Beardless Wanderer: 16 PCT - Yosemite to 1,000 mile mark

Before beginning this journey, every hiker was asked the same questions... "Did you read Wild?" "Are you carrying a weapon?" Why do you want to do this?" Now on the trail, the most common question I get asked is, "What is your favorite part?" This is an extremely difficult question to answer. I don't have the answer that they are looking for. I tell them that I love how everything is changing all the time. I feel blessed and privileged when I see a color that I haven't seen in a couple of days or I see a new bug and smell a new scent. Everyday, our surroundings are constantly changing and it feels like being given a gift. The wilderness has sucked me in and I feel like I'm part of the family. I listen different and see different. I feel welcome and cozy in the back country. I love it out here!!!

Below is one of those, "I should have known better" moments. There were a couple options when crossing this river, but climbing on this log jungle gym looked like fun. I made it down all the sketchy balance beam parts. It was at the end toward the bottom of the picture that I lost footing on a shifty log and fell knee deep into water. I bracing myself with my hands and scolded myself for getting wet. When I climbed out defeated, I didn't feel any pain. I thought, I'm just wet, I'm fine. Then I saw thick red blood gushing from somewhere. It was on my finger and it didn't want to stop. It was deep, but I had a flap of skin that I could cover it with. Suddenly, I was swarmed by a cloud of blood sucking enemies. As you can imagine, it was tough to find refuge. As quickly as possible, I got out my bug spray, head net and medical kit. I was able to fashion a nice bandage design and continued on. I remember back to my Wilderness First Responder class. They taught us not to foolishly mess around in the back country. The smallest injury could lead to big problems. Luckily this was just a little slap on the wrist. But it sucked nonetheless!