California

Once again my departure date was delayed. That probably wasn't so bad because a 5.4earth quake struck near Palm Springs, CA this afternoon.

Erin wrote me asking me for financial help with a dental course this fall and could I help pay for the $1350 tuition? Since stopping by the bank to pay off the credit card was part of the plan anyway, I didn't mind, but left for the bank right away and got there shortly after noon.

From there it was to the PX where I picked up some travel-sized hygiene containers and talked to a saleswoman, Marlene, who may be interested in our hiking club.

From the PX I stopped by the Cochise College computer lab to print out my insurance card. Just my luck I'll get pulled over in California for being an Arizonan. Two days ago I got pulled over for my cracked windshield and was told I had 30 days to get it fixed. Fat chance that's going to happen with me gone three of those four weeks.

"How long has that window been cracked?" the cop asked.
"A long time..." I said, but never revealed it was initially cracked in East Texas driving through a construction zone south of Tyler around midnight. And that was in May 2005.

"No cracks longer than six inches" the cop reminded me. And here I thought as long as the crack didn't interfere with the driver's vision, which it doesn't.

I didn't get back home until after 3pm today. All I had to do now was wait for my UPS package that was due today. According to the tracking record my package left the SV warehouse at 6:18am today and was "in transit." The UPS lady I talked him curtly told me that "we have up to 9pm to deliver packages..."

The package arrived at 7:20pm. By then it was too late to take off and I putzed around. The house is not as neat as I wanted it to be and the dogs are probably going to mess it up somewhere before Kevin gets back from his trip.

I got ahold of Kevin yesterday morning and caught him in Pinetop where he was spending the day. "It was cold here last night!" he told me. I checked the weather for that town and it read an overnight low of 47F. That's not so bad, but the night before it was 62F. Kevin bragged about hearing wolves howl at night, camping in the same general area we had camped out two summers ago near Big Lake. "I'm still trying to see elk!" he sighed. Elk are best spotted right before sunrise as elk like to saunter across foggy meadows at that time and disappear quietly into the dark forest before sunup.

My backpack weighs a shocking 42 pounds. Darlene's is under 30. How did mine get so heavy? The Bearvault alone is a good 15 pounds and I consciously tried to pack no more than two of any piece of clothing. Thank goodness I opted for a Canon S90 instead of my Canon xS as photographic accessory as the xS weighs four pounds, the S90 a half pound. When Darlene, Ray and I meet up at Yosemite/Tuolumne Meadows on the 13th, we will go through our gear and get rid of any excess. I'm leaving a few days earlier to get acclimated to the high elevation there, do a few day hikes and test out my Kaylands. I'm still not sure which shoes to take as there is still quite a bit of snow in the higher elevations of the southern High Sierras.

So, even though the original plan was to make it to Edwards AFB tonight, I will instead leave early tomorrow, hopefully by 6am and head toward Phoenix where I'll get on I-10 westward. I'll be seeing the mountains before sunset.

Too bad I'll miss the World Cup finals. Germany was eliminated today by Spain, this Cup's powerhouse. It was no surprise that Spain beat Germany. What did surprise me is that Germany allowed itself to lose. Now the final will be played on the 11th between Holland and Spain. Seeing either team win will be nice as neither have ever won the Cup before, but I'm going to be cheering for Holland. Kom op, Holland! I even have an orange windbreaker I'm taking along.

I hope the world remains at peace in my absence. Tar balls are now floating ashore in Texas, but that state's beaches are already badly contaminated with oil, what's a few more tar balls?

One thing I've noticed about myself over last summer: I am starting this road trip five pounds lighter and it shows in my stereotypical "last shot before I leave" mug I always take before venturing on long trips. I should lose another ten pounds after I'm done with the John Muir Trail.

I am excited. My dream to walk through the High Sierras is finally coming true, thanks to Darlene. To walk through what John Muir described as "The Range of Light" is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/08/us/08brfs-MODESTQUAKEJ_BRF.html?src=mv&ref=us