The Gambler Folds

Kenny Rodgers said it best- "You gotta know when to hold 'em; know when to fold them; know when to walk away, know when to run."  Well I ran, okay it was more like a fast paced waddle, out of Killarney park yesterday.   About an hour and a half after setting up camp the first day I started to feel not so great.  That's when I started making deals with myself.  If "XY and Z gets better by bed time I will continue on with the original plan."  When that didn't pan out I made a new deal "If by morning this is or that symptom is better I will go to the next stop and then play it by ear from there."  But the deadline for each deal passed and my stipulated conditions were never met which left me with a tough decision.  Gamble and continue on, with the risk of things getting worse or play it safe and return to hike another day.  My heart really, really, really wanted to stay but the reasonable part of my brain won out and I hiked out.  So my GRAND Killarney adventure consisted of driving 4.25 hours, hiking 2 hours, sleeping over night, hiking out and driving home dejected and feeling worse by the hour.  I normally start hankering for burgers and other delightful food items as soon as I start hiking out of the bush.  Not this time.  All that consumed my mind was my bed..... getting under the covers, curling up in a ball and delighting in the feeling of deluxe foam support.

With that said I did manage to pack in a fair amount of adventure in the short time frame I was there and lucky for you I am willing to relive it from the safety and comfort of my living room.

First off the drive there exposed me to a new fav song-  "Fireproof" by Coleman Hell.  It is a great little ditty that had me car dancing and looking forward to the next time the radio station would play it.  I am listening to it as I write this..... you would think that I would know by now that "chair" dancing while sitting on a therapy ball is very risky... but I just can't help it.... the music just has a beat that requires expressive movement... even if that movement ends in a splat!

Killarney Provincial Park

Daunting.... no?

There is nothing like the anticipation that builds as you get your permit and head to the day use parking area.  Off with the sandals, on with the wool socks and boots.  One last check of the pack.  Locked and loaded you start the walk up to the trail head.  

Killarney is Killarney.  Killarney does sugar coat what you will be in for.  It relishes making people work.  If you do your part and stick it out it will slowly share its' beauty and secrets.  You will become part of the Killarney club and you will find yourself wanting more.  

But first you have to make it up the entrance to the trail.   It starts with a monster scramble up what seems like a never ending hill that ends on an expansive rock face.  

In fact there are many sections on the trail where you end up traveling over open rock faces with no blazes to follow.  In these sections you look for rock cairns to point you in the right direction.  Well this year not more than 3 minutes into the hike I got lost.  Not LOST, lost but lost enough to have me muttering "Where the fuck are the bloody blue blazes."  If you should ever encounter this type of situation here is what you do.....  back track to the last blaze that you saw.  Stand there and look around until you find the next blaze.  After back tracking I realized that someone had built a "faux" cairn to the left that had tricked me into thinking that was the trail.  In pure Bugs Bunny fashion....  I should have taken a right turn at Albuquerque instead.  Back on the path I  continued on my merry little way.  

It did not take long before I had my first clash with the rocks.  I truly, truly love rocks.  I collect them.  I cherish them..... they are my preciouses.  Rocks do not share the same love for me.  Rocks insist on taking me down.   Rocks are not satisfied unless I am broken, battered and bleeding.  When I purchased my hiking boots I specifically asked about the grip ability of the soles, knowing that it does not take much for me to skid down a rock face.  I was told that the boots had supreme grip..... maybe for others... not so for me.

It really was an innocent looking little rock embedded in the dirt.  I stepped on it and before I knew it my foot started skidding over the surface of the rock.  I went down hard landing on my knee.   There was an immense stinging where the flesh had been rubbed raw from contact with the ground and a bruise had already started forming, but there was minimal blood and nothing seemed broken so I got up and walked it off.

That was about 10 minutes into the hike.

It left me very cautious on the other sections that required me to walk down steep rock faces.  How steep?  A guess would be anywhere from 50 - 75 degree incline/decline depending on the section and the direction you are traveling.  

