The Forest is Loud

I nursed the knee for about 65 miles yesterday with many stops for ice. Right now I'm at a Dunkin Donuts (again) with ice on my knees. One way to strengthen your left leg really quickly is to hurt the right one. If I can make it to some flats then I'm sure everything will be fine but right now I'm averaging 10.5 mph with 4-5 mph through the mountains. My guess is that 80% of that power is coming from the left leg. At this point, I'm thinking of a backup plan just in case I don't hit some level grade soon.

Onto the camping. I think I intruded on a deer's territory last night. At about 4am I heard some snorting and blowing that make Riley's sneezes sound like a whisper. In my head I was rethinking all the deer stories that I've heard over the years trying to recall if they've ever charged something. Sounds silly but when you're laying in a hammock with a rain fly obstructing any view of what's going on on there you're mind starts creating images. I think something did come up close to me at some point in the night too. I just rember trying to move but not being able to because I was still sleeping. It was like your mind knows something is happening but your body doesn't want to help out. The sensation that something was there could have been a dream, but it sure seemed real to me.

It's much different putting up a camp, going to sleep by yourself, not talking to others and waking up without anybody else around you. Just one night of that makes me really appreciate my friends and family a lot more. One of the reasons I set out on this trip is because life just seems very full at times. It's not that it's too full, it just seems as though you forget to appreciate it all when it screams by. No screaming here though, slow and steady is the pace.

Until next time, may the woods be free of bears and the next gas staion with a public bathroom be right around that corner!