her. This was too great of a decision for you to make by yourself and you should be with her now.”

“What does it matter?” Marta backed from Jasmine’s hold. “Mother is arrested and I’ll probably never see her again.”

“But what if you could?”

Marta stared at Jasmine, dumbfounded. “What?”

“All we need to do is get in touch with social services and I know they’ll be able to help you. Rachel was a licensed midwife so she did nothing wrong. The more I think about it, the more sure I am that she was only brought in overnight for questioning and-”

The walls in the apartment were too thin. Arguments of drugs, affairs, and money broke through most nights. Through those evenings, Marta and Rachel sat side by side on the couch, huddled together.

Before Marta could tell Rachel her concerns, the mother would hum a hymnal just loud enough for Marta to forget the shouting, the fact their apartment was too old, that it was never safe enough to go out at night, that Rachel often cried when she thought Marta was asleep, and-

“Marta!”

Looking up, Marta eyed Jasmine as if she were a stranger. Still, Jasmine continued to speak.

“Will you come with us tonight?”

“Huh,” Marta finally managed to choke out.

“Me and a few of the others are going to escape tonight. One of the men in charge of the cars is going to help us get one and then we can drive into town and go on from there. Please say you’ll come with us.”

“I…” Marta’s throat ran dry. “I don’t know…”

“Think about it,” Jasmine said. “We won’t be leaving until late tonight so you have time.”

“What if I fall asleep before you leave?”

“I’ll wake you,” Jasmine promised. “You just take the time you need to think it over.”

“I will.”

With that, Marta exited the tent. She took in a deep breath, but rather than the freshness she expected, the air tasted stale. She then looked up at the sun. Though it was still high in the sky, it taunted her, counting down her precious moments of consideration. She shook her head of the dread and went to tend to what little chores or tasks she could find around the campsite.

As she busied herself, she no longer felt so stiff and breathing came easier, but then Knoth’s voice broke through.

“Marta?”

She jumped at his voice. Though she quickly calmed herself, her response came out in a stammer. “F-Father Knoth! I...you startled me.”

“It wasn’t my intention, child.” He spoke normally, but his brow furrowed and his eyes narrowed as he looked at her.

Marta bowed her head low. “I’m sorry, Father. Can I help you with something?”

“I was just going to ask if you had seen Henry. I had a few things to discuss with him, but I can’t find him.”

“I haven’t seen him anywhere.” Though Marta’s voice settled, her eyes remained fixed at the dirt beneath her feet. She waited for Knoth to leave, but he continued to speak.

“Are you...alright, my child?”

His voice was laden with a heaviness that Marta had only heard once or twice before, but she couldn’t bring herself to see if his expression matched his tone. She only answered with, “I’m fine, Father.”

“Are you sure?”

Only then did Marta force herself to look up at Knoth, heart pounding in her chest every moment. Nonetheless she spoke in a loud and clear voice. “Yes, Father. I’m only a little tired is all.”

“Then you must go rest,” Knoth said, much softer than before Even his expression offered sympathy. “You’ve been working much of the day away so you should retire to one of the tents. I could have someone bring your dinner to you, if you like.”

“Thank you,” Marta bowed her head once more before hurrying into the tent.

In there, she was able to breathe easy again. For she no longer had to watch the sun steal her time away and could lie down in thought.

She sought to return to a time before the ranch, before the testament, before Knoth, but the images became hazier the longer she thought

Then came the ranch.

The images came clearer there, but none told Marta why they came to the ranch. Only that it always was.

If only she understood why.

That was all she needed.

Why…

Only sleep offered her relief from that question, but even then it was short lived, as Jasmine shook her awake.

“Marta, it’s time. Are you coming?” she whispered. With one arm she gripped Marta’s shoulder, and the other held a sleeping Tristan.

The dryness in her throat returned, as she looked up at Jasmine. She only found an answer when she recalled the night of their initial escape.

“God knows what’s in our hearts, right? No matter where we go?”

Jasmine smiled. “Yes, of course he does.”

Marta took a deep breath. “Then I’ll go.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful!” Not since before the burial in the desert, did Jasmine smile so brightly. “Do you have everything you need?”

The question had little purpose. Without the testament, none of them had a penny to their names, but Marta held her tongue and nodded.

“Then stay very quiet and follow me.”

They tiptoed out of the tent and entered complete silence of the site. It would have been complete darkness too, if not for the moon offering them just enough light to weave through the paths of tents until they reached the red truck.

Beside it stood one of the women who was always around Jasmine. She too carried a sleeping baby. Marta also recognized one of the younger couples--the man holding the keys to the truck.

Each of them expressed surprise at Marta’s presence, but none protested.

“Is everyone ready to go?” the man asked them. “Because this is your last chance to turn back.”

As he waited for a response, there was only the chirping of the crickets. So often ignored, but tonight, deafening. Perhaps someone tried to protest over the noise, but the man went ahead and opened the trunk.

Somehow the click of the lock was even louder.

Everyone looked back to the camp, but only saw the tents as they left them, still silent and shrouded in darkness.

The man then opened the trunk, only for it to be accompanied with a loud creaking that made him wince, but no one looked back this time. He and his woman crammed bags in the trunk, along with supplies that Marta recognized from the bus. Every bag landed with more noise than the last, but that only made them quicken their pace.

Meanwhile, Jasmine and the mother cleared out the backseat with much more care for their volume.

Marta only stared.

“I’m sorry, Marta, but we’re going to need to squeeze you in the middle,” She heard Jasmine say at one point, but Marta didn’t respond.

“Marta?”

She was back at Degan Ranch.

“What’s wrong?” Jasmine asked.

Marta shook her head. “It’s just like before.”

“What do you mean?”

"We’re only running away, deserting our own. All over again…”

“Only to save ourselves,” Jasmine gripped Marta’s shoulders and her breathing became rigid. “I know you’re scared, but this isn’t how people are supposed to live. You must know that.”

Marta looked back at the campsite. As they slept through the betrayal, her heart ached for them. At one point, the ache became so great that she had to look away, and back to Jasmine.

“I know that, but I also know that the road to salvation is one that is twisted with thorns and snares,” Though the ache began to fade, Marta still struggled to continue. “It is arduous, but it is also good. I know this in my heart of hearts…”

“But, Marta-”

“No!” Marta stepped back. “I’m not running away. Not again.”

Jasmine opened her mouth to protest, but the man of the group beat her to it.

“I told you she wouldn’t come, Jas. Let’s just go. Knoth wouldn’t let anything happen to her.”

“Go with them,” Marta said. “I know God will forgive you.”

“But…”

“Jas, we can’t do this all night,” the man seethed. “We’re already lucky no one heard us. We have to go now.”

“I…” she gave Marta one last pleading glance, but the child only nodded.

“I’ll be okay. I promise.”

Jasmine’s brow furrowed. She continued to stare at Marta, only looking away when Tristan stirred in her arms. Her gaze softened as she looked down and hushed him back to sleep. When he was silent again, she handed the baby off to one of her companions. She muttered something too low for Marta to hear, before returning her attention to her, kneeling down so their gazes met.

“I’m sorry, Marta. I really am. Maybe we are making a huge mistake, but I can’t stay here. I would force you with us if I could, but just…” She closed her eyes and sighed. “I’ve said my piece, so now I only ask that you remember us kindly.

Marta nodded. “I will.”

“Are you sure you won’t come with us?”

“I’m sure,” Marta said easily.

Without warning, Jasmine hugged Marta then. It came so suddenly that Marta stiffened at the contact. Even so, she frowned when Jasmine let go.

“Goodbye, Marta, and God bless.”

“God bless you, Jasmine. I’ll pray for your safe journey on the road ahead.”

“Thank you, Marta.”

She moved as slowly as she could and kept her eyes on Marta the whole while, but Jasmine at last entered the truck.

Once she was inside, the engine started, and it backed out. It started at a crawl for the first moments of movement, and when there was no interruption, it sped away from the camp.

Marta stared after it until it was impossible for the naked eye to see. Only then did she kneel down to pray.

“Lord, please forgive Miss Jasmine and the others. They do not mean offense against you. For it is only out of fear they flee, so do not strike them down in your wrath. Rather, find mercy in your heart to bless them with a safe journey: wherever they may go, and perhaps...one day...if you so will it, you can guide them back to us, as the prodigal son. Praise be to the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Knoth. Amen.”

Marta opened her eyes and a light shined upon her.

There stood Knoth, lantern in hand, and an expression so hardened that he looked more as a statue than a man. He waited for her to speak, but she could only stare up at him with wide eyes.

“You knew about this, didn’t you?” he finally said.

“I…” Marta trembled as she searched for her voice, and when she found it all she could manage was a, “Yes, Father.”

Knoth’s eyes narrowed. “And you didn’t tell me.”

“No…” Her voice barely audible.

“Did you think that silence would absolve from the sin of lying?”

Marta shook her head.

"Then why didn’t you say anything?”

“I was scared,” Marta admitted. “Miss Jasmine was always very kind to me. I didn’t want her to be punished.”

“And now she has gone astray because of your silence.” Knoth said, lowly. “You let her give into temptation when the Lord saw fit to put you in her path.”

Marta’s gaze fell to the tracks left behind by the tires. “Maybe...maybe we could still go after them?” she asked, quietly. “They couldn’t have gotten too far…”

“No,” Knoth turned his back to the tracks.

Marta’s jaw dropped. “But...aren’t they still part of our flock? Just because they wandered astray doesn’t mean they are no longer our own.”

Knoth shook his head. “Not anymore. For they have shown where their loyalty lies and we have no place for heretics among us.”

“But, Father-”

“They knew the road to paradise would be trying and dangerous, but they still let their cowardice sway them from the Lord.” He spoke louder now, nearly shouting. He then glared at Marta. “And do not think you do not share blame in this. I had thought your faith stronger, my child. Do you question our Lord’s ways?”

Marta’s eyes began to water. “No, Father. I do believe in our Lord. I really do, it’s just…” She bit her lip rather than continuing.

“Just what?” Knoth asked her, his tone still icy and low.

“I…” she nearly choked on her own words. “I do believe they still love the Lord.”

“Then why are you the one who stayed behind and not them?”

Marta’s brow furrowed as she searched for an answer. “I...well...it’s because...they...I...um…”

"Nevermind,” Knoth uttered, shaking his head. “You are only a child. It was wrong of me to expect so much out of you.”

