Some Days Are Diamonds

Craig Rullman and Ceili Cornelius at South Mathieu Lake. The views and ambience are terrible. Don’t go there.

Yesterday turned out to be a signal day in the annals of the Frontier Partisans. In the evening, in the middle of a Sisters Folk Festival board/staff barbecue, I found out that I’d crossed the goal threshold in the Kickstarter Campaign for “Warriors of the Wild Lands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.”

That was a pretty good finish to a day that started out with one of my favorite hikes.

Ceili and Craig Rullman and I hit the trail west of Sisters to hike the Mathieu Lakes Loop. It’s just right, as hikes go. Long enough to feel like something — we went 7.2 miles according to Ceili’s whiz-bang app — but not a forced march. Varied terrain. You’ve got firs bearded with moss along a trail in the deep dark forest, two lakes — one nestled in the woods and one higher up in the rocks — and as you emerge into slightly higher elevations, you’ve got some spectacular mountain views.

Part of the trail is a segment of the Pacific Crest Trail, which runs from Mexico to Canada.

Mt. Washington, Three Fingered Jack, Mt. Jefferson from the PCT. We could see Mt. Hood over Jefferson’s shoulder, too.

There’s a lot wrong with the world right now, a lot of noise and a lot of bullshit. Get outside. It’s always good; it’s always right, and all the noise and bullshit always falls away with the first steps onto the trail.

Kept up with the fast walkers — and kept track of the mileage.

••••••

The Kickstarter for “Warriors of the Wild Lands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans” continues. Thanks for the support. Please continue to spread the word, and if you haven’t jumped in yet — get your moccasins on and hit the trail!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/809441675/warriors-of-the-wildlands-frontier-partisans-book