I arrived at my very first official boondock about 2:30 Monday afternoon. I was following recommendations from a website for free camping spots I had been using as I traveled out here, and after a few minutes of apprehension wondering if I would be able to actually identify a legit boondock, I came across a couple of other trailers already parked in the area. I decided to make this my home for now, but as far away from the others as possible. After trying out a couple of spots I found one that gave me a gorgeous view in all directions.
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| View to the north from my campsite |
I was finally back in the desert. It has been 30 years since I last camped in the desert, but back then I was living out of a backpack & sleeping on the ground under the stars with a group of students on a college field study program that ended up changing my life. Being back here is like running into a dear childhood friend, familiar yet you have to get reacquainted. After "setting up camp" on Monday (really only doing the very basics), I just sat and tried to absorb that I was really here. I don't think I have fully absorbed it all yet, even after 2 days. That's O.K., I want to go slowly, to savor the moments and the changes in myself.
Last night there was a most beautiful sunset. The blue in the sky was one of the most gorgeous shades of blue I have seen, I'd call it close to cerulean. The clouds were pink / purple then changed to pink/orange against that blue and WOW! The show was just amazing. My picture doesn't do the colors justice. One other thing I had forgotten from my last time in the desert is the way even a little moonlight illuminates the landscape. The light color of the desert floor helps reflect the moonlight like snow covered ground and makes the desert glow.
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| Sunset Magic |
The one thing I HAD to do was to try to get organized. Dealing with all my stuff (yes, I still have too much) on the drive out here was making me crazy. I never really got to organize everything before I left. When I arrived on Monday it was still quite windy, which continued into Tuesday making it difficult to work on things. Today when I woke up, the wind was gone so I deemed today to be "Operation Organization Day"! I started by setting up both of my small tables and laying out a tarp, then I proceeded to barf out all my stuff from the car and trailer. I don't know about you, but I love being organized, though don't always like getting there. Depends on what it is I'm trying to organize. I do well with the big stuff, but when I get down to the nitty-gritty little things and paper-stuff I lose it - not the stuff, my mind and patience! Add to the mix that I still am not sure what I do and don't need yet, and you have one crazed camper! Needless to say, it took most of the day to clear off the tables and tarp and I'm really not sure that I'm any more organized from when I started, but I sure did move a lot of stuff around! Oh well, I found a couple of things I had lost, so I guess that was something.
But the best part of today was the temperature - it was up in the mid 70's (almost hot in the full sun actually) with a gentle breeze. The most perfect weather for me. Yes, I did OD on vitamin D today and enjoyed every minute of it! THANK YOU Weather Goddess!!