5-2-08: Backpacking: A Wobbly Start

I slept and meditated, meditated and slept until 9:30. I had some trouble getting a wood fire going well and spilled some water from the cereal pot too. Then some women came fast exercise walking by. They interrupted their conversation to say hello and stared at my smoky little scene. More humility for breakfast. I filtered some water and devised a system for carrying it in a ziploc plastic bag inside a my little nylon pouch. First I spilled the water and had to refill the bag then the first bag leaked down my pants leg. I was thinking I should just turn around and go back to the car. But the breakfast cereal tasted great just slightly burned on the bottom the way I like it. So I headed farther up the trail. I was surprised to find a numbered campsite just a quarter mile along. Apparently I hadn't camped where I thought nor in a designated area. I walked a couple more miles to the next campground and had lunch and rested for an hour before moving on. It turned out to be only a short distance from there to campground #58 so I didn’t overdo it too much. But I must say this is the first time on this trip I have been backpacking and the first time I feel old. I used to hike into Granite Basin in King’s Canyon in a day. It’s ten miles and a 5000 foot climb. I barely made six miles here in two days. I’m old now. This is hard work for me. I’m packing lots of weight. It’s good though to think about petroleum and the lack. And no matter how sore and weary I am nature’s beauty keeps amazing me.

I saw no people after the two women exercising in the morning. Oh, there were five men on horseback with two pack animals. They were stunningly photogenic but I didn’t think to snap.