Traveling Again 2021

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We are off on an adventure, the first time in over a year. Choosing a short trip, five days and a known location, Lassen. We have been strictly sheltering in place since March of 2020. Fully vaccinated we are ready (I hope). We packed up Casagiro and set out. Being out in the world again is a bit strange and surreal. We have literally gone nowhere in the last 14 months.

We are taking baby steps to reintegrate back into post vaccination life. No coffee stops this trip. This being one of our favorite things to do, and we are not quite ready. Venturing out now, there are new things to think about, packing masks and hand sanitizer, will we feel comfortable using public restrooms? The camper is fully “self-contained” thus we can travel easily with limited interactions.

Night 1:

We planned to stay at our usual camping spot just outside of Chester, about 5½ hours from home.  Not used to driving much, deviating from the plan, we decided to stop early, finding a nice campground along the Deer Creek river above Chico. Fishing is always the consideration for Gary. Only one other site occupied, it felt perfect. For a couple, who has traversed several continents carefree and unplanned, one would not think an unknown campground to be a big deal. This is what happens when you have been literally at home for over a year……………

So far so good. Armed with our spray bottle of bleach, we even used the camp “facilities”.

Day 2:

This is the earliest in the year we have visited Lassen National Park. We expected lots more snow. The road through the park just opened on Monday, May 17^th.  We were able to drive all the way through the park. It is stunningly beautiful, untamed country. We hiked Summit Lake and Manzanita Lake. It is early in the season and I appreciated the lack of many people. I still feel apprehensive around people, especially unmasked. Even with the assurances of the CDC proclaiming the safety for vaccinated folks, it has been such a habit for so long to mask and distance. Again, this is unusual for me, a woman who is rarely afraid of people (and I have had some sketchy encounters over the years of traveling). I love meeting new people and having random exchanges, even if we don’t speak the same language. I trust time will heal this anxiety in me.

We stayed the second night at Manzanita Lake just inside the northern border of the Lassen park. Beautiful and warm during the day, yet soooooo cold at night. We are near 6000 feet elevation and the day and night temperature shifts are substantial. Our camper has an insulator pack, and, it was so cold we slept fully dressed. Fortunately, we have a heater we can turn it on in the morning to warm up.

One of the advantages of being older is the Golden Pass. A lifetime membership that give us free day use in National Parks and half off the national park campgrounds.

Day 3:

We set out to visit a cave site north of the park. We also wanted to scope out camping areas for fishing. Without GPS, we resorted to using some wonderful maps we acquired years ago from the forestry service. We found a remote back country camp area along the Hat Creek.  Prefect for fishing.

This is as far as we made it for the day. Only about 15 miles. We set up camp and Gary went off to fish.

We are out about two miles out on a dirt road, there are places to pull off along the river. This is genuine dry camping. No picnic tables, firepits, bathrooms, water, just the beauty of nature. We have a pretty nice setup with our foldup aluminum table, chairs and portable “outhouse”.

Night 3:

I awake to a loud thump sound on the truck, hum. Is someone trying to break into our truck? Not likely in this remote area. A bear!? My imagination can get wild in the darkness of night. Then  I hear a soft thumping on the roof of the camper. An animal? I wake up Gary. “small animals” he said. “But it has been going on for a while, why would they be on the roof?”, I reply. Pause….. “Snow?” he says. “Really!!??” I asked. Ok, I must get up and look. Sure enough the ground is covered with about three inches of snow. Big plops of snow are thumping off the trees onto the top of our camper. It was truly a magical scene. It is now nearly 6 am and starting to get light. No more sleeping for us. We get up and take a walk.

Day 4: We finally made it to the cave and Burney Falls.

We spent our last night along the gorgeous Hat Creek. A neighboring camper invited us to join him at his campfire. I hesitated, then asked, (stating that I did not want to be rude) was he was vaccinated.  He was and we agreed to join him. Unmasked we sat around his warm campfire. Progress…………….

An important lesson we have both realized over this last year, is the need to be respectful and tolerant of others, especially as we navigate this very unusual time in our lives. Each of us has a different comfort level. Whether by choice or circumstances, sheltering has looked different to each of us. As we reenter the world of interaction and socializing, some of us are taking it more slowly than others. We need to make space for each other to be comfortable and feel safe.

Safe Travels ———————– See you next time —————————- Gary and Nancy