Day 40: Nap at Chimney Creek and long uphill run

Miles traveled: 22.1

Mile marker: 688.4

It’s 2:00 am The stars shine in the sky and are as abundant as the sand on the beach. The Milky Way is a hazy white streak in the universe.

I had never seen it so clearly before.

A bonus? My sleeping bag is soaked. I guess there’s a lot of moisture floating around there. Now I don’t feel so bad about accidentally spilling water on Rafiki’s sleeping quilt last night while he was filtering water (the gasket on my water filter was placed incorrectly and no, he shouldn’t have filtered water with his down bag).

It’s 4:15 am and I’m silently accepting the fact that I need to start packing. Yesterday dad mentioned that we should pack our bags in the city. It takes me too much time.

It doesn’t help that my feet are swollen, which makes it very difficult to get my sausage toes into the designated positions of the socks.

Also, since I’m already killing it this morning, I put too much water in my bottle for my breakfast drink. It’s not a big deal if it’s watery. It’s a big problem if I can’t even put the powder in my drink because it’s too full. Basically, my precious protein powder is flying everywhere. Excellent.

Oh something else? You’re going to love this. After putting my fat feet into my shoes, I went to the bathroom. I don’t know what I was thinking not tying my shoes, but I ended up peeing on the laces in the early morning darkness.

I love hiking.

I’m about five minutes late when I’m ready to leave.

The sky is cloudy as we begin our hike uphill. I’m pushing to stay with dad and Savannah. We walked along the hard sand bordered by sage-colored bushes.

A hazy orange glow shines over the hills. Illuminate the top of the ridge with a red border. From the top of the hill there is a yellow line that fades into pale blue.

An hour and a half later we are at our next water source. I’m still working on my breakfast drink, but I sit with the others while they filter the water. Soon there will be another water source. It seems like everyone is going to grab a liter here and get more at the next fountain.

It’s cold because everyone filters the water. I sit next to Dad on a log to keep warm while I wait for everyone to finish filtering the water.

We crossed a grassy river and continued our walk. I spend some time with Savannah while I walk. We found a very rusty wrench – where the hell did this come from?

The cacti sprout Barbie pink flowers from the top like a crown that sits on a head.

«Oh, uh, are we past the next water source yet?» I ask Savannah.

«Yes, a while ago,» he says.

Uh-oh. I completely forgot to drink more water. I was so engrossed in my conversations with everyone this morning that I completely forgot!

It’s hotter now and I only have a liter of water. What was I thinking? I only heard what others said about getting water, but I didn’t look for it myself! If I had looked for it, I would have been more aware and rode a camel into the water or bought something when I saw Broccoli, another hiker, Grabbing water from that second water source!

I’m separating from Savannah. «I’m going to catch Bumper and see if he has any water left,» I say.

Savannah has no extra water. We have ten miles to the next water!

I push it until I reach the bumper.

«Hey! I forgot to get water. Do you have any spare?»

He laughs. I walk behind him for a few moments. «I’m going to try to catch Rafiki and see if he has anything extra,» I say.

«Oh! Yeah, you can drink water. I thought you were joking,» Bumper says. We step aside so he can have some of his water. I don’t want him to carry my weight for me.

The sun shines brightly as I get water. I continue the walk just to pause for a moment, put on some music and hit the road.

I start thrusting immediately. Walking quickly. Faster than I like to go. I run a little here and there. My breathing becomes heavy and labored. My face is blushing. I run uphill.

The bumper is behind me.

I see a few hikers I could ask for water. I’m thinking about a couple of things right now. One: the sooner I get to the water, I don’t need to drink as much for a long hike. Two: it’s not 10:00 yet. I can get through this heat. Three: this is a game. Can I catch Rafiki?

I see Rafiki in his red shirt and cowboy hat, swinging his arms like a little Huck Finn wandering through the woods. He’s only three to five minutes ahead of me. It’s amazing how hard it is to reach someone: they’re so close yet so far.

My breath is trapped in my lungs and I huff and puff heavily through my nose and out through my mouth. My nostrils burn.

I watch Rafiki circle the ridge again. He’s a little bigger now than the last time I saw him!

I run uphill. Run downhill. The bumper is right behind me. I know he’s trying to keep up, probably a game of his own.

I run down the road. My heart pounds in my chest. I didn’t call Rafiki because I wanted to communicate with him. Besides, I don’t have the breath to scream.

I see a cloud of dust floating on the road. -Rafiki! Shout.

It’s on the road above me. He stops and looks around. I can see it through the trees. I go around the bend and push to meet him.

Am reaching for the fire as I reach for it, my face beet red and sweat running down my face.

“I forgot,” I gasp, “to grab water!”

“How did you reach me?” Rafiki says. «Yes, here. You can have some. You were flying!»

Was. I was flying. It’s amazing what a little determination and mental game can do for you.

Bumper appears behind me panting heavily. «I was trying to get you.»

