Home Sweet Tent

I was now 5 miles from camp. The next 3 miles had no van access so once you started you had to finish. It was a beautiful wooded area so I took my time and took some pictures and enjoyed the walk. It was on dirt trails so the kind of walking/hiking I’m used to. I really enjoyed it.

I got to the last pit stop, did the whole hydrate/urinate/stretch thing and headed towards camp.

Finally the Golden Gate Bridge was in sight. It was beautiful! My confidence and my strength increased with the knowledge that I would make it through the first day. Success was in my reach.

There were a couple of stops for pics, including, of course, the inspirational SJ bike cops.

I saw this gentleman for the first time as I approached the last half mile or so. I don’t know his name. If I had seen him somewhere else, on the sidewalk in Santa Cruz or something, I would have dismissed him as one of the homeless men and women who sit and play music and collect change from passersby. I saw him several times over the weekend. Each time he was playing a different set of songs. This particular evening, he was singing You Are So Beautiful To Me. Nice thought for someone who was tired and hot and sweaty.

I checked into camp, found my duffle bag and wandered off to find my tent. I want to go on record as saying that exhaustion and manually inflating an air mattress are not a good combination. I could only pump for a couple of minutes and I had to sit down and rest. Seriously. It took me over half an hour. Then I gathered my things to get in line for the shower.

I’m not sure what Crissy Field is normally used for but the grass was kind of tall and the surface was VERY uneven. It definitely made walking even more difficult. But it was the only way get where you had to go so you did it.

I finished my shower, wrapped my hair in a towel and hobbled back to my tent. I called Dave and talked to him for a few minutes, walked to the port-a-potty one last time and within 5 min of settling into my sleeping bag, I was sound asleep.

It was 7:20 PM.