PCT Trail Journal: Northern California
These journals were originally posted on my Instagram between July 3rd and July 23rd, 2019.
Day 55 | 23 miles | 1090 to 1113
On the morning of day 55 on the PCT, I was able to get a ride back to the trail from South Lake Tahoe from a local trail angel named Doug, because I didn’t want to take my chances trying to get a hitch with the tourists and commuters. I started my hike at Echo Lake Chalet, and was confused by how many cars were in the parking lot, because I didn’t really see anyone around. But once I started walking around the lake, I realized it was surrounded by cottages that have marine access only. It made me think that staying at a cozy cottage far away from any roads would be a really nice thing to do once this is all over.
I was back in the snow pretty quickly, but I was sharing the trail through Desolation Wilderness with dayhikers, Tahoe Rim Trail thruhikers, and those out for just one night, so the bootpack was much easier to follow than what I had gotten used to. Back when it was only PCT thruhikers, I was following the maybe two or three people that had walked the area before me that day, now it’s dozens.
Earlier in the day, I felt happy to be around so many different kinds of hikers. I was especially happy when I met some Tahoe Rim thruhikers heading southbound that let me know that “one mile after Dick’s Pass, you’ll be on dry trail for 10-15 miles.” I was so excited for that trail, and happy to be able to finally get beta from hikers heading in the opposite direction. Well, I walked seven miles past Dick’s Pass this evening and was in snow the entire time, expecting it to end at any moment for hours on end. I don’t know what that couple was thinking. I found myself feeling angry at them, and then angry at the forest landscape for being so muddy and wet and snowy and full of deadfall. Of course it’s ridiculous to get angry at a landscape, and I reigned those feelings in pretty quickly, but it goes to show the importance of expectations. Had I not relied on those hikers, I would have expected crappy conditions, got them, and reacted just fine. Better for me to not get my hopes up. At least I found a nice campsite in a boulder field above the damp, snowy, swamp and am cowboying for the first time since starting the Sierra.
Day 56 | 25 miles | 1113 to 1138
Most of day 56 on the PCT was walking through snow below treeline, and I found myself really missing the days where I found my surroundings pleasant. To give the folks at home an idea of what it’s like here, you know when it snows in the city and the first day is a winter wonderland, but then after a couple days the snowbanks are dirty and the roads are flooded and people shovel their driveway but not the sidewalks so you have to climb over the piles and you have to tread carefully to avoid slipping? I’m kind of walking through the forest version of that.
Anyway, when I was wishing most for some more pleasant terrain, the trail answered my prayers and then some. It climbed up onto an exposed ridge near the Alpine Meadows ski resort, and suddenly I was surrounded by wildflowers of every colour, with wide open vistas in every direction, mountains and lakes as far as the eye could see. Red paintbrush, purple larkspur, yellow mules ears, and a bunch of ones I don’t know the names of. It was so beautiful that it gave me that sensation like when you see a puppy and make involuntary noises and feel like you might melt.
Maybe my followers think I talk about alpine wildflowers too much, but that’s okay. A big part of what gets me is the impermanence. Like the Milky Way, migratory birds, and limited release craft beers, the flowers aren’t around for long, and I feel like it’s important I appreciate them while they are.
Day 57 | 22 miles | 1138 to 1160
On the morning of day 57 on the PCT, I crossed paths with the course of the Western States Endurance Run, the birthplace of ultramarathon running and still one of the most competitive trail running races in the world. Because that’s my sport when I’m not hiking, it was cool for me just to step on the course.
Later in the morning, when I stepped over a ridge above Squaw Valley, imagine my surprise when I saw chairlifts in operation and hundreds of people skiing down the slopes. In July!
The ridge after heading up to the Tinker Knob was incredible. I love ridge walking so much, partly because of the views of the surrounding landscapes, and partly because I get a kick out of seeing the trail ahead of me for miles.
In the afternoon, I went to the Donner Ski Ranch, where thruhikers are given a free 40 oz bottle of malt liquor. I don’t think I’ve ever drank malt liquor before in my life, and in my generally dehydrated and malnourished state, I got pretty darn drunk. But I still decided to head out and do some miles for the afternoon and evening, which was fun. The landscape was beautiful and I got to see people rock climbing all around me.
