Niece Camping 2022 - Part 4

Now, before we went to sleep the night before, I had talked to her about the next morning. While we certainly could have a late morning, I reminded her that the sooner we got moving in the morning, the sooner we’d be back into cell service range. She agreed to try and leave camp by 9 in the morning. 

That worked for me. I was up around 7, even without an alarm to wake me, and I started by making up some hot tea for us, and then breakfast. Turns out, she doesn’t like the protein bars that I had for breakfast, nor the Spam, so we had to improvise a bit with her breakfast, with her trying a couple different bars and rejecting them. I guess next time I should provide the menu and have her cross off stuff she won’t eat. 

But we did manage to get going and headed out of camp by 9:16 am. I was happy with that departure. We would be hiking in much cooler weather than the day before, and get a lot more shade. Unfortunately for her, the river had not miraculously gone down overnight, so it was back to the high road for us. By taking it nice and slow, we were able to make it up to the high point without too much difficulty and it was mostly downhill from there. I was proud of her for making it up the hard climb, especially considering that she normally lives at 500 feet above sea level, and here she’s hiking at around 5800 feet. And we encountered a snake in torpor draped across the trail, which we delicately stepped over. The snake flicked its tongue at us but didn’t move. She liked it!

After we got down from the high road, we passed a group heading to the hot springs. One man had a child carrier pack, complete with sleeping toddler, so she got to see how some people take their littles out on hikes. Some of the people we passed were dressed differently than we were, with tank tops and shorts, but I’m a big believer in wearing synthetics, long sleeved and long panted, for protection out there. It can get hot, but I like the protection afforded, both from the sun and from random branches and brambles trying to scratch me up. I think my niece would have liked to wear something a bit more fashionable, but I’m all about function when it comes to backpacking clothes. 

After the hill, the going was pretty easy. Some ups and downs, but nothing that we couldn’t handle with ease. I was happy that she had made it through the night, and I believe she was happy to get closer to cell service so she could get back in touch with her friends. When we got to close to the campsite, she asked if we could go over to where we had left our art rocks the day before and see if they were still there. Since no one else had claimed the campsite, we hiked on through it to find that our little art gallery remained undisturbed overnight. 

Then it was time to pack up the car and drive off. Now, when Ambrose first brought me out to Skillern for my first backpacking trip, he didn’t tell me about the roadside hot spring on the way home. It was a complete and total surprise to me. For my niece, I felt like a little advance warning was in order, so she’d know why I wasn’t going to change into cleaner clothes right when we got to the car – and why she shouldn’t either. So she knew we were coming up on a hot spring bath, but I think she was still surprised to actually see it. It’s a neat little hot spring. You pull over on the side of the road, then walk about 15 feet on a path and poof! There’s a hot spring, just big enough for 2 if you’re okay with being cozy. She wasn’t sure she wanted to get in at first, so I went first and got myself all rinsed off. The day was warm by then, so I wasn’t inclined to stay long in the hot water. After I got out, she took a quick turn and we both got cleaner clothes on for the remainder of the drive home. 

We stopped in Fairfield to get milkshakes and onion rings. And by that time, we had cell service again, though not very many bars. Not enough bars to stream music, but enough bars to get her back in touch with her friends, which was good. We listened to another musical she had downloaded, 36 Questions, which I am now in love with. Then we listened to one of my albums, Ben Folds' Way to Normal. And, once we got closer to Mountain Home, she got enough signal to stream and we started listening to the Heathers musical. I’d heard they were making Heathers into a musical, but I hadn’t been really interested in listening to it. I’m really glad she shared it with me, because it was quite fun, mostly following the plot of the movie, which is one I enjoy. 

