1. You are mysteriously missing gaiters and a dry bag that you later realize you lent to your brother for a trip he took last summer. It has definitely rained since last summer.
Most recent photographic evidence of my gaiters. Taken in 2013.
2. Your tent is crinkly and slightly mildew-scented when you take it out to inspect it. You have a vague memory of packing it up in the rain. You can’t remember when that was. It might have been last year.
Pre-mildew. I miss those days already.
3. You aren’t sure you will still be able to sleep on the ground. You buy a camping pillow and become one of those people.
Getting a pedicure wasn’t on the to-do list.
4. Your trip to MEC to stock up on a few items turns into a day-long mission that dips into your savings. You forget that they don’t provide plastic bags and lug your stuff home on the bus in an awkwardly over-stuffed knapsack. You used to work there. How has this happened?
I have done this before…
5. Your planning process involves a group meeting, a series of google spreadsheets, four to-do lists, five pages in a notebook and three trips to the grocery store. You have to cancel all your plans the week before the trip to make this happen. The trip is four days long.
How does this work, again?
Ben
Your writing shows that it really has been to long. We should get out.