Day 40 - Swifts or Swallows!! — Walking People Out of Poverty

May 25

Depart Mile 712.94

Arrive Mile 729.50

I woke up at what I thought was 6 am and left my tent, to pay a visit to my loo which is set in the great outdoors! It was freezing and there was a film of ice covering my tent. I climbed back into my sleeping bag and the warmth felt so good as I started to arrange my gear. Packing each morning is not as straight forward as you would think, as it’s always mind game trying to figure out what to put at the top of the pack. That’s because you never know from one day to the next what you are likely to need. Today, for instance, my North Face hat and gloves will be needed whilst I’m breaking camp, and when I commence walking. My rain gear, on the other hand, can be stored a little lower down in my bag as the sky was clear, hence the chill, and the sun was coming up. I checked my watch and it was only 5:20 am!! Well I was awake now and so carried on packing. As I always wear shorts getting out of my sleeping bag is not a pleasant experience, especially as I now have to pack my sleeping bag and mat, and once my packing is complete I then have to take my tent down.

I have a system when getting my tent ready and here are the steps I employ. Once the tent is empty I go round and take out all of the pegs, and put them in the little bag that they came in. I then remove the tent fly, and place it to one side before I lift the tent off the ground sheet and tilt it so that the open door end is facing the ground, then give it several vigorous shakes to get rid of any loose dirt or detritus, that would have collected from the time I set my camp up. I then place the tent back on the groundsheet and start to unclip the fastenings that connect the tent to the poles. It’s actually one pole that is connected to another pole to form a shape similar to a giant Y. If you replaced the V section of the y with a u then you will get a clearer picture of the shape. Then, once I have “collapsed” the interlocking poles I put them away in their bag, and place the tent pegs in with them. I now ensure the tent is aligned with the groundsheet beneath and when I’m happy that it is I place the tent fly on top. As the fly is a peculiar shape this was a bit of a challenge at the beginning of the trip, but with all the experience of the last few weeks it doesn’t take long at all. Once I’m satisfied I fold the the tent, from the bottom, in about one third, and go to the door end of the tent and fold that in. I then fold in the next corner, and proceed to the bottom of the tent where I complete the fold. I now have the groundsheet, tent and fly ready to be rolled up into a nice, neat package which easily slips into the tent bag. From start to finish the whole process only takes 3-4 minutes before the tent and poles are placed into the large outside pocket of my backpack.

I was on the trail by 6:40 am and the walking was very pleasant as I approached Beck’s Meadow. Unfortunately the meadow was nothing like what the name implied, apart from the fact that it was a huge open tract of land. What was missing was grass, and in its place were tall plants which I can only assume were native to the area. One thing I did know for sure was it would have been impossible to pitch a tent. I made my way along the Eastern edge of the meadow which was a steady incline through trees and I was eventually delivered to the campground that Legend had recommended the previous day. I could see instantly why Legend had been so positive about the area as it was beautiful.

The river was meandering over the rocks and under a beautiful bridge where I was bewitched by the scene that was playing out. It was around 8:30 and there was a flock of birds, and I was unsure if they were Swifts or Swallows, (I can never remember how you tell the the difference), and they were on a feeding frenzy! The birds ducked and dived beneath the bridge and enjoying a veritable feast on the early morning insect banquet. It was quite the sight. There was a couple, further down the river, enjoying the early morning warmth now that the river and it’s banks were bathed in sunlight, and a fellow strode by on the opposite side of the river with a fishing rod in hand. It was a lovely morning and so I decided this was the perfect spot for breakfast. As I was out of water this was the perfect place to fill up and so I filtered a couple of litres of water. Then I fired up the stove and made coffee and a warm cereal dish, both of which were very tasty. After a wonderfully relaxing break I washed my mug and spork, (breakfast was eaten straight out of the plastic bag), and was soon back on the trail. I was now faced with a 2400 foot climb, and felt every last inch of it with the extra weight I was carrying. Yesterday I had entered the Sequioa National Forest and it was beautiful, and the further in I got the more spectacular the trees became. At lunch time I was able to dry my tent and fly, which were soaking after last nights heavy frost, but it’s amazing how quickly they dry out. The afternoon was lovely and I enjoyed a lovely downhill section and I actually camped early for a change. Next year when I return to the trail I must make more of an effort to do this more often as this is the only thing I would change.