Back in Boise, I got us checked in to our new hotel, much closer to downtown and much nicer. We spent some time at the hotel pool, even though it was just a kiddie pool and a hot tub. Then it was time to figure out some dinner, and I wanted to show her Freak Alley. When we got in the elevator to go to Freak Alley and find food, I noticed a Boise events flyer hanging up. It advertised the musical Dear Evan Hansen, which was another one she likes a lot. In fact, she loves that musical, but hadn’t had a chance to see the show because she didn’t get into it until after the Chicago run had ended. And now, here was her chance! I told her to look up tickets and we’ll see, but I was honestly feeling a bit cranky. Or perhaps hangry. So we walked to Freak Alley, which she thought was very cool, and then picked a place to eat. 

She had found $6 tickets for decent seats in the mezzanine, and, after some trials and tribulations figuring out how this particular ticket vendor worked, we got them. The total for both of us was less than $20, and all we had to do was get over to the Morrison Center before the 6:30 showtime – the final show of the run! Needless to say, we were a bit impatient at the restaurant, but we got some food in us and were able to make it to the show. I had read reviews of the Dear Evan Hansen movie and I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about it. But my niece was correct in saying the show was a cry-fest and wonderful. 

And while that was definitely a high note of the trip, we also had a low note. The airline had moved her flight. I specifically got her an afternoon flight when I bought the tickets months ago. I knew I didn’t want to have to get a teenager up early to catch a flight, so 3:40 seemed ideal. Yeah, no. They changed her departure to 10:30 AM. I was not happy, and I apologized, but the fact of the matter was we needed to get up around 7 in the morning. Bah! 

While it was difficult for her, she was a trooper and we got to the airport in plenty of time to figure out how to get me a pass to escort her to the gate AND to visit the arcade past security. When we were waiting for her flight to board, she spotted a cat in a carrier. The woman escorting the cat thought we were looking at her because we wanted to sit. We did want to sit, but we were more interested in the kitty. The kitty’s name was Garbanzo, and he was a sphynx cat being flown out to his new home. She let us pet him, too. I thought hairless cats would feel weird, but, as she said, he felt like a warm peach. If I’m ever in the market for a hairless cat, I’ll definitely be reaching out to this lady. 

Then, before too long, it was time for her to board. I saw her through the gate and then hustled upstairs so I could get a picture of her boarding. At the Boise airport, some gates have outdoor ramps for boarding and this was one of them. So I got one last picture of her and then waited until the plane was in the air before taking myself home to my husband. Next year, it’s her sister’s turn. 

A birdie pooped on our tent!

Mushroom!

Steamy hot springs in the morning cool.

Making our way back.

Gotta climb that high road again!

Slow and steady does the trick, with plenty of rest breaks.

Hello snek!

Views like this are a good reason to take the high road.

Plus we saw this chipmunk hanging out on a rock.

Crossing Poison Creek.

Back on to the flats, what a relief!

Getting close to the trailhead.

I can see the pit toilet!

Our art gallery survived the night.

Ready for Dear Evan Hansen to start.

There goes her plane, headed off to Chicago.

Niece Camping 2022 - Part 3

The next morning was a bit more leisurely than I wanted. But I more wanted the experience to be a positive one for her, so I didn’t start nagging her to get out of bed until about 11 am. I really wanted to eat lunch on the trail, because eating lunch at the campsite would tend to keep us there longer instead of getting us on the move to the night’s campsite at Skillern Creek. Still, I’d been up since 7, making breakfast for myself and her (she did not end up liking the breakfast burrito of leftover rice, spam and eggs, but I liked mine), as well as coffee for me and tea for her. The tea ended up being dumped, but it was all good. Once I got her moving, her inertia kept her moving until we were well on our way. 

We stopped not too far in, just before Barlow Creek, to make lunch in the shade by the river. This was the first dehydrated backpacking meal, and I just hoped that she would be able to eat it. Thank goodness for Backpacker’s Pantry Three Cheese Mac and Cheese! It was a hit, though she thought the spices made it taste like meat. It took me a bit to get used to the pepper in this particular mac and cheese, but I’ve come to love it for rehydrating into gooey cheese. And the noodles are small and thin enough that they don’t end up crunchy, which I’ve experienced with Mountain House mac and cheese. We filled up her water bottle at this stop, and then kept on hiking up the trail. 

