A Different Type of TV Viewing Experience (Silverton Style)
April 19, 2013
You Can’t Blame it on the Altitude (Silverton Style)
May 17, 2013
The inspiration for this essay came from the mini adventure I went on last weekend. Always a fun experience getting away for a day or two, and this was no exception.
Word Count: 926
I Don’t Need no Stink’in
Advanced Preparation
This past weekend I was able to take advantage of an opportunity to get away from town for a day to do some overnight camping. I had wanted to travel out to western Utah to do a few days exploring in and around Zion National Park. Unfortunately the person I was planning to make the trip with wasn’t able to do the adventure and canceled out at the last minute on me. Rather than stew in my disappointment at being left high and dry like some folks, I chose to do the opposite. A solo trip to an old neck of the woods near Silverton, Chaco Canyon. A very mystical place I’d previously visited as an adult chaperon for my sister’s 5th grade parochial school group. Those trips happened back around the turn of the century, and since I hadn’t been back to Chaco in over ten years I figured why not.
This would give me the chance to explore the area in and around the canyon without having to keep an eagle eye on errant eleven year olds. Not such an easy task if you yourself want to investigate something with your own special brand of curiosity.
Since I only had a day to make the trip, a lot of what transpired was off the cuff. Spontaneity in its highest form since this was going to be an adventure of the short-n-sweet variety. Threw a few things in the car, borrowed the cook stove of some friends also into that camping thing like yours truly, and carried out various last minute odds and ends.
As it turn out, this two-day trip would end up being an exercise in saying to myself that things might’ve gone better. Lots of hindsight reflection, and looking back there is indeed something to be said for doing a bit of advanced planning.
The first set of regrets that went through my head happened right after I’d stopped at a service station. As soon as I paid for my petrol and jumped back into the car, the idea immediately struck me. Gosh, I should’ve bought a bag of chips. Inhaling them in record time might’ve appeased my inner junk food junkie.
My never-ending attempts to actually live a healthier lifestyle soon had me deciding its better that I didn’t. Saved myself a few bucks and not empting the convenience rack with that extra $20.00 burning a hole in my wallet was probably a good thing. My taste buds didn’t think so.
Then I hit the grocery store to buy a few provisions for the camp out, and the second thoughts started coming fast and furious. Should I buy that bag of ready to eat beef stroganoff? Just add boiling water. What about that package of easy to prepare muffins? Just add hot water. A few bags of hot cocoa? Just add steaming water to your mug.
In the end I didn’t buy hardly anything. Just enough to get me through one night of camping and not much else. From there I immediately barreled out of Durango. Anxious to get to my destination and figuring I didn’t need to make any more purchases for the trip. This plan of attack I’d later end up regretting.
Slowly making my way along the unpaved washboard road leading from the main highway into the park, I didn’t even arrive until 3:00 that afternoon. Nothing like wasting a large portion of your day just getting to your destination.
I then decided to attend a late afternoon lecture on the park’s petroglyphs, followed by driving over to the campground to setting up for the night. The subsequent dinner preparation turned into a total reflection on missed opportunities.
First I tried to set up the cookstove I’d borrowed only to discover that it doesn’t work unless you have a butane tank hooked up to it. Which I promptly did, only to also find out it doesn’t work unless you have gas inside the tank (which I neglected to purchase). Then I kicked myself for deciding not to borrow a tent before barreling out of town.
Dinner consisted of raw vegetable consumption, an apple, and various other minimal preparation items. A gastronomic experience of the highest order it wasn’t.
Things got better that evening as I attended another park ranger lecture. This one the astro-archaeology of ancient Chaco at the main Pueblo Bonito. Very interesting and except for having to bed down in the dark since I’d forgotten to bring a flashlight with me, the end of the day was pretty good.
After getting through an unusually cold night without a tent and my old sleeping bag, I woke up to discover a Jackrabbit. Casually munching on some new planet growth not more than two feet away from where I was sleeping. Would’ve been nice to take a picture of the creature. Since I didn’t bring a camera I couldn’t do that.
Besides all the chastising, this trip turned into a total intellectual odyssey. That morning I attended one last park lecture about the main Kiva Rinconada. Quite informative and except for neglecting to bring any sunscreen lotion with me which resulted in searching out every shade opportunity I could, a good way to end my mini-adventure.
So was it worth it? You bet. Chaco Canyon is an amazing place and every chance I get to visit the environment is an incredibly interesting experience. Just make sure you’ve brought a few essential items with you before making the trip.