When it started getting late in the evening, at the time I would usually stop to camp, I was in a damp, cold forest that I didn’t really feel like staying in. So I decided to push on past sunset up to Castle Pass by headlamp. I’m glad I did because it’s a lot warmer up here and I can tell the stargazing tonight will be incredible.
Day 58 | 25 miles | 1160 to 1185
On the morning of day 58 of the PCT, after night hiking into camp yesterday evening, and also waking up in the middle of the night to stargaze, I slept in later than I have on trail so far. It was past 8 o’clock by the time I packed up, took a photo in the morning sun, walked half a mile down the wrong trail and back, and started hiking on the PCT.
Every day on this section of trail has its ups and downs. And coincidentally, the emotional ups and downs correspond pretty perfectly to the physical ones. For miles at a time, the trail drops down into the trees where the shade means unmelted snow and the trail is blocked by deadfall, and it sucks. And then for the next few miles, the trail climbs up into the alpine where the sun’s melted the snow, the flowers are in bloom, the views are breathtaking, and it’s great.
In the middle of one of those ups, I saw Joe, a hiker I knew from Southern California. It turns out he had flipped up into Northern California, and was now heading into the Sierra southbound. It was such a trip seeing an old friend just walking towards me unexpectedly in the middle of the wilderness.
Joe told me that there might be some trail magic at a road crossing in the next couple miles, which raised my spirits even more. As I walked and eventually saw the sign “Limit Situation Trail Magic”, I couldn’t have been more stoked. It was Alan, who had prepared the mind-blowing trail magic for me at Ebbetts Pass, now parked on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere cooking burgers and nachos and serving up fresh baked goods. I stuffed myself, appreciated it so much, and left with a hug to get back on trail.
The evening was the most blissful bit of walking I’ve had in weeks. There was barely a patch of snow, the trail was in good shape, and I just cruised with some music in my ear. God, it felt good to really hike again.
Day 59 | 23 miles | 1185 to 1208
Day 59 on the PCT was great. For the first time in weeks, I crawled out of my tent knowing that I had miles of dry trail ahead of me, that I could just walk like a thruhiker again instead of sliding around on snow and wondering where I was supposed to go. I even had the luxury of getting back into my old routine of sipping coffee during the first mile of the day.
For lunch and resupply, I went into the quaint little town of Sierra City, which I found to be really pleasant and friendly. The woman in front of me at the cafe generously bought me my coffee, and as I was walking down the street, another woman shouted at me “Hey mister hiker! Do you want some fresh grapes?” And sent me off to the trailhead with a ziplock of juicy grapes. Also, Paradise Valley Cafe and Grumpy Bear’s Retreat can step aside, because the Sierra City Country Store makes the best burger on trail so far.
In the afternoon, there was a big 3000-foot climb out of town. Normally, that would be considered a hard bit of hiking. But honestly, compared to walking on snow, it was easy. I just put my head down and grinded it out. And because I didn’t have to think about navigation every two minutes, my head was free to brainstorm all kinds of things, something I hadn’t had in a while. On the way up, I even sipped on a beer I had packed out of town. Maybe that’s why it felt easy.
As the day was getting late, I was browsing my guidebook app through some comments left by hikers in years past, and happened on some rave reviews about the Packer Lake Lodge, coming up soon and not far from the trail. I decided to walk over there and I just caught the end of dinner service. I think it was my favourite food stop of the trail so far. Krista whipped up an amazing dinner and dessert for me at a deep discount, and the atmosphere could not have been more welcoming and friendly. All the other guests were having such a great time, and when some saw my pack and heard I was hiking the PCT, came over to the bar to shake my hand and wish me luck and ask me questions like a celebrity. It was a great end to a great day on trail.
Day 60 | 31 miles | 1208 to 1239
Day 60 on the PCT was my highest mileage one yet, and I hope that there are many more like it to come. And I even slept in, spent a couple miles on snow, and the elevation profile was nothing to sneeze at.
I leapfrogged with four other hikers, Flow, Sunkist, Trademark, and Cream Cheese all day since we all seemed to be doing the same mileage, but walked at different paces and took different breaks. It’s becoming clear that I’m actually one of the slowest hikers out here on this part of the trail, I just take fewer breaks and keep walking later in the evening than most people.
And speaking of walking late in the evening, the last few miles of the day today were pretty much the most peaceful thing I’ve ever done. I was surrounded by birdsong while the flowers around me blew in the wind, and the bushes and trees ahead of me were backlit in golden late by the setting sun.