“But Father, please-”

“Marta, that is enough!” Knoth snapped. He took a deep breath, and his voice settled, though there was still an edge to it. “You have had a very trying day. I suggest you get some rest.”

Tears rolled down Marta’s cheeks, but Knoth didn’t see them in the darkness.

“Yes, Father,” she choked out. Her head hung low. “Please forgive me. I will never lie to you again.”

“You are forgiven,” Knoth spoke with neither hesitation, nor warmth. He didn’t even bother to look at her. Still, Marta thanked him, and hurried back to the campsite, and headed straight for the tent she once shared with Jasmine. It was quiet without the baby’s cooing and Jasmine’s chatter.

[fearlessheartofasamurai]

I didn't know someone else was here.....

[[Your muse has found a nice secluded lake and decided to cool off in a nice water. However, when they get into the water they realize that they're not alone. Send "I didn't know that someone else was here." for my muse's response.]]

Leo loved the water, he loved it almost more than he loved martial arts and that was saying something. It soothed his soul, relaxed him, and just felt good. He assumed it was because he was a turtle, but his brothers didn’t seem to love it nearly as much as he did. Which was fine by him, it meant he got to soak by himself more often than not and that was probably the best part. Soaking in water combined with silence. It was not quite meditating, but close enough that he occasionally lost time while he soaked. A few minutes suddenly became a few hours and unless he was disturbed, Leo rarely noticed the passage of time.

Finding clean water to soak in was difficult at times. They had their pool in the lair but it wasn’t very deep and sometimes Leo wanted to swim. Most of the water underground was not fit for swimming and the currents were deceptively dangerous. Central Park was off limits due to humans being their at all times of day and night. That left the beaches and a few lakes further north. Getting to the lakes was not easy and so often Leo had to settle for the beach and the salt water. It wasn’t as enjoyable as fresh water and often irritated his skin. It also came with the risk of humans showing up randomly, no matter how late he went.

When it was suggested they take the garbage truck and some gear and go camping in upstate NY Leo had been hesitant. It wasn’t safe, there was nowhere to hide really. Don had figured it out though. A place that offered seclusion, space, a lake, but it was pretty far off the beaten path. Their truck could get there using service roads and the chance of humans being around was quite slim. They had enough equipment and solar panels to keep them going for at least a week. At first it was just going to be them, but Mike suggested bringing some of their human friends just in case. So they each invited a friend to bring along. Of course Leo picked Vicky, she needed a vacation and he was worried that without a distraction he might drive his brothers insane. With Vicky along he would have someone that shared at least some of his interests since he had promised that this was going to be a vacation and training was to be limited.

The drive had not been too terrible until Mikey got bored, then it was hell. Pure unmitigated hell. A hell from which Leo thought he might never escape. There was a brief moment when they stopped, and Don announced they were at their destination that Leo was tempted to flee the vehicle and run off into the woods screaming. Resisting that urge he helped his brothers unload the equipment and began setting up the tents. Sleeping arrangements were argued over as no one wanted to share a tent with Michelangelo or Raphael, which meant they got to share one. Leo had his own tent, and Don was going to sleep in the truck. The humans had brought tents of their own that were modular and could be hooked together to create a large sleeping and living space. Unfortunately it was far too small for any of the brothers to be in comfortably and not take up too much room.

Once everything was set up the camp chores were divided and despite the rather vocal complaining from the more lazy individuals, everyone set about their tasks. While walking and scouting the area Leo had found the lake and it was beautiful. For now he had to resist the urge to strip and dive in, he had chores to complete so that they could settle in a bit better and be prepared for dinner. It was already getting late as the drive had taken a while and they were all a little hungry and tired from the trip. Maybe tomorrow he could go for a swim, meditate on the rocks near by, something. The water called to his soul and he was hard pressed to ignore it, but ignore it he did for now.

The next day was a bust as well. Leo had only managed to find time to meditate, but not swim. It was frustrating, but they had a week. One day without being the the water would not kill him, but he might start something if he was denied any longer than that. As it was the first full official day of camping everyone wanted to do something different, but no one wanted to do anything alone. Which made sense. They ended up dividing up the activities to go best with what time of day would make it easiest and some activities had to be pushed to another day.

Hiking had been fun, and everyone learned something new. Except Donatello, he already knew everything apparently. That didn’t take away from the fun at all and Don took the teasing good naturedly as always. While Leo longed to swim, fishing had also been fun. It was a bit messy and slightly unpleasant at certain points, but fun.

As afternoon shifted to evening they gathered at the campsite to relax, eat, and enjoy each other's company. It was too early for scary stories and s’mores. Instead Leo had suggested games and it took a while to agree on charades. The laughter lasted well into the evening which lead into those s’mores everyone had been promised. The scary stories were fun, until it was Donatello’s turn. Leo wasn’t sure anyone was going to sleep after that and he was pretty certain that it was Don’s revenge for the teasing earlier. He was going to have to have a chat with his brother though about what was, and what wasn’t appropriate scary story material. Mike was most likely going to have nightmares and some of the humans looked far paler than usual. Raph just laughed it off but even he had a bit of a look in his eyes like sleep might be a bit resistant in coming.

As predicted Mike had nightmares, Leo sighed, and Don felt guilty. Thankfully Raph was with their littlest brother and soothed him through the nightmares. In the morning, Mike was allowed to punch Donatello once for every time he woke up screaming. Don promised, while rubbing his arm, that he would tone it down in the future. He did not look as remorseful as Leo would have liked, but the lake was calling and Leo wanted no more distractions. Getting through breakfast had seemed like it took forever.

It had taken Leo longer than he wanted to sneak away with no one noticing. He wasn’t trying to be rude, but he wanted his alone time. Making it to the far side of the lake Leo stripped down hiding his gear and swords under some bushes. Quietly he slid into the water and let himself sink. The chill of the lake water was a bit of a shock, but oddly refreshing. The further Leo sank under the water the more calm he felt.

Surfacing he took a deep breath and allowed himself to sink to the depths once more. Having been a turtle before mutation it allowed Leo to stay underwater far longer than any human could. Even a human with a portable oxygen tank would have to surface due to their supply running out before Leo would. While the mutation had changed them significantly, this was one trait they kept. They could not stay underwater for days, but they could easily stay underwater for several hours

Leo let himself float underwater occasionally moving around as he relaxed. First he wanted to find calm, let the stress of life wash away from him. Then he would explore and swim. He could see easily enough in the murky depths, at least to a point. Movement would catch his eye as small fish, amphibians, even turtles moved around him almost as if he wasn’t there. At least most did not seem to see him as much of a threat.

Sinking to the bottom in one of the slightly shallower portions of the lake Leo pushed off and surfaced suddenly. Not far from him, already up to her waist in the water was his friend Vicky. Leo had clearly startled her as she had neither seen nor heard him before he surfaced and she was clutching her chest like he had almost given her a heart attack. Leo was amused when she finally found her voice and spoke.

“I didn't know someone else was here.....”

Her sentence was innocent but not accusatory. She did seem to be a bit uncomfortable, but Leo wasn’t sure why. The water was not too cold for a human. At least it didn’t feel that way. Maybe she had not wanted to share a swim. Leo had been hoping to have the lake to himself for a bit, knowing how loud it would become once his brothers decided to show up. While he didn’t mind splashing and playing right now he just wanted to enjoy the peace and quiet. Perhaps Vicky had wanted the same thing and worried about Leo being there, or maybe she realized why he might be here and was worried that she was disturbing him.

One of the many reasons Leo was so close to Vicky as a friend, was that she understood him, understood that sometimes I needed his space. She never took it personally and was always cognizant of being in his space. It helped that she didn’t get offended when he couldn’t hang out or simply needed his space. He felt he could trust her to not get upset if he just couldn’t hang out.

Still the lake was big enough for both of them and Leo was certain he could give her as much space as she needed while still having plenty for himself.  “I have been waiting for this since we got here, I am just enjoying a swim before the others figure out how enjoyable the water is and decide to have splash fights.” Leo chuckled and swam backwards away from her, showing her he was willing to give her space but not going to far. “Don’t worry, it is safe. I scouted underwater to be sure. Nothing dangerous seems to be over in this area so you should be good to swim.”

Leo smiled at her wiping the water from his maskless face as he took in the blue of her swimsuit. It was the same color blue as his mask. He smiled, the smile freezing and then fading slowly as his eyes widened and he sank up to his neck in the water. Thankfully he had not gotten too close or been in water too shallow as Leo realized, he was completely naked.

[m96worthy]

