one year ago I decided to try camping alone for the first time.
a sheltowee trace blaze trailside near ky 1209
it was only my second time camping, overall. the first occasion was in the closing acts of 2019, a december night spent at half moon rock in red river gorge. i wish i had pictures from that day, of the warm setting sunlight on the bare rock jutting up from the earth.
but back to last february, before the days of quarantine, in the throes of a long lonely winter. i was depressed and thought it'd be a good idea to hit the road, find some desolation, and plant myself in it and try to Make It.
visual descriptions of how last winter was
I still remember: the bands of light, coming in through the trees roadside as I sliced through Estill county, on the way to my chosen campsite. I decided I was gonna pack a tent and sleeping bag and stove and walk some miles on the sheltowee, choose a spot for the night and see how I fared. I chose a section of the trace beginning on a quiet country road near arvel, ky, and parked at a creepy abandoned post office, thinking no one would really care if i left baby harold there overnight.
this year we've been inundated with snow galore, the sidewalks are choking on it and I've been out of work because of it for a couple of days. but last year it was a sunny day, the evergreens seemed effervescent, charged with the energy of the sun.
still, icicles hung in the cold from a rock shelter.
I walked probably just a couple miles in from the road, deciding to stop by a stream that fed into war fork branch. this section of the sheltowee is gorgeous. desolate. absolutely the loneliness i wanted to drown myself in, by a quiet creek.
a waterfall whose name I do not know. february it was still partially frozen, and i returned multiple times throughout the spring to see it in the swell.
this section was full of rock shelters, babbling creeks, and gentle elevation gain, in a very remote part of Kentucky
a forest aglow
it was just what I wanted to feast upon. but i was ridiculously underprepared. i didn't even bring bear spray. i brought a 40 degree bag and thought i was going to die at night of hypothermia. but i learned some lessons. and i think i've grown a lot since then. :)
