May 9 -- Barstow, CA

Today was one of the best and worst days of my trip. The best part was the trail I hiked in the morning. It was a backcountry trail, so there was virtually no one there, except a couple out backpacking. I hiked about 4-5 miles (2 hours) up the trail to a petrified forest. Trees that were once wood had been petrified into stone and were laying on the ground, mostly in pieces, although some were relatively intact. It was cool to see, knowing that they were so incredibly old and the result of a cataclysmic time in history.

By the time I hiked back out, it was almost 12:30 pm, so I left the park and headed toward civilization. It was my intention to stay in a motel tonight, either in St. George or in Las Vegas. I made it to St. George, however, so early in the afternoon that I didn't want to stop yet. I didn't know what I would do there for an entire afternoon. On my way, I stopped in a Walmart and was somewhat overwhelmed to be back in civilization. I had been out in the woods for nearly two weeks. It was strange to be in a big box store with people who were not camping and vacationing.

I decided to press on to Las Vegas. It would be another two hour drive on I-15, but that was fine. It would get me closer to my next destination: Sequoia National Park in California. Driving on the interstate is never fun to me. From the moment I decided to keep driving, my day got progressively worse. Winds were blowing at 20-30 mph, with gusts near 40 mph. Dust and debris were flying. By the time I got to Las Vegas, I could hardly see the city. I was a giant dust bowl, so fierce were the winds. The traffic became a nightmare, and I couldn't wait to get off the interstate. My plan was to drive through the city and find a motel/hotel on the other side. When I got there, however, it was nothing but a residential community. All of the motels, aside from the casinos, were on the east side of the city. I did not want to drive back through that mess, so I decided to keep going. See the city, even if just from a moving car, I was overwhelmed by the density and the number of people. Once I got there, I had no interest in being among them, even to see the sights of famous Las Vegas.

Unfortunately, once I left the city, there was nothing -- absolutely nothing -- for several more hours. Nevada, and the eastern side of California, is a desert wasteland. I was so tired, the winds were pushing me all over the road, and the traffic was absolutely bumper to bumper for 150 miles. So congested was I-15 that I crept for 20 miles just because of the volume of traffic. Of course, everyone was weaving and flying. The speed limit was 70, but most were trying to go 85 or more. It was incredible stressful, especially after being in relative isolation for so long.

Around 6:30 pm, I finally made it to Barstow, CA, and found a motel. I was absolutely wasted. It had been 3 days since I had showered, so that became my first priority. It was delightful. I'm clean now, so I'm happy, the day nearly forgotten -- at least the bad part. I will be sleeping in a bed tonight -- my first in nearly two weeks. I can't wait. In fact, I'm not going to wait. I'm going to bed right now, so I'll talk to you tomorrow.

P.S. Happy Mother's Day, Mom!