SUMMARY:  Just after we settled down for the night last night, a bit of weather blew through with some rain and wind. We were fine and comfortable, but I was listening to it and thinking about how frustrated I felt at our low mileage after hiking all day. Then I remembered the training we took on how to help disaster survivors, and part of it was “your life will never be the same and you’ll learn to live in a ‘new normal.'”

OK, forget 25-30 miles per day, 20 is our “new normal” because this trail is so very tough. Today we spent 1 1/2 hours bushwhacking over a mountain because we lost the trail. We also had awesome trail magic from the parents of Lucky, who is one of the Warrior Hikers. They gave us coffee, juice, and cantaloupes. And we finally got some views, not just forest. Some plants are beginning to turn fall red and yellow—very pretty. We are camped about a mile from the highway to Elliston/Helena.

DETAILS:  Last night we got some spatters of rain and also some very strong, loud wind for a little bit.  No problem for us–we were very comfortable in our little blue tent, and enjoyed listening to it all.  But at the same time I was getting frustrated by the fact that our daily mileages have been so low compared to the amount of effort we’re putting in.  On the PCT, the effort we put out yesterday would have meant probably close to a 30 mile day.  We barely made 21.  Pathetic.

Then I realized something.  True, on the PCT we usually did at least 25 and often 30 miles a day.  On this trail, it’s been more like 20 miles a day…or less. BUT–a few years back, Fixit and I did a training program put on by the Billy Graham Rapid Response chaplain team, so that we could learn how to effectively and compassionately help people who have just survived some horrible trauma or disaster.  Let’s put it this way–we learned a lot about what NOT to do and NOT to say.  But one of the things that stood out was that when you have survived some horrible experience, you come out of it a different person.  Your life will never be the same, and you need to accept “a NEW normal.”  If you keep trying to make your life the same as it was before, you will not succeed, and you’ll end up pretty miserable.

So it hit me last night–I need to stop fretting and accept a “NEW normal”.  This isn’t the PCT, it’s the CDT, and I need to change my expectations about miles-per-day.  Maybe that sounds silly, but it really helped.

Anyway, this morning when we got up, it was very cloudy and that made it stay “early morning dark” for longer than usual.  It turned out to be a rather varied day!  In the morning the trail went along the edge of a huge lava flow/rockslide of large, clinkery rocks that came right down to the edge of the trail.  We were leapfrogging again with Shepherd, so we saw him several times.  I can’t believe we are keeping up with him!  Another surprise today were the grouse–we saw several of them at various times, right in the trail.  They made no attempt to fly away, just hunkered down and peeped.

The trail at one point was a dirt road, and up ahead we spotted an RV.  When we got to it, we saw Shepherd’s pack sitting outside.  Trail magic??  Yes, it was!   Turned out that it was the parents of one of the Warrior Hikers (trail name “Lucky”).  They invited us in, and we got to hang out with them and Shepherd, eating cantaloupe (yum!) and drinking coffee and juice.  Sounds weird, but it sure was good!  We also found out that Lucky is known as the only Warrior HIKER.  The rest are called the “Warrior HITCH-HIKERS” because they spend way more time hitching into town than they do hiking.  Result: they are all way behind Lucky, who is determined to make it to Canada.

In the afternoon, we lost the trail in a meadow, and it took us 1 1/2 hours of bushwhacking to find it again, even with the help of the Garmin.  After that, we nearly lost it again several times, because of twists and turns and unmarked junctions.  To add to the fun, thunder was rumbling, and we could see occasional flashes of lightning, including a time when we were crossing the top of a broad grassy ridge.  But most of the time, we were in forest, and while we were eating our supper, a dead tree came crashing down not far away.

By 7:00, we could see the highway up ahead, and debated, “Should we push on and try to hitch into Elliston tonight, or wait till tomorrow morning?”  We decided to wait–a good decision, as it turned out.  We set up our tent with thunder still rumbling and lightning still flashing in the distance.  And I didn’t worry about mileage.  “New normal!” I kept telling myself.