My Journey

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

BigDawwg.....I think I'll stick with avoidance, thanks.....

tgil.....I don't try to hide the fact.....



Tanner and I have set a daily goal of hiking a minimum of 15 miles per day. And to achieve that goal we obviously have to walk some of these same roads over and over. This post is about hiking from milepost 4 to nearly milepost 7 and nothing more. It's just sharing with you the roadway that we've walked and the beautiful views & plants along the way.....



It's interesting to see the differences in the plant life as you climb higher and higher.....



For instance on the north side of the mountains at roughly 5,000 feet, juniper trees begin to grow.....



Yet at nearly the same elevation on the south side of the mountains these cactus have nearly stopped growing.....



At some point we crossed the county line.....Graham County to the west.....



And Greenle County to the east.....



One of the reasons that I decided to weather the storm here was that Graham County only has two confirmed cases of coronavirus and Greenle County has only one confirmed case of coronavirus.....and its been that way for weeks now.....



Flowers continue to bloom along the roadway.....



This place continues to be void of people.....Saturday I saw 3 vehicles of which one was the game warden and then on Sunday I saw 3 vehicles as well.....



Sometimes the silence is and can be overwhelming.....

 

[Arjan]

Silence & solitude does a lot to you....



Famke says "high" and asks if there is no water there to play in......

 

[ITTOG]

I knew that, and your reply made me laugh!
Crappy cell phone pics, but I saw a bald eagle while fishing on Saturday. They are not real common in my area of Texas.
Only my third, ever, to see. Twice was while fishing.

That is because they love fish and they know prey come to the edge for water. They like to be on islands near the shore or narrow bodies of water so they can see the prey come down and swoop in for the kill.

Sent from my Pixel 3a XL using Tapatalk

 

[ITTOG]

Sometimes the silence is and can be overwhelming.....

I have always thought that is what I would struggle the most if I traveled alone. I don't need people per se but do need noise.

Sent from my Pixel 3a XL using Tapatalk

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Arjan & ITTOG.....no water up here in the mountains.....simply solitude.....I am beginning to think that this unplanned nearly total escape from mankind has been life changing but only time will tell. One thing that I think that I have learned from this escape from my past reality is that I'm not near as dependent on social interaction as I may have thought that I was. Five days ago I drove into town to shop at Safeway and to fill the propane tanks. I had an anxious feeling as I drove into town and I'm not sure where that came from.....I believe it came from the threat of coronavirus but I also believe it came from this new appreciation that I have for solitude and the fact that I was giving it up.....I felt no need to speak and I barely did. And I know that there was a certain calmness felt when I left town. Like I said.....time will tell.....



Just finished another book.....not a bad read.....I thought I liked walking.....this guy is walking on steroids.....



As I have said most of our hiking has been along the roadways except for one hike which I did without Tanner.....





It wasn't a long hike but it was definitely long enough to realize that I'm not comfortable hiking into the boulders that are strewn about.....





But I had noticed a cave below our campsite and I swear I just couldn't get the idea out of mind and I just had to check it out before we moved on.....





Remembering that I had already encountered one rattlesnake and also with the recent warning from the ranger, I felt as if every step landed in a den of rattlesnakes.....





I believe that what I saw was an abandoned mine but I'll never know for sure since the only way to access it was to climb down a steep embankment loaded with tons of huge dislodged boulders.....and that I was not willing to do.....

 

[Ace Brown]

Get yourself a walking stick or lightweight pole of some sort and probe or tap the rocks in front of you as you walk like a blind man would do. That might get a snake rattling and give you some warning. But only on a calm day where the wind won’t carry the sound away.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[BigDawwg]

Jerry,,,,, what Ace said works, to a point, as he pointed out,,,,, I grew-up with Rattlers on that 7000 acre Cattle Ranch, the one thing that Grandad told me was, that in the morning they will be on South Facing Rocks and Slopes,,,,, ie... Soaking up the Sun, also if you are close to a Den Area, the "Smell" is Putrid,,,,,, it's hard to explain, but once you've smelled it, and see it, you won't forget it,,, "Guaranteed", and when I say "see it", I mean I've actually seen them coming out up from their Winter Den, where there can be Hundreds wrapped up in a Ball, this is also when they start to Mate, just before, and after emerging from their Den,,,,, and the Little ones are just as Deadly as it's Parent,,,,, so Hiking in the Morning Hours on the Shady or Northern Slopes is pretty safe,,,,,, after the Sun Peaks, they will start moving around & Hunting,,,, this also the time that they could be looking for water as well,,,, as I've seen more Snakes at Water Holes, Creeks, etc... during this time more than any other,,,,,, and thats when you need to be "Vigilant" and "Aware" of your surroundings,,,,,
Anyway, thats my Story, and I'm Sticking to it.
You and Tanner Take Care & be Safe.....

 

[tgil]

Sometimes the silence is and can be overwhelming.....

I think the longest I've been "alone" was somewhere around 14 days. I found myself thinking out loud or talking to myself toward the end and when I finally heard someone else talk I realized just how quiet it had been.

