On the Road Again 2013 # 12

While I am now back in my apartment, I am obviously somewhat behind in my blog postings..... I will continue to discuss my trip in sequential order

The parking lot was fairly full. The family (mom, dad, 4 kids and grandparents) who had driven me to the trail head were locals (which in this area appears to mean that they lived about 90 km away) They were very surprised and I think displeased that it looked as if there were so many campers on the beach. I didn't have the heart to tell them that there might be a couple of more hundred campers arriving.

The walk to the beach was not too bad. It took most folks about an hour to walk the trail; it took me about a hour and forty-five minutes to do it. Parts of the trail, especially where there were exposed roots, was slippery and occasional dangerous for those whose balance or ankles are suspect. One needed to be careful where one placed ones foot as it was quite easy to slip. However, most of the trail was either dry or "boardwalked". There were a few sections that were quite hilly and in some places it was so steep that it took all of my strength to climb up. In spite of these minor technical difficulties, most of the trail was rather beautiful with large, sometimes twisted trees towering above us. It would have been a very very nice walk if I had not been carrying a pack. As it was I did not mind stopping to get my heart rate down. There was a lot to look at.

One of the minor frustration of the hike was that while I could hear the waves crashing on the beach, I could not see the ocean. I kept on waiting for the path to turn west towards the sounds of the waves but it felt as if I walked for miles just on the other side of the ridge never quite being able to see over the crest. However, when finally the path did turn west, the wait was worth it. What an extraordinary beach!! It was absolutely glorious. It was well over a kilometer long with large black rocks at either end. While I never actually went to see, I was told that there was more beach on the other sides of those rocks. Out in the ocean as the tide was coming in, the waves curled and crested in a constant and thundering roar. The sky was cloudless. The sun shining on the water made it glisten. Along the shore people walked, playing in the water, surfing or just standing there - admiring the view west.

There were about 60 Rainbows there when I arrived. The first two I saw were my friendly drivers Rosie and Ignacio. It was really great to see them again. I dropped my pack on the sand (I never need much of an excuse to get it off of my back) and we chatted a bit. They went off to the parking lot to get rid of some stuff they didn't need and I headed up the beach. Setting up was easy - the bivy sack takes literally seconds to "erect" and there were lots of driftwood logs to string my tarp to. Within 10 minutes I was set up and off down the beach towards where I assumed the kitchen would be. I had twine in my bag and was ready to tie some knots.

When I got the the kitchen - everything was under control. There was no need for my flimsy twine as things were being built using the heavy storm tossed timbers. I sat around for a bit and chatted with the young folks ( for most of my 6 or7 days there I think I was the oldest person on the beach - sometimes by quite a few years), made a few suggestions that were quickly adapted and changed into something much better that I had suggested, asked questions about the site (e.g where was the latrine and what was the safe drinking water situation) and just enjoyed being around folks.

While I was trying to help the kitchen builders,  I unfortunately stepped on a sharp piece of wood and scraped a fair bit of skin off my instep. Nothing serious but to keep it as clean as possible, I wore shoes most of the time. Which was not a terrible inconvenience as the sand was almost too hot to walk on.

There was a lot of work to be done. Most of the food supplies were still up the river (which could only be easily accessed at high tide),  the kitchen needed more shelving, we needed to dig a compost pit, find a spot to store the food and create a space for the main circle and fire. But there was no rush. It was going to be a month long Gathering and it had just started. For now, I was quite content to listen to the music played by folks from at least three continents and to argue philosophy and politics until well after the moon had started to make its nightly journey across the sky.

OnThe Road Again 2013 # 11

After I had my bivy sack set up, I dug out my little stove and a rather beaten up tin tea pot, boiled some water and made myself a bowel of Chinese noodle soup. It is easy to make and it taste good. One of the advantages of minimal camping is that washing up is very easy. I only had to rinse out one bowl.

After supper I went for a bit of a walk, watched a pair of eagles catch food for their young, worked on my stick for a bit and went to bed as soon as the sun went down. I wasn't tired - I just had nothing else to do. I slept in the bivy sack for the next 7 nights so let me tell you how it feels so I can get it out of the way. It is like being in a cocoon....actually there are times where it feel like I am trapped in a cocoon. If I need to have the hood up and zipped either because of the bugs or because it is raining it can quite claustrophobic. The second problem is that there is no where to put my stuff, so everything is in my pack with its rain cover on it which can make getting up the next morning, especially if it is raining a touch awkward. Its singular advantage is that it weighs very little. The reduced weight makes up for any inconvenience. In the past when I know that I am going to be camping in one spot for a few days I have taken my much more substantial two man tent. It is significantly heavier but much more roomier. However, last year I had had to walk 8 kilometers down a logging road carrying that far too heavy tent (actually it is not that heavy - I m just getting older)....this year fearing that the same thing would happen again, I chose to travel with just the bivy sack and a light tarp. I knew it would be an interesting experience, especially if it rained. Fortunately while misty the next morning, it was not raining.

I quickly got my stuff together and was on the road just after 7:00. As I have said before, I don't know why I bother to get up so early. I almost never get a ride. The walk from my camp ground to the turn off to Raft Cove was only a kilometer or so. It gave me the chance to limber up and to get all of the kinks out from the bus ride the day before. It was hard to find a place to stand because the shoulders were either very narrow or non-existent. There were however, a surprising number of vehicles on the road. Most of them however, were pickups with 2-3 guys in them. All of them looked to be working trucks - working men going to do a job. I was pretty sure that none of them were going to stop for me.

After being there for about 40 minutes, Bob from yesterday passed me going out with a large pile of logs. He sounded his air horn and I waved. About an hour later he came by the other way going back in for his second load. He stopped the truck and I climbed in. It was not the most luxurious truck that I have ever been in and given the state of the roads it was not the smoothest ride . But it was interesting and informative. My driver knew a lot about the business of logging and about the general area. He was always pointing out things of interest along the way such as the windmill farm being built along the ridge or the roads that were being used. He also talked about the various special hidden places that either had remarkable rock formations or unusual trees. It was an interesting journey, but perhaps the most remarkable bit was watching the trees being felled by this giant machine. It was incredibly powerful and efficient. It was also scary to watch how many trees the operator could take down in a few minutes.

 Bob let me off at what appeared to be the last turn. While I, according to the directions, only had about 9 kilometers left to travel - the directions had not been that accurate - I in fact had no idea how far it was. However the odds of me getting a drive seemed rather remote as I had not seen a private car on the road for hours. So I decided that I might as well start walking. I probably walked for a hour or so before a SUV did stop and offer me a drive. The family were off to Raft Cove. I was glad that I did not have to walk. Without a doubt I was excited to camp on the beach with my Rainbow Family.