Piña's Camping Survival Guide Vol. 1: Getting Past The Car Search

First of all I wanna start off by saying: I am not, nor do I consider myself to be, an expert in camping. Neither in camping at a festival, or in nature. As a matter of fact I was just online at 4am the other day looking at any little tips I might not know yet. That being said, I kinda know a lot lol. I have camped at Hard and Nocturnal in the past so I have a general idea on how searches are held. To put it bluntly, it’s impossible to know just how thoroughly you’ll be searched. There’s like 6 to 8 lines of cars coming through. You may have the line with the 25 year old who see’s that the line NEEDS to keep flowing so he just skims everything; only looking for glass, alcohol, and weapons. Oooorrr you could have that middle aged dickhead, who has no idea how he got put in a position to work this job, but he’s gonna take out all his frustrations out on you by searching every inch of your shit. Including your socks. Now that being said you’re probably gonna get an average in between person. Fact is, last year was Hardfest’s first year camping. Their lines to get searched for camping were RIDICULOUS. Why? Too many dickheads searching every square inch. So in assumption that they’ll wanna improve in every way possible for a better experience … the lines should move muuuch quicker, which theoretically means less of a search. Just so everyone knows: if you see a dog I am 98% sure he can not smell your drugs. But I’m sure as hell his master will smell your fear when he brings him sniffing your car. Play it cool. Weird side trick I picked up at Nocturnal, if you have a frisbee or a throwing ball or poi balls, go nuts with them. The officer cannot and will not stop you from playing in line, and his dog will be so distracted it’s quite hilarious. Haven’t tried it yet but it seemed to work really well from what I saw. But in a nut shell your search should basically be a “take everything out” skim skim skim “alright pack everything back up” and you dip (It’s a real bitch if you have a truckload of stuff that you barely got packed in there the first time. Pack light people please trust me, you don’t need it). Now that you have the run down on what it will be like getting searched we can move on how to properly hiding yo shiiieet. There’s only really three things to ever sneak into (in my knowledge) a campground: drugs, alcohol, and a piece. Trust me you’ll be the goat of all the goatland if you’re that one neighbor who got a bong in haha. I got one in both festivals I camped at. So let’s start with drugs. We’re not gonna suger coat it here and say something like, “oh drugs? I’ll skip this section because I’m a good child and I don’t do stuff like that”. Stfu and listen you heathen. Food is your friend. I garentee you if you brought enough food there’s no way you will have more drugs than food, let’s hope. Let’s say you have a “fruit snack packet sized” baggie stuffed full of euros… well buy a box of fruit snacks (of your choice of course I’m not dictating you) and shove it in there. DON’T OPEN THE BOX. I just mean to prop open the fold with your finger and squeeze it in there (pause). Shake it around, turn it upside down, go nuts. Trust me it won’t fall out. And if it doesn’t fit? Don’t be stupid haha, use less volume per drop. Do it a dozen times if necessary. It’s more safe in your food than your luggage always. I’m sure there’s dozens of options you can have with food, once I took out a whole thing of pringles and put my weed at the bottom. Worked like a charm only problem was all my Pringles smelt and tasted like weed heavy😂 I ate them though, mama ain’t raise no bitch! But get creative, please send me your ideas, I’m never too wise to be taught something. I literally just thought of one right now though off the top of my head, might be easier said then done actually…. But take out like the middle section of a loaf of bread and cut a hole to hollow it and put it back filled with… whatever. But be careful not to alter the weight a dumbass amount, and don’t leave empty space that moves around when shaken. Think small with this even though the loaf is big. I’ll have to try it myself I dont even know don’t listen to me haha. But of course you need to know your car, you feel me? Like I can’t tell you where a good spot to hide your stuff would be, it’s your car. Then lastly the obvious but most overlooked choice: just hide it on you. You’re not gonna sit here and tell me that you can sneak that stuff in the festival, but not your campsite. As if there’s staff searching bodis more heavily than they do the day of the festival (remember this is the Friday before not Saturday morning). So yeah that’s literally everything I know with that, because I can’t think of odd things I might have overlooked. Let me know we can think of something I’m sure. Moving foward to alcohol. If you’re a beer person I’m just gonna go ahead and crush your dreams right now. At Hard you can only bring in one case of beer OR one box of wine per car. Not box per person that’s 21 like Nocturnal. It’s a bitch, life’s not fair, we can sit here and cry all day but that’s the rule. Now this is another idea off the top of my head, because I personally haven’t done it, but you can spend the time to disguise the beers in a case of soda and just super glue the case closed again. Just be sure to use a can of a similar color, and also fill the ends of the box with sodas as decoys juuust in case. A little side note to have decoys of everything that has something hidden in it (water cases, food boxes, ect). Now that I told you how to sneak in your beer all safe and sound I’m gonna turn right around and tell you to stop being a little bitch and live without it. It’s not worth it dude, for multiple reasons. One its a waste of space. I can’t stress enough how little you want to bring with you. Start planning now and be smart. Two, it’s a waste of ice. Because you’re gonna be taking these warm beers and filling the ice chest with them to cool off therefore melting the ice unnecessarily. Three, it’s a waste of time. Be happy with the one case, I know, it hurts me too. But I’m telling you if you just buy a case of beer right before you get to the speedway it’ll still be a little cold when you get inside the campground, and if not it won’t take much to cool it versus it being warm or hot even. You can use that one case you have for BP, or just general drinkage, on that first night Friday. That way you killed it off right from the jump and you have space opened up from finishing it. If you’re worried about what you’ll drink the rest of the weekend, bring liquor. Vodka and clear liquors take the cake in simplicity so I do recommend these. But basically cut out, or shimmy out it you can swing it, about 3 or so bottles from the bottom. Fill em up with your liquor and put them back. Stack between two more cases of water as decoys (no one will shame you for being over hydrated trust me) and you’re good to go. If you cut the case open just do you best to cover it. Packing tape should work, but you can try to glue it if you’re a wizard. But yo, just think about these things when you’re shopping for your supplies. Every case of water differs in packaging. Make it easy in yourself by choosing the on that looks shrink wrapped. Guy: “But what if I like brown liquor man. I only drink whisky cause I ain’t no bitch” or Girl: “but I wanna make piña coladaaaaassssss. Please Matt! Can’t we bring some captain or crown? They’ll be so good trust me” Really nigga….? I just gave you a sure fire way to get in, potentially a lot of, vodka and you’re gonna get picky on your choice of alcohol? Damn. Well… go buy 4 gallon jugs of Arizona iced tea and drink 2 of them. Why? Because I’m not gonna sit here and tell you to throw away 2 gallons of perfectly good iced tea you wasteful bitch 😂 Now, fill one with Crown and the other with Captain and be happy. “But why did I buy 4 jugs?” Decoys! Pay attention dude geez smh. Now I’m SURE there’s a whole list of ways to sneak your liquor in. You’re probably gonna try and share some with me and I’ll pretend to value those options. But I’m telling you right now from personal experience that both these methods I just said work and there’s no reason for me to know another way. Cause I don’t know like any other ways literally haha. I’m sorry, I’m only human. Wow honestly I can’t believe how much I’ve typed so far. I hope you’re soaking this in while staying semi entertained with my writing I’m trying to keep it fun. Moving forward. A piece! I’m just gonna say right here I am a spoiled ballsy bastard who loves his bongs. So I risked it for the biscuit, and it was worth it taking bong rips at camp all weekend. Hard last year I put my bong in a towel and put it at the bottom of my clothes and shoved everything on top. I had “skim guy” so no worries, nobody found it, but let’s just assume I got lucky. At Nocturnal my buddy had a panel in his car that he could pull back and stick the piece in there. Worked like a charm. But like I said this goes back to the section on knowing your car. Inside and out, if drug mules can put kilos on kilos in a Corolla I’m sure you can find a spot for your piece. Use google to help because whatever you’re thinking someone has already thought of it. Sad but true. Brushing aside my past experiences to bring fresh ideas to the table … I think I’m gonna put aside my silver spoon. There’s waaaayyy too many dope rigs and pipes and bubblers out there that normally I wouldn’t use cause I have better, but they are perfect for these moments. Go invest. And I actually have two reasons for this with one being a past trauma. But first off it’s just way easier to hide, plain and simple, 2x2" to 3x3" piece will always be easier to hide then a 5x12" peice. So secondly it’s not that I’m too scared now to try and hide it, cause I’m down. But on the very last hour we spent at Hard, I’m talking the Monday morning packing up, we were taking dabs under the canopy. And because people were clearing out around us a security officer was able to spot us from pretty far out (lol far out👽) and rolled up on us out of no where in a golf cart and took all his stuff. It was just really heartbreaking (RIP that rig) and it wasn’t even mine. I’d just hate to lose or break a 120 dollar set up when I can buy a 20 dollar little mini rig. Plus there’s always joints and wax pens as an addition or an alternative, bitches love joints and wax pens lol.

[jenguerrero]

#voyageurpress #quartobooks #lindaly #tpwd #caddolake #johnsonsranchmarina

“Ooooh, I wanna go camping for my birthday!” “I’d like to go hiking!” My daughter and husband have birthdays a week apart and their requests sounded like one fantastic weekend! The Texas State Park campgrounds fill up pretty fast, so I polled my Facebook buddies right away to get a potential list of parks with the best trees. Got the site!

We’re all foodies. Adding birthdays on top of that, I really wanted to make lovely campfire fare, so I ordered a copy of The New Camp Cookbook. I gave it a flip through and flagged a lot of potential weekend deliciousness, and then I saw it, Dutch Oven Old-School Lasagna. Haha! Lasagna and Potstickers are her two favorite food groups. Perfect! (We already did his birthday dinner and cake at home!)

It’s very cool. You will not be bored with the same old campsite (or backyard!) meals. The author’s intent is that you do all the prep right at the campsite. Measuring and dicing out in the woods, where I have no desire to have a full pantry or fridge to work out of, sounded pretty bad. I prefer to keep things as simple as possible out in the woods, so that we can concentrate on hiking, canoeing, and chillaxing, so I did all the prep work at home, and even froze what parts would freeze well to double as ice packs in our cooler <I spell out those details below>. It worked out so well, and I couldn’t be happier with the book. <If you normally read my stuff, you’ll laugh at the pictures. When we got to the site, our lantern wasn’t working, so I had to shine a pocket flashlight on the salmon to get a shot. The pics look like something out of Blair Witch Project. LOL!>

Since you’re reading about campfire food, I’m going to guess that there’s a good chance that you like to see potential outdoor playgrounds. Caddo Lake is the only natural lake in Texas. Half the lake is in Texas and half is in Louisiana. It has a few miles of pretty hiking trails through the woods. But what they’re known for is a paddling trail. You can rent canoes there. On the state park website I found alligator warnings. What?! We got there and saw tons of canoes in the water. We went to the ranger station and asked. She said the alligators aren’t really a problem and they don’t usually come that far up the bayou. I generally think Bill Bryson nailed it in A Walk in the Woods when he said, “Bears don’t sign treaties.” Hmmmm. But I trust park rangers. They’re in the business of keeping humans and wildlife happy and safe. So we went. And oh my gosh, am I ever glad that we did! The campground was out of canoes, so the ranger sent us over to Johnson’s Ranch Marina.

The bald cypress trees look mystical when the paddling trail gets narrow and they form a canopy, and the mounds of Spanish moss hanging off of them have a softening effect like draperies. It’s straight out of Tiana’s playground in Princess and the Frog. Water lilies are everywhere, and Alex (my birthday kiddo) was delighted by holding her paddle over them and watching the water droplets disperse in a frenzied dance over the surface. And there are lightning bugs everywhere lighting up the woods. We hadn’t seen them since selling our property in New York. We’d missed them so much. It was an amazing adventure. You should go!

We came home, built a fire, and got the Dutch Oven Old-School Lasagna going while the kids went off to find the shower house. The lasagna was the perfect birthday dinner out in the woods! I’ll show you the other dishes I made in the book afterwards, but first let me get you the recipe for that lasagna! Thanks to Quarto for letting me share it with you!

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Dutch Oven Old-School Lasagna

Makes 6 servings

Ooey gooey goodness was once only possible at home, in an oven, where layer upon layer of pasta, cheese, and sauce bubbled together in a tidy rectangular baking dish. But classic lasagna can now be had in camp! It might be round, but it’s got all the flavors and layers you know and love. I use oven-ready noodles in this recipe to save the extra step of boiling them (and dirtying another pot… because who wants to do more dishes?).