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Ace & BigDawwg....."bouldering" is the term that comes to mind to access that cave that I wrote about, and "bouldering" is something that can't be done with a stick in hand. You really need both feet and both hands free at all times. I love your guys feedback.....thank you. When the ranger warned me about the large presence of rattlesnakes he said to be very careful in the evening. The ranger said that they're known to try to soak up as much heat as possible before the cool night sets in.....and that was a good time to be extra careful.....

tgil.....I'm enjoying my solitude very much at the moment. I still have my sights on buying land or a log cabin up north sometime in the future (I have my eyes on 40 acres right now) but this time alone is making me think that an off grid property might not be a bad idea.....



Todays post is nothing more than the Black Hills National Back Country Byway from where I left off in my last post to just past milepost 9.....





Tanner and I walked this section several times, just as we have done from the beginning of the byway. And it was along this section of the roadway that I made a decision that we would walk the entire byway.....multiple times.....





Travel is difficult to do at the moment so I thought what the heck.....why not ? It's absolutely beautiful here and if this is the best we can do at this moment then so be it.....it certainly is not bad.....





There's plenty to explore here and I feel fortunate to have these days alone in the mountains. The weather is nearly perfect.....70's most afternoons and the nights are cool.....the heater kicks on late during the nights. The massive copper mine comes into view around milepost 7 and dominates the view to the north.....





The winds have been brisk the past few days and for walkers like Tanner & I that's a huge plus.....life is good.....the roads is ours.....



We finally moved from our second camp along the roadway (elevation 4,549') and moved to our third camp which is the highest point along the roadway (elevation 5,349').....

 

[chet6.7]

Folding/collapsible trekking poles are available...you might never see the snake that bites you, before the bite.
This not a recommendation on any brand,just a link.

Amazon.com : Paria Outdoor Products Tri-Fold Carbon Cork Trekking Poles/Sticks - Folding, Collapsible, Adjustable, and Ultralight - Perfect for Hiking, Walking, Backpacking and Snowshoeing (115-135 cm) : Sports & Outdoors

Amazon.com : Paria Outdoor Products Tri-Fold Carbon Cork Trekking Poles/Sticks - Folding, Collapsible, Adjustable, and Ultralight - Perfect for Hiking, Walking, Backpacking and Snowshoeing (115-135 cm) : Sports & Outdoors

www.amazon.com

 

[BigDawwg]

Well I would Imagine that the Cell-Phone Reception is Pretty Good at that Camp Site.....

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

chet6.7.....I actually own several pairs of the adjustable walking poles which are in my storage unit. I have found that they are only useful when I'm carrying my expedition backpack which I'll typically be hauling about 70 pounds. Beyond that, I just think that walking poles are a lot of needless work.....

BigDawwg.....what you said is exactly what I thought too but the truth is that that spot was one of the worst spots I've ever had. At best I had 3G but often I had nothing. And Verizon is my service provider.....I stayed one night.....



Moving on down the byway.....I'll share just a few more photos.....





You may recall about a week ago I posted a picture of the Allred Ranch at its south end when I first crossed into the ranch property. I think this ranch covers roughly 5 to 6 miles of the byway.....this picture taken at the north end.....and all I want is 40 acres.....



There's no doubt in my mind that the best part of this byway are the areas where it passes through the highest elevations.....



As the byway descended the mountains the land became much more desert like once again.....





Tanner scored a much needed cool drink from a leaky water holding tank.....these are a quite common sight in this area.....



Before leaving our camp at the highpoint of the road and descending down into the valley, Tanner & I decided to climb the highest peak.....and that will be tomorrows post.....

 

[Pacific Northwest yetti]

Cell service directly under the antennas is tricky, I have been told ( not fact checked yet, its not my specialty) due to the Angle of the domes to cover as much coverage area as possible, there is usually a cone of no service directly under the tower.

I am also W/ Verizon. I have been happy with them for the most part.

I also like the high desert and range lands, reminds me of home.

 

[chet6.7]

chet6.7.....I actually own several pairs of the adjustable walking poles which are in my storage unit. I have found that they are only useful when I'm carrying my expedition backpack which I'll typically be hauling about 70 pounds. Beyond that, I just think that walking poles are a lot of needless work.....

I don't like poles myself.I also don't like not being able to prod an area that may hold a rattler when I want to pass through it,I carry one for this purpose,it can also be used to get a snake to move out of the way,it is in my pack until I need it.I was hiking in a state park,I was not able to pass a rattler that thought a foot bridge I needed to cross was a great place to spend some time,hence the stick.

 

[BigDawwg]

Jerry,,,,, One more thing about Rattle Snakes, if you do Kill one, make sure you cut-off the Head, and bury it about about 12" down, reason being,,,,,, Yellow-Jackets will be feeding on that Snake in short order, and some of them will "Ingest" the Poison/Venom from the Sac that is in the Head Area behind the Eyes,,,,,,, there have been cases where people have been found Dead, with Rattle Snake Venom in their System, but with "No" Apparent Bite Area anywhere on the Body,,,, but alot of Yellow-Jacket Stings Found during the Autopsy.
Another Story From Back-in Day on the Ranch......
You and Tanner Be Safe.