In case it isn’t obvious, I love the water. It’s also nice to hear the sound of running water as I drift off to sleep. Last night, the rain on my tarp drowned out the water sounds, for the most part, but at least I had the forethought to put up my tarp. When I first set up my hammock, I was thinking I wouldn’t need a rain cover. Then I considered that the weather here can be very unpredictable and I really didn’t want to wake up to rain in my face. As it turned out, it started sprinkling before I went to bed, so I would have gotten the tarp up, anyway, albeit in a bit of a rush.
I got woke up by dueling screech owls. They were close by and very vocal. I remember the first time I heard a screech owl in the woods at night. I wasn’t sure if it was an animal or a human in distress.
I arrived too late to get photos, so the pictures are from the morning after, as I was packing up to go home. It was a beautiful morning to wake up in the forest. My only complaint was that I neglected to put my jeans far enough under the tarp and they were soaking wet (and cold) when I got up. I didn’t put them on until I was ready to hike out, and then I put them on over the top of my bike pants and my long underwear. I was pretty comfortable. I didn’t leave camp until a little after 09:00, so it was warming up some.
I easily had enough provisions to stay out there all day, but, alas, I had to get back home. It was a pleasant night of hiking and eating too much by the campfire with Fred, and I slept okay. Which reminds me, Fred had to hike out in the rain, and I think he got a bit lost. He probably has a story to tell.