ANTICIPATION

‎"We are now in the mountains and they are in us, kindling enthusiasm, 

making every nerve quiver, filling every pore and cell of us." 

--John Muir--

BLADDER INDUCED INSOMNIA

     So as I was lying on Couch tonight (my personal choice for sleeping arrangements) trying to fall asleep, I was reminded of a fun memory. And what progressed from there was this impromptu blog post about it. I will proceed!

     If you haven’t seen a scary movie by the name of “The Descent” yet… watch it. But not right before you go on an overnight wilderness adventure. For a short understanding of why it’s so terrifying, I’ve included this screenshot:

[NOTICE HOW THESE COLORS GO WITH MY DESIGN---PLANNED IT]

     Now… we’ve all been plagued by the need to find a tree in the middle of the night out in the unknown, but this can be particularly horrible when your imagination is running rampant. Not only does your bladder feel like it’s going to explode, but every noise outside of your thin tent walls causes your mind to explode. And the two organs battle it out until they both feel like they’re about to burst.

     This was the case for me one night at Panther Creek Falls two years ago. I hastily and without thinking, had a cup of apple cider right before jumping into the Navajo (my sleeping bag) for the night. Not even an hour later after tossing and turning I was starting to feel its affects, combined with my notorious imagination working out scenarios involving that cute little creature above. Back and forth… bladder vs. brain… and then, like a hungry lepard, out of my tent I sprang. Bladder: 1, Brain: 0.

     What prompted this memory tonight? Bladder: 2, Brain 0.

[I'M NOT REALLY SURE WHY I CONSIDER THIS A FUN MEMORY]

LET'S GO!

     A trip is being planned! For April! That’s so close I could touch it! 

     We’re looking at doing a three day/two night trip somewhere between the 15^th and the 24^th of April with more emphasis on one of those weekends rather than mid week. It’s all still up in the air though.

     Where are we gonna go when everything is still sleeping? We’re going to go to the WILDERNESS that’s where! Lucky for us the further south we go the less snow there is! We’ll be revisiting the same trail and campsite that we visited around the same time last year. It’s a cute little low level elevation route in the Sequoias called Ladybug Trail and we’ll be stopping at Whiskey Log camp.

     When I first heard about this trail it was very important to me that there were actual ladybugs on the trail. It lived up to its name. That’s for sure. Check out some pictures from last year!

[BEAUTIFUL SNOW CAPPED PEAKS TO THE RIGHT OF THE TRAIL MOST OF THE WAY]

[A LITTLE VALLEY. MAKES FOR A GOOD REST STOP]

[THE FIRST LADYBUG!]

[MORE LADYBUGS!!]

[SO MANY LADYBUGS!!!]

[MY FACE]

[THOSE SAME SNOW CAPPED PEAKS]

[CAMP TOMAHAWK'S BIG LOG]

[VIEW FROM WHISKEY LOG CAMP]

[SHOULD HAVE SOME PRETTY WILD FLOWERS AGAIN THIS YEAR!]

     Here's a brief description. I nabbed this from these guys --  THESE GUYS

"The Ladybug Trail goes east following the north side of the canyon of the South Fork of the Kaweah River. The trail rises from an elevation of 3,640 to 5,760 feet at the end of the trail. There are many open viewpoints along the first 2.5 miles of the trail. From these viewpoints there are fine views of the canyon and surrounding mountain peaks."    

     Well put, THESE GUYS.

      It's a 4.02 mile hike, which is pretty easy, makes for a good, simple start to the season. If you wanna see what the trail looks like the whole way (in writing) Here's a link -- LADYBUG TRAIL

     SO, if you’re interested in joining us (my dad, my brother-in-law, myself, and whatever ragamuffin crew we can scrounge up) let me know, we’d love the company and the fresh faces! 

     

TOO.MUCH.TIME.

     That is to say there has been too much time between my last post and this post, not too much time on my hands. If presented with too much time on my hands I'm sure I wouldn't have too much time between posts. So what would I have between posts? I’d have more posts between posts that’s what!

     Oh goodness… I have a mad case of the Off Season Blues! I can see our mountains every day and they’re asleep in a blanket of snow. But they should wake up! So that we can all explore and go adventuring in their wilderness!