FOR THE MEAT SAUCE (Prepare, bag, and freeze ahead of time! Thaw when ready. ~Jen) ½ pound (226 g) lean ground beef ½ pound (226 g) Italian sausage, casing removed 1 medium yellow onion, chopped 4 cloves garlic, minced 1 (28-ounce/800 g) can crushed tomatoes 1 (8-ounce/226 g) can tomato sauce ¼ cup (60 ml) dry red wine 1 Tablespoon tomato paste 1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes 1 teaspoon kosher salt ½ teaspoon fennel seeds ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper To make the meat sauce, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the ground beef and sausage. Flatten the meat, spread it across the skillet, and cook until browned on the bottom, about 5 minutes. Stir to break up the meat and continue cooking until browned all over, 3 to 5 minutes more. Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion starts to turn translucent, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, wine, tomato paste, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, salt, fennel seeds, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce is thickened, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare a mound of wood coals, hardwood lump charcoal, or charcoal briquettes.

FOR THE CHEESE MIXTURE (Prepare, bag, & freeze ahead of time! Thaw when ready. ~Jen) 2 large eggs 4 ½ cups (500 g) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided 2 cups (450 g) ricotta cheese ½ cup (50 g) grated Parmesan cheese, divided ½ cup (25 g) chopped fresh parsley leaves, plus more for garnishing To make the cheese mixture, in a medium bowl, beat together the eggs, 4 cups (450 g) of mozzarella, the ricotta, ¼ cup (25 g) of the Parmesan, and the parsley. Stir until well combined.

FOR THE LASAGNA Olive oil spray 9 uncooked oven-ready lasagna noodles (I used more. I think my Dutch oven’s bigger. ~Jen) 3 cups packed baby spinach To assemble the lasagna, lightly spray a dutch oven with oil. Spoon 1/3 of the meat sauce into the oven, followed by 1/3 of the noodles, ½ of the cheese mixture, and ½ of the spinach. (Break the noodles into pieces to fit the oven.) Repeat with the remaining ingredients, finishing with a layer of meat sauce. Top with the remaining ½ cup (56 g) mozzarella and remaining ¼ cup (25 g) Parmesan. (Here’s my quick sketch of the layer plans. ~Jen)

Move about a quart’s worth of coals to the cooking pit and arrange them in a ring. Cover the oven, set it on the ring of coals, and place 1 ½ rings of coals on the lid.

Bake over medium heat for about 30 minutes, until all the cheeses are melted and the noodles are tender. Replenish the coals as needed to maintain medium heat and rotate the oven and lid halfway through for even cooking. Let stand, uncovered, for 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with parsley.

My review of the book…

The New Camp Cookbook By: Linda Ly Edition: Hardcover

My thoughts and pics on the dishes we tried: 1) Blueberry Skillet Scones with Lemon Glaze – p 42. These were divine. They are rich, fragrant, and not overly sweet. I prepped the dough and icing in advance and put them in separate sealed bags. 2-5) Savory Oatmeal with Bacon, Cheddar, and Fried Egg – p 49. Delicious. This was everyone’s favorite breakfast. I cooked and crumbled the bacon and toasted the oatmeal in advance. Then I measured and separately bagged the bacon, oatmeal, cheese, and chopped onion. I measured ice water into a mason jar (they have measurement lines on the side), so that it would double as an icepack and a drinking jar, too.

6) Foil Pack Salmon with Pineapple Salsa – p 101. Fabulous dinner. The sweet, savory, and spicy salsa complements the rich fish perfectly. I washed the fish, seasoned it, and topped it with lime slices and bagged that in advance. And I made another sealed bag of the salsa in advance. This was supposed to be done in foil, which I forgot at home, so I just used my Dutch oven with a lid, and it worked perfectly. Our lantern was dead, so this photo taken with a pocket flashlight will have to do. 7-11) Dutch Oven Old-School Lasagna – p 179. All the yes! Lasagna and potstickers are my kiddos favorite foods, so I was thrilled to see one of them in the book for her birthday dinner. This works perfectly in the Dutch oven with coals. Everyone loved it. I made the meat sauce and combined the cheese mixture ahead of time, and separately bagged and froze those. Then I made a little bag of the topping cheese. There was supposed to be spinach in this, but I forgot it at home.

12) Mimosa Sangria – p 190. This was a lovely fireside sipper. I put the measured fruit, orange liqueur, and fruit juice in one mason jar ahead of time. When we were ready to drink it, I divided it between this and the other mason jar that the measured water had been in for the oatmeal that was now empty, and my hubby topped them both up with champagne. How’s that for glamping?! 13-15) Camp Chai – p 202. I made the chai concentrate ahead of time. Next time, I’ll make two batches because the kids loved this in the morning while they sat around the fire waiting for their breakfasts. It’s a total mug of coziness.

16-17) Campfire S’Mores, 6 Ways – p 209. My daughter chose a mash-up of two as her birthday cake. Chocolate graham crackers, Nutella, salted caramel, and toasted marshmallows. They thought they were way better than the standard deal. Next time, I’ll chill the Nutella and caramel so that it’ll stand up better to the molten marshmallow. One of my kids is a marshmallow igniter.

Some others I have flagged to try: Peanut Butter-Stuffed French Toast with Honeyed Blackberries – p 56 * Bacon-Wrapped Potatoes with Blue Cheese – p 62 * Egg-in-a-Hole Grilled Cheese – p 68 * Pile of Grilled Vegetables with Herbed Toasts – p 79 * Grilled Grape and Gorgonzola Pita Pizzas – p 92 * Vietnamese Pork Tacos with Pickled Carrots and Daikon – p 95 * Bacon-Wrapped Dates – p 115 * Grilled Corn on the Cob, 4 Ways – p 120 * Charred Romaine Salad with Lemon-Anchovy Dressing – p 127 * Peak-of-Summer Peach Caprese Salad – p 130 * Five-Alarm Three-Bean Chili – p 142 * Summer Vegetable and Salmon Packets – p 153 * Tin Foil Seafood Boil – p 157 * Grilled Flank Steak and Fingerling Potatoes with Chimichurri – p 162 * Dutch Oven-Baked Buttermilk Chicken with Kale and Apple Slaw – p 182 * Grilled Pears with Honey-Cinnamon Crème Fraiche – p 214 * Dutch Oven Strawberry-Rhubarb Cobbler – p 215

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The New Camp Cookbook

Food Saver

I bought my Food Saver for my sous vide. It’s nice to have, but completely unnecessary for that. Where it really shines in on road trips. We can play in the middle of nowhere and eat like kings. When I was in the market, the mamma jamma of Food Savers was on sale, so why not?! But there are much cheaper models in the Food Saver line.

Portable Grill

My little grill. My kiddo won this at Home Depot one day. Not even kidding. My husband is a garden enthusiast, and she tagged along with him to buy all the flowers. She saw a ballot box by the customer service desk and entered her name, and we got a call. It’s fun to drag along to the lake for a lazy dinner after a day of kayaking. There was a burn ban at the campground (we didn’t know that they still allowed fire to cook), so we brought this little guy along. He uses a standard propane tank just like a full-size backyard deal, folds up, and works well. Niiiice.

  Camping weekend! Dutch Oven Old-School Lasagna recipe and Cookbook review: The New Camp Cookbook #voyageurpress #quartobooks #lindaly #tpwd #caddolake #johnsonsranchmarina "Ooooh, I wanna go camping for my birthday!" "I'd like to go hiking!" My daughter and husband have birthdays a week apart and their requests sounded like one fantastic weekend!

[licencedtoretire]

Not our MH but one visiting the park

It was one of those will we or won’t we Monday morning’s when the weather really didn’t know quite what it wanted to do. In the end I decided I will and Sarah decided she wouldn’t, she wanted to continue working on the new seat covers for our motorhome. So it was left to me to get myself up to Shakespear Regional Park and check it out for this blog and as a place for future visits.

The peninsular that is Whangaparoa, is situated about 40 kms north of the Auckland CBD. When I met Sarah 30 years ago it was still dominated by holiday baches one of which her family have owned since 1962. So it’s rather sad to see the extensive housing that makes it just another suburb of Auckland today. Urban spread gone wild!

However once you reach the end of the road and arrive at Shakespear Regional Park it’s almost like being magically transported to another part of New Zealand as the houses disappear and rolling farm land takes their place. Auckland City Council is actually the largest farmer in the Northern region.

The whole area of the peninsula that contains the camping area and beyond is now a land island with a huge predator free fence. This has allowed the reintroduction of native species such as Kiwi making this a very special place  as one of the only places with free roaming Kiwi in Auckland. The Park has also had extensive plantings to regenerate native bush and wetlands areas.

Once in the park proper you turn left uphill towards the two camping areas at Te Haruhi Bay. But first it’s a quick photo op at the giant picture frame that dominates the top of the hill overlooking the bay. It certainly was a picture of a view that morning.

Into the park proper to reach a reminder that this park used to be someones farm with this one of the few original buildings still remaining on the property. The original farm house is now a YMCA camp. The park was officially opened in December 1977 by the then Prime Minster Robert Muldoon. These days the park attracts around 600,000 visitors a year but on the day of my visit I could count the visitors on both hands.

Once down on the flat you reach the area where CSC vehicles can park up on a hard surface. It’s good to see that the parking bays are around 11 – 12 metres long so could easily take our motorhome at 9 metres or two smaller vehicles with a bit of an overhang over the grass to allow for the 3 metre rule.

Parking in the CSC area is $20 per night regardless of the number of people in the motorhome, or at least that’s the figure that comes up using the council online booking service. A quick check on pricing during summer shows that the price is the same year round which I find surprising as I thought it would be cheaper during winter. I am a strong advocate for making these places much more affordable over winter maybe as little as $5 per night to encourage use of the facilities and also reward the people that are travelling during that off peak period.

Across the roadway from the CSC area is a large park area that opens up onto the sweeping beach that was completely devoid of people on this beautiful winters day. There is potable water available here from taps although these are too far from the road or the camp to connect your hose. There is also a a rather dilapidated toilet block just across from the CSC camp, it’s still more than serviceable and clean it’s just really showing it’s age. But one mustn’t grumble.

At the end of the sealed roadway is the entrance to the camping area of Te Haruhi Bay. Despite the sign telling you that bookings can be made over the phone at the park office this is no longer the case. However since almost everyone carries a mobile these days it should not be a problem for most.

