I was sad yesterday, and the day before. August 31

I was just needing to get out.
So i thought i'd take a drive up hill. I wanted to take a photo of the sign that says " Pacific Crest Trail" to show my dad. He and I ALWAYS watch nat geo or science or discovery or travel channel on tv and every time we get the chance to watch a documentary of the trail we do.
ANYWAY. i took a leisurely drive, checked out campgrounds, pulled over into dirt roads where there were landings and took photos. As always it was a beautiful day. Well , i got to the trail and parked in the little pull over. Got out, and was reading all the notices on the board and heard voices. Looking down the trail and saw there were two women walking up . BACKPACKING. They had their ski poles and their backpacks and were just grungy from the 10 days they've spent hiking the forest from Sierra City.........

I waited for them to reach me and offered them some water and a ride somewhere . They wanted me to call their husbands but there was no cell reception up there so they wrote down messages for me to call them when i could. And we got talking and I took photos of them standing by the sign and they took one of me and then these RETIRED, GRANDMOTHERS invited me to join them for a little hike. ISN'T THAT GREAT? i was more excited than i thought i would be. And they were so nice. One retired kindergarden teacher from Grass Valley and the other a retired landscape architect from the Bay Area. I got their emails and will send them the photos and they invited me to visit them when ever i get back to California.

The ride up to the trail was gorgeous, I parked and sat under the aspen with their silver bark and shimmery leaves, still green but sparkling and giggling in the wind, to watch some magnificent horses grazing a high mountain meadow. One golden with a pale main and tail that glistened in the sun, a buck color with dark main and tail, and one darker, but not brown exactly, with a light tail and mane, big horses, beautiful. They ran across the meadow as i approached the fence, hooves thundering until they pulled up short when they realized i was a stranger.
I explored a couple of pretty but vacant campgrounds, families are back home now that school has begun. Did you know that in exchange for the camping fee you can volunteer to be a campground host? You need to stay a month and just do little campground mantainence. I stopped and took photos.

I drove really slow......luckily no traffic for me to hold up.
took benadryl last night as i haven't been able to sleep much lately. still , it took me hours of tossing and turning before waking up at 7, shivering. even with the down comforter over me. Ran outside with the garbage bag and started water for tea, and hot water in the tub.
I don't know what im going to do today. I had planned on going back south , i was invited to Strawberry but that's off the table now. I m waiting to hear from Fran. Ill go for a walk in the sun, maybe that will warm me up. Time to get the leaf blower going. Wash the car after my drive yesterday. Work a little in the garden. Finish my book.

hope you're all safe out there in Ct. hope to hear from you.

lovemom/sal