     I’m convinced that there is nothing worse than having all this new gear (purchased in hopes of curing the Off Season Blues… and ‘cause it was time for new gear) and not being able to use it yet!

Here is my list of new gear:

     -Thermarest Neo-air Sleeping Pad

[ULTRA COMFORTABLE!]

     -GoLite Pinnacle Ultralite Backcountry Pack

[ULTRA NOT HEAVY!]

     -GoLite Shangri-La 2 Person Ultralite Tent

[ULTRA NOT HEAVY AND ULTRA SPACIOUS!]

     -Black Diamond Trail Shock Trekking Poles

[ULTRA RELIABLE AND ULTRA NECESSARY FOR HOLDING UP THE NEW TENT!]

     -AND longer hair which makes for less worry about how to manage it in the backcountry! Thank you braids, bun, or pony tail!
  
   -OH! AND a whole bunch of new sports bras and nike compression shorts... I almost didn't mention  my unmentionables, but they totally need mention for how comfy they are.

     Now… Mountains, you can see how extremely ready for you I am… so quit being lazy and bring us the On Season! My new gear would greatly appreciate it.

LIFE IS KINDA LIKE A TRAIL

['Girls on Steroids + Martin' Me, Delanie, Reina,]
[Madi, and Martin]

This trip was doomed to fail from the start. After our week long, life changing, ultimate trip to Mt. Whitney in August, our group (known as the 'Girls on Steroids + Martin' to the rest of the Mt. Whitney crew) was going through serious wilderness withdrawals. So it was decided that we should all go on at least a day hike if that's all anyone could fit into their schedule. Two weeks after returning home from Mt. Whitney we were all set and ready to make this day hike to Walling Lake happen. Then I got a job! And what do you know... I was scheduled to work the Saturday that we'd planned our hike. Bummer! But regardless of my new found source of money (and provider of new backpacking gear), this day hike was going to happen before the season was up!

Weekend after weekend passed with no day off for me... then finally a break appeared! I had been given a Sunday off, and without hesitation asked our group if they were available to visit Walling Lake. We bounced back and fourth between not wanting to miss church and not wanting to miss the wilderness and decided there would be no harm in making the wilderness our sanctuary for that day. At least three of us did (Martin, Madi, and myself)---Delanie was unable to join. 

So the three of us planned it out and were going to make it happen. We would leave Sunday morning at 7:00AM, arrive at the trail head around 9:00AM, arrive at Walling Lake at approximately 12:00PM, leave Walling Lake at 3:00PM, get in the car around 5:00PM, and arrive home at 7:00PM. What a great plan---until it didn't work.

To get to the trail head for Walling Lake you drive up the 168 past Shaver Lake and Huntington Lake until you get to Kaiser Pass Road... then it's just a little ways further until you come to a parking lot on the right side of the road where you can make one last potty stop at the pit toilets before hiking in on the trail head across the street. Nothing to difficult right??? FALSE!

There's construction going on on the road around Huntington Lake, and this being my first time driving myself up to the trail head, I was looking for a sign that said "KAISER PASS ROAD". So we're driving, and driving, and driving, and then the road seems to have turned enough to be driving in the opposite direction from where we came. But do I notice till we're almost all the way around the lake? No... It's a good twenty minutes before I give in to my inkling that we're not going to find Kaiser Pass Road traveling in the direction we were. So I turn around and drive back another twenty minutes looking for the sign that says "KAISER PASS ROAD" again! Do I find it? No... So finally, realizing that I still have reception, I call my dad. He tells me to head back to the beginning of Huntington Lake and turn around, and wait for the turn off. Still no "KAISER PASS ROAD" sign... Come to find out there IS no sign. Luckily I have an iPhone, complete with GPS. Why I didn't use it before I'm really not sure... and the turn off we were looking for is Huntington Road... So finally we take the turn off and eventually find our way to the parking lot at the trail head---a complete hour later than planned. 

One last tinkle and then it's on with the packs and into the woods! Nothing could go wrong now! I've been on this trail enough to know what I'm doing and be confident in taking two high school age friends in with me for the first time. No problem.

