A moment to pause

The next chapter can begin, I wrote. But sometimes a new chapter starts with a moment to pause instead of action. Even if you had other plans. The past weeks the weather has been so nice that I’ve forgotten to check it the last few days. Now that I do check, I’m shocked. It’s going to rain all day. And not just a little. What now? 

Leaving early is an option. It will still be dry until around eleven. But if I wake up at half-past eight, I’m not ready to go yet. I feel tired, which doesn’t happen often. Quickly packing up, which is not my strong suit, isn’t going to happen now. I’ll just turn over again. I’ll figure it out.

Water is a problem

When I wake up later, it’s immediately clear. First, I check my food supply: more than enough. Noodles, crackers, peanut butter, tuna, mackerel, tomato soup, nectarines, eggs, tortillas, taco sauce, and even a chocolate granola bar. Do you see now why I have my hiking cart Wheelie? Only water is the issue. A big issue too. Just half a liter left. That’s not enough coffee. And that’s going to be my downfall. I’m really bummed. Truly not enough moisture for an entire day, night, and morning. 

I’m an idiot

I get up, slowly, annoyed, until I literally hit myself on the head. Idiot. I’m by a lake. It’s going to rain all day. How is there no water? Let’s filter some. I turn my sleeping mat into a chair, and Wheelie into a writing table. So there I sit. Fleece and wind jacket on, legs in my sleeping bag. It’s cool, around 15 degrees, quite windy, and it’s raining all day long. I don’t even go to the compost toilet a hundred meters away. Too wet. I could have put on my poncho too, I think later. But that thought didn’t occur to me. I’m clearly not sharp today.

A nice interlude

The forecasts for the rest of the week are good. This was a brief interlude and it was quite nice. Reading, writing, coffee, browsing the internet, napping, eating, coffee, pondering, more coffee, and frequent visits from a finch. Long live freedom.

Overnight stay: Grevlingbukta, a shelter at Moss