We continue up the hill. Fortunately, Rafiki slows down significantly to a moderate pace. We followed him to a flat area.

The hills appear as dunes of pale sand. There are circles of green water lined up in the distance. The ground is dry and rocky with a thin layer of dry grass.

We are all lying on the floor while the rest of our group enters and plops down next to us. It’s a big surprise when Rafiki realizes there are ants all over his flock. He jumps away from the rest of us to ignore him.

«Oh!» he says as one of them digs his tweezers into his skin.

I look at Bumper next to me.

«Oh, bumper. Get up! You’ve got ants everywhere.»

We took them out, about fifteen ants in total.

“I thought I was thirty the way you reacted!” Says Bumper.

Fifteen fire ants aren’t enough to worry about?

We continued walking through the hot, dusty desert for about three more hours until we reached a stream. I drink some water while Dad looks for a better shady spot ahead of us. It is just a minute walk from the stream.

We left our things under the shade of a tree and opened our bags of food for lunch. The sun changes as we sit, so many people around us move from side to side to avoid the heat of the sun.

Luxy Lucie has been making a second coffee drink of the day, so I copy it and add two instant coffees since I have more. Now I enjoy an afternoon drink.

I’m not entirely sure it sat well with my stomach.

I’m going to the creek with Savannah and Luxy Lucie. We all rinsed our clothes and tried to get the dirt off our legs. It’s so hot outside I can almost feel my skin singeing! While my legs are somewhat golden from the sun, my back is very pale and turning into pink spots.

From time to time we kill horseflies. I’m sitting on a rock with my feet drying on a thin tube while everyone else finishes.

We return to the tree and lie down.

We ended up hanging here in Chimney Creek for five hours. Lying around is a little boring, especially since I’m a little nervous about my second sip of coffee!

Luxy Lucie is not feeling well. She has been a great soldier, overcoming all her illness to move forward. He has some kind of cold. Sore throat, fever, fatigue. He has been feeling very bad these last few days.

Luxy says, «Are we leaving soon?»

«I was thinking of leaving around six,» Dad says.

«Oh. I just took acetaminophen. I’m going to go now because I’m slow going up the hills,» Luxy says.

We have a 6.5 mile hike uphill. UV rays are like entering an oven right now. The luxury walks continue. We followed her shortly after.

Up, up and away.

I don’t feel this. We climbed the hills a little, along the brush, and soon reached Fox Mill Spring. Insects try to eat my flesh as I duck through the jungle leaves to reach the small stream. I enter the mound of soft dirt covered with long, vibrant green grass and fill my water bottles.

Dad is behind me as we continue. The bumper runs to catch up. Western paintbrush flowers line the path. I step aside and let dad pass. Tiredness begins to swallow me. I’m nauseous from hunger. I take a couple of minutes to eat a brownie bar on the cliff and immediately feel better.

Hmm. That’s the first time it’s happened. Dad has talked about this before. When your body needs energy and you eat, you immediately feel better.

I have never considered myself an athlete. I didn’t play much sport growing up. It’s interesting to think about how far I’ve come from a soft, unmotivated kid to the physically strong, determined and capable person I am today.

That being said, this hill is kicking my butt. Why don’t I have that vigor that I had before when I was chasing Rafiki up the hill? Or the energy you had from drinking two coffees in the middle of the day?

The hills go on and on. It’s actually not that big and sometimes it’s a little downhill. I plug in my audiobook I’ve been listening to: «The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck.»

This book was really good. I deal with some social anxiety, I worry too much about what people think of me and this book relates to me in many ways. It’s fun and quite philosophical.

My cup of tea.

I try to enjoy the view. I’m pretty tired and surrounded by a wall of bushy mini-mountains, but the thought that I’ll soon be done with the desert keeps popping into my head. Just enjoy it.

There are small skinny trees sprouting from the ground on the hills. They remind me of sparse hair sticking out from an unshaven leg.

I watch Dad and Bumper walk around the edge of the ridge. A few moments later, I see a hiker pass over some large bushes.

I did it!

I camp here like a cowboy, avoiding a bunch of ants and too tired to look for the best angle to sleep. I sleep near Luxy Lucie. I’m basically on the road, squeezed in the bushes.

I’m brushing my teeth when I see a kangaroo mouse. Dad comes to stand next to me. The mouse has an elongated face, similar to that of a bunny, and is a little smaller than a tennis ball. Its tail is as long as a pencil. When it moves, it jumps like a kangaroo.

I was wondering how they got their name.

He runs around my feet like a little circus mouse and hides in the bushes.

Now I have real reasons to be paranoid about mice. Not that I can do much about it. I hang my backpack on the tree and prop my trekking poles so that the mice hopefully don’t eat the handles of my trekking poles.

Mmmm. Salty.

The sky darkens and the stars make their nighttime appearance. I’m so tired I can’t even finish writing the diary.

I lie down and close my eyes.

Uh-oh. I can’t fall asleep.