The trail is a slight and gradual uphill to Potter's Pass where you can look back from where you've come and see both Huntington Lake and the ski runs of China Peak (Sierra Summit) behind you. Stretched out in front of you is a jagged skyline of snow capped peaks. When facing those peaks there are rows and rows of beautiful Aspens to your right, and to your left a rocky hill side beyond which lies Kaiser Peak. 

[A jagged skyline of snow capped peaks from the top of Potter's Pass]

After that it's a steady downhill off of Potter's Pass until you get to Lower Twin lake (a muddy lake that's nothing special), and beyond that is Upper Twin Lake (a common stop for day hikers, fishermen, and families with little ones). 

If you stay on that trail long enough you will eventually end up at George Lake, which I have yet to visit. But before getting to George there is a quick and ever so invisible turn off on the right side of the trail to get to Walling Lake. It's always hard to find no matter how many times you've been on the trail. Then from there you hike a little ways on flat ground before getting to what I liked to refer to as "The Ridge of Death". 

The Ridge of Death is a steep, uphill trail of switchbacks over horribly rocky terrain. Walling Lake is at the top of The Ridge of Death, nestled into its granite slabs. But once you get to the top of the ridge and make your way around to see the lake, it's completely worth it! 

So remember that storm that blew through the Central Valley last week? Well that storm came from the mountains. I was aware of this when planning the day hike. I knew we'd probably have a little bit of snow, and that the trail would probably be a bit of a mess. But I did not plan on the trail from the Walling turn off to Walling Lake to be completely gone. There was no turn off. The trail wasn't there. Any stone markers that had been made were knocked over. 

It's getting close to 12:00 now, and we're still on our original trail until God tugs at me and says "Take a look at the ridge Lex... it's starting to slope down. Maybe you missed the turn off?" So we stop, and I relay that message to Martin and Madi before turning around and heading back to find the turn off. No such luck. I decided that if we made our way back to the foot of the ridge and hiked north we would eventually find the trail up the ridge. It was bush whacking, and I didn't like the idea of being responsible for the lives of two teens in the wilderness with no trail, but it was our only option. 

We made our way with no trail along the ridge, all the time hoping something would trigger my memory and we'd find the trail. Again, no such luck. 12:30 rolls around and we're finally able to start heading up the ridge on the beginning of the trail... which eventually disappears again. By 1:00, a full half hour of bush whacking up The Ridge of Death, and with much thanks to the presence of two dead trees that are always at the lake and a constant view when sitting out at the lake, I was able to get my barrings enough to bring us up over the ridge and take a look at Walling Lake. 

[Walling Lake and The Ridge of Death that we came over]

We made it! Praise Jesus! 

I brought Madi and Martin to the perfect lakeside laying out rock, we ate our PB&J tortillas, granola bars, and caramel apple (all purchased at Fresh and Easy!), and proceeded to have some tummy time for napping. 

['The Girls on Steroids' jumping into Colby Lake]

On day three of our Mt. Whitney trip we camped at Colby Lake (my favorite of all favorite lakes), and Madi convinced all of us girls that we should jump into the lake in our undies just to say that we did it. The water was freezing and the sun was hidden by clouds and the wind was blowing...  but we did it anyway! We tried to get Martin to join us but he declined. So to make up for that Martin decided he needed to jump into Walling Lake! So that's what he did! It took him a good fifteen minutes of prodding and commenting from us to get him to do it, but he did! By the time he had changed back into warm clothes again it was time to leave... 3:00PM. 

We packed up our stuff and headed out. I knew where the trail was from the campsite that we always stayed at, and I hoped that if we found that trail we could stay on it all the way back to the turn off. Yeah right... We ended up bush whacking down the ridge again and back to the original trail from the trail head. That added on an extra half hour of hiking that we shouldn't have had to do, and layered on more frustration and a splitting headache. 

Once you're past Upper and Lower Twin lakes there's a short cut that you can take to the right of the trail. It's a horse trail that meanders uphill through white sparkley rocks, and cuts off a good ten to fifteen minutes of time to get to Potter's Pass. The only problem is that at some point that trail and the original trail eventually meet up like a loop and the trail to Potter's Pass looks like a side trail. Just like the drive to the trail head, we were now facing the opposite direction that we wanted to be traveling. 