Day 61 | 28 miles | 1239 to 1267
On day 61 on the PCT, I broke my 30-day streak of walking on snow. I actually didn’t realize until I calculated it that I had been in snow for about half my time on trail. Well, I didn’t even see any today. I know that there will be some patches in the days to come, so I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but it was nice to be out of it for a day.
I’m not sure if it’s the engineer in me, or my trauma from past creek crossings, but footbridges on trail make me really happy. And the bridge over the middle fork of the Feather River that I walked over this afternoon is probably the nicest trail bridge I’ve ever seen in the backcountry. I also swam in the Feather River, which was only my second time swimming of the entire trail. But considering that I didn’t see many bodies of water that were neither frozen nor flowing fast enough to drown a person in the last month, I guess it isn’t too surprising that I haven’t swam much. It was a relaxing way to break up the day, until a rattlesnake slithered through my lunch spot. But it was chill as for as rattlesnakes go, didn’t even rattle or anything, just passing through.
In the evening, I realized how nice it was to be able to let my mind wander while I walk, something I couldn’t do on snow because not falling and navigation took so much focus. Now I can let the miles go by as I think about future plans, irrelevant old memories, and the occasional deep thought.
Day 62 | 29 miles | 1267 to 1296
On day 62 of the PCT, I finally managed to get my butt out of bed around dawn to have an early start to the day. I wanted to get into Beldentown Resort by lunch time because I was out of food, but it was also just really nice to get a bunch of miles done early in the day to take the pressure off of the afternoon.
Belden was a pleasant place to stop for lunch and resupply, with the vibe being somewhere between a neighbourhood pub, tourist resort, and hikertrash hub. I resupplied at the general store for my next four days of hiking, but if the weight of my pack is any indication, bought way too much stuff. You’d think that after two months of this lifestyle, I would have figured out how to shop, but I’m still at a point that when I get thrown curveballs like $2.99 mashed potatoes (too much), my whole system gets thrown off.
The climb out of Belden was pretty brutal. It was fairly steep, and exposed to the hot sun. Even though I walked 700 miles through Southern California, I think this afternoon was the hottest and sweatiest I had been the entire PCT. I’m not quite sure if drinking a bunch of beer at lunch and then packing a couple out for the hike was helpful.
Day 63 | 32 miles | 1296 to 1328
Day 63 on the PCT was hot and long and physically draining. Based on my experience in both Southern California and the Sierra, I think I had this idea that once I got to Northern California I would be able to bang out 35-mile days no problem. Well I don’t know if it’s the heat or the terrain or the weight of my gluttonous resupply, but I feel like it’s kicking my ass so far. Water sources are scarce in this area, and usually require an extra bit of wandering off the PCT, which is never exciting.
The hiking is still really nice. Today I got to walk through some striking and unique volcanic rock features, and I had wide-open views of the surrounding mountains most of the day. I also made it to the halfway point of the PCT in the evening. There was a little monument and a register to sign, and it felt good to get there. But the mosquitos made the monument a bad place to hang out and bask in the accomplishment, so I rushed off to find a good tentsite before daylight faded away.
Day 64 | 38 miles | 1328 to 1366
Day 64 was my first big boy mileage day on the PCT, but it was partly imposed on me. For 20 miles, the trail goes through Lassen Volcanic National Park, where bear canisters are required to camp in the backcountry. But no PCT hiker I know is carrying a bear canister at this point, which means we have to hike through the park in a day. So when I woke up this morning, I had to choose between hiking less than 18 miles and camping south of the park, or hiking more than 38 miles and camping north of the park, and I decided to go for it.
As I hiked through the morning, the weight of all the miles ahead of me weighed heavily on my mind, and I felt a bit stressed. But as the day went on into the afternoon, and it became clear that not only would I finish the 38 happy and healthy, I would do it before sunset, I felt stoked and relaxed into the rest of the day. I even stopped for a refreshing skinny dip in Lower Twin Lake. It was a great swimming lake and it felt good to wash off the sweat and grime of the last few days. I walked the last few miles chatting with a hiker named Grizzly, who paced me into camp way faster than I would normally go. Hopefully I can get my walking pace up a little bit as I get more fit over the coming days and weeks.
