I did not have a good sleep so I got up about 6-ish, had a quick
breakfast and hit the road – aiming for Portland that night.
With the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, I think the hiking
difficulty I experienced must have been intensified by the
worst California fires in years, where there were "bad air" warnings
from Bakersfield to Redding. Even though it was cool high in the mountains the air had a
haze, wasn't crystal-clear as usual, and though we didn't give it much thought,
I believe the conditions must have slowed us down.
On the road through California, the air was absolutely awful
– purple, in fact. Could not see across
the highway and it really made no difference whether one was in the car or
outside – the air quality was the same.
I found out later it was in the “high danger” zone.
A friend of mine commented “I am hiding in my house, trying
not to breathe, due to smoke in the air. The temperature is supposed to be 114
degrees Fahrenheit today. … saw a
blood-red moon last night, which was beautiful, but unsettling."
By the time I reached the Oregon border we were out of the
smoke but my breathing had deteriorated considerably. Wheezing, I was. I arrived in Portland to my friend Kay’s in the early evening and we went out for a
bite to eat. I was absolutely dead tired
and slept like a log with cats clambering all over and using the bed as a
battle ground.
In the morning, we had breakfast but then I came
back and slept some more. I was clearly
right tuckered out. Went out for a ride
on the Tri-met but I had to give it up due to exhaustion. That night we had a hugely delicious dinner
at Elmer’s, a “delicious down home Northwest dining experience which
specializes in roast beef dinners. Mmmm
good.
No comments:
Post a Comment