Thursday, March 11, 2010
Canadian, Texas
I had a tough time coming into Canadian, Texas. I camped out about six miles north of Wheeler on Hwy 83, and not knowing what I would be up against the next day, I decided to make it to Canadian.
.
In the morning, the winds were between 30 and 40 mph, coming diagonally into me. I walked like that for hours, almost leaning into the wind. I'm just glad it wasn't stronger. The night before, a tornado had hit just 30 or so miles east of my position, over the border into Oklahoma.
.
Getting closer to Canadian, people started honking and waving at me. Very nice welcome. One woman even stopped and introduced herself. After talking with the editor over the phone, I learned that the Canadian Chamber of Commerce would be offering me a night or two in a hotel and food accommodations. After 28 miles of walking into the wind, I was only too happy to accept.
.
I'm trying something new with some audio clips. There's an issue putting the words and audio on the same page (I'm no HTML expert, but I know it's not working.), so I'm separating my commentary from this new thing I'm trying. Enjoy!
.
In the morning, the winds were between 30 and 40 mph, coming diagonally into me. I walked like that for hours, almost leaning into the wind. I'm just glad it wasn't stronger. The night before, a tornado had hit just 30 or so miles east of my position, over the border into Oklahoma.
.
Getting closer to Canadian, people started honking and waving at me. Very nice welcome. One woman even stopped and introduced herself. After talking with the editor over the phone, I learned that the Canadian Chamber of Commerce would be offering me a night or two in a hotel and food accommodations. After 28 miles of walking into the wind, I was only too happy to accept.
.
I'm trying something new with some audio clips. There's an issue putting the words and audio on the same page (I'm no HTML expert, but I know it's not working.), so I'm separating my commentary from this new thing I'm trying. Enjoy!
.
Until next time...
Until next time...
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
In the News...
While I'm in Canadian, I can try to catch up on a little blog posting.
Here's my most recent syndicated article, published here from the Lufkin Daily News. Click here for the article. It's about my stay at Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway.
Here's my most recent article published in the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. Click here for the article. This one's about couchsurfing in Wichita Falls. Again, several small changes and some that I would consider major have been made. What's a writer to do?
Until next time...
Here's my most recent syndicated article, published here from the Lufkin Daily News. Click here for the article. It's about my stay at Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway.
Here's my most recent article published in the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. Click here for the article. This one's about couchsurfing in Wichita Falls. Again, several small changes and some that I would consider major have been made. What's a writer to do?
Until next time...
Monday, March 8, 2010
Wheeler, Texas
I am in Wheeler, Texas, finally. I had a rough morning of rain and wind both of which lasted right up until noon. I rolled around in my tarp, ate my entire bag of Wheat Thins, read Thoreau's Walden (no one ever told me Thoreau was totally full of himself), made a few calls, and watched the rain come down.
It was a slow morning.
The birds were much more optimistic. They were chirping a solid hour before I even ventured out of my tarp. The tarp, by the way, did tolerably well, but did nothing to block the fog that rolled through the area nor any wind-driven raindrops. The top half of my sleeping bag got moist as well as part of a fleece blanket, but most of this dried out by the time I broke camp. I didn't see why the birds were so happy until I saw the sun off in the distance.
So I walked into Wheeler and went straight to a restaurant featuring homecooked food. I ordered all kinds of fried food and with encouragement from the owner added a few vegetables for color. I also ordered a nice slice of cherry cheesecake, and though I could've eaten more, I decided to call it. While chatting with the owner, she gave me a batch of cookies! She confessed that she was a mom and felt better knowing I had food. It did no good to tell her that I was getting paid to tromp around Texas. So I thanked her and packed the cookies.
The pole fiasco in Wellington was what my brother Charlie would call "a bummer." I deliberately leave my poles outside as a courtesy to the businesses I frequent. I have probably left them outside over a hundred places for several hundred miles. Unfortunately, their library was right next to the local high school, so perhaps I could have taken that into account.
I have hiked reasonably well without my poles, though I wonder about my speed and balance. I'll continue like this a little bit longer and see what it feels like. I hiked both with and without them during the first few hundred miles. I made them a permanent addition after I fractured my toe in Texarkana. However, the toe has healed, so maybe I can do without. A few hundred more miles ought to settle it.
Now I'm off to more plains. It's not entirely flat as folks tend to say, but it's flat enough. It stays light well after sunset which has made the timing of my evening routine a little off.
Until next time, sunset watchers...
It was a slow morning.
The birds were much more optimistic. They were chirping a solid hour before I even ventured out of my tarp. The tarp, by the way, did tolerably well, but did nothing to block the fog that rolled through the area nor any wind-driven raindrops. The top half of my sleeping bag got moist as well as part of a fleece blanket, but most of this dried out by the time I broke camp. I didn't see why the birds were so happy until I saw the sun off in the distance.
So I walked into Wheeler and went straight to a restaurant featuring homecooked food. I ordered all kinds of fried food and with encouragement from the owner added a few vegetables for color. I also ordered a nice slice of cherry cheesecake, and though I could've eaten more, I decided to call it. While chatting with the owner, she gave me a batch of cookies! She confessed that she was a mom and felt better knowing I had food. It did no good to tell her that I was getting paid to tromp around Texas. So I thanked her and packed the cookies.
The pole fiasco in Wellington was what my brother Charlie would call "a bummer." I deliberately leave my poles outside as a courtesy to the businesses I frequent. I have probably left them outside over a hundred places for several hundred miles. Unfortunately, their library was right next to the local high school, so perhaps I could have taken that into account.
I have hiked reasonably well without my poles, though I wonder about my speed and balance. I'll continue like this a little bit longer and see what it feels like. I hiked both with and without them during the first few hundred miles. I made them a permanent addition after I fractured my toe in Texarkana. However, the toe has healed, so maybe I can do without. A few hundred more miles ought to settle it.
Now I'm off to more plains. It's not entirely flat as folks tend to say, but it's flat enough. It stays light well after sunset which has made the timing of my evening routine a little off.
Until next time, sunset watchers...
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