Soloist Anonymous, a Trip Report
I love to go solo backpacking. It doesn't have
to be the Sierra, the addiction is not location dependent, but the John
Muir Wilderness is always first on the list.
For the soloist, the hours and miles melt away, always taking the time to look back and admire where you have been just hours earlier.
Taboose from Bench Lake
One reason that this habit is so hard to kick is because I have gotten very selfish in my old age, and why not? I deserve a little peace and freedom to leave the trail on a whim and visit nameless lakes.
Some nameless lakes below Stripped Mountain
When you are solo, you know when the fish will take a fly. It's your choice, Fish or bag a peak?
I have also gotten very good at it, with my pack weight down to the UL level for 5 days with a bear can, a strong heart and work ethic. I am an old billy goat with no fear and a strong desire to roam the wild places.
A UL breakfast
I can wake up and daydream for hours or just lay there and soak in the views and watch the sun slow light up the peaks.
Somewhere on the east side of Taboose
But I've gotta kick it, because the family reads the news, and they read all the stories about missing hikers and SAR rescue and recovery missions and now they are prepared to put me in chains and throw away the keys to the car. They are right, this addiction could be the end of me. I can play by all the rules, and have all the right electronic monitoring gadgets and gear, but one misguided step can be the end of bliss, and the beginning of misery or the end. So what to do?
Dream on, or lay low and let it pass? Maybe reinvent the soloist concept? Some sort of hybrid approach maybe. It's the end of the season now so there is plenty of time to think about it and start reinventing.
Thanks for listening, I feel better now.
Axel
For the soloist, the hours and miles melt away, always taking the time to look back and admire where you have been just hours earlier.
Taboose from Bench Lake
One reason that this habit is so hard to kick is because I have gotten very selfish in my old age, and why not? I deserve a little peace and freedom to leave the trail on a whim and visit nameless lakes.
Some nameless lakes below Stripped Mountain
When you are solo, you know when the fish will take a fly. It's your choice, Fish or bag a peak?
I have also gotten very good at it, with my pack weight down to the UL level for 5 days with a bear can, a strong heart and work ethic. I am an old billy goat with no fear and a strong desire to roam the wild places.
A UL breakfast
I can wake up and daydream for hours or just lay there and soak in the views and watch the sun slow light up the peaks.
Somewhere on the east side of Taboose
But I've gotta kick it, because the family reads the news, and they read all the stories about missing hikers and SAR rescue and recovery missions and now they are prepared to put me in chains and throw away the keys to the car. They are right, this addiction could be the end of me. I can play by all the rules, and have all the right electronic monitoring gadgets and gear, but one misguided step can be the end of bliss, and the beginning of misery or the end. So what to do?
Dream on, or lay low and let it pass? Maybe reinvent the soloist concept? Some sort of hybrid approach maybe. It's the end of the season now so there is plenty of time to think about it and start reinventing.
Thanks for listening, I feel better now.
Axel
"All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware." Martin Buber
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