Before too long, we came to the junction. To the left is the high road, climbing up and over the river. To the right, the low road, which requires four separate fords of the river. She would have preferred that we take the low road and avoid hiking uphill. I would have preferred doing one on the way out and the other on the way back. But when we went to check out the low road, I had to make the call. The water was simply too high and fast for us to safely cross. 

Now, if it had been Ambrose and I, I might have gone with that crossing. Heck, even if Ambrose had been there at all I might have let her do it. But the safest way to cross that kind of water is a tandem crossing. In a tandem crossing, the larger person is the anchor and walks on the upstream side. I was not going to try and teach her how to tandem cross when she would have to be the anchor. That did not sound safe to me. I mean, even the motorcycles were taking the high road, though that may have had more to do with the large log wedged across the low road just before the first ford. A couple with two dogs hiked up on us while we looked at the water, and I wondered if they would make the ford or follow us. 

While I wasn’t going to take her on the low road, I did climb over the log to get our hats wet, which would make the uphill climb a bit more bearable. I did warn her that her hat would dry out pretty quickly, but at least it shaded her face pretty well. Normally, I’ll do just about anything to avoid hiking between noon and 3 pm. I get up super early most backpacking days to try and get as much hiking as possible done before the heat of the day comes on. But I was okay with my decision to let the teen sleep in a bit, or just lay there and relax, whatever she was actually doing. This trip was supposed to be about having fun with new experiences, not being forced to get up early just so I could hike when I’m most comfortable. But I did tell her about how it’s nicer to hike early in the day. 

We climbed up the first bit to the junction with Poison Creek with relative ease. There was a guy sitting at the side of the trail in the shade. We exchanged greetings and he asked if we were going to the hot springs. I said that we were and he replied, with a tinge of defeat in his voice, “Do you know where they are?” I assured him that we did. I mean, I did at least. From his voice, I figured he hadn’t known exactly how to get there and his party may or may not have made it. As my niece and I hiked on, I got to demonstrate to her how to let people pass on a narrow trail, by putting one foot off the trail on the uphill side and leaning over so the pack is no longer impinging on the path. We got to let two small groups by in that manner, which served as a good distraction from the uphill hiking still to come. 

With a few breaks for water and catching breath, we made it to the top out. Now my niece got to learn how to hike downhill safely. There were sections of this particular trail where we could kind of put our heels down first, which helped prevent sliding on the very loose rocky surface. It was hard for her to get a hang of, and we needed to go slowly so that she wouldn’t fall. The last thing I wanted to do was deal with an injury out there, so I took it nice and slow. Behind us, I could see the couple with the dogs coming down. They’d taken the high road too, which made sense to me. Even if the people might have been able to do the ford, it would have been dangerous for the doggies. 

My niece and I took a break at the junction, in some shade, and when the couple passed by I asked where they were headed. Turns out, they were also going to the Skillern Hot Springs, so I told them we’d see them later. They seemed a little disappointed, but they mentioned that it’s a big site. And it is, there’s room for two or three separate camps. I just hoped they’d take the one closer to the trail, because I like the one in back best. But they’d get first pick, so I’d just have to wait and see. 

After a bit, we hiked on. I assured her that it wasn’t much farther. And we did at least get more shade on this section of the trail, as well as more proximity to the water, though it wasn’t convenient to reach for filtering and she was running low. But I knew we’d be coming up on Skillern Creek very soon, so I pushed for us to keep going rather than refill. Before we got to the creek, I felt a rumble in my tummy and dug out an energy bar. I tore it in half and gave half to her with an order to eat up. It’s important to not let yourself get too hungry on the trail, because it’s harder to make up a deficit than to stay on a relatively even keel when it comes to food, water and warmth. 