Lassen Park was a cool place, too. There was a steam geyser and a lake filled with boiling water (how? I don’t know). There was also a point where, feeling thirsty, I came across a stream running across the trail and dipped my bottle in to fill up, but was surprised to find it hot to the touch. I guess it was fed by a hot spring, and I think it was running down into the swimming pool at Drakesbad Guest Ranch.
I camped literally just a few feet outside of the park boundary with Grizzly, Coach, and Hawkeye, surrounded by deer that weren’t the least bit scared of us. I hope they don’t make a ruckus all night and try to eat my tent. I already brought my shoes and trekking poles inside with me because I’m worried they would get chewed on or dragged away. The deer are ruthless around here.
Day 65 | 28 miles | 1366 to 1394
As I got started hiking on day 65 of the PCT, I passed by a few tents and tried to guess which one belonged to the guy that passed my campsite in the middle of last night blaring “Man in the Mirror” by Michael Jackson on a loudspeaker. Probably the one that was still set up at 7am with no sign of movement.
A bit later on, I saw the familiar exciting sight of trail magic up ahead: a sealed bin, a trail register, and a garbage can. But when I opened up the bin, instead of finding the usual mix of cold drinks and snacks, there was bulk amounts of condoms, lube, wet wipes, body spray deodorant, and…paperback novels. I didn’t really need any of those things this morning, so I moved on, perplexed but amused.
Anyway, after my big day yesterday, I decided that this should be a more restful one, so I stopped for a couple of hours in the tiny community of Old Station to have a hearty breakfast at JJ’s Cafe. Then I went next door to the gas station, bought a beer and an ice cream, and just sat at a picnic table watching people come through. It occurred to me that I wasn’t so different from the roadtrippers, RV campers, or motorcycle dudes. I may be on foot with all my stuff on my back, but we’re all just people on vacation that occasionally need to stop at places like this for fuel and an ice cream.
After breakfast, I continued my rest day to check out Subway Cave, a dark, cold cave that you can walk through. I don’t usually make side trips, thinking that walking to Canada is enough of an adventure for me, but I felt like I had the time. It was neat and worthwhile.
I finished the day by walking up on the Hat Creek Rim, a hot and dry section of trail that takes hikers onto a plateau hundreds of feet above the valley floor and any water sources. There was no shade because all the trees had burned in a nasty fire some years ago. I set up camp next to a big tank of cold water that locals maintain, feeling grateful because this section would be so much worse without it.
Day 66 | 17 miles | 1394 to 1411
Day 66 on the PCT started where I left off yesterday, way up on the exposed Hat Creek Rim, but it was a much more pleasant place to walk in the cool early morning light than in the hot sun of the afternoon. There were some great views of the valley below and of the impressive Mount Lassen to the south and Shasta to the north.
The late morning took me through some really pleasant grassy meadows and then around the outskirts of Baum Lake, where I saw way more fishermen than hikers. It actually makes me happy to be around these other communities of people enjoying themselves outside. Not that I have anything against being around other hikertrash, I just like to be reminded that there are other ways to play in these beautiful spaces.
In the early afternoon, I decided to cut the day short and head into the town of Burney for the night. Once again, it wasn’t an easy decision for me to take such a low-mileage day, but because I hadn’t had a motel room or done laundry or even showered for over 300 miles, I allowed myself the luxury. The fact that I was nursing a blister on my heel and suffering a bit on this rocky terrain sealed the deal.
Now that the trail is out of the snow and remoteness of the Sierra, offering plenty of options for resupply and town stops, I finally have the freedom to choose what kind of thruhiker I want to be, and it’s not always an easy decision. Do I resupply at the little general store near the trail, or hitch into town for the big chain supermarket? Do I shower and do laundry at the rural guest ranch and get back on trail in the afternoon, or splurge on a comfy motel room in town as a base for my chores? Do I load my pack up with five days of food so I can stay on trail, or hop off every couple of days to stock up? All things I’m still figuring out for the second half of the trail.
Day 67 | 31 miles | 1411 to 1442
Day 67 on the PCT started with a sleep in in my motel room in Burney, and it occurred to me that one of the best luxuries of being in town, maybe even better than clean sheets or a soft mattress, is window curtains. It’s nice to pretend the night lasts a little longer than it does.
