Dinner Out

I took myself out for dinner, my kind of dinner, and it was divine. Of course it included a pack on my back and a little walk of about 14.5 miles through the woods, but that's the kind of dinner I like, you know?

Okay, it was actually a few meals because this was my yummy breakfast of couscous, cinnamon, dates and cranberries with a side of camp coffee. Oh, I do like dining out!

Um hmm, the lakes were still frozen though there was quite a bit of thawing around the edges and in shallow swamps. I was out there just at the cusp of blooms, no flowers to be found, but the trees are full of new buds that are just beginning to swell. Soon. Spring is well on it's way in the forests.

A lovely fire when I stopped for the night. I rehiked a trail I've already been on a year ago, Nichols Lake to 16 Mile and back on the NCT, but it's such a pretty up and back hike, even this early in the spring, that I knew it would make a lovely albeit brief overnighter. Lots of hills and lakes through open forest with a fair amount of snow still on the trails makes for a lovely walk. I kept smiling and thinking to myself, "I'm so lucky!" The temps were low 50's / high 40's during the day with completely blue sky, but upper 20's at night; a fire was necessary, and really, what's a great dinner out without a fire?

Yeah, I took myself out for dinner...