getting spoiled

well, mom and john showed up friday afternoon on schedule at the northern edge of crater lake park. they were a welcome sight, and i couldn't stop grinning as i looked through all the bags and coolers of food they had brought with them. for weeks i've been fantasizing about what i'd like to eat - hours would pass as i fixated on cheesecake, donuts, macaroni, etc... - and mom made every effort to fulfill those dreams. (i'd just like to point out that the slice of cheesecake is on a full-size plate. see the fork peeking out from behind? so good.)


tonight we're staying in a chalet at willamette pass. tomato and i both hiked pretty big days (i ended up walking just over 44 miles, but tomato broke the 60 mile barrier!) and everyone was tired as we ate a late dinner. my laptop was calling to me though, and i'm staying up far too late enjoying my unlimited internet access. i still won't get everything done though, especially as my eyes are beginning to close involuntarily.

mom and john have been amazing - picking up and dropping off tomato and myself at different trailheads at all hours of the evenings and mornings. today they even met me halfway with cold drinks and fresh fruit - if only every hiking day were like that! but i felt bad when the road i asked them to pick me up on this evening turned out to be little more than an off-roading dirt track. they made a heroic effort to reach the trail junction, but the van just couldn't do it and they were forced to stop a 1/2 mile away. it took an hour each way to drive the 6 miles of "road." we're looking at other options for my drop-off in the morning...



tomato and i are still on track for arriving at the washington border on the first of august, though it will certainly involve some tough hiking days. i'm going to shoot for a 50+ on monday. we'll see how it goes.



sunrise on crater lake