Huckleberry Heaven

Day 115, Mile 2085.5ish---Last night i woke up about 4am to a wet sleeping bag and a cold body. Condensation, dew, whatever you want to call it - happened. So today i took about an hour and a half lunch break and put most everything in my pack out on the rocks in the sun. So currently i write from a dry sleeping bag in a dry tent, hope it's the same in the morning. I am camped in the forest as opposed to the deck of a cabin next to a lake, so it should be good. What's with the "L" in should, could, would? Anyway if you re wondering why Icebag hasn't been mentioned in the last few posts it's cause he is not with me. We got separated that first day on the way to Santiam Pass in the storm. Found out yesterday that there was a note for me written in the dirt from him saying to go to Big Lake Youth Camp to wait out the bad weather. Paranoia and some others were there and got treated to warm cabins and good camp food. Paranoia relayed this all to me yesterday and i realized the exact spot where i missed the note. There was another note to Sundown there from Hoffa, a birthday message for Beautiful, and i got them all and missed mine. But i guess finding your way to a nordic ski hut on your way to hypothermia is a better story, maybe. Today there was a lot of what i consider classic Oregon forest. It reminded me of the movie The Hunted with Benecio DelTorro and Tommy Lee Jones. You should see it if you haven't, i mean it's not like a cinematic masterpiece, but it's entertaining and based on some real facts. Underline some. Ran into some horseback riders from the Estacada area after lunch. They knew of all the places my family frequents there but didn't know any of my family outright. In the afternoon i came upon the title of this post. I had eaten a few here and there earlier and some thimble berries or saskitoons (sp?) as they are called in Canada. But in this one stretch of trail it was like every 10ft there was another huckleberry bush laden with ripe fruit. I think i may have had some wild blueberries too but at any rate i had so many my hand was stained purple. I was afraid i would come upon a group of hikers and get a trail name like Huckleberry Hand, or The Huckleberry Kid, or just Stains. Finished out the day hiking with Paranoia for about half an hour. We are camped above Timothy Lake in a nice spot. A mysterious black bar is forming on either side across the bottom of my pocketmail device screen. I am going to go before it connects and whatever happens when that happens, happens. Timberline tomorrow and then its all downhill after that - to sea level. Bearden's, Chartier's, Koester's I am on my way! Thought of the day; it's amazing where you can go when you just start walking. Songs of the day; Be Our Guest from Beauty and the Beast (yes i know all the words but i will spare you) and Afternoon Delight from Anchorman. Cravings of the day; frosted mini-wheats with blueberries and bananas, a slice of Turducken (although i have never had this before) and lastly this thing I'm going to call a "calorie loaf" that i had once at my Aunt Jane's' house. It is cheese and those little miniature hot dog type things (the name escapes me) wrapped in what i think was a croissant crust type thing. Like a giant pigs in a cheese blanket. Man i am doing a horrible job at describing this, but it tasted really really good.


JWC on the PCT