I’ve decided that I’m going to make my next trip during the night.  I haven’t been to the pond for a few weeks now so I’m not sure what to expect regarding water level. There’s been a bit of rain, but not a whole lot.

So there are a few considerations. First (and probably most important) would be to use the fancy schmancy shower bag thingy I have. I’ve been carrying it around but not using it because there was plenty of water around, and because I was getting home early enough to pop in the shower to clean up properly before climbing into my nice clean bed… This time that won’t be possible, so… I will have to clean up better.

Second, there is some question of how late to wait before getting hopelessly stuck. Now I’ve had the luxury of being alone when I’ve gone there during the day, but again, I’m still not 100% comfortable because I can still hear activity relatively close-by. I’d like at least one good solid minute of warning if I need to hide… Especially if I have to actually dig myself out of the mud first! There is also the fact that this pond is most likely a popular watering hole for wildlife. I’ve seen racoon and deer tracks so far, but nothing resembling bear tracks, which is a very good thing. So, the question here is: Should I wait till the early hours of the morning, or start as soon as I feel comfortable (which could be the early hours of the morning, or right around sunset)… Sunset time is the best time because there’s enough light for me to see while not being too friendly to hikers who may stumble by. Quads and dirt bikes have headlights I’d most likely see at that time too, and of course, I’d hear them coming.

Third, the last trip I made I noticed my pack is getting a bit heavy. I seem to swing between having minimal stuff for minimal weight, and having everything I might possibly need for less-than-optimal weight… So there’s gonna be a brief review before I commit to hauling the pack around again. Since I’m not really spending hours at a time walking around, this is a bit less of a concern, but something I want to address anyway.

And what’s more… I’d like to expand the hole a little bit. Right now it’s just big enough that I can comfortably kneel in it, and be able to lean back against the ‘shore’ for comfort. I may give up the backrest in favour of a much larger hole. And since I also enjoy the actual preparation stage, being able to use a larger space is desirable. I just gotta remember the farther I get from shore, the more effort and escape time is required to get *back* to the shore. 🙂

Oh yeah, I must remember to bring soap!

This weekend, unfortunately, I didn’t get out to the fun hole… It was a bit chilly. I’m really happy that the crazy urges have subsided for a while and I am not so intensely driven to get muddy for a change. I’m sure they will return when some things fall into place, like weather, car repairs, planned absences of my neighbour, etc. Every once in a while he takes off for the weekend, which gives me a great chance to get out later in the evening.

It seems that having a day spot is really nice, but there’s always some sort of activity in the area that I can hear, and it still bothers me a little bit. Not that I’m too worried, really. But I can’t help constantly looking over my shoulder, which takes away a lot of the fun.

I have some ‘bigger’ plans for this year still, and for this mud hole in particular, but I need absolute peace of mind, which isn’t forthcoming until I can get there later at night. This week is a rainy wet one, which will further extend the life of the happy hole and give me lots more chances to enjoy it.

So, having said that, I suppose I’m gonna be a bit lazy with the postings until things pick up again. Soon…

… doesn’t look so great, weather-wise… But I got a box of goodies from Amazon that I’m itching to play with… Friday looks like the best bet for warmth. Saturday looks like potential thunderstorms, which I’m not so keen on getting stuck in… Sunday looks cold… I wonder if a shitty Saturday means less or more chance of unwanted guests… I would much prefer Saturday because Friday is generally my hang-out-with-friends time that I don’t really want to miss out on.

At my old place with no neighbours I had the luxury of being able to play in the evenings/at night and get home to a warm shower at 3am… I don’t really have this option with my current place because I have a neighbour who might be disturbed by me making noise at that time of day… The last time I was out I got in some evening time and was home and in the shower by 10pm, which is about the latest I would consider comfortable…

Consistent consistency

Anyway. All that aside, since I have this nice deep moist area with lots of water around, I’m considering making the mud a whole bunch more soggy. It’s sort of a silty/clayey mix so the more water it has, the easier it is to move around… I like it a bit thicker like it is now, but once you get sunk in a spot it’s pretty difficult to move… And if I were to have guests, I would really want to be able to move out of their way in quite a hurry… There’s a pretty large area there, so I could try a spot closer to the hiding spot and I might do that… The spot I was using the last couple times doesn’t have a good hiding area near it, so I have to trudge around the pond through soft mud in either socked feet or with some rather slippery sandals… Not so great when speed is necessary as it leaves me really susceptible to twisted ankles and lacerations from things I can’t see…

Base of Operations

Another thing that’s been on my mind lately is having a base of operations. Again, this latest spot is a good area because there’s bush on 3 sides… There’s a sort of opening that has been cut away, presumably so underagers would have a place to hang out and get a buzz on… This works nice because there’s an open area with a good hiding spot for my bag and equipment. And it’s such that I can run into the bush quickly, and be hidden enough that incoming hostiles wouldn’t see me while I casually (and quietly) trudge through the thicker forest with all my gear and everything I need to become presentable again should they decide to hang around for a few hours. At least I’d just look like a casual hiker if I absolutely had to pass by the spot on my way out.

