Adapt

Oroville to Vancouver

Song stuck in my head: "Urlaub in Italien" by Erobique.

Long distance hiking is a mind game more than it is anything else. You've got a lot of time on your hands to think about everything and I often end up thinking about the reasons why I hike. People have asked me about my motives and I usually struggle to give a great answer. There's the views, being out and about, the physical as well as the mental challenge, the hiker community, the trail angels, the trail towns, and the fact that I get so see places most people will never even get close to. There are tons of reasons why I love to hike. The reasons may vary from person to person and you sort of stick to the people that share the same values you do.

Some days the pain and the doubts become bigger than the cause, and a 12-hour hike becomes a very hard thing to do. That has happened to me in the past, but it usually takes a mountaintop with a view to get me right back on track. Sometimes no view can fix the fact that you haven't showered in 4 days, your legs hurt, you're hot and sweaty, thirsty and longing to be anywhere else than on the trail. Sometimes the pain become bigger than the reasons you hike for, and that's where you either got to push through the pain or you should stop. Katie’s reasons to hike the PNT weren't big enough or different than mine I would say. She just wasn't feeling it, especially the solitude part of it. So, we decided it would be best to part while we still had some of the summer break left. It's sad to see plans fall apart so quickly - especially for the second times in within two weeks - but like I said in the beginning, it's a mind game and if your mind isn't in it, then you shouldn't be putting yourself through the struggles. It's not worth it. Sometimes things just turn out in a different way than you thought they would, and you simply have to adapt to the situation and make the best of it.

So here's what I am going to do since continuing solo on the PNT just seems a little too lonely to me. It's summer, I want to meet people and not be alone in the woods for a month. I'm going to keep on hiking though, since that's the reason why I came out here in the first place, but I'll do 3 to 4 day section on my own in more populated areas. I am back in Vancouver, my second home town, and I'll be heading out to hike a part of the Sunshine Coast Trail in a couple of days on the island. You might wonder ‘What are you going to do after that Dom?’, and I don't have an answer yet. Maybe hop in the AT for a couple of miles? Maybe head to Whistler on the Sea to Summit Trail? I'm stoked about heading to the coast though, even if I didn't end up walking there like I planned to. Oh well.

Actually the story of how I got back to Vancouver is kind of funny. Katie wanted to rest in Oroville for another day since she was still feeling tired from the heat stroke from the day before. I decided to catch the Greyhound to Van that night in Pentiction which is like 1.5 hours north of Oroville. Very far if your only way to get there is hitching in 40 degrees in the shade. I got over the border and started walking north along the road with my thumb up. It took a long time until someone stopped, but it was worth the wait. I got to meet Amy. A teacher from the area, who was on her way to Oliver which is about half way to Penticton. She had confused me for a cherry picker from Québec, but decided that I looked too clean to be one when she drove by me the second time. We got talking and she ended up giving me a ride all the way to Penticton, even if that meant a 2-hour detour for her. How sweet is that??? She dropped me off right at the beach where I sat on my Tyvek, leaned against my pack in my sportsbra and my extremely sexy merino undies. Life is good! The bus didn't leave until 11.30 pm so I got to know Penticton quite a bit. Everything closes at about 9ish so I ended up at the only place in town that was open until 11. A very bright dive bar where I was the only woman around, but I was happier waiting there than at the scetchy and poorly lighted bus stop in a back alley. After a bumpy 5-hour bus ride I arrived in Vancouver with 30 ‘other’ cherry pickers from Québec. Didn't sleep for a second, but here I am enjoying coffee at Commercial Drive, and am about dive into my next adventure.