In next to no time, we made it to the creek. I led her across a combination of logs and rocks to get to the far side and then we dumped our packs to the ground and set about getting more water. To help her understand that the campsite was very close, I carried my half full dirty water bag in my hand instead of emptying it and putting it up. From the creek, it’s just a short length of trail with a tiny bit of uphill before the campsite reveals itself, spreading out in the space between Skillern Creek and the foothills of Skillern Peak. 

To my delight, the couple and their dogs had chosen the spot closer to the trail, so I made a beeline for the back campsite so we could claim it before anyone else arrived. We didn’t set up camp right away. Instead, we snacked and chatted and figured out when to go to the hot springs. I also finished up what was in my water bladder and got it refilling, which she helped me with by finding a nice high nail to hang the dirty water bag from. Then I got to cooking our first of two Chicken Alfredo dinners so we could have one before and one after the hot springs. As we waited for it to finish rehydrating, I showed her how the backpacking tent is erected, being extra careful with the rock I used to pound in stakes. I definitely didn’t want to have to do first aid on myself again because I pounded my finger between a rock and a stake! 

Normally, I’d make sure the tent was made up inside as well before going anywhere, but this time I went with the flow. We just put our stuff inside the tent and then got changed and headed over. 

The Skillern Hot Springs are both easy to find and difficult to find. From the trail, there’s a path down to hot water springing out of the hillside. But that’s not really where you want to go. You have to go down, and then traverse across, climbing up some rocks before you come upon the pool. It’s the size of a fairly large hot tub, and on this trip it was in very good repair, with a line of sandbags keeping the water level nice and high. What I love about it is that the rocks from above overhang and shelter the pool so it feels like you’re out there completely alone. The river runs below and the hot water falls from above. It’s idyllic. 

The water temperature was good. Hotter than it had been September 2020, for which I was glad. While my friend liked that cooler temperature on that trip, I prefer it a bit hotter, and I got my preference on this trip. My niece thought the temp was good, but we both got a bit hot in it. I found a place where cool water was trickling down the rocks and showed it to her. We spent some time just hanging out in the water, watching the river and the few clouds that made an appearance overhead. 

Eventually, the heat was too much, and we retreated out of the water to cool off and head back. I was glad that there weren’t a lot of bugs there to bother us. Some years, I’ve gotten horse flies attacking as soon as I get out of the water, but they weren’t around this time. Thank goodness! 

She had wanted to know what the temperature of the water would be like where the hot springs met the river, so we checked that area out on our way back. The answer, basically, is half freezing cold and half boiling; the water temperature doesn’t blend very well right at the intersection of hot springs and river. Then we made our way back to camp and finished making up our beds for the night. I assured her that the air mattress she’d be sleeping on this night was much warmer than the one in the big tent, because it has insulation inside of it. Between the better sleeping pads and a warmer forecast (which surprised me because we were at a higher elevation), I was sure we’d be warm for this night. 

We decided to include more water in the Chicken Alfredo for the second bag. The first one was delicious, but they do have a tendency to have crunchy bits of chicken. More water helps, but there was still some crunch to the chicken. And then we also had a dessert to eat, a chocolate mudslide that I liked and she tolerated. The sun disappeared more quickly from this position, but it didn’t get truly dark until much later. 

As we were in the tent, I showed her pictures on my camera from past trips, cute things like flowers and animals mostly. Before it got fully dark, we went out for a last pee break before bed. That way she wouldn’t have to wake me up for company if she needed to go in the night. I usually have to get up and go at least once in the night, but I’m used to sleeping out in the kind of darkness you can’t get within hundreds of miles of Chicago. 

Before we fell asleep, but after it was fully dark out, I got us both out of the tent to look at the stars. That was one goal that I had for this trip, to show her what the stars look like when you have zero light pollution to interfere. The sky didn’t disappoint, displaying a myriad of stars, a bit of galaxy shading, some satellites, and a plane or two. The moon wasn’t going to rise until early morning, so we got the full show. We stood out there for quite some time, just looking. But I got a crick in my neck and started to get cold, so I called it and we went back into the tent for the night. 

