Sleeping and Working in Ashland!
I am in my big motel bed in Ashland, and am just laying here with pillows under my legs to elevate them.
They hurt.
I have a felling they need a break from hiking.
Alright, they can have their break, but not too long I am afraid…
I want to keep hiking! But I can offer them Ibuprofen! 3x 600 mg per day, that’s what they get!
But I can not just lay there in my lovely air-conditioned room! I have work to do!
I need to plan resupply for Oregon!
I figure that the resupplying strategy in Oregon is harder than in California, so I need to make three food packages and send them ahead. Plus, I need food for the next six days to Crater Lake.
Sounds easy right?
It is not!
This means a lot of walking to the various supermarkets here in Ashland.
And it needs a lot of thinking and contemplating. And it needs a lot of carrying food to the motel and then to the post office.
A 20 day hike junk food supply is really heavy!
Now:
“Where do I find what? What shall I eat in the next 20-ish days? What do they have in which supermarket? Which protein bars can I still eat and which make me throw up just by looking at them?”
I figured that I never really seem to eat breakfast (apart from the two weeks when I got spare Oatmeal packages from Felix). As long as it is so hot in the morning already, I am fine with just a Snicker bar for breakfast (really!). I will get back to oatmeal once it gets colder again.
So I am going to buy like 20 Snickers bars. What else? Couscous, noodles, lentils, rice, protein bars, and emergency Ramen soup packages. Chips, (Fritos!), salty snacks, dried fruits, and other little things to nibble on.
Thank God they have an outdoor store in Ashland, so I can get some vegetarian freeze dried food. I would buy lots but they don’t have much in stock! Bummer! So I purchase all they have! And I even get a PCT hiker discount!
[“Felix: they have one package of Pasta Primavera left which I happily put in my basket!”]
That’s done. It took me almost a full day!
Now I have to make parcels and bring them to the post office.
More walking! More carrying!
And of course the PCT does not make it easy: The Shelter Cove Resort, to where one parcel is supposed to be shipped to, only accepts packages sent by UPS. So I carry one load to the UPS store, which is of course at the other end of town.
The girl there is super friendly and helps me to squeeze all the food into a small parcel, so that I have to pay less!
Ashland is nice, but cars dominate the city! The noise of cars and city seems to make me tired.
I want to go back to the trail, where I hear nothing but nature. Sometimes I don’t even hear nature out there. Sometimes it is just totally quiet! I just hear my breathing and the sound my boots and hiking poles make on the path.
Then I sometimes just stop walking for a few seconds and listen to the absolute quietness.
I love this!
Well! I am going to buy another strawberry smoothie now (already had three!) and then go back to my lovely motel bed to have another snooze and then another shower. Just because I can!
Roadrunner, Swiss Miss and I are going to have a pre-hike aperitif by the motel pool later in the evening. I am looking forward to this little party!
Soon again, we will hitch a ride to the trail head and resume hiking, direction Crater Lake!
Heidi living large in Ashland. I feel tired just reading about your hoofing it all around Ashland. Hang in there! —Dale (aka Felix’s Dad)
Hi Dale! So very super nice to hear from you! Yes! It was soo exhausting in Ashland … And I spent way too much money in town!! Glad to be back on the trail!!
Crater lake i have been 1987! By car bo by mobilehome!
Hi Pirkko! Haha! I guess it will take me a little longer by foot!
Hi Heidi,I feel some of your pain.Im planning my first thru hike ever going on the JMT August 2. Spent many hours pulling together my first bucket of resupply. Ours is a mere 21 days but I can already see my self choking down last bits of trail mix!! Love your posts! Randy
Hello Randy! Awe you are doing the JMT! How wonderful! I am sure the damn snow will be gone in August! Hopefully one day 3 can do the JMT too! Happy Trails Randy!!
Hi Heidi!–your feet look a lot better than they did in your first hiking pictures!!—no blisters and plasters all over them! Hope the hiking is good to Crater Lake! xx-Kathy
Hi Kathy!! Yes! Feet are doing great indeed! But I do give them a massage in Arnika creme every single night! Seems to do them the world of good! Big hug! Heidi
Too bad you didn’t have time for a Shakespearean play while in Ashland. Maybe next time ;-). Enjoying your posts, Heidi, and great photography. Good luck on the next leg.
Hi Bruce! I don’t think they would have let me in, wearing my hiking cloths and boots!! Thanks for liking my blog Bruce! It means so much to me!!
Meine liebe Heidi, ich kann dir zwei Dinge versprechen ; wenn wir zwei unterwegs sein werden Richtung Nordpol , dann werden wir uns 1. mehr Zeit nehmen um die Natur, ihre Stille und ihre Schönheit zu geniessen und 2. werden wir kühlere Temperaturen haben. Wie schafft ihr es nur bei über 30 Grad noch unterwegs zu sein ? Ich wäre längst kollabiert, würde ausgedorrt wie eine Rosine den nächsten Fluss aufsuchen und mich stundenlang im kühlen Wasser suhlen oder mich in einem Schneefeld einbuddeln. Ich weiss nicht wie ihr das macht, dann noch mit diesem Gewicht auf dem Rücken. Ich wünsche dir heilende Füsse , viele schöne stille Momente auf dem Trail , möglichst viel zu lachen , weniger stressige organisatorische Stadtmomente und eine tiefe innere Freude beim Unterwegssein. Big Hug Sandy
Vielen lieben Dank Sandy! Ja die Hitze ist schon krass! Aber ich ignoriere sie oft einfach… What can you do! Aber ja! Nordpol! Da bin ich dabei!! ;) Big hug! Heidi
It is awesome that you are continuing your journey. We send our best wishes your way.
Thanks Carol and Jim!!
Hi Heidi. It’s Michael, Rosie and Isabella Sroka. We just got home on Friday from a family vacation in Europe and had visited Tim and Walter in Gimmelwald. YOU GO GIRL! We’re so proud of what you’ve accomplished so far. We’re in L.A. If you need ANYTHING let us know.
Hi Rosie! Thanks so much for your nice comment and your offer! That’s awesome! I hope you had a great time up in the Swiss Mountains!