I got up earlier than normal, all too glad to leave my muggy abode behind. This was the first night I slept without sleeping bag for most of it. I only had my underpants on and felt like my sweat had glued me to my sleeping pad.
As I got out of my tent, Big Oil was leaving the campsite without his pack.
‘I forgot my trekking poles at the store, down in the valley’, he said listlessly. Poor guy, he would miss the cooler window of the day to get out of this wretched place.
Fitz raced past me while I was packing up my stuff, followed by Spice, Mouse and Stinger. They had all camped in Seiad Valley, so they must have gotten up crazy early to already be here.
I left camp at 5h45, instantly pushing up the climb. After overtaking those ahead of me, I found Drive Thru at the first water source. I was already drenched in sweat, my shorts dripping onto my legs. My deepest wish at this point is a single day with dry shorts. I let out a scream. That was a brutal climb and more was ahead.
I didn’t waste time and pushed ahead. I got to the next break spot right after Mash. The others gathered there shortly after and I started looking at FarOut comments for the Oregon border. As expected Sticky had written a signature Haiku. Besides that, there was a running joke about border patrol checks. Some described how their ramen was confiscated or how there was a full body cavity check before crossing over. The best comment was this amazing Monty Python reference however by Captain Fantastic:
Travelers must first answer these questions three, ere the other side they see:
1) what is your name?
2) what is your quest?
3) what is the capital of the state of Jefferson?
I love the FarOut community.
Further on, I got some grim news: a fire had started near Crater Lake. Just when I thought we’d escaped the fires and would be safe, this happens. And that wasn’t the end. I got to the campsite and found one side of the valley to be completely covered in smoke. Some people around me claimed they had seen flames on the other side of the valley. Our luck had run out and what I feared the most had now happened: fire season was here. A thunderstorm had started this one and we could clearly hear the thunder.
Anyway, the fire seemed too small to bother us for now. Tomorrow we’ll be at the border and hiking away from the fire. Hopefully they can extinguish the one at Crater Lake by then. I can’t believe we’re about to leave California behind, we’ve been here for what feels like an eternity. Fitz was remarking that it had become a part of her identity and that she didn’t know what it would do to her to suddenly be in another state.
Tonight, we sleep in the smoke and tomorrow, we leave all this behind.