I got us packed up while she slept in.

The sun was shining on our campsite.

I wanted to share this deer with her, but it disappeared too quickly.

I was quite proud of this breakfast burrito. 

We managed to set off from camp before noon. 

Some flowers along the trail.

Moving along the trail.

Time to pick, high road or low road.

No way we're fording that high water!

So we gotta take the high road.

Which does offer some great views, to be fair.

More shade after the high road.

We have arrived!

The hot springs don't look like much, unless you know where to go.

A nice reinforced ledge kept the pool's water level high.

Plenty of room to hang out in the hot spring.

I know I had a great time ;)

Last time I saw this, it was just a tub, but someone has gone to the trouble of wilding it. I like it.

A nice little camping spot. 

Skillern September 2020 Day 2

We slept in. I didn't set an alarm or anything. The plan was just to get up when we got up and go from there. We had an easy 3 miles back to the car; no need to rush. 

I woke earlier than I would have hoped, but not much earlier than I expected, considering my bladder tends to wake me up before I'm done sleeping. I got up to water the bushes, and I was very quiet. Then I got back to the tent and was startled by the sight of the hikers from last night headed our way. 

I had made a point of showing my friend how I would put the pot on a carabiner hanging right outside my door. The idea is, if anything scares me in the night, I can just hit it and make a racket that would scare most animals away. 

Well, I managed to make quite a racket when I saw those hikers approaching, and I woke her up. I apologized and told her they were coming by. They headed up Skillern Creek, along a trail I've taken before. In fact, that's the trail where an elk cow came charging at Ambrose and I, only to stop, regard us for a minute, and then turn off the trail and cross the creek. 

She accepted my apology for waking her, and we both tried to fall back asleep. Tried being the operative word here. Neither of ended up falling back asleep, and after nearly an hour of desultory chatting, we agreed it was time for breakfast. 

Now, I hadn't specifically recommended that she bring a down jacket. Those things aren't cheap and I didn't know if she had one. I've got one for backpacking that I had with me, and I knew from my earlier trip outside the tent that it was pretty chilly. Too chilly, in my opinion, for her to wear just a fleece. So I told her to take the down quilt that she'd slept in outside and use it as a cloak. Not ideal, but sufficiently warm for the task. 

I got the ursack from where I'd tied it, about halfway between our backside campsite and the frontside campsite. Then it was time to do breakfast. We had talked about how much she loves coffee, so I decided to make her a big coffee. Well, technically, this was powdered instant espresso - my go to coffee these days. If she hadn't told me black coffee was her preference earlier in the week, I would have bought some instant latte powder, but this morning's coffee would be black. 

Naturally, I made the coffee first. Priorities! Then I did the Mountain House Raspberry Crumble. 

Now, you might say to yourself, isn't that a dessert, not a breakfast? 

And to that I say, breakfast is the first meal of the day, no matter what it happens to be composed of. If leftover pizza can qualify as breakfast, then so too can a dessert. Plus, it's not like this is much different from eating a Pop Tart for breakfast. 

While we waited for the raspberry sauce to finish rehydrating, I made my friend get up and walk a little bit. Not too far, just far enough so that we could look in the direction of the hot spring and she could see the steam rising up. I love when it's cool enough to see that steam rising, betraying the location of the spring that could otherwise be hidden. 

Having something hot and sweet to eat first thing in the morning, especially when it's chilly, is such a treat. The lunch and dinner from the previous day were packed individually, but this one we had to share a bag. I told her the tactic that Ambrose and I use - choose a number of bites to take and then alternate. I said three bites first, but then I took my first bite. It was very sweet, very rich and still quite hot, so I revised to two bites. 

