Archive for November, 2004

I got back a few days ago from my weeklong trip to Big Bend. After thinking about it for several years, I finally got up the courage to hike the Outer Mountain Loop, and I did it. I backpacked the first 26 or so miles solo before meeting my friend Shelton at the Blue Creek Ranch house on Thanksgiving Day around mid-afternoon. We completed the final 16 miles together. Forty-two miles in six days. It has been an amazing week, and I continue to be amazed that I completed the route as planned.
The trip began with a wedding in Bee Caves, a town just west of Austin. My friends Greg and Amy tied the knot on Saturday evening, November 20. It was a lovely ceremony and reception afterward. Several friends joined their many family and friends to celebrate their marriage. I left just after their first dance because I was going to be leaving Austin around 4 the next morning. Because the park is quite busy during the week of Thanksgiving, I wanted to make sure I got the camping permits I’d need to complete the route.
I left Austin at 4:30. It was foggy and drizzling. The fog made the drive quite slow, and I didn’t reach Ozona until almost five hours later (It normally takes me a little under four.). I reached Marathon a little before noon and had an old-fashioned lunch at Johnny B’s: burger hot of the grill, fries, and a homemade pineapple milk shake. I knew it would be the last good meal I’d have for awhile.
I reached park headquarters at Panther Junction around 1:45 and promptly had to stand in line for permits. The rangers were operating two lines. I was standing in the Chisos campsite line, and the other line was for roadside campsites. Despite having several people in front of me, I managed to get all of my first choices of designated spots and permits for zone camping for the three nights I’d spend beneath the Chisos Mountains. With permits in hand, I headed to the Blue Creek Ranch overlook to deliver my cache of food and water. I hauled that 5-gallon plastic paint bucket about half a mile to a spot underneath some creosote bushes. I then said a short prayer, asking that it still be there when I came back for it on Thanksgiving Day.

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