Nature is my Zen

Prepping to paddle Arrowrock

I decided it would be a good idea for my to record the trails I have hiked so that I can refer to them and give verbal trip reports to people who ask about them.  For the sake of simplicity, I will just do the hikes I have done in 2017 and hopefully continue to update this post when I go on more hikes.

Owyhee Reservoir

Station Creek, near Garden Valley, ID
Robie Creek Rd to Clear Creek Rd, ID
Cervidae, near Boise, ID
Middle Fork of the Boise River Rd (bike/hike)
Old Man of the Owyhees, near Marsing, ID
Thomas Canyon, Ruby Mtns, NV
Mount Blitzen, Tuscaroras, NV
Malad Gorge State Park
Massacre Rocks State Park
Snake River Canyon Rim Trail, Twin Falls, ID
Rim View Trail, South Hills Boise NF
Gooding City of Rocks
Three Canyon, Trin Alcove, Green River, UT
Tenmile Canyon, Green River, UT
Bowknot Bend summit, Green River, UT
Twomile Canyon, Green River, UT
Horseshoe Canyon, Green River, UT
Hell Roaring Canyon, Green River, UT
-Paddled Green River from Ruby Ranch to Mineral Bottom, UT
Juniper Gulch to Yellow Jacket @Leslie Gulch, OR (paddled Owyhee Res, too)
Earl M Hardy Box Canyon near Wendell, ID
Balanced Rock Park near Buhl, ID
Hagerman Fossil Beds Nat'l Monument, near Hagerman, ID
Cottonwood Trail, off Middle Fork Boise Rd, ID (paddled Arrowrock Res, too)
Copper Creek Falls Trail near Eastport, ID
Tubbs Hill, Coeur d'Alene, ID
Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes from Kingston, ID to Medimont, ID and back
Sunset Mountain trail, near Idaho City, ID
Idaho Centennial Trail to Prince Albert Hot Spring, near Mountain Home, ID
Bear Gulch Trail, near Ketchum, ID

Thomas Canyon, Ruby Mtns, NV

Juniper Gulch Yellow Jacket

Mount Blitzen Summit, NV

Gooding City of Rocks

Bear Gulch summit

For the sake of simplicity, I am leaving out trails in the Boise foothills for the most part.  I traverse those so often.  Peggy's Trail, Orchard and Five Mile Gulch, Table Rock, Military Reserve, Shane's Loop, Kestrel and Red Cliffs, Camelsback, Sweet Connie.  I have done all these and some of the multiple times.  And many of them have been hiked and MTB'd.

Box Canyon: very blue & clear water!

Rim Trail, South Hills Boise NF

I had another tattoo session this week.  Body of sleeve is basically done.  Now just needs detail work.  Wooty woo!

Had another reminder at work yesterday of where my "place" is.  *sigh* Men on egotistical power trips make terrible leaders/managers.  The world is a fucked up place.  Somehow, living life in a Catch-22 at work makes for a stressful unmotivated time.  I wish people would learn how to become successful inspirational managers.  Someday this may happen.  Luckily, my immediate chain of command seems to have done that and I am extremely excited to have someone in a position of power to give us a voice.  FINALLY!  Progress.  Albeit, any movement in the positive/progressive direction is a great thing and I will happily take it.

Did you know that June 21st was World Naked Hiking Day?  Since I was working, I was not able to do it.  But I did celebrate the next day.  Too much sunscreen involved in truly hiking naked.  I just did some stills celebrated my nudity in nature.  It was beautiful.  Freeing.  Feeling that way.  A part of nature.  That is happiness.  Nature is my happiness.  Call me a hippy if you want.  Yes, I'd like to live in as small a carbon footprint as possible.  I'd like to live away from a city.  Away from the hum drum of human civilization.  I wish I had the skills to live off the land.  To be closer and a part of the land.

I often find myself so very frustrated with my lack of success in the dating scene, or even the making-friends-with-men scene.  A perfect example of my track record is the following story.

A few weeks ago, a female friend of mine sent me a message saying she met a guy who was interested in most of the same things that I am passionate about (has a Jeep, has a kayak, goes hiking, loves being outside).  She recommended that I introduce him to those things in this area since he recently moved here.  Sure!  Why not?  And if we click, even better!  ('Cause let's face it, I'm a horny blunt, no filtered MFer).  So we meet.  I show him a great trail that involved balancing over fallen logs over raging creeks.  Mud.  Snakes!  Mountains!  Then he got to off road in his Jeep.  Then I showed him where he can kayak.  And I filled him in on the geological and human history of the area and we discussed  stories of our experiences doing the things we enjoy.  I thought it went well.  Never heard from him again.  Huh?  WTF.  Not even as an adventure buddy.  Much less anything more than that.  I am fine just having adventure outdoor buddies.  But not him.  I do not understand.  He was like the male version of me.  

Chopping through Sunset Mountain Trail before the snow stopped me.

I am thoroughly convinced that most men find me intimidating.  And since most men lack adequate self esteem, their reaction to my skill set and personality is to lash out at it.  To block it.  Rather than embrace someone like me, who could be a useful resource, much less anything more, most men high tail it and ghost me.  Their loss.  I know.  And the "it'll happen when you're not looking" bullshit gets old.  I stopped actively looking long ago.  

I am truly happy in my single life.  But sometimes it would be nice to have genuine intimate human touch.  Or to have intimate human interactions or some sort.  That part gets lonely.  Not enough for me to lower my standards I have set for a potential partner.  But nonetheless.  I went on a naked hiking and hot spring camp trip to Prince Albert Hot Spring this past weekend.  I was probably the youngest person there and outnumbered by men.  Most of the men were 50+ yrs old.  It was natural.  No one cared we were all naked.  It felt nice to be so...normal and not caring.  I used my camp hammock the first time.  I loved it!

Overnight, the hot spring leaked water down where the vehicles were parked.  As a result, a Jeep Grand Cherokee went to leave and simply sank down past his axles in mud.  They chased me down in my Jeep so I could come back and help.  I tried the snatch strap to yank him out, but he did not budge.  I got out the winch line.  Realised that my Factor 55 did not fit my shackles.  So I modified their set up and winched him out.  The men were standing out.  Listening to the orders I was giving them, respectfully.  I appreciated it.  They realised my importance.  Not simply as a woman, but as a person.  Why is it that men, once they are older, realise how useful and great of a woman I am, yet the men that are my peers seem to run screaming from me? *sigh*