Well, I eventually hit the trail late in the morning and made my way to Burney Falls State Park to check out the falls, which were very beautiful, and eat some ice cream from the general store. With all these side trips I’ve been making to local attractions in the last few days, I’ve felt less like a thruhiker and more like any other tourist, just on foot. But being around huge numbers of tourists, which there were at Burney Falls, continues to make me feel out of place, so I didn’t hang around long.
The afternoon and evening took me through some peaceful forests that reminded me of the rainforest around Vancouver, so I felt comfortable. I even walked for a few hours with a hiker from Vancouver named Salad, and it was nice to chat about hometown stuff. I also bumped into a hiker named Max that I hadn’t seen in about 1000 miles, and it was fun to hear stories about our mutual friends. I hiked all the way until sunset since I started so late in the morning.
Day 68 | 40 miles | 1442 to 1482
Day 68 on the PCT was a big one, the third time in the last week that I’ve had my biggest mileage day of hiking ever. It’s hard for me to imagine that they’ll get even bigger, but I’m pretty sure they will.
In the morning, I was treated to some big open views of the surrounding area, with Mount Shasta dominating the landscape with its beauty and prominence. Also, unlike the previous sections of trail where I recognized most of the wildflowers as the same ones I see in southwestern B.C., most of the ones I see here I completely new to me.
The afternoon and evening were kind of a blur of walking in the forest, cruising the miles away in the shade. I leapfrogged with the hiker from Vancouver named Salad that I had met the day before, both of us on a mission to keep going until the end of a dry stretch of trail.
When days are this long, they have so many ups and downs in terms of mood and energy. The swings aren’t wild, and I can’t always point out the reason, but anyone that has pulled an all-nighter for an assignment, worked a double shift, or run an ultramarathon knows the feeling. But it pretty much always ends with deep satisfaction after all the effort is done.
Day 69 | 33+ miles | 1482 to 1515
On the morning of day 69 on the PCT, I was treated to more impressive views of Mount Shasta, and also got my first glimpse of the craggy peaks that are the namesake of Castle Crags State Park and Wilderness. The morning miles felt pretty effortless, and I made it until lunch in a state that I guess was something like “flow”.
In the early afternoon, I was listening to a podcast by Billy Yang about the Western States Endurance Run, and at the emotional climax of the thing, it was all I could do to keep from crying. Not that me tearing up because of a running story set to sappy music is a new thing, but the extent surprised me today. It could be nothing, but my guess is that all this walking in nature without all the bullshit that takes up our day to day life off-trail like taxes and dentist appointments and broken shoelaces is stripping me down to my humanity, leaving me a bit more vulnerable to emotion.
Anyway, I went into the tiny community of Castella for a resupply, and maybe more importantly, an ice cream sandwich and a cold beer. I was lucky on the way in, getting picked up by the first car down the road, but not so much on the way out, having to road walk on the hot asphalt all the way back to trail.
The afternoon was really hot and sweaty as the trail climbed up a few thousand feet out of town, as it always seems to do lately every time my pack is full of food. The alpenglow on the Castle Crags in the evening was beautiful.
Day 70 | 34 miles | 1515 to 1549
Day 70 on the PCT started with some ridge walking where the views were beautiful and open but the hiking was tough because it was all on talus. But it wasn’t long before the trail turned to dirt, the walking got easier, and it stayed that way for the rest of the day.
At some point in the morning, I started seeing horse tracks and poop on the trail, and figured I would come across some riders soon, which was kind of exciting because I had hardly seen any since starting the PCT, even though it’s a designated equestrian trail. Sure enough, a few minutes later I came around a corner and a horse was coming the other way, galloping towards me. The thing was, there was no rider or saddle or reins or anything, just…a horse. I didn’t know what to make of the situation. We both just stared at each other for a minute, I made space for it to get by, and we both moved on down the trail.
Deadfall lakes were gorgeous and close enough to a paved road for there to be quite a few dayhikers and overnighters in the area. It’s funny to me the range of familiarity with PCT thruhikers that I can find on trail. One woman came up to me and wanted to know “so, do you sleep out here?”, but another, a former thruhiker, wanted to hear about crossing specific creeks in the Sierra.
There was more incredible scenery and trail in the afternoon and evening, and I found it hard to believe I got so much of it to myself. I ended my steak from the last few days of hiking until after sunset because I was so exhausted, more so than I’ve felt in a long time. I guess the mileage and late evenings have worn me down a bit physically. But that’s okay, I feel great psychologically and emotionally, still loving Northern California.