A motorcycle roared up the trail at one point, carrying a man and a woman. They parked it by the trail, and then walked up the Skillern Creek trail. They were clearly hunting; the man carried a compound bow and both wore camo. I told them there were some more hunters that had headed up that way earlier this morning and wished them good luck. 

After breakfast, we talked some more while finishing up the coffee. Then it was time to break camp. I had her get the water this time to fill the dirty water bag, and then she got to filter her own water. We took the tent down together, folded it, and I started to stuff it in the bag to show her how it was done and then let her finish stuffing it in. 

I'm really not very good at keeping surprises secret. I told her about the "secret" roadside hot spring the night before while we were at the Skillern hot spring. And I told her as we were packing up about my intention to give her the pack that I had loaned her. It was the second backpacking pack that I ever bought, and I learned a lot from it about what I didn't want in a pack. But I never ended up using it very much, and I wanted her to have it and use it. 

When we were ready to hike out, I told her I wanted her to pick whether we did the high road or the low road on the way back. I mean, I would make the safety call - if the crossing on this side did not look good to me, I would veto and we'd take the high road. But it was up to her if we tried. 

We hiked on past Skillern Creek, and I noticed something hanging in the trees to the creek side of the trail. Several bags were up there; I figured it was from the hikers from last night, though I couldn't figure out why they'd store gear in the trees here. 

Goodbye, hot springs!

Never seen a tree growing so much gear before ;)

At the junction of low road and high road, my friend picked the low road, and I grinned. I'd never gone that way before, and it was so special to me that I'd get to experience something for the first time with this friend, on this trip. 

The junction is far enough from the first crossing that you can't see it. We had to walk a bit farther before I could take a look at the crossing and determine its safety. The depth was reasonable, ankle to mid-calf, and not too fast flowing. I deemed it safe, but told her that I would go first to demonstrate how to cross safely. 

We both adjusted shoes before crossing. She had brought shoes specifically for stream crossings, and I was taking off my socks and the liner from my shoe. We also needed to lengthen our trekking poles a bit, and then put packs back on. I explained that while I learned from Ambrose that you should do stream crossings without fastening the pack straps, that there were arguments to be made for keeping it fastened. See, if it's unfastened and you fall, you can easily bail out from the pack rather than letting it drag you into a drowning situation. But an unfastened pack balances differently from a fastened one, so crossing with it unfastened can impact your balance, and with a crossing this shallow, a fall would just get you wet. This creek was not sweeping anyone our size away any time soon. 

For demonstration's sake, I did leave my pack unfastened at this first crossing. The flow was low and slow enough that I had to remind myself to demonstrate good technique instead of just forging forward. Good technique dictates maintaining three points of contact at all times, moving only one foot or trekking pole at a time, and I mostly did that on this crossing. 

Then it was my friend's turn. I took pictures, of course, but I also decided that I could do a video. I don't often do videos because that mode drains my camera battery at a terrifying rate, but we were headed home and I didn't need to conserve. I managed to turn the video on at exactly the perfect time.  

Once we were both across, I suggested fastening our packs and leaving on the crossing shoes - if they were comfortable enough to hike in. I figured we would be crossing back soon enough and it would be a pain in the butt to put everything back only to have to take it off again. Little did I know how smart that choice would turn out to be. 

The low road was quite pretty. Less exposed of course, and through forest instead of up on the side of a hill. I saw thimble berry bushes, but the only remaining berries were wizened and not good examples of the berry. 

Much sooner than I expected, there was a crossing. But it was not the crossing I expected. It was at the wrong angle and way too soon. I could see that the trail it crossed to was not the trail near the junction. Instead, the trail snugged up under the high road for a stretch and then crossed back again. 

The third crossing was probably the most challenging. A large rock had contributed to form a deep pool that we had to avoid, and even where we crossed it was deeper than the other crossings. But she got across with no problems. 