If a small little rock on a relatively flat section could cause some damage.... just imagine what a gigantic rock on a steep pitch could do.  For these sections of the trail I opted to use the "bear lumber" walk I perfected last year.   I head down the hill backward with my weight dispersed between my hands and feet.    Four points of contact with the ground seems to work the best for me.   Not the most attractive hiking position in the world but it was effective in making sure I stayed on my feet.

This is the view from the first panoramic vista you come to on the trail.

Can never get enough of this view

I chuckled yesterday when I came upon a family that had reached this section of the trail.  The Dad spread his arms wide when he came to this point and was looking back over his shoulder at his family.   His look said it all.... "This is the absolute ultimate.... it is worth every ache in my lungs and legs to be able to experience this."  His actions are exactly how I feel when I am walking this trail.  I sometimes get despondent and question my sanity for carrying a heavy pack (which ended up being 58 lbs) over rugged terrain but when I get to spots like this I am  reminded of why I am doing it.  Being out in nature..... getting to see sights that many never will experience... challenging myself to go further to see more..... to enjoy life.   This can all be surmised with a grand sweeping open of the arms and raising of the chest to the sky.  LOVE!

The view of the other side isn't bad either

This is my third time on this section of trail. I  should know it like the back of my hand but I found myself continually surprised by "new" hills.    When I would get to these sections my first thought was "Hey, when the heck did this get put here?"  Then I would vaguely recollect a I had a similar response the last time I was there.   Really!!! How can my memory be so selective about hills?

I ended up meeting a couple on the trail who had been hiking the full LaCloche and had been on the trail 9 days.  They reported the nights had been getting chillier but it was a welcome change from the blistering heat and humidity of the day.  We laughed about long range forecasts and how they really don't mean much... the couple thought they would have nine days of sun.  Not so much.  They had one night in a major storm and got to hike down "The Crack" in constant rain.  It is fun meeting new people and hearing about their experiences on the trail.

My plan is to one day hike the full trail.  How long is it? Well that part is a math mystery.  One sign says it is 100km.   Another says 78km and when I added up the distances on Jeff's map of the park it tallied a total of 68 km and that was taking a side excursion to hike up to Silver Peak and back.    Which is it I wonder?   All I know is, it is recommend to take 7-10 days to walk the entire trail.

SEALY LAKE

The Leaning Tower of Tree

I made it to Sealy Lake in the time indicated on Jeff's map, even with the getting lost and taking time to chat.... high-five's all around!

Before setting up the tent I spent a fair bit of time trying to decide which direction this tree would fall if the rest of it decided to come down.  After much deliberation I chose to set my tent up to the far right of the tree, well out any path of destruction.

Home for a day

The Lucky Rock & it's new safety sack

I was super excited to try out my newly fashioned rock tossing bag.  See I have this lucky rock from the shores of Lake Superior.  This rock has a 98%  success rate in helping me get the rope to hang the food bag from,  in the tree, within one to two attempts.  I typically just tie the rope around the rock, but last year I came close to losing the lucky rock when it fell out rope basket I had fashioned for it.  This would not be a problem if I was on the shores of Superior, as there are plenty of replacement rocks to choose from.  In Killarney there aren't many small loose rocks around so to loose the lucky rock would mean the food could not be hung.... which is an invitation for scavenging and bear encounters.   This year I decided to make a corduroy bag to house the rock.  The bag gives me something to attach the rope to but securely houses the rock minimize the risk of loosing it.

SUCCESS.... got the rope up on the first try..... THANK-YOU Lucky Rock!

Once the tent was up and the food hung I decided it was time to get out of my sopping wet clothing.  I hoped there was enough of a breeze and sunlight left for it dry out before nightfall.   Sealy Lake is a nice little secluded spot so if you want to walk around in your underwear..... you can.  Another bonus of hiking alone.... you don't have to worry about being decent at all times.

With camp all set up I had a bunch of free time to fill until supper.  To pass the time I took a few pictures.

Mid-day view of Sealy Lake

Reflections

Lillies

It was an active cloud day

I find weird things interesting

When I got bored of taking pictures I decided to bask in the sun on one of the rocks.  That is where my very white belly attracted some curious dragon flies.  It became a landing strip until I couldn't hack the tickling sensation any longer and headed into the tent.

