Hiking, the lake, and meteor showers

Just when I said no one goes on the trails around Lost Lake, today the campers got moving. In the morning a bus filled with teenagers pulled in. Counselors and kids hiked around the lake, talking as loud as they could as they got one with nature. At least I suppose that was the intent.

After those screaming children passed by, others in the campground were inspired to take their own walks with dogs barking and children objecting.

Gary and I settled down in chairs at the edge of the lake to tan and let the ruckus die down. He had a heavy duty air mattress tethered to an anchor.  For a while I snoozed on it until the deer flies started attacking.  I hit the trail.  Immediately a family with a small dog (a puggle) turned onto the trail in front of me.  I sat down on a log and let them get ahead of me. 

When I started up again a stream of hikers came toward me.  I pulled to one side and let them pass.  I was half way around the lake when the puggle group came up behind me. They had taken a wrong turn onto the ridge trail, discovered their mistake and got back on the lake trail. Once again, I let them go on.  

Past the Lost Lake CCC cabins, I met a new stream of campers.  One of them was the boy I talked to yesterday.  He was eager to tell me that he had seen a porcupine burrow.  Since porcupines sleep in trees and don't burrow, he was mistaken, but I left him have his illusions.  He was trying to look at nature and that is all that counts. 

Gary is setting his alarm and we'll be off to bed early.  Around midnight, we'll take our flashlights and go down to the lake to see if we can spot any of the Perseid meteors streaking across the sky. They will be making a spectacle of themselves for the next three days.  For the past few years, we've had clouds or a full moon, either of which ruined the meteor showers.  There is no ambient light at Lost Lake, the moon won't interfere, and the sky is clear as I type this so we are hoping this is the year for shooting stars.

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Blogging news:

I've never had as many "hits" or comments at this blog as I have since I wrote about John Ferguson.  He had so many friends.  Carol thought my column was right on, though I wrote it here at the campground with no journals to consult.  His daughter Glenda said much the same. She said people told her what a unique individual he was.  Which reminds me of the joke John told Mary at the canning company on the day our friendship began. 

How do you catch a unique rabbit?  You neek up on him. 

How do you catch a tame rabbit?  Tame way.     

Terrible joke, but he got Mary's attention. 

Then there's Black Coffee Fiction http://blackcoffeefiction.blogspot.com  Since Bettyann Moore joined us we've added readers, probably those who like outrageous stories about silk panties.

Charles, Sean and Chris those three gay caballeros are on the Pacific Coast Trail again.  They've completed the California stretch and are in Oregon. So many others who began the trail on the Mexican border have given up, but they are still trekking right along.  You can follow their adventures at http://3gaycaballeros.blogspot.com/