It’s good to see the Kiwi sign on the gate reminding you that this is a land island with a predator proof fence. So if you have driven in here with your dog or cat you need to immediately turn around and exit the park as no animals are allowed. I realise that a lot of motorhomers travel with their pets ruling out places like these but conservation must be a priority in places like this close to the city where so few other places exist.

Despite Auckland Regional Parks being rubbish free I noticed these bins at the campsite along with another worm farm. The ultimate in recycling I guess.

The official camping area is a large flat area that given the huge amount of rain we have had recently was remarkably firm and dry. In fact the council have had to close a number of their camps over the winter due to sodden ground. Refer previous blog. So it’s good to see one that can be used year round.

One thing I did find surprising is that given that the camp can take 160 paying campers that there appeared to be only one water tap. This tap was located at the back of the camp ground and I imagine access would be quite difficult when the camp is full.

The camp is $15 per adult per night with a minimum charge of $30. I don’t really see why this place should be any more expensive than the CSC area given it offers no extra facilities. You can however stay here for 7 nights as opposed to 3 nights in the CSC area. Bookings can be made up to 7 months in advance via the council website.

Behind the campsite is a walk up the hill that takes you to Pink Beach, a really pleasant walk through farm land. The walk starts off on a nice gravel track that runs out at the top of the hill. Sadly the ground beyond here became very boggy making access beyond this point a walk for dryer ground conditions and another day.

Back down the hill and past the ancient Maori burial ground that adjoins the campsite and then for a stroll along the beach. It’s not hard to imagine once the weather warms up just what a pleasant place this would be to stay.

The beach is obviously a very safe swimming beach with a huge grassed area behind to allow for plenty of picnic places or just some shade under one of the many pohutakawa trees.

At the other end of the beach from the campground is the Ranger station which is also the home to the Shakespear Open Sanctuary a group of volunteers working to reintroduce and foster native species within the park.

The building was unmanned on the day of my arrival but the Peacocks were doing their best to man the station in the absence of a ranger.

Leaving the park I stopped at the picnic area located just inside the main gate, although you cannot camp here it would be a very pleasant place to park up and have a picnic under the trees. Maybe even try your luck at collecting your bag of cockles for dinner. There are great views from here to Rangitoto and the Sky Tower in the background.

Leaving Shakespear Regional Park I thought I would call into the freedom camping area located at the Gulf Harbour Marina. It’s a much larger area than a lot of freedom camping areas. Unlike a lot of these places where anything bigger than a car will struggle to park here you could easily park an 11 or 12 metre motorhome with plenty of room on the otherside for one of a similar length.

Reading the online comments the 20 spaces here fill up really fast so an early arrival would be best. Because these are car/trailer spaces they are a standard carpark width meaning that you are very close to your next door neighbour.

Located just inside the carpark are toilets and a very handy dump station but sadly no fresh water. There is fresh water at Shakespear Regional Park but no tap close enough to connect a hose from the carpark.

The notice about the defence area relates to an area of land and sea at the end of the peninsular that is used by the Navy with the land a restricted area and obviously when they are doing live firing then so is the sea.

Heading back to Auckland it was a quick visit to RnRV in Silverdale for a catch up with the owner Paul to discuss a couple of things about a new blog series I am working on to be published soon. Paul’s yard runs alongside the Northern Motorway so as you drive past you can see this huge display it’s worth getting off at Silverdale to have a look at whats on offer if you are considering a motorhome or caravan purchase.

To view the places we have visited click here to see them on Google maps. You can click the links to read the blog about that area. [cardoza_facebook_like_box] To view the Ratings we have done for other camps click here  [jetpack_subscription_form]

Camping – Shakespear Regional Park It was one of those will we or won't we Monday morning's when the weather really didn't know quite what it wanted to do.

[festpop]

FestPop gives you the Ultimate Guide to one of the world’s favorite and most popular music festivals: Bonnaroo.



The first time I went to Bonnaroo, I was unprepared. Distracted by my excitement to spend a weekend in the Tennessee sun with my best friends and finally see Jack White live fresh off of his second solo album, Lazaretto, I only glanced at Bonnaroo’s ‘What to Pack’ checklist and decided to ‘rough it’ for the four days. You probably know to stick sunscreen and bug spray (no DEET!) in your backpack before you head to Tennessee, but here at FestPop, we don’t want you to ever show up to a great weekend of music without having absolutely everything you need, so we’ve compiled a list of things you need to know before going to Bonnaroo to make the most of the experience. It’s easy to get swept up in making sure you see as many acts of possible, but in order to get the most out of your weekend, make sure you check out the other activities, services, and resources that Bonnaroo provides. Not only do these things make the festival even more special, but they can help you feel your best and stay safe.

Getting there

The drive to Bonnaroo is pretty direct no matter where you’re coming from because the Farm is right off the highway, and they can accommodate anything from a Prius to an RV, so just make sure you have the right parking pass. All you have to do is plug in ‘Bonnaroo Arts And Music Festival, Manchester, TN’ to your GPS and go.

If you don’t have such reliable transportation, Bonnaroo has plenty of hotel and shuttle options. You can get a shuttle straight from the Nashville airport, which is about a 75 minute drive, and the festival has their own buses that run all over the Midwest and Southeast if flying isn’t for you. You can also take a shuttle that goes to and from your hotel in Nashville. But if you ask me, camping is half the fun.

Don’t neglect your body.

‘The Well’ is the center of Roo’s efforts toward making sure you are feeling healthy in between your most anticipated shows. You’ll be standing and walking a lot for four days straight, so going to The Well for Yoga-Roo is an awesome way to relieve, stretch, and strengthen tight and tired muscles. A lot of the classes are earlier in the morning, but worth it if you’re prone to back and joint pain. They also provide mediation classes and exercise meetups.

The heat will take a lot of your energy away, and it gets really, really hot in Tennessee. A refreshing way to cool off is to head over to the giant, raining mushroom fountains in centeroo to get drenched. Just don’t forget to reapply your sunscreen afterwards.

It’s also really easy to eat junk food all weekend. There are so many amazing food trucks at the festival, and you have to have a donut from the Amish Baking Company, who always makes an appearance at Centeroo. But that doesn’t mean you have to skimp out on nutrition altogether. The Well also provides access to healthy foods for Bonnaroovians looking for sustainable energy, and there are plenty of food trucks that sell vegan, vegetarian, and overall more health-conscious options. You’re in the South, so skipping out on a little barbecue would be a bit sinful, but you don’t have to disregard health altogether just because you’re on vacation.

It’s always nice to support vendors, but we get that you’ve already spent good money on tickets and probably took a few days off work to be there, so you can always bring some of your own food if you’re trying to save a little cash. My first year at Bonnaroo, we didn’t bring our own grill, but we made friends with some people who barbecued every night on a mini stove, and we saw what a valuable asset it was. Just make sure you obey their Gasoline/Propane/Charcoal Policy.

This should go without saying, but water, water, water. One of my favorite parts of the festival is the beer tent, which lets you sample a bunch of different local craft beer, and there are trucks all over centeroo where you can drink up, but don’t forget to drink water in between sips. If you’re traveling from a state or country with a more mild climate, you have to understand that the Tennessee sun in June is no joke, and it can be dangerous to stop drinking water if you’re spending that much time in such intense heat.  A lot of people wear backpacks that have built in water pouches, so that you can stay hydrated while keeping both hands free to dance. Eating fruits like watermelon and cucumber can also help keep you hydrated while also giving you an energy boost.

Be ready for weather.

By now, you’ve gotten the point that Bonnaroo is a hot place, so having comfy, breezy clothes is a must. It’s not like there’s a dress code on The Farm, so wear whatever makes you most comfortable under the sun. But the South in the summer is also prone to pop-up showers, so it can go from clear, sunny skies to torrential downpour in a matter of minutes. Make sure you have plastic bags to protect your electronics and other things you don’t want to get wet, and having a rain jacket is always good if you’re not the dancing-in-the-rain type. There’s also a possibility that Bonnaroo ends up falling on a consistently rainy weekend, so make sure you have a pair of shoes that you’re totally fine with getting a little muddy.

Early summer can have some chilly nights, especially if it’s a rainy weekend, so bringing a few warmer options is not a bad idea. If you’re in the middle of the pit for the late night Super Jam or pulling an all-nighter at Kalliope, body heat will probably keep you plenty warm, but if you’re going to lounge in the grass on the outskirts of the Which Stage during a set or hang out with your Croo at your campsite, having a sweater and a warm pair of socks can go a long way.

This is no ordinary campsite.

If you’re a frequent camper, you may be used to roughing it for a few days at a time with just a tent and the absolute essentials. My first time at Roo, that’s basically all we brought. But people go all out for their tent areas, so don’t be afraid to get a little luxurious with your set-up. Shows usually start at 11 AM, so having a nice campsite to lounge in before you head to Centeroo makes the experience that much better. I’ve seen campsites with trampolines, full-on barbecue set-ups, and ping-pong tables, so even if you want to ‘rough it’ a little bit, don’t forget to give your space a little personality.

Chairs and coolers are definitely the bare minimum of what you should stock your site with. If you fill a cooler with ice, that can last you a few days depending on how well insulated it is, and that can go a long way. So stop at a gas station real quick before you enter the campgrounds, and when that runs out, ice is available for purchase at the festival. And though laying in the grass and reading On the Road may be a romantic way to spend your morning, it’s nice to not have to sit criss-cross-applesauce while eating your breakfast, so bring a few foldable chairs.

Having a comfy tent is important too. Sleeping bags, blankets, and pillows are essential, but I like to bring my mattress topper along too for a little extra cushion. You’re not going to get a lot of sleep while you’re there—why would you sleep when there’s so much to do?—so you want to make sure the sleep you do get is restful.

It’s also a good idea to bring a canopy tent and, depending on how much you like to lay in the grass, a tarp to pin down underneath. This area will stay cooler than most tents by providing shade without trapping heat, so you can set up a beer pong table, grill-space, or hoola-hooping tournament while staying (relatively) cool.

  Sometimes it’s the little things.

The biggest lifesaver when I go to Bonnaroo is a pocket misting fan. It’s pretty easy to forget about the heat when you see Anderson .Paak come out on stage, but waiting in the sun between sets can be brutal, so keep a little fan in your backpack and maybe some extra batteries just in case. I’ve also seen people using umbrellas to get a little extra shade, just make sure you’re considerate and not intruding other people’s space, and you’re putting it away when the show starts so that people can see.