So I have some updated ‘procedures’ to put into place for the next trip, which you can check out here. Mostly it puts in place separate containers for the before, during and after outfits, and allows me to keep the clean clothes clean and the dirty clothes from contaminating the clean clothes… And enables me to do a semi-cleanup and wear my good clothes home without getting the residual mud stuck to my skin on them.

Good times are ahead, for sure. I’m surprised to find I’m really having fun with this. It’s become so much more than just an occasional activity and gone more toward a full hobby that gets me out of the office chair for a while.  All I need now is to find some friends who’d like to come hiking with me! 🙂

Often when I find a new spot or try something new, there’s this feeling that my safety (read: privacy) is not at 100%. It takes a while to get used to new places or things. I’ve been thinking about this lately. A lot of places I do activities at aren’t the most private spots around. Take for example, one spot is less than 8 feet away from a trail that is obviously used. It took several visits before I was comfortable here, and even after a certain level was reached, I still find myself looking over my shoulder every few seconds expecting to find headlights glaring back at me. Even though there have been several times I’ve been there through the entire night and not seen a single person come down the trail, or even drive by my car parked half a kilometer down the road, I still can’t get past the possibility of getting caught.

I suppose this level of paranoia is probably good for me. Considering another spot I’ve been to several times and never felt overly confident in my privacy. Sure enough there have been times I’ve just gotten started and some dork in a big truck will come by to hang out at the spot for a while. Meanwhile, I hide in the bush, shivering… and somewhat frightened, even though I know they have no idea I’m there…

This past weekend I wanted to partake in some activities at home, and spent days preparing only to find myself all paranoid. Even though I knew there was no chance anyone was going to bother me, and I knew this because I had talked to the other tenants in the building earlier in the morning and they were all out doing their own thing that day. There was still a missing element of comfort. Apparently, even locked doors and being assured I won’t be interrupted is not enough to quell the paranoia. I just have to wait it out.

Turbid waters!

I mapped out a new spot where a couple roads intersect near a former railroad track that I can follow to find some murky looking water. This particular area is along a river that passes nearby here, but as it goes toward the east it starts to encounter the ample clay sediments that I’ve been trying to map out. There is quite an expanse of silt/clay soils in the area. And when I look at the nice closeup satellite imagery we have, I can see that the water is much more turbid as a result of the river picking up some of this soil on its way through. I see all sorts of creeks and little offshoots of the river running through this area and they all have this murky look to them. So this represents a great opportunity to put the car somewhere for a few hours and take a walk down the trail.

Today I hope to find some time to map out some actual ‘official’ trails that I can start exploring. This helps to increase the comfort level because I’m not so worried about property owners getting in my face.

It is excruciating driving by all these damp muddy looking fields and thinking about the things I’d like to do in them. I know I probably have at least a month still before the evenings get warm enough and the water levels go down. I’m still really hoping to get into this creek shore this year. But I suspect it’s all just wishful thinking.

I really wanted to visit one of my previously used spots this weekend. But something in my head said, “No, take your friend’s invitation and go be social for the evening.” Bad move. Very. Very bad move. They didn’t want to see me, they just wanted to impress upon me with their new grandchild. Sorry, folks, I just don’t care for kids OK. And their parents were just miserable unhappy people. I don’t get it. They got to spend the night in a cabin on the lake. The weather was nice. The stars were out. But no they decided that instead of hanging around the bonfire with the rest of us, they’d guilt everyone into going home to get the TV and a bunch of laptops so everyone could do their thing.

So I left.

I should’ve gone back and checked out the mud hole. But I’m sure it’s quite full of water still. There was a mud bog event nearby, which I didn’t check out either. And I would go back there if I could trust my vehicle.  I just need to find something else to occupy my time until the summer mud happy season actually reaches us. Or maybe I’ll move to somewhere with mud all year around… All I’d need is a job, and honestly I think it’s worth actually investigating…

Apparently I have a Reddit account. I had forgotten all about it, but things are coming back to me. Such as: There’s a /r/WetAndMessy subreddit. 🙂

I am not sure why I join websites considering I refuse 99% of friend requests that come my way.  And I always feel weird friending other people without chatting them up first, but I’m really not the type of person to randomly chat someone up like, “Hey I am some creepy dude over here who likes to be friends with less creepy people without sounding like I’m creepy. Do I seem creepy to you? I swear I’m not creepy. Just bored. Which maybe is creepy but I don’t know…”

But hey, if you’re on the great Reddit, feel free to say ‘hi’ or ‘you’re a really fucked up dude’ or something nice or not nice. Or funny. I always appreciate funny. Don’t be sad if I don’t return your message. I’m a bit of a snob about these things. Cheers!