Madi was the only one to verbally question the way we were going... "Hey Lex, " God said, "Madi's right..." But to be sure I told the two of them to stay where they were and I was going to run ahead on the trail we were on to see if we were right or not. Sure enough we were on the wrong path. If we'd kept going we would have been heading back to the lake! So we turned around and I became more frustrated.

it was 5:00PM... We made it to the top of Potter's Pass. By 6:00PM we piled into the car, called parents to let them know we'd be arriving later than planned, and headed out. 

THE ADVENTURE'S NOT OVER! I get car sick on mountain roads if I'm not driving, and even if I am driving I'll occasionally feel a little dizzy. But because of my headache and my still fuming frustration and the addition of bright headlights shining directly into my retinas, I--got--carsick. 

We must have pulled over a good eight times before making it home just because I felt like I was going to puke. 

But we made it home! Everyone alive and with all their limbs. 

Our day hike that was supposed to go off without a hitch, went off like a Piccolo Pete. The time we spent actually at the lake was fun, and had I not been responsible for the lives of two highschoolers with parents that expected their children to be home safe and sound, and had I not been prone to car sickness, and had there not been a storm that blew through, and had we been able to go when originally planned several weeks ago... everything would have been fine! 

Ah, but I have a bigger reason for posting this than just to tell of my wilderness adventures. 

On the drive home, in the time that I was able to make coherent thoughts without feeling like throwing up, I applied this trip to my walk with God... 'cause life is kinda like a trail. You might start out on the right path with a great view in mind for your destination, but sometimes circumstances cause you to lose the trail. It might be that you wander off the trail and can't find your way back, or it might be that you miss that tricky little turn off to your destination because of a storm, and are continuing on the wrong trail. And when that happens sometimes what you need to do is bush whack to get back to the path that God intended you to be on, to get back to God. 

Bush whacking can be difficult and frustrating, overwhelming and tiring, discouraging, perplexing, and all around tough work. But no one said that walking with God would be easy. It's this bush whacking that helps us learn... this wandering in the wilderness often times is what molds us and refines us into what God intends us to be. Moses and the Israelites wandered in the desert for forty years before God brought them to the promise land. 

So I guess right now I'm bush whacking in my walk with God. I can see my destination, I know what God intends for me, but somewhere along the line I lost the trail He set out for me and have to trudge through the woods to get there. 

Not every trip is going to be your ideal Mt. Whitney life changing trip. Sometimes it just sucks. But every trip is going to teach you something and adjusts your perspective---that is always a constant.

[At the trail head ready to go!]

[Vibram FiveFingers!!!]

[Pretty Aspen grove]

[At the top of Potter's Pass heading to Walling Lake. I love these kids.]

VIBRAM FIVEFINGERS!

Let me start off by saying that yes, they do look a little silly. I feel a tad like a Hobbit when wearing them... but holy moly are they comfortable! 

[VibramFiveFingers.com]

Four days ago I purchased a pair of Vibram FiveFingers at REI before going on a day hike yesterday. For those of you who are wondering "what in the what is she talking about???" These are Vibram 5 Fingers------->


So what exactly are these things that look like a toe-sock with a sole? They're Heaven in a shoe! Can't you tell by looking at them? Don't focus on how silly they look or over think their purpose... focus on the aura of AMAZING glowing around them! 


Okay... so maybe you can't see the same aura of amazing that I can. So here comes the explanation.


On a recent week long trip to Mt. Whitney my brother (a caveman and the embodiment of all things wilderness, adventure, and physical fitness) wore a pair of Vibram FiveFingers while hiking. It wasn't the first time I'd heard about them (seeing as he works at REI) but it was my first time seeing them in action. He said goodbye to clunky and constricting boots and hello to the way your foot naturally works! I watched as he made wet stream crossing after wet stream crossing without having to put on any kind of water shoe to keep his boots dry. He was so much more agile than the rest of us who were hiking in heavy boots. I had already been convinced before the Mt. Whitney trip that I needed a pair of FiveFingers, but seeing them in action helped solidify it in my mind. I was going to own these and be free of my boots! 


Before I had my Vibrams I ran barefoot around my neighborhood. Crazy? Kinda. But I was annoyed with wearing running shoes and thought "hey, why not just eighty-six the shoes?" It caused me to be more cautious of where I step, gave me blisters when the cement was scorching, made other pedestrians wonder what the cuss I was doing, turned my feet black... but the biggest thing it did for me was strengthen the muscles in my feet and ankles. 


