Is “Enjoy” the Right Word?

7:08 AM

It’s going to be a warm day, around 30 degrees. So an early start and hiking early. You can already feel the wind is warm, and as soon as you leave the forest, a strong, hot wind starts blowing.

7:37 AM

The ground is bone-dry, the grasses are brown, and you can see far into the distance without spotting a single building, antenna, or person.

10:48 AM

Luckily, a solid water source with flowing water from a pipeline. Fill all the bottles for the next stretch to the next water source—or, with a bit of luck, to the road to hitch a ride to Ashland.

12:28 PM

In the distance I see another white summit, but I can’t quite tell which mountain it is. Mount Ashland at 2,296 meters? 🤔 Well, it’s white and it’s getting closer pretty fast.

12:34 PM

1:30 PM

I often get asked whether I’m still enjoying it. Often I don’t have a direct answer to that, and that’s made me think. Why can’t I easily answer the word “enjoy”? 🤔

“Enjoy” feels like something from the past to me, while in the moment itself you’re working hard to reach a summit, a valley, a river, or natural beauty. You work toward something, and that effort ultimately gives you a huge rush, a sense of euphoria, and a curiosity for more.

“Enjoy” isn’t really the right word. It’s more a deep longing for the feeling of how small you are, and how powerful and vast nature can be. I experience that most strongly in wilderness and unfamiliar places. It’s a positive tension, stretching toward everything that’s still to come.

2:30 PM

In the distance I hear Interstate 5. I need to walk toward that highway to reach the town. We’re leaving the mountains to get things back in order.

3:38 PM

At an abandoned side road there’s a car with a man sitting in it. I don’t know what he’s waiting for, so I walk straight up to him and ask if he happens to be driving to Ashland.

“Yep, want a ride?”
I don’t need to be asked twice, so I answer, “Yes, please!”

4:01 PM

He’s a logger and keeps the forest clean and thinned out. The whole car is covered in engine oil, tools, and clutter everywhere 🤣. On the way he stops at a gas station and gives me a bottle of soda water. Do I look that dehydrated? 🤣

We have a good laugh; I’ve always liked those hard-working types. They’re comfortable on their own and just say what they think.

First we swing by his workplace to drop off some gear. His friends ask me if I’m out of my mind going to Ashland. They say it’s the most boring town there is 🤣, so I make a drinking gesture and say beer tastes the same everywhere. That was fine by them 😊. Not that I drink beer—but they don’t know that.

He drops me off in front of the motel. What a luxury! I’ve never had such a quick hitch, and I didn’t even have to stick my thumb out.

4:16 PM

To have more time tomorrow, I first took a shower and then walked straight to the laundromat. So off I went, out on the street in my rain gear, heading for the washers. You should’ve seen the looks on people’s faces 🤣—it’s 33 degrees outside.

Now everything is clean, so it’s time to relax and do absolutely nothing for a bit. Tomorrow a new day begins, and then I’ll start preparing for Northern California, a journey of more than 1,000 km.

Total: 33.9 km in 8:51 hours
864 m ascent
975 m descent