What’s next

A new site? A new routine? Or more of the same? Goals? New goals, or old goals that can be resurrected?

The wind attacked again today pretty severely, steady thirty miles per hour for about four hours. The tarp tent help up amazingly, yet did open up a little bit. Whatever the precise breeding conditions are for mosquitoes, I think it was reached a few days ago.  There were only a few mosquitoes around, just here and there you would see a cloud of them. At night, they all come around the tent to see the lights. This has been a regular occurrence, last night it was loud, yet tonight it sounds like it’s raining. All by the volume of the mosquitoes throwing themselves into the exterior of the tarp tent.

Woke up not feeling so well and very glad my camp now has a toilet. An hour later I sat with my first cup of tea for the day (I seemed to drink a bit today,) and was feeling fine after milk and cereal breakfast. I think I took a half dozen or more walks today- I set a timer to chime on the hour, each time I’ve at least walked the length of the driveway and back. In between, I studied maps.  The paper MVUM of the Carlsbad district, and the online digital maps of all of the Lincoln National Forest.

For as large as the forest is and as many camping sites are offered I must imagine a lot of them are not so good, or rather great for someone else, and the rest are something I’ll be interested in. The issue, is that I won’t have that much gas to drive around.  From either way I come, even if straight from the gas station (which I would make that my very last stop) the nearest part of the forest where I want to stay is forty five miles away, leaving the same as the return trip to get more gas. This would leave about another ninety miles in the tank to cruise around the forest before having to head back to Carlsbad for more gas.

Of course, once there for gas, I would be able to resupply on fresh food (steak, salad, and bread) as well. That is a little farther than I want to travel for food and gas, so over the course of the day I spent an equal amount of time studying the next mountain range to the north, the Sacramento Mountains, also part of the Lincoln National Forest. From the maps, that is about half the distance to its nearest bit town, Alamogordo. There is also a State Park in the area, Oliver Lee.

That area is five thousand feet AGL, with peaks over nine thousand- just a few weeks ago there was a twelve inch snow storm there! The southern mountain range, the Guadeloupe mountains, go from three thousand to five or six thousand.  Now, I certainly won’t be climbing any mountain peaks- yet the mountain roads that go along some of the peaks are traversable by passenger car. So, in addition to maps and GPS, I even have an altimeter for my car- just to make sure I don’t get too high.

I am considering going straight to Alamogordo.. ahh, always indecision as I prepare to pack and go. Where next, what then?

More walking? Hiking? Well, as for PT this is great.. as for some life fulfilling hobby.. maybe not so much for me.

What’s next?

Sorry, this topic is going to stay a question for now.  For now, I have a list of things to do before I go..

Time to rest.

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