There are 26 bones (One-quarter of the bones in the human body), 33 joints, more than 100 muscles, tendons, and ligaments, and a network of blood vessels, nerves, skin, and soft tissue that make up the human foot. When you wear a shoe, all of those elements that signal your brain about your surroundings and your necessary responses to those surroundings are sheltered and prohibited from helping your mainframe out. Think about it, how much more free do you feel when you're barefoot? I'm not talking about some dumb "inner connection to mother earth" or finding your Chi. I'm talking about what God gave us and using them to their fullest. 


"When you go barefoot, your movements become the movements of a child—playful and sensitive, yet purposeful and confident. You experience the unbound joy of stepping, hopping, and running across any surface on earth, simply to get from here to there." 
             
                   --VibramFiveFingers.com--


That sounds a little "mother earthy" Vibram... so in my own words: "When you go barefoot, your movements become more natural---light and sensitive, yet purposeful and confident. You experience the feeling of freedom from constricting and heavy shoes. With every step your foot sends messages to your brain that help you get from here to there with more balance, range of motion, and agility." That's better. 


God designed our feet to work a certain way. Think about all the little pieces that it takes for our feet to do their thing. What happens to us if we lose our feet? What happens if we lose even just our big toe? When we put on shoes we toss away a portion of what our feet are supposed to be doing. 


Okay... back track. I'm not saying shoes are from Satan or that we should all go barefoot all the time and live like harry hippies or that we should have a huge shoe burning party. I love shoes. High heels, Toms, Vans, Converse, sandals, flats, stylish boots... shoes are an awesome piece of fashion! And we do need shoes to protect our feet from the elements. I wouldn't wear my Vibram FiveFingers in town if it were pouring outside... I'd wear something that's going to keep my foot dry and protected. If I were going to the snow I would wear boots so I don't get hypothermia and die. There is definite logic and style behind wearing shoes.

[My Vibrams, Martin's Vibrams, Madi's Vibram boots]
[that will soon need to be actual Vibram FiveFingers]

Doesn't that totally ruin everything I was just saying about being barefoot? No. No it does not. The things that I feel the need to be barefoot for are physical activities. I wouldn't necessarily wear my Vibram FiveFingers around town just for funskeez unless I was planning on chasing down some ninjas or battling alien parasites trying to take over Fresno. My Vibrams are for running, training, climbing, hiking, and backpacking. Those are the times where I feel that I need my feet to be able to fully talk to my brain.


Wearing these amazing shoes is like being barefoot without the worry of stepping on something that's gonna hurt your paws. So to test it out I wore them on a recent day hike. It was absolutely amazing how much more free I felt on the trail. My feet never got blisters, hot-spots, or sore. The only "problem" I had was getting sand in my shoes, which can be helped by wearing socks with them. At one point on the trip I rain down the trail and back (because I didn't think we were on the right path anymore), which is something I would not have been able to do in my boots. 


So for those of you out there who are wilderness, adventure, or physical activity enthusiasts, I highly recommend that you at least try on a pair of Vibram FiveFingers. Take them for a spin! You'll see their aura of AMAZING within seconds... and even more importantly you'll start to feel their health benefits. 

[Me, standing in front of Upper Twin lake in Kaiser Wilderness, Sierra Nevadas, in my Vibrams]

PREVIEW! My next post will be about that crazy day hike I've been mentioning... not every wilderness trip you take is going to be your 2010 Mt. Whitney-Life-Changing trip (which I also plan to post about). Sometimes, because of circumstances, the trip.just.sucks. 

A BRIEF PAUSE

Oh no! This has become one of those blogs where you don't see a new post for DECADES!!!! 

 No... no it hasn't. 

 A certain turn of events has been preventing me from getting my creative juices flowing, but as soon as they're back (which will be very soon) I'll have something fresh for you to read! 

 Perhaps you can help me? I'd like to know what YOU would like to read about! All ideas are welcome, and everyone can post a comment whether you have a blogger account or not, so send those ideas this direction!

The face of Writer's Block (it looks a lot like MY face)