If you want to snap a few photos at each show and stay in touch with your Groop while they go to other shows, bring a portable charger for your phone. They have charging stations throughout Centeroo, but you don’t want to lose your front row spot for Sylvan Esso because you ran out of battery. Just don’t be that guy that’s making everyone watch the show through your phone or spending the whole set live-tweeting.  

Keeping snacks in your back is always a good idea. It’s easy for your fuse to get a little short when you’ve been standing in the heat all day, so having emergency granola bars in your bag can be a lifesaver, too. And, of course, water!

Lathering up with sunscreen once before you go into Centeroo is probably not going to be enough for a full day of taking in UV rays, so bring some extra SPF in your bag to reapply. The same goes for bug spray, because mosquitos are gonna want to see The Killers live, too. Try to bring bug spray that is DEET free. It’s much better for the environment, and Bonnaroo is all about being sustainable and green.

Flashlights and lanterns are also helpful, especially when you’re at your campsite. Centeroo is pretty bright, but there’s not a ton of light pollution when you start moving towards your tent, so instead of fumbling around in the dark looking for you PJs, bring a portable source of light. And speaking of light, make sure you bring a pair of sunglasses for the day hours so that you can enjoy the Paramore sunset without having to squint.

Stay Safe

If you ever talk to a Bonnaroo veteran, they will probably tell you that this particular festival is the most positive place in the world with the kindest and friendliest people, but you should still be paying attention to your surroundings, just in case. Make sure all your valuables like your phone and car keys are safely packed away while you dance the night away at the Silent Disco, and you’re only consuming food and beverages that you brought yourself or bought from a licensed vendor. The rules that apply in the real world still apply on The Farm, so just be smart. If something does happen, you have resources like Medical Tents, Plaza Ambassadors, and Support Staff that will help you. They all have a ‘no questions asked’ policy, so if you think you may be in an emergency situation, assume you are and get help. Bonnaroo is dedicated to keeping you safe and healthy, so make sure you read up on the tips and resources that they provide regarding personal items, sexual assault, and substances.

For Bonnaroo’s official checklist of essentials, visit their ‘What to Pack’ page.

Sam Harton: Staff Writer

FestPop’s Ultimate Bonnaroo Survival Guide FestPop gives you the Ultimate Guide to one of the world's favorite and most popular music festivals: Bonnaroo.

[jitsuda-blog]

Chiang Dao Camping

The reasons that I am writing this blog because I think I fall in love with trekking. I think I understand now why people like to go trekking.

I am inspired by a book called “Born a crime” written by Trevor Noah. I like the idea that he wrote about his life, born in South Africa in English language which allows people from different parts of the world to understand and enjoy reading his experiences. And I am one of them. So, I hope that my messages will be seen by people, in India, Africa, small islands, small towns in other parts of the world somehow. I apologize for my broken English. I honestly would love to share my latest experience.

And most importantly, I am amazed by beauty of nature. Nature has so much impact on me. I also appreciated everyone in the trip who had helped me along the ways that were full of difficulties and wonderful adventures.

26 November 2017

My parents drove me to Chiang Dao Camping office (Chiangmai, Thailand), where I first met up with guides or porters and other trekkers whom I would be spending the whole 3 day journey with.

It was my first time going trekking alone. I had invited some friends, but they were not free to come, or they did not want to come, I was not so sure. But, I really wanted to go. What should I do?

Since I am always  inspired by Iroamalone website, which is created to advice how a woman can travel alone, I saw the possibility that I was not going to be in the jungle alone, I could just follow the other tourists. Besides, I actually am an adult. There is nothing for  me and my parents should be concerned or worried about that much.

It was 8.30 AM. There were total 10 trekkers and 2 porters for this trip. We all sat at the back of the pickup that would bring us to the trekking starting site.

Once the pickup passed the National park office, the speed began  faster. The driver sped up while running on the super rough road.

“Ahhhhhh!!!!! Ohhh Noo…..!!!! Ouch!! Ouch!! Seriously!!!” My butt bumped up and down the seat.

“Do you have to go that fast?!  I do not wanna die here. There is no seat belt. What if the car accidentally get off the road and go down the hill?!!!” I was crying inside. And I believe that everyone felt the same way, they all grabbed the bar tightly. It was such a fast and furious ride. [Later on, when we finished the trip, we complained about the fast ride to another driver, he said it is hard to bring the pickup full of people up on the high mountain if they go by slower pace. And they are experienced in driving to the area.]

Even I was panic on the intense ride, I still noticed the scenery along the rough road. It was foggy. I saw orange garden, with small little shop in the front, selling oranges and some snacks. The ride was not that bad actually.

It took one hour and a half on the scary ride, we finally arrived safely at the starting site. We grabbed lunch pack and 2 bottles of water and put into our bags.

The driver who is also the manager of the tour, He showed us the map and explained the directions.

Way up to the campsite: 8.5 km (4 - 5 hours walk)

Way down from campsite: 6 km (3 - 4 hours walk)

                                     Then, it was time to start trekking.

“Wowww…. isn’t it pretty?!!”  The track was narrow, so we all had to walk as one row. The weather surrounding was a bit cooling, but I  thought there was no need to wear long sleeves yet, because I would be sweating later.

The flower is called “Tian Nok Kaew”  you may see that  they look so much like small little parrots. [Nok Kaew means Parrot].

We stopped a while for lunch break. The sticky rice with fried pork and sausage filled up three quarters of my stomach. Around 2 PM, we reached the campsite. We stayed right below the big mountain. We rested a while, enough to recharge the energy to hike up to the big mountain that evening for sunset. 

OMG, I realized that climbing up to this mountain was not easy. It was very steep, certain path was tough, the narrow track was full of rocks. Further away by just inches was just nice cliff. I started to get out of breath. I breathed in and out deeply to calm myself. It seemed like the porter noticed my reactions. He stopped and called out for everyone to take few breaks along the way up. This was  the most extreme exercise I had ever done in my life.

Almost one hour later, I finally caught up with some other trekkers, we reached the top of “ Doi Luang Chiang Dao”,  at least  the ground on the top was flat enough for me to walk easily. [Doi Luang means big mountain].

Wowww........

Is this real?!!! I breathed in the fresh air deep down into both of my lungs. The aching from climbing suddenly went away. I could not feel anymore pain by just looking at the breathtaking view in front of me. I sensed only lightness and peacefulness. Was I dreaming? Last five minutes I was still suffering from the rocks and scary cliff. We were at 2,225 meters above sea level.

Others were checking their phone signals or finding their best spots for shooting photos. They probably could not wait to tell their love ones of what they just experienced.

The porter has been very nice, he liked to show us the different locations on top of the big mountain.  

At the end of the day, the sun disappeared slowly from the sky. It was time for me to climb back to my tent in the darkness (of course I brought flashlight with me). It was easier coming down, but still it was scary for me.

Next morning, I woke up around 4.15 am. We were heading to another mountain called “Gew Lom” for sunrise. The sky was full of stars, it had been long time that I had not seen that many stars so obvious.

Climbing up to Gew Lom was not easier than the day before. It was hard because it was dark and more slippery. Again, I was suffering with catching up my breath and trying to keep my body moving through the hard track.

At a certain part of the way to Gew Lom, Pi Ling, another porter, flashed the flashlight  up to a cliff, and we could see the reflection of an animal called “ Liang Pa” which is mountain goat. “They like to stand on the cliff” Pi. Ling said. [ Pi means older brother].

About an hour of climbing in the darkness, We once stepped on the top. Pi Ling prepared hot Milo (chocolate drink) for us. What could be better than having hot drink above the cold mountain. 

                                      And... the sun started rising....

After the sun had fully risen, we just enjoyed taking photos for a while. Pi Ling quickly presented us an interesting flower. The flower would break and spread out its seeds whenever we give slight squeeze or even when the rain falls onto it.

I  enjoyed making the flowers broken for a while. Then, we got hungry, so it was  time to climb back for breakfast. 

Oh my gosh, the way down was even more slippery. My walking stick did not help much. I needed to hold the trees and rocks nearby to help balancing myself.

Pi Chai, our chef, cooked wonderful dishes for us in every meals. I could not believe that up on mountain I still could enjoy tasty food. I needed to restore lots of energy. After breakfast, we all were happy to rest. We would start another trekking in the afternoon at 2 PM, this time we would go to another mountain linking to Gew Lom. Which means we would need to hike up to the same path as the morning, and continue further away another 25 minutes. That sounded so far away for me already.  However, after I had done hiking up and down mountains twice, I really gained much more confidence that it would be possible for me to go further.

There was a little cave hiden underneath the top of the mountain.  It was impossible  for us to go deeper inside, since the the entrance was too small. 

It was chilling up there. Pi Ling again was preparing hot drinks for us as usual. We were just looking for spots to sit down and could not wait to enjoy the drink until....we heard unexpected sentence.

“ Oh No !!, I forgot to bring the kettle” Pi Ling spoke out loud enough for us to hear. 

We were stunned for seconds and tried to process what we had just heard.

“ It is ok ” we all responded him with little bit sadness. I can just drink the cold Milo then. I still needed to restore some energy.

This afternoon, we could see only fogginess on the sky and surrounded the mountain. The sky was still unclear and it was almost time of sunset. We decided to go back to the campsite because of the heavy fog. We missed sunset.

Tomorrow would be our last day, we planned to go back to Doi Luang Chiang Dao, to see the stars and sunrise another time. 

5 AM, we reached the top, but still the whole mountain was full of fog. It was 15 Degree Celsius, with breeze. I could not stand the wind. I hid myself in front of the wood signage. Of course we still hoped that the sky would open soon, we waited until we were sure that the sun had been risen. The weather got warmer. “It is ok, I do not see sunrise, I still can enjoy the cloud!!”

let us go back to our tents for breakfast and get ready for long trek all the way back.

This is our kitchen. Pi Ling and Pi Chai were packing their stuffs.

On the way back, the sky opened,  I believed that the mountains showed up to say goodbye to us, or maybe to give us encouragement to get through the new hard track. The way back was very different from the way we came. 

