LAUNCH DAY – Into the Desert!

Well, I’m finally out! Launch day, night, and next morning have been spectacular.
On the way to visit Princess Shiatsu, I took a detour into the Utah desert. Drove several hours through some of the most beautiful scenery I’ve seen – and gained a new appreciation for this habitat I’ve heard is the best for camping. Thoughts ran through: It looks desolate at first, but I know the desert is brimming with life. Stunning. Humbling. I rustled up an antelope, and by nightfall had seen a total of nine antelope and a fox. The only humans I ran across in this desert paradise were a leathery-tanned man who flagged me down to ask if I was lost. “No,” I said. “Are you?” He smiled widely and said in what I can only guess was a Southern Utah accent, “No. We’re out here just chasin’ lizzards.” He was with his son. He knew the land well, and gave me some insider directions to my destination and out, which proved true.

I had planned to see the views and then continue on to civilization. Not having shopped for food or re-packed Sparky (my 2005 Forester), it seemed a non-decision to drive straight through to my long-time friend who once brought me back to health. Sparky was a mess due to the ridiculously complicated move out of my apartment and into a storage shed 2 hours away. That trip to storage happened two weeks before leaving my apartment, so it had been tough deciphering which stuff to hang on to for the trip. At the final hour, turning over my keys, there was a mountain of odds and ends I shouldn’t have brought along. Must lighten up the load as I go.

THE BEST part of launch day was making a decision to camp on the rim of this canyon. I had no wine (Dear God!) or fun food, and dined on one meat stick, my last handful of gogi berries, and water. Thank goodness, I had plenty of water! I also had some heavy cream in the cooler and tons of coffee for the morning.

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This morning (day 2) I busted out the stove and made Mellow Traveler’s amazing coffee. That’s a future video, as I know my fellow travelers appreciate an awesome cup of coffee. As I sit here typing I sip the best coffee (heavily creamed) as I gaze out over the warming canyon and contemplate how long I might have stayed here had I brought along some food…

Note to self: triple-check the cooler plug so that it doesn’t drain into shoes and clothing next time!