Day 71 | 32 miles | 1549 to 1581
On day 71 of the PCT, I didn’t set an alarm and slept in, knowing that lack of sleep over the last few days was wearing me down. I didn’t get moving until around 7:30am, which is practically midday for a thruhiker.
In the afternoon, I got to walk through the Trinity Alps Wilderness, which was beautiful. It had the most epic views I’ve seen since leaving the Sierra, and the wildflowers and trees were lush compared to the relatively dry forests I’ve hiked through in the last few days.
My friend Salad from Vancouver caught up to me late in the day while I was filling my water bottle, which was nice. It’s odd how on the trail, you develop these relationships, and when you say “bye, see ya up the trail” to someone when one of you heads into town, takes a lunch break, or even just stops to poop, you may actually never see them again. But as it happened today, you often do, and it’s a happy reunion.
Day 72 | 19 miles | 1581 to 1600
On day 72 of the PCT, I woke up early to a spectacular sunrise in Klamath National forest camped to next to Salad. I decided I would head into the town of Etna, and passed by a ton of dayhikers and overnighters.
I got a hitch into Etna from a trail runner that drove a convertible a little more wildly than I would have liked, but a ride into town is a ride into town. After I checked into the local motel and resupplied at the local grocery store, I crawled the local bars and restaurants, drinking local beer and spirits and getting to know the townies, deciding that I Etna was one of my favourite towns I had ever visited.
Day 73 | 31 miles | 1600 to 1631
On 73 of the PCT, I started the day with getting an early ride up to the trailhead from my motel room in Etna. I wasn’t feeling so great because I had overindulged in food and beer in town, and it made me question if that kind of town visit was a good idea. But ultimately, I realized that it’s just part of the cycle of thruhiking. You can’t live the spartan life that we have on trail for too long without breaking it up with in-town indulgences.
Anyway, I eventually got back to felling like myself and enjoyed walking through the wildflowers with butterflies fluttering all around the trail. I met a hiker that told me that in her 40 years of hiking in California, she had never seen so many butterflies, and I felt fortunate to be here to see them.
I camped up on a ridge that was windy enough to make pretty much any hiker move on to find a better protected site, but I decided that I had been missing out on stargazing for the last couple of weeks and it was worth it to deal with the wind.
Day 74 | 31 miles | 1631 to 1662
On day 74 on the PCT, I thought about the importance of setting expectations. Everything I had read online from northbound hikers ahead of me, or heard on the trail from southbound hikers I passed about the overgrowth and deadfall on the descent into Seiad Valley sounded terrible. So on my way down, I fully expected to get into town covered in poison oak rashes and battle scars from blackberry bushes. It turns out that, while the trail does need a bit of work, it wasn’t quite as bad as that, and I was pleasantly surprised. I even got to eat fresh blackberries on the way.
The roadwalk into town, which I did with a hiker named Weatherman, was hot and tiring, as they always are. But I eventually made it and resupplied and ate lunch from the local general store. There were a lot of hikers hanging around town, waiting for tomorrow morning to tackle the big climb out, but I decided to head up in the late afternoon. It was physically tough, but thankfully shadier and breezier than I expected. I got some good views of the town below on the way up, and thought to myself that it was kind of impressive how far and how high I could go on my own two feet in just an afternoon.
Also on the way up, I spotted a little structure near the summit of the climb, and wondered if it was a backcountry hut or maybe a fire lookout. When it was time to find a spot to camp and I realized that structure wasn’t too far off trail, I decided to make a side trip over there. Just the concrete foundation and walls were left, so I could only guess what it once was, but it was cool to visit.
Day 75 | 32 miles | 1662 to 1694
On day 75 of the PCT, I took my first steps into Oregon, the promised land where supposedly the miles flow easily and resupply is never more than a couple days away. It was a great feeling to reach that milestone. I really enjoyed NorCal, but I’m ready for the next chapter in this journey.
Other than that, there weren’t too many highlights throughout the day. As I settle into this routine of walking from basically the moment I get out of bed to the moment I get into bed, I sometimes surprise myself with how the hours just float by. I saw and smelled some pretty flowers, and got to look at some nice open vistas, but that’s just my routine now. I hardly even remember what I thought about all day. All I know is that I walked a lot and was pretty happy almost all day.