Aubrey and I on a recent trip
Despite 2 months of training, my good friend Aubrey is now unable to go on the Hells Canyon backpacking trip. It’s one of those personal, non-bloggy things.
Reader: Since when did you become discreet about your personal life?
Addy: I’m working on it, ok? I have discovered that my friends have healthier privacy boundaries than I do.
No, she had a “bad feeling,” and decided that the hike was not the right thing for her to do this week.
Addy: Grumble, grumble. Bad feeling. Argh.
Turns out, she was right. Earlier this week, Aubrey’s dog Sunshin (our hiking companion) started wheezing, breathing rapidly and looked like she was in pain. Aubrey took her to the vet, and they told her that Sunshin has bronchitis, a bladder infection, and severe dehydration. If she had gone to Hell’s Canyon, I’m not sure what would have happened, but it would have been bad news bears.
So I’ve learned to trust Aubrey’s intuition, and I’m sure her backpacking training will payoff later on another trip.
I, however, was still planning on hiking Hells Canyon. I no longer had my hiking buddy or my camera, but I had wanted to do this trip for over six months and nothing short of a blown hamstring or a zombie attack would stop me now. Besides, I had asked for the time off a while ago and couldn’t take it back now.
So I thought. There was a mixup at work and I couldn’t actually take those days off. And the people who did have vacation this week, far outranked me in seniority. Things had fallen through on all counts.
I had worked so hard to prepare for the trip. I even had the car ride there figured out. The drive to Hell’s Canyon is roughly 8 hours (taking into account the fact that I am a very slow driver), and I had armed myself with several audio books from the library.
I had:
When You are Engulfed in Flames by Dave Sedaris,
I Like You by Amy Sedaris,
The Areas of My Expertise by John Hodgman,
I am the One I Want by Margaret Cho,
El Mas Chingon by George Lopez, and
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison.
Reader: That’s 5 comedians and Toni Morrison. I’m not sure they all go together.
Addy: Things do not always make sense. Learn to embrace the mystery.
Our adventures are not totally at an end. One of the benefits of being underemployed is that you often have a lot of time on your hands. As a result, I’m headed down to Sisters this weekend to do a 55 mile backpacking trip, and hopefully Aubrey will be able to join me for a few days.
Don’t you worry Hell’s Canyon. I’m still coming for you this summer, and nothing can stop me now. I’ll shoot for late August or early September and cross my fingers with the hope that things will work out.