There were a few camping spots along the trail, including at least one fire ring. Over all, I rather liked it. It would certainly be a cooler hike than the high road, which could be nice in hot weather. Really, we should have taken the low road in when it was hot and the high road out in the cold, but it worked out. 

We could hear a motorcycle when we got close to the last crossing. She headed out first (as she had for every crossing after the first one), and I waited off the trail in case the motorcycle came by.

When we finished the last crossing, we sat down and got our hiking shoes set up again. She had boots to put on, and I had socks to put on and liners to put in my shoes. The shoes are not waterproofed, so they shed water pretty quickly. And I squeezed them a bit to get the excess water out. My feet were still pretty damp for hiking, but nothing I couldn't handle for a couple miles. 

The Low Road

Careful crossing demonstration.

Successful first ford!

The low road is rather pretty.

Crossing number 2.

Hazy light reflecting on the water of crossing 2. 

That rock made a deep spot in the water.

Not too deep to ford!

It only came up to my knees.

Campsite along the low road.

Last crossing!

Very hazy still.

We continued to hike, not running into too much of interest on the way. Except for when I saw an orange thing in the trees and had to go investigate. I like to bring litter out of the forest, but this was a broken orange bucket filled with dried cement or something like it. Too heavy for me to carry, especially on a trail where motorcycles can much more easily reach and pack such a thing out. 

All dry and back on the main trail.

What's over there? Well, there's a bucket... but why? Beats me.

Just before we got to the trailhead, we saw someone hiking out. The man was alone, but it was his pack animals that drew our attention. We both wanted to take pictures, but my friend wasn't sure of the etiquette, so I just asked him if we could take a picture of his pack train. 

Because I've seen pack goats here in Idaho, and I've seen pack horses, but I'd never, until that day, seen pack llamas. 

Llamas!!

Whoop! She made it!

Back at the car, we got ready for the roadside hot spring. Her swimsuit had dried sufficiently from the night before, and I was just going to wear my bra and underwear, because that's the way I roll. But I did make sure my clothes for afterwards were accessible from the front seat. 

We also unpacked the other loaner gear from her pack so as to be ready for her to take the pack home. Then, after a grateful visit to the pit toilet (well, my visit was grateful), it was time to hit the road. I still wasn't paying much attention to the time, and that felt great. 

I was paranoid about missing the spring, but the sign really helps in that respect. She swung the car around so as to be parked facing the correct way, and then we got out. I went ahead to put the plug in the spring - there's a plug that's left out so the tub stays low, and I put it back in to bring the water level up.

That spring is pretty small. Two people who like each other can fit in it, maybe three if they're all really close. Or really small. We sat next to each other on the spring's bench; it's a bit slimy, but I just ignore that. 

There were huge dragonflies dancing around us, with an orange-ish color that I didn't recall seeing before. And a hawk perched on a tree across the road at one point. A few cars drove by, but most of them didn't notice us. The parked car, sure, they probably saw that, but in the spring we were not very visible. 

The hot spring was hotter than Skillern had been. We got out before overheating, but just barely. I had to go chug some water right after; it really made me realize how dry I'd gotten. We got dressed and then it was back to the car. 

Once we hit Fairfield, it was easy to see that the smoke was worse than the day before. Foothills disappeared into the haze. The view was constricted, quite unlike how it usually is. I kept taking pictures to show Ambrose, because I knew he'd appreciate how smoky it was from what he couldn't see. 

After a while, I put on some music from my phone. I wanted to share some of my music with her, and some of the songs sparked conversation. At one point, I learned that she had not heard of They Might Be Giants, and so I had to put on one of their albums (Severe Tire Damage). I was only a little self conscious of my singing along. It's something that I love doing, and I have a hard time NOT singing along when I hear a song I like. 

She got me safely home, and she talked about how she wants to bring her boyfriend out to Skillern. I was so happy to have had a successful trip, so much so that she wants to pass on that experience to someone else. I guess that's how backpackers are made.