It is 6 km, which is shorter distance, but seriously, walking down the long steep hill really hurt my knees. Pi Chai helped accompanied me from half way to the end. Other trekkers were walking very fast. I was very careful to step down the slippery path. I did not want to get any injuries, my knees already got hurt and tired. Pi Chai guided me all the way through and giving me some green oil to massage my knees. I was not sure to try. But since it is just herb, I finally tried. I liked the smell of it, though. “Not bad”, I felt less painful later on. We walked passed by bamboos jungles, wild bananas jungles, high rocks covered with moss all over them. Wow, this was like unusual landscape for me. It was like dinosaur era. I probably watched too much movies, or I got too tired until I became blurred.

OMG, I finally saw the same pickup  waiting in the front. I came as the third place, by the way:))

Thank you all friends along this trip, it was nice to meet you all. Thank you for help taking photos of me. Thank you Chiang Dao Camping for arranging  the program efficiently. Thank you porters for being so kind, funny and sharing your stories. 

                                                                            Nature is really amazing = D

 Last pic was shot by Ja with her GoPro (thank you so much)

                                                      Expense details(3 days,2 nights program)

Trip: 2,750 bht per person

Sleeping bag rent: 200 bht per night

Luggages : If you need porter to carry your bags, the price is 120 bht per kg ( mine was around 4 kg)

Further inquries please contact Chiang Dao Camping Facebook page

Additional information

There is no water for showering, the porters prepared only water for drinking and washing face or brush your teeth. 

Toilet: it looks like a hole with wood board for a person to stand on and squat to do your business,  they covered with black plastic net to make like small restroom. The smell is terrible. One of the porter said they will change new hole every month. It is better than nothing, I think.

Phone signals: AIS or One2call signals can be found on top of the most mountains. Truemove can be found only at Gew Lom mountain (mine is Truemove, I could make a call there). 

Phone signals cannot be found at the campsite and along the trekking tracks.

Accommodation: one tent can fit one or two people. I stayed alone in a tent, which was located near to other people’s tents. 

My opinion: Suggestions for trekkers ( trip during November) 

The weather can be 10-15 degree C at night  until early in the morning. It can be windy on top of mountains.

1. The sleeping bag from the campsite is not warm enough, you should bring extra sleeping bag or extra blanket. I, myself was suffering from coldness. Some other trekkers asked for extra sleeping bag even they already brought ones from home.

2. You may bring additional cushion/air cushion to put on top of the mat in the tent, so that it helps to prevent coldness transferring to your body at night. 

3. Bring some snacks or sweets if you have high metabolism, you will always feel hungry and you can share snacks to your friends too. There is no snacks available at the campsite. They provide only food, water, Milo and coffee.  Each usual meal may not last for long hours in some people.

4. Bring hot water bottle with you, because the water for drinking is as cold as water in a fridge. you can ask the porters to boil water for you to spare.

5. It is better to join 3 days 2 nights trip, because there is possibility that the sky can be foggy and you will miss sunrise or sunset if you stay just one night.

[rpaluchm-blog]

The story so far

Because i know you all can’t wait to here about how i’m doing, i’m giving the people what they want, and writing a quick update of how my trip is going. That, and the guy who i’m staying with is very nicely letting me use his laptop while i’m staying with him here in Tours (also my first couch surfing experience). But this is all too soon to be getting into. I’m sure you want some context for how i ended up here. 

It all started two weeks ago with my initial relaxation at the prospect of cycling through Western Europe being immediately shattered by the first French person who spoke to me. As i stood at the front of the queue of all the ‘vehicles’ waiting to the leave the ferry, a man in an orange jumpsuit waited for the necessary checks to be completed, and turned to start talking me. He was obviously telling me it was ok to cycle out. His hand gesturing toward the big open door way made this particularly clear. Hearing French for the first time however, made the reality of what i was about to do very daunting. 

As i cycled off the ramp, out of the port toward a big round about, my thoughts immediately rushed to the fact that i had no idea what i was supposed to do now. Having total freedom over how exactly my day would take shape filled me with fear more than excitement. I had no specific destination. No accomodation for the night. A page of French phrases in my pocket was all i had in the way of language. And even if i could repeat these sentences back to someone like a parrot, i wouldn’t undertand any response. 

Things I knew for sure; i was heading East towards Paris, and I had enough clean socks with me to last 5 days. In moments such as these it is only the most important matters that come to the front of your mind. 

I did have a GPS with me, and i bought two maps before i left England that mapped me out as far as Paris. Before i let myself run away with thoughts of how unprepared i was for the next couple of months, i started by doing exactly what i came here to do... Pedal (this will be a regular theme in these posts). 

I went in the direction of what looked like the centre of town. Found a bench, got out my GPS, google maps (regular contract data and minutes still apply here as we are still in the EU) and the BLT and pork pie i had bought at the co-op in Portsmouth. After taking stock for a moment, I calmed myself. I’d had some food, found a campsite on google to go to about 50 miles away, and had a line on a GPS to follow to a tangible place. Now i needed to get water for the journey. 

Cycling slowly passed the shops i was looking for the friendliest face i could see. I stopped outside a fishmongers with two ladies setting up for the days trade. The fresh fish already laid out looked incredible, and the prospect of French food for the coming weeks put more wind in my sails. Getting out my sheet of phrases, to the amusement of the two women, i asked in my best French accent, “est ce que je peut remplir de l’eau?” (Please can i fill up my water) And held out my three litre camelpak. While one of them continued cleaning the crabs in the big sink behind the counter, the other with a big smile on her face, seeming to understand what i meant, took the bag and filled it up for me. I said “merci”, and in her best English she replied, “Goodbiiieee”. With this exchange, i attached the water to the cross bar, and started pedalling.

The first day it rained on and off for the whole day. It took a while to really get anywhere the first few hours because as neatly as you try and pack the four panniers you have on your bike, heaviest stuff at the bottom of each one as you read you should do on all the cycling blogs, it takes hours stopping and finding things. You quickly rearrange how you pack and set yourself up for the day, and two weeks in, i can stop, rummage through my bags, get the bits i need, and continue with relative ease. This was not an art i had perfected on my first day though. Despite this and the weather, the longer i cycled, the better my mood was. The views were stunning. I’ll upload photos so you can get some idea, but they pale in comparison to cycing along the Seine or the Loire for real

Of more value to this post is how i managed to find my first nights sleep thanks to some very helpful French people. By the time i was getting close to my destination i had started in Le Havre, gone through Lillebone, Maulevrier (looking for accomodation but it turned out to be about 5 houses on top of a hill rather than any kind of a substantial community that the bold letters on the map implied), and crossed the Pont de Brottone to Notre Dame de Bliquetuit toward the municipal campsite that i had originally put into my GPS.

At this point i was supposedly close to the destination. But being on a long straight road, with no discernable campsite ahead, and having already gone 20 minutess in the wrong direction as a result of following my GPS, my trust in the machine was fairly low. I stopped at a board on the side of the road which pictured the surrounding forest. As i’m staring at this board, with no campsites in sight, a lady strolling along the path is coming towards me. I say bonjour to her, and she responded in kind. As she’s looking at me, i’m not able to say anything else, but it’s evident I don’t want to just exchange niceties and need some help.  

Although her English is very bad, and my French worse, I manage to make it clear i’m looking for a campsite. Unaware of a campsite nearby, she tells me to come with her, and walks me to the reception of a nearby national trust building where she’s certain they’ll be able to help me. A receptionist, with even less English, is given a breif background to the situation. A conversation that i can only assume went something like, “this boy looks very lost, i’m not sure exactly what he’s looking for, but i don’t think he has anywhere to stay tonight. Can you give him some information as to where he can go.” Gael, as i found out after introducing myself on the walk up to the reception, feeling she had passed the lost boy she had come across into safe hands, took her leave. 

Me and the receptionist struggle to have any kind of exchange that makes sense to either one of us. The conversation is about to come to an end, when a younger colleague is walking through reception to have a cigarette. The receptionist, half joking half hoping, asks how her English is. The younger women suggests it isn’t good, but comes over to offer her support. Between the three of us, we are able to communicate which campsite i was looking for (it is closed for the season), the area i am looking for a campsite, and the two options i have available to me. Everyone so far seems a little confused at my undertaking this trip in October. Nonetheless, they give me the directions to a campsite, i put them into my GPS, and i’m on my way again.

I have to cross the Pont de Brottone again, and it’s steep from this side so i can’t enjoy the view as much. Nonetheless, i know i am in beautiful surroundings. I go through Le Trait, and reach Jumieges. The campsite is sign posted, and i eventually reach it with no problems. I buy some bread, cheese, and cake from the pattiserie and general store that are still open. Set up my tent, and sleep like a log.

Now i am aware that this entry was titled ‘the story so far’ and there are those of you who (having actually taken the time to read this far) feel hard done by for having gotten through all this only to find i have taken you up until the end of day one. In my defence, i have enjoed recollecting how my first day was, and in reality, i was never going to recap 2 weeks of cross country cycling in a couple hundred words. The fact that you or I believed this was just naive.

Since i’m not sure exactly when i’m going to write again, i can only say that the journey so far has been fascinating. I’ve cycled through some stunningly picturesque countryside. Seen beautiful historical buildings; castles, manors, cathedrals and churches. Eaten the most delicious food on a daily bases, the best of which has tended to be in the small villages that i stop in on my long journeys. Although the best croissant, pain au chocolat and pain au rasin i’ve had were in a pattiserie in Paris that had a queue out the door. I’ve stayed in houses with people i’ve never met in my life, been offered help from people who don’t speak a word of English, and generally appreciated and observed the French way of life and culture that exists around me. My days are simple. I cycle a bit, find a place to stay, find a place to get food, set up my tent, and rest for the night. I read (Kapuscinski’s ‘travels with Herodotus’, the Perfect book to be reading at this moment in time) and write as much as i can. If i like a place, i stay for a few nights, if not, i leave the next day. I don’t feel there is much complexity to what i’m doing on a daily bases, but i don’t ever go to sleep feeling i could have done more with my day. 

When i first started pedalling, i was shitting myself. Now i just enjoy the world around me, take things as they come, and see where i end up at the end of the day. All you can really do is just keep pedalling. 

[girishprb]

Montana 5: Goodbye Apgar

Although Shruti is a professional backpacker who has walked hundreds of miles in different parts of the world, she just cannot get up early in the morning! We knew her problem but were still optimistic when we asked her to wake us up at 5.30 am (Actually we didn’t have any other option - Manasi is even worse than Shruti and nobody trusts my Nexus 5). We woke up reluctantly at around 6 am after multiple snoozes only in fear of not getting desired backcountry campsites. We left the sleeping bags and other stuff in the tent and drove to the permit center which was hardly a mile away. As expected, there were  4 groups already queued up before the entrance. We stood in line as well and then started looking at the map and talked about our options and backup plans again. Slowly more people joined the queue and we were happy that we weren’t too late.

