Monday, May 18, 2009

Blythe II: Decisive Indecision

Miles since last blog: 8.1
Miles Total: 3541.1

Route

The choice was either walk the interstate 100 miles which has rest areas and gas stations, or walk the legal way 120 miles with nothing. 100 miles is too far for my normal tactic of "better to ask forgiveness than permission" and so I tried to call the CHP, they could decide for me. They did, in a way. The CHP is not open on the weekends here so I couldn't ask permission, I had no place to stay in town, thus it was time to leave. If I was lucky I could make more than 20 miles and be within 100 miles when I woke up, I stayed a long time in town waiting for it to be cool and planning on walking at night.

Eight miles down my track I was hot and wanted to take a break, I found a beat down old shack off the road and laid down behind it. A short time later a man pulled up and we said our hellos. Eventually he offered me to stay with him and his family for the evening and I never turn down a shower or a home cooked meal unless I have one waiting somewhere else. So here I am, only eight miles in, within reach of the interstate still and my cousin slated to show tomorrow afternoon.

I can't walk on the interstate with my cart, but with my cousin showing in the afternoon I could leave it behind the shack and come back for it in the car when she arrives, leaving me free to walk off the side of the road enough to be legal. An interesting proposition. I don't need to make it far, a 16 mile stretch and later a 9 mile stretch with side roads everywhere else along the way, but do I head back and leave my cart all day? Hmmmm, it's a thinker. The only reason it's a question is mostly because of the fact that I had already resolved myself to the idea I was going the other way and the prospect of isolation and pure nature had started to excite me, on the other hand the interstate would have supplies, be shorter, I'd have more time to spend having fun with my cousin. I think I know what I'll choose, but I won't know until I show up in the morning at my cart which I did leave behind the shack tonight. Hmmm.

New MexiGO!

1 comment:

Jessica Reeder said...

Hello from Nevada County! I came home for a birthday celebration, am leaving again tomorrow but wanted you to know that it's beautiful here, and the river is high & blue, and baby birds are fledging and all the poppies are out.