Once indoors I read  a little.....  marvelled at how roomy the tent is sans dogs....  figured out the route I will take when I hike the full trail and did some math figuring out distances and walking times for this route to make sure it would be manageable.

It didn't take long until I felt the need to stretch my legs again so I took a little jaunt around the site.  I sat and meditated and at one point I started missing the dogs.  I decided to use food to distract myself from impending melancholia and started the ritual of preparing my evening meal.

In a blink of an eye it was suddenly bedtime.  About 30 minutes after lights out there was this horrible shrieking coming from the bush.  I sat up, heart racing.... "What the hell was that."  I listened and nothing.  I laid back down and started drifting back to sleep only to be awakened by the shriek again.   This time it was a repetitive 4 shrieks.   After my heart stopped pounding in my ears I recognized the "Who, who." call of an owl was happening after each of the shrieks.   So either it was the owl shrieking or it was the prey.   My second "encounter" with nature came the next morning.  I had just collected the food bag when I heard a ROAR in the distance.  A few minutes later there was another roar.   The best I could figure, some bears were having a polite conversation or  a territorial dispute.  Either way I was glad that it wasn't close.

There is nothing quite like the feeling of sitting on a rock in the brisk morning air with the rays from the sunrise warming your arms and your face.  I sat there and took in the moment.  Simple..... majestic.... it filled me with gratitude for having this opportunity, even if it was just for a short while.

Sunrise at Sealy Lake

My heart was not ready to give up on the plan to hike 35.4 kms.  I continued to make deals with myself all morning, but by the time I had packed up camp I realized that the best decision for me was to head out.  I said good-bye to seeing what the elusive H49 and H48 sites looked like and made a mental choice to enjoy each and every moment I had left in Killarney.  I stopped at a lovely spot to have some food and read a chapter in my book before continuing on my journey out of Killarney.

I sidled up to the edge for this shot...

The shot above was taken from the edge of the cliff on the point on the right. 

I don't know if I have blogged about this before, but for 2016 I have been keeping a daily gratitude journal to help me focus on the positive things that happen each day.  Here are all the things that made it to the gratitude list on Aug 28th:

•  I found the trail again.
•  I did not badly hurt my knee when I fell.
•  I got to catch my breath while enjoying the view of the first vista.
• The first vista has cell coverage to allow me to send out final texts and pictures.   
• My tent is cozy
• The delightful refreshing feeling of lying down and stretching out after carrying something heavy.
• My pack was only one tier which allowed me to limbo under the fallen tree blocking the path.
• That I was tall enough to be able to sit and rotate over another fallen tree blocking the path.  
• That the muddy sections were not so muddy.
• The bear hanging rope went up and over in one shot and the rock bag worked.
• Sunbeams..... basking.... sunbeams!
• No issues with the water filter.
• That I had arrived with lots of time for my clothes to dry.
• I had brought a thought provoking book.



The Limo Tree

Sometimes plans don't work out the way you think they should.  Sometimes they don't have to.  I had a delightful escape from daily life for 24 hours and I cherish every hour that I had at Killarney.

Before I headed home I took this picture as proof of the trail distance discrepancies.  I tried squatting to get a better angle.... I did not account for the slight downhill in this area.  The weight of the pack pulled me back and I ended up on my derriere.  I took the picture from a seated position and then began the process of  returning to an upright standing position.  Very glad there wasn't anyone around to witness that.

The dispute over the exact distance of the trail continues....

I don't know if I will get to Killarney in 2017 as I will be travelling to Scotland.  However in 2018 I am bound and determined to hike the full distance whether it be 100, 78 or 68 km.  This hike will help prepare me for when I hike the West Highland Way with my brother in 2020. If you ever have a chance I would recommend a visit to Killarney.... just don't tell the rocks I sent you... they might hold it against you.

Bonus Fit Bit Facts-  The hike to Sealy Lake is 5.4 km and is the equivalent of climbing 62 sets of stairs.  On the way out I had reached my daily 10,000 steps by 10:30 am.