Days 42 and 43: Life at Grumpy’s

Miles traveled: zero

Mile marker: 703.4

We have two zeros at Grumpy’s Bear Retreat.

The first day I woke up at a surprising 5:55 am. I slept pretty well! I head down the thin dirt road toward the restaurant and am surprised to find Dad, Bumper, and Lucie already there.

It’s quiet for a while and I grab an old sleeping bag from the hiker’s box. As eight o’clock approaches, the breakfast line fills up. This older guy steps in front of me. Most people have been aware of who has been waiting the longest.

Not this guy.

Mike, the guy who works for Grumpy’s and is always the one running around, waves at us through the window. I pretend to hit the window with my fists. Mike imitates a monkey.

Good talk.

Everyone is lined up when Mike, the blonde-haired kid with a bow sticking out of the back of his cap, slowly opens the door. He pokes his head out to look dramatically at the line and then returns to the restaurant. The lock clicks.

A minute later he opens the door.

I feel like I’m at summer camp again!

I order a burrito and the others get a plate of sausages, hash browns and eggs. They get a pancake almost the size of a bicycle tire!

We hung out for a while until lunch, where I finished Lucy’s vegan chili that tastes like curry. We descend to the Triple Crown tent, a trailer containing everything hikers could need.

I already rented my bear can and will pick it up here. I wish I had bought one. I got a discount on cans of bears for writing on The Trek.

Oh ok. It will be easy to quit because the store at the end of bear can territory will just take it.

Upon returning, we have an extensive conversation about microspikes. We are all sitting around a round table. Do we need them? Do we need an ice ax?

Rafiki calls his friend Captain America who has just finished the tour. The captain is from Tennessee and has a slight southern accent that immediately reads like a friendly person.

The Captain, on the other end of the phone, says we don’t need the spikes.

Savannah’s mom already bought them for us and I personally still want to keep mine.

“Whatever Journey does, I’ll do it,” Bumper says.

«Do what you have to do. Don’t follow my dad. He’s been doing this for years,» I tell him.

As dad says, it’s not good to always follow others here.

We also decided as a group that if anyone gets altitude sickness, we will all descend until we can climb back up.

I really hope no one gets sick.

We’re talking some big miles, too.

I didn’t really like the 25 mile days. We are thinking of changing to a seven-day transport. That’s going to be pretty heavy.

The day drags on under the scorching sun, where we sit on the benches and chat with our hiking friends. The sun begins to set. Dinner is a salad with chicken and avocado.

I decide to watch a movie on the big TV with ample movie options.

“You always tell me that I’m a party pooper and that I don’t want to have fun,” I tell Rafiki. «I’m going to my store to change and I’ll come back to watch a movie.»

Good.

I get to the porch and there’s already something on.

Love Island.

If you don’t know what this is, it’s an incredibly embarrassing spectacle in which perfectly plastic Americans try to marry each other for love. And be kicked out of the program if they don’t get a match.

«I want to know what the average IQ of these contestants is,» says Luxy.

«Who chose this?» I say to the couple next to me.

Oops. It was the person I told that to who chose this.

Luxy, Rafiki and I laughed and commented on the stupidity of the show.

“I feel like my IQ is dropping watching this!” Luxy says.

Yes. Me too.

The girl who chose the show says, «I know! It’s so embarrassing, but that makes it so good!»

The three of us laugh as we walk back to our tents. I just wanted to have a fun and cozy movie night! However, this spectacle, the most embarrassing in the world, was a memorable night.

The next day is a repeat of the last. I have an overwhelmed feeling of how the heck I’m going to pack my bear can. It takes me a few tries, but I end up donating some tuna to make everything right.

Our first two days we only need the food to be hung, so I’m counting on that.

Rafiki has a new outfit, different from his signature red button-down shirt and box shorts.

He looks like an endurance athlete now and we won’t let him forget it. The worst thing is that he misses his red shirt and thinks about keeping it!

We take a bus to go to the general store. I chat for a while with an older Australian couple and then order some food.

«I think we should all have a say in how we feel about this next week,» Luxy says. «I’ll go first. I think we should go in seven days.»

We are all sitting around a wooden bench. I agree with Luxy. I want to go slower and I don’t want to be rushed. It’s decided. We will have another day of food and we will walk this section in seven days.

We play Cards Against Humanity while we wait for our food. Mine and Lucy’s arrived late, so I wrap it in its paper and we hurry to the ferry. I eat most of it while I wait.

Soon, we’re all packed into the van like sardines, sitting on top of each other. I don’t know who I’m not touching. I have my feet on the people in front of me, both my arms rest on other people, and I’m leaning against dad.

We all laughed and laughed as we sat down. This is a lot more people than we had on the way here!

We crawled out of the van like bugs crawling out of a hole.

We rushed to Triple Crown to do some shopping for an extra day of food.

The afternoon is filled with conversations with my niece and nephew. Richy joins me and we tell elaborate stories about starry night skies and rattlesnakes. My niece’s eyes are as big as pie plates as we speak.

Later I shower in the tin-walled, stone-floored shower. The water is warm, so when the breeze comes, I freeze! Dad hands me some soap from the shower.

I deal with itchy feet while trying to take care of them a bit; my feet are a mess. I have punctures that are permanently marked with dirt. The soles of my feet are like plastic from all the walking. My old blisters have hardened and are now collecting dirt on the sides of my heels.

Rafiki shares his pizza with me and Luxy while I wait for that Katie lady (the American who lives in New Zealand) to return. He’s turning over a gas can for me since I gave him some tuna!

Our group plays a card game to end the evening.

We returned to our tents and lay down to get some sleep. We have a great week coming up!