Backpacking Debut at Point Reyes
Saturday morning, Mosh got up before me, but that's to be expected. After getting some cereal and a bagel from the house kitchen, I went back to her room to talk about the plans for the day. We were heading to Point Reyes National Seashore for an overnight backpacking excursion. We each packed the things we needed, including some communal items, like a stove and the tent. I don't remember when we actually headed out, but it wasn't too early. It may have been around noon. I know the plan was for 1pm (to ensure getting to camp before dark), but we may have left early. We drove up to the Golden Gate Bridge, where we stopped so I could take touristy pictures and stamp my NPS passport. We also decided to get lunch at the café in the gift shop. We had a pleasant meal out on the pier, where I could see most of the bay. It was a lot smaller than I expected. Later, checking a map, I discovered it was considerably smaller than Lake Pontchartrain, which borders the northern edge of New Orleans. I used the lake as a frame of reference, and I expected the bay to be bigger, explaining my disconcertion. Is that a word? It was around this point that Mosh realized we had forgotten to pick up a second sleeping bag, back at school. Using her handy-dandy REI membership card, she called the nationwide number to find the nearest REI location (REI rents gear, including sleeping bags). Unfortunately, Mosh doesn't drive a lot, and she accordingly didn't feel pressure to keep a San Francisco map in her car.

We got lost. For a while. Eventually, we stopped at a convenience store, where the cashier couldn't point us in the right direction, and she was out of maps. Eventually, we were able to purchase a map, and we got the needed sleeping bag from REI.

We drove back to the Golden Gate Bridge, and I took some pictures from the car as we drove over the bridge. I acted as a reasonably competent navigator, until I fell asleep. But we made it to the trailhead parking lot safely. We were later than we'd planned, with the sleeping bag/aimless driving fiasco. But it was nice out, and immediately was able to spot some animals. There were some quadrupeds that thought were deer at first, but upon closer inspection, that didn't appear to be an accurate guess. They were all over the park, though. I also got a picture of some three(ish)-foot tall bird, looking like a dirty crane.

The walk in was alright, but you'll have to ask Mosh if I complained a lot. Clearly, I wouldn't continue to complain if I thought I was being excessive, so I can't accurately describe my behavior. It was starting to get dark as we approached the campsite, but the sky still glowed a faint, dark blue. Towards the end of the hike in, we started playing the "Geography Name Game," but we ended it when we got to the site (Glen Camp, I think). We got set up pretty quickly, and we got to work on dinner. On the way in, we munched on dried mangoes (a present from my mom's visit) and beef jerky (Oh Boy! Oberto, impulsively purchased at the REI), but we were ready for dinner. We boiled water for pasta as we shredded and/or chopped onions, peppers, and mushrooms. When the pasta was al dente, we softened the vegetables over the flame a bit, before adding it to the pasta pot, with some tomato paste. It was pretty awesome. We were full and feeling lazy, so we skipped washing the pots and bowls, and we just stashed them away before going to bed.

The next morning, I got up first, since I'm a lighter sleeper, I think. It was mostly because the sky was brightening, but I could also clearly hear some other campers in the area going about their morning business. I was feeling hungry, so I tried to remember what Mosh had shown me about the stove's operation so I could boil some of the pasta we hadn't gotten to. We still had some apples and trail mix, but I wanted something warm. I kind of got it going, but it didn't fully work until Mosh got up and did her magic. So we had plain pasta for breakfast. Just so I don't sound like a total user, I did wash the dishes from the previous night before she got up.

We packed up camp, and we headed to Arch Rock, which is a point on the coast. While I had been feeling pretty good the night before, I was starting to hurt that morning. My traps were a little sore, but not too bad. The main problem was by my hips. I don't think there were bruises, but actual muscle soreness. My butt was killing me, as well as the meat on the side, directly below the hips. I guess this means I was mostly carrying the weight of the pack on my hips, as I should have, but it made walking (and using all those muscles) kind of tiresome. My Complaining Quotient (CQ) was making a steady rise. Arch Rock was worth it, though. We did some exploring in the area, travelling a bit off the normal beaten path. We spotted some weird sea creatures, including something that resembled a flower, attached to a rock in the water, colored a striking iridescent green. It curiously contracted itself when we touched it.

Anyway, after taking in the view and taking the requisite pictures, we headed back toward the parking lot. Along the way, the arch of my right foot started to really ache, in addition to the pains I was already feeling. My CQ may have been through the roof. I tried not to, though. We also played more of the Geography Name Game. After having to name five or six countries, states, cities, rivers, or famous geographic formations that started with 'E,' I declared that the next time I had to name another 'E,' I would give up. And I did.

Happily back at the Visitors' Center (and the car), I got the needed passport stamp. We broke out the apples in celebration. Or at least I did, and Mosh indulged me. We were soon on our way, and I managed to spot new scenery I had slept through. We stopped at a café where Mosh had stopped on her Pacific Coast bike ride. She had been thoroughly impressed by their milkshakes. I didn't follow her advice, opting for chai and a bit of a pesto pasta salad, both of which were pretty subpar. I tried her butterscotch milkshake, though, and it was pretty awesome.

I fell asleep again, I think. We stopped in San Francisco to return the sleeping bag, but I think the trip back was otherwise uneventful. By early afternoon Sunday, we were back in her room, where we took turns checking email and passing out on her futon.
- posted by roger @ 1:58 AM