It was slightly chilly that morning and I was glad to have my U.S.A bandana whereas Shruti had her dark blue bandana and Manasi had bought a winter cap at REI-Missoula specifically for situations like these. Around 6.45 am, one forest ranger came towards the building and made multiple announcements - 1. to have multiple plans, 2. to have details such as car license plate number and 3. be ready with emergency contact details. Now, if you ever rent a car, making a note of its license number would ideally be the first and most sensible thing to do but which is ignored by almost everyone. This was proved when at least one person from each group went back to the parking lot, grinning sheepishly for not having that info! Manasi went from our group and took a picture of it!

It was pandemonium inside the backcountry permit center! The whole situation strongly reminded me of an Indian railway station where people were reserving tatkal tickets. There were multiple displays that dynamically showed campsite availability for the next 5 days. We had to drop our first plan of doing a loop in many glaciers area since it was taken for days we were interested in. Luckily, our second option was still available when our turn came and we quickly reserved two campsites in the Two Medicines area. After giving required details, we were asked to watch wilderness survival video which gave info on campsite structure, food area, what to do when approached by a Grizzly bear and mountain lion. The actors were pretty impressive and the video was amusing on the whole!

While we were watching the video, our permits were getting ready. Once outside in the main lobby, an old lady gave us the permits and also gave us very clear instructions on what to expect in the two campgrounds, how to use the food area, how much distance was it and what we should look out for. She even recommended getting ropes and food bags if we didn’t have them. Shruti already had a cute little bear canister that was sufficient for one person but we decided to buy a couple of food bags and some ropes. Usually, in other national parks, they hand out gigantic bear canisters. We were expecting the same, but maybe the bears in this national park are smarter :)

It was 7.30 am and we had the entire day to ourselves with nothing planned whatsoever! Most often, when one goes on a vacation to a remote place where one might not ever go again, covering as many places as possible is the most important thing. Nope, not us. This was probably one of those rare days where all three chilled to maximum! First, we went to the restrooms nearby and freshened up. Then we headed to Eddie’s cafe for humongous breakfast where I went with a classic English breakfast with sausages, scrambled eggs, sourdough toast, and coffee. Shruti ordered standard omelet and Manasi went with safe oatmeal with generous sides of nuts and HUCKLEBERRIES!!  This was the first time I got to taste this fabled berry that existed only in fictional books and my imagination. Its taste was a little tangy and not at all what I expected. But I relished it nonetheless :) Me being a slow eater, we were there for a good one hour slowly munching through good food. There were many old couples around us, and all three of us thought that they were so lucky, spending time with loved ones at such a beautiful location. Yup, that’s the dream!

Manasi wanted to do kayaking post breakfast whereas I always prefer canoeing over kayaking. Maybe because of the history surrounding it, the fact that native Americans used it to commute through centuries or maybe because I had taken a course at NC State during my 3rd semester in tandem canoeing and I was pretty good at it :) Problem with tandem canoeing is I needed a partner - SHRUTI! She initially wanted to just read by the lake or do solo kayaking. It took a good 30 minutes to convince her to try canoeing with me. She probably was enjoying making me beg but accepted it at the end before I actually started crying about it :P

We went back to the Apgar campsite, packed everything and then came back to Apgar village to rent bear-sprays, a canoe, and a kayak.  The sun was bright and shining by now, the mountains stood still, albeit a little smoky in the northeast region and the water was clear blue, shimmering with sunlight. At the rental place, we were told that if we kept to the west side, we might see an Eagle’s nest and we readily believed them! Nope, didn’t see a thing. Shruti was a natural at canoeing and I just had to say once before she mastered all the different strokes that I learned over a semester. Manasi was in her happy place as she kayaked peacefully behind us.

It was such a scenic spot that I wanted to take a couple of pictures, but only Manasi had her phone with her. She initially hesitated when I asked her to pass her phone to me. This meant we had to get close to each other and she had to hand it over with a good chance of me dropping it to the bottom of the 300 feet lake! It’s iPhone 7s Plus that costs $800+ and I don’t blame her. At that instant, I made a note never to buy an expensive phone. This thought was cemented by an incident that happened later in the day! Manasi chewed on the idea, finally agreed and that picture is her current Facebook and Instagram profile picture :)

Shruti loves water! I am sure she takes her swimsuit to every trip. Her excitement levels are also directly proportional to drop in water temperature - colder the water, more excited she becomes. She wanted to take a dip in Lake McDonalds - Manasi didn’t even consider it, she said she would happily read by the lake. I wanted to try and test my limits. Water was cold but not really bad. After each step into the water, I had to wait a minute for the newly submerged body part to get accustomed to the lower temperature. Once the water was at the waist level, I took a deep breath and dived head first - reminding me the 2nd task in Harry Potter’s 4th book! We swam merrily for some time and then sunbathed while munching on bourbon biscuits. Soon after, for lunch, we ate organic, gluten-free, multi-grain whole-wheat bread (Shruti’s choice) with fresh hummus and huckleberry jam. 

After a brief chat with a Canadian lady and her handsome "city" dog who barked only at Manasi, after scoops of huckleberry ice cream and more coffee, with heavy hearts, we said goodbye to Apgar and proceeded onto our next adventure - Lake Bowman!

[traviswsoul]

Day 12 Butano to San Francisco 48 Miles

4:40 time, 2,049 calories, 2,552 climb, 10.4 avg mph Waking up to the sounds of birds as I slowly realize I am back in the waking world is one of those simple pleasures in life that really makes it sweet.  Everything about my stay at Butano campsite was just how I like it.  I was outside my tent packing the bike at 6:02 am, my earliest start of the trip so far and given the fog and cold of northern California I needed my new Gore Bike Gear jacket for the first time.  I recovered my little bits of food from the bear locker at my campsite and was hiking out of there to the main road in no time.  It was a beautiful uphill bike in and an even more breathtaking and fun bike out.  Coasting and winding down  along the creek and back out from under the canopy to the sunshine I started my last short ride before San Francisco. At the end of the road leading out of the park there was a serious home chicken operation, it obviously wasn't commercial but it was a lot, maybe 50 chickens,  it looked like fun and made me think of Van Davenport Land, my brother and sister in law's homestead in Austin.  After observing their experience I can't imagine how these people keep all those chickens alive! The story of the day was "oh my god" beautiful coastal views and exercising restraint to not keep taking photos, around every bend was another scene worth shooting. I'll let the photos speak for themselves here.  There were some hairy roads along this route with no shoulder and busy traffic but it was safe, I feel quite comfortable and safe now.  Not in a "you always get hurt when you get comfortable" kind of way though, don't worry!  Luckily, Nor Cal is full of granola hippies and liberals that share a sense of sharing public space and appreciate fellow humans on admirable adventures and are pleased to accommodate us cyclists.  I love it up here! The route took me through a tunnel again, much longer this time with a big shoulder, it was a nice ride, up hill, but nice, I felt like I was in an airport.  Out of the back end I went down and down and down while a girl in a black Prius was thrilled to stay behind and watch.  When we got to the bottom I couldn't tell who was more excited about the bomb, me or her, judging by the smile and thumbs up radiating through the windshield, I'll give this one to her. Half moon bay started out like any other bay side beach town until I realized there were several people with cameras and everyone was starring out into the water.  There were wales, multiple wales, it was incredible.  In all my experience with the ocean I have seen more than my fair share of sea life but never wales.  The birds were going crazy above where the whales were breaching and I think I even noticed them trying to land on the backs of the wales when they were on the surface.  It was really exciting, I could have sat there all afternoon and waiting for the next breach but I pulled myself away and got back to riding.  There was a giant string of traffic coming toward the bay because so many people were stopping to watch, or wait for parking to watch or rubber necking.  I wonder if the locals ever complain about the "wale traffic" down town.  As if the 800 miles getting there wasn't enough you really have to earn your way into San Francisco.  Right at Daly City you climb through a neighborhood with the steepest hills I have gone up.  I kept wanting to stop at the flats between them and take a break but I wouldn't and instead charged the hill and felt like rocky at the top of the steps when I finally concurred it all.  From there you could see the city, a nice reward, it's always a relief when you can see your destination. I passed by the San Francisco Zoo and wanted to go in, but not this time, I'm sure they wouldn't have let me ride my bike through it. I was hugging the farthest western side of San Fran along the bottom of the Sunset District so I cut in and found a bike shop to drop my bike off to get the rear wheel adjusted, it was a little out of true since we just built it and it has no broken in.  When you walk into a bike shop and clearly have the gear and look proving your on tour you immediately have all the street credit. This shop, Nomad on Irving, had three generations of cyclists hanging/working there and we immediately fell into storytelling.  After we had discussed my bike and what to check on I changed clothes and for the first time since I left but on sandals and just walked to lunch like a normal person without having my bike insight. I ate a huge bowl of Pho at Kevin's noodle house and When my dear friend August got off work from his new job at Google he came and picked me up in my old 1988 Land Cruiser, which he purchased in May, we rode through the city and enjoyed the company and planned to stay for a couple nights and let me legs repair themselves.  I ate well, did yoga twice, hot tubbed twice, sat in the sauna, got a Thai massage and foot reflexology.  Crucial! The body is an incredible machine, it blows me away how far it has carried me thus far, so I was pleased to take a break and give it the service it needs.  August just moved to San Francisco and had an apartment through Google when he first arrived so he wasn't rushed to find a place, inevitably that meant he would have some overlapping time when he would have two apartments.  I showed up at just the right time and between needing rest, seeing my friend and having an apartment and bed all to myself there was all the incentive I needed to stay for the weekend.  Three nights in one place was weird, I felt like I was doing something wrong, but I knew it was actually right and wise and as I kept obsessively doing the milage math in my head I knew I had plenty of time.  I know as far as touring goes I'm going a little bit slow, well maybe not, but I know some people do 80 miles a day but certainly not  if they're going the "wrong way" on route.  This is how I'm referring now to bike the Pacific Coast Bike Train South to North, the Wrong Way.  Either way It's going well and the next 400 miles out of California are going to be a hell of a lot better with a fresh limber body. August Navarro is the greatest host and I'm really glad he's my friend and has my Land Cruiser, I know he's taking the best care of it!