Day 7 - Yummy

This morning starts out gradually. The countryside, and specifically the campground has given way to the desert and the layer of needles on the ground is almost completely dry. Last night as the fire smoldered and I sat and typed, the thought occurred that perhaps this would be a fire hazard, however I was attentive and no problems have arisen between then and now.

Climbing out of my tent and carefully picking my way over the dry needles on the way to find a fresh pair of socks I conclude that a restaurant made breakfast will be much more appealing than the drivel (or whatever) that I would otherwise be able to create given my currently meager set of supplies.

The balance of the packing concludes quickly enough, however I am dismayed to discover that the battery in my camera has drained. Well, off to the restaurant and we will find batteries later. At this point I should admit that although I have just gotten up, and am more or less ready to start the day, it is currently just past 11:00 AM in the morning. At this rate the day will only start at the crack of noon as my roommate Mario says.

Given the time, breakfast becomes lunch and my first meal of the day is a cheeseburger with fries. Yummy. (I see you there shaking your head with disapproval). It is during this meal that I meet Jaycee, who has just arrived herself with breakfast intentions in the same genre as mine. One interesting thing about Jaycee is that she has only got one leg; the other apparently was lost in a bike accident some years ago.

She lights up over the conversation in which topics range wildly, from the possibility of her doing her own cross country tour with a hand powered bicycle to hummingbirds and beyond. After we leave the restaurant, purchase batteries at the next door market and prepare to hit the road Jaycee comes out and sends us off with her best wishes. My last sight of her is her squinting at the back of her camera as she documents the event.

Now at this point things are clearly starting to shift physically for me. My legs seem to be able to easily power me up the first hill of the morning, and as I crest it, the view of the Thompson river blows me away. This river is powerful, as anyone can attest to who has viewed the rapids just east of Lytton. Enormous volumes of water pass here every moment of every day, and of course make there way south to the confluence with the Fraser River where things become truly astounding (Hell's Gate is a good place to observe this result).

Meagan and I slowly become separated over the course of the day as the heat and wears on us both. A number of moderate climbs and one long gradual ascent leads eventually to Spences Bridge.

Here we take advantage of not one but two delightful little restaurants, jump onto the internet for the first time in a while and then finally make our way up a hill and around the corner to the Hilltop Campground just north of Spences Bridge. The campground is at the lower bound of number a orchard, has a babbling brook, excellent showers, powered sites (although no Internet access :) ).

The balance of the evening is spent chatting with the fellow campsite goers, the repairman and Annette, a summer long resident of the campground and relative of the owners.