Before I get to today’s events I will recap you on the rest of the guys evening. Last night they were able to stay in a volunteer firefighter’s station. It was two levels, complete with two bathrooms, a full kitchen and even a large 70-inch plasma screen TV. But that was not the greatest feature of the station. Just before they headed to bed Andy tried finding the AC because it was sweltering. Often times when Ken and Andy enter a new place, they try to ‘out explore’ one another. “Look where I am Ken,” Andy would say. Ken would reply, “Psh, been there already.” But for some reason they did not play this game when they arrived. So when Andy opened a door, looking for the AC switch he was surprised and delighted when found a fireman’s pole! Ken and DK were already settled into bed and Andy told them of his great find and the immediately went nuts. Both Andy and DK got their turns sliding down the pole. Ken erred on the safe side and opted out however.
So onto to today’s events. They got up at 4AM to get a jump on the day and to escape the immense heat. Andy wanted to get on the road as soon as possible because the quicker they are on the road, the quicker they are done for the day. But after being pulled into two episodes of Saved By the Bell and eating breakfast they didn’t leave until 5AM.
They headed out of Parker AZ, on the backcountry roads that turned every few miles. They passed Alfalfa fields and lush green patches of land. Farmers greeted them as they passed in the early light and the sky was a bright mixture of orange, red and pink. Andy said that it was one of the nicest sunrises he has seen thus far. It rose behind a set of mountains and looked amazing against the green backdrop of fields. One field was dotted with fresh hay bales, which were still green. It reminded Andy of a cemetery.
Around 8AM they came upon the Colorado River and the entrance to California; the last state of the trip, a small bridge marked the border between AZ and CA. Being the last state it was their last chance to be the first one in that state. Ken asked Andy if he was going to be the first one, and Andy replied, meh, I don’t really care. But secretly he did, he just didn’t want DK to get a jump on him. Before they knew it, Andy started sprinting towards the bridge. But neither Ken nor Matt chased after him. Andy said it seems that he is the only one who actually cares about the state total. But for those other who is also counting, Andy and Ken are at 3 states each and Matt is at a low, 1 state. They stopped at the bridge to take some pictures and look at the water. Soaking in the reality that this was the final state they need to transverse before they reach the Pacific. They tired determining how wide the river was, Andy evening throwing a rock across it, only to make it half way. But you can’t tell too much from that weak arm of his!
Once they crossed the bridge they had about 15 miles left in their day. They had planned on stopping in a town tonight, however it ended up being that there was no town along or near their route, so they were going to camp out. But they would not have to camp out after they met a kind lady named Jackie Murray.
Jackie had seen the guys about 4 days ago when she was driving from CA to AZ to drop off a friend. When she saw them on her way back to CA, she had to stop and ask what they were doing. She graciously offered up her home to them. She was about a mile from where they wanted to stop for the night so the guys gladly accepted. Jackie, a motorcycle enthusiast, retired county worker with a passion for life, lived right on the river. She had built a small canopy and dock where you could sit and enjoy the peacefulness of the river; the guys ended up spending most of the afternoon relaxing there. Ken said it felt like a vacation. They were brought lunch by Jackie and listened to music on the ipod.
The river dissected near Jackie’s home into two portions, with one side being calmer than the other. They stayed in the calm side for most of the afternoon, floating downstream about a hundred feet and then walking back. But before long that got boring and they headed to the other side that flowed a little faster. Matt was the first one in and before long he said “uh-oh.” Andy asked him what was wrong and Matt said that he lost a sandal and that the current was a little stronger than he anticipated. Before Andy could respond Matt had lost the other as well. So when Andy got in he held on to his sandals and they both floated downstream. The faster part stemmed off into a small lake where they ended up hanging out at for a while. They sat on a small sandy shore and invented rock-throwing games. Some which went like this:
Which do you think I can throw farther? A heavy rock with my right hand, or a light rock with my left?
How many rocks can you throw at one time?
Can you throw a rock in the same exact place?
After a while of this they headed back to where Ken was resting. The walk back was especially difficult for Matt because he had no traction due to his lack of footwear. Andy said he got a chuckle out of it.
Jackie made them a delicious homemade BBQ chicken dinner, complete with potato salad, corn and regular salad. They enjoyed the potato salad the most. They will spend the night in Jackie’s enclosed, air-conditioned I night add, porch. They plan on getting a very early start tomorrow, heading to Blythe CA.
Thanks for reading, and only 12 more days until they guys are finished with an adventure of a lifetime!
-Dan
No comments:
Post a Comment