Walk the Parks

For years Base Camp has been a resting and resupply, and sometimes water drop stop, for those hiking the Hayduke and Discovery Trails. The Hayduke starts in Arches, goes to Zion and does a few more parks in between, over 800 miles long. It's not really a trail as much as it is GPS coordinates.

The Discover Trail starts in Delaware and goes to the Golden Gate bridge, nearly 4,000 miles long. When they get to me they've been hiking the trail for a very long time, usually at least 18 months with six to eight more to go.

Then last year I learned of the TAT trail, Trans-America Trail. It starts on the east coast somewhere and goes to Oregon. It's a motorcycle trail for combination street and off road motorcycles. This year was a tough year for some of the riders going down Lockhart Basin and I did several rescues and preventive journeys down there for TAT riders.

Last month sometime Steffi and Andi came through on their bicycles and said they are doing the Trans-Continental Trail, for bicycles, and it comes right through here. They had done 19,000 miles since the 4th of July when they left Anchorage Alaska and were on their way to Chile in South America. A total they thought of around 35,000 miles. In the first 19,000 miles they hadn't gotten a single flat tire. They got two of them coming down Hurrah Pass.

So I'm going to town and I run across a guy with walking sticks, almost always a Hayduker or Discoverer. His name is Blake Robinson and he's doing the Walk the Parks trail. Actually I think he's making the trail. 20,000 miles, 47 National Parks, 2 feet, and 1 dream. You can find his journey at walktheparks.com.

I love this country. I love it's people.

Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign

A few years ago the insurance company made me put a couple signs down at the beach on the river. It was irritating. With Kobae gone until the end of February somewhere I finally found a use for the signs. Best cover up the entrance to his house so I don't get a badger move in again.

Hiking with Jax: (The Anti-Cline)

Jax and I hiked up the west end of the Anti-Cline from the north and then down the south side. It's a pretty cool hike. On the way back Jax got to live his dream of trying to be a cattle dog. Whenever we'd see one cow by itself Jax would run over and try and chase it around but once a cow would stop and stare at him he's run back to me. The Go Pro battery had long gone dead on this long hike so I don't have any video on this but eventually about 30 cows got together and started following Jax and I back on our hike. I'd stop and stare at them and they'd stop. Once we started hiking again they'd come right up behind us again. Eventually I picked up a rock and good size stick and they kept their distance the balance of our hike back.

Monday Hike with Jax: Over Under Around

We did the Last Hurrah hogans trail to Boulder Canyon in reverse order going up it instead of down. I thought it was going to be tougher but in fact it was much easier simply because we could better see the obstacles in front of us and pick a better path.

Jax Goes Kayaking

Thursday: Hiking with Jax

Lot of work to do on a day with no guests though that all changes again tomorrow. Still in early afternoon Jax and I got in a couple hour hike.

Kobae to San Diego

I took Kobae back to San Diego Saturday. I didn't want to. The weather is still nice every day and the forecast for the next two weeks is 60 plus. Rachel watched the place for me and her window for me to get there and back was limited so I had to go when I could.

I took Jax with me, forgot to take a collar and leash because out here he never wears one. So bought one there, hooked him up and on our Sunday hike it was much easier to control Kobae. Every time he'd start some trouble I would just run Jax in front of him and he'd take off after Jax. Eventually I took Jax off leash and collar as he was pretty responsive to my call and cooperative in controlling Kobae. On our Monday hike it backfired. Kobae lost interest in Jax and Jax was way more independent so I had twice the trouble I would have normally had. I didn't take any pictures (almost) because I was so busy trying to keep them both under control. The picture I wish I would have gotten though was a house was being torn inside out because of mold. There were about ten guys around with those space suits on and when they all came out of the house to see Kobae it looked just like the scene in ET where all the space people are trying to keep ET alive. Man it was funny and Kobae does look a little like ET.

Kobae was good on the way to San Diego. Had to have a guest help me put him in the truck but when I got to San Diego I put some suitcases down and made him a step ladder from the truck and he got out on his own at midnight and went into the garage. Fourteen hours in the truck and he didn't leave me any presents in the back seat but man he unloaded when he got in the garage. Jax spent almost 30 hours out of 80 in the truck and he was a great travel companion.

When I listed Last Hurrah and Base Camp on the booking sites three months or so ago Home Away changed my narrative about the properties. I called them to give them grief and they said they didn't have any choice. They have to translate my narrative into 55 languages for all their web sites and some of the words I use don't exist in most of those languages. I said "Give me an example." They said "Critter". So the one picture I did take while I was out hiking Kobae and Jax, well how do they explain this then?

On Sunday night I went to the Socker's game and they won, as they usually do but it was a very close game. Saw a lot of old friends.

On Tuesday I drove straight through to get back. There were quite a few people staying here and I felt bad leaving Rachel alone for all of them. On Wednesday she headed home and I got unpacked and a bunch of stuff done in time to see this Wednesday evening.

Elsie, Jax, Kobae, and the Cows

Rachel and I are out hiking with the dogs, Elsie, Jax, and Kobae. Kobae is chasing/following them. Elsie is pretty aware of Kobae always being right behind her and trying to ram her but on this hike she seems distracted and three times Kobae rams her. Elsie saw what Rachel and I didn't a few moments later.