Welcome to Breakfast in America
My photo journal is an eclectic mix of things; there’s no guiding theme or topic. It is whatever happens to catch my attention, what I’ve been thinking, doing, and whatever my current obsessions are. At the moment, they are clearing some of the backlog on my ‘honey-do’ list, backpacking, hammock camping, and, I’m always, taking pictures.
Recent posts
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Hike over, back at the trailhead
Back at the Trailhead — Two nights, 18.5 miles, and 1400 ft. Copyright © 2023 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. It took me a smidge under two hours to hike the four-and-something miles from ‘Cab Creek’ to the Tower Trailhead. At the Brushy Creek crossing I met two people hiking the trail counterclockwise. The only people I saw in my three days’ stay. It was a warm hike out, and I missed packing a lightweight Tee shirt. Lesson learned (I hope).
This was an excellent trip, with enough miles and plenty of time spent watching the underbrush grow – apparently, the Dutch have a word for this practice, ‘niksen’ – I also managed to spend a couple of hours sitting in the sun. I’ll count both of those as wins!
Lessons
My preparation was a little off. I packed a base layer top, shorts, an extra buff, and an extra bandana. I’m not quite sure what I was thinking.
I made one silly mistake, and that was to use my two-liter clean water pouch for collecting creek water. I gave it a good wash and a dilute bleach bath when I got home. Everything else was just fine.
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Camped at ‘Cab Creek’
Camped at ‘Cab Creek’. Copyright © 2023 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. Finally, the sun is high enough to start warming things up. I went and sat in the sun on the other side of ‘Cab Creek’ and enjoyed the morning.
Camped at ‘Cab Creek.’ Copyright © 2023 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. 
2018: Standard feet in front of the fire shot, only this time with added headlamp lighting. Copyright © 2018 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. I don’t think that fire ring has seen a fire since May 6, 2018. And that’s also when we left the stack of firewood for future campers too. This is no longer a well frequented spot.
I enjoyed the sun and the quiet, drank some tea, and prepared lunch, broke camp and finally set on my way just after two. With around four and a half miles to go, and a long uphill climb, I expected to be back some time between four and five. Which meant I’d be home just after six. That was perfect timing, if it worked out.
‘Cab Creek’ was hardly flowing. Copyright © 2023 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Day Three – tea in bed at ‘Cab Creek’.
Day Three – tea in bed at ‘Cab Creek’. Note the sun just rising above the edge of the hollow. Copyright © 2023 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. ‘Cab Creek’ and not ‘Wahoo Point’. While hiking yesterday, I decided that if I arrived at the spot where I needed to start bushwhacking towards our ‘Wahoo Point’ campsite before six, I’d carry on and camp at ‘Cab Creek’. I arrived at six exactly, and carried straight on for another couple of miles or so, stopping at ‘Cab Creek’. Doing so upped my day’s hike from under six miles to nearly eight.
This area was farmed and clear-cut not too long ago, so it is very scrubby. It was also cold overnight. So much for the forecast. It dropped to 33°F, that said, I was warm tucked up in my hammock. That expands the temperature range of my summer gear, which is comfort rated to 40°F. Excellent news — weight and space savings when hiking in the ‘Shoulder Seasons’.
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Rose Verbena (Rose Vervain)
Bit of a nothing picture. At the time, though, I’d just finished hiking through a section of dense trees, and the colors in the sudden patch of sunlight really popped. https://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/rose-verbena-rose-vervain Copyright © 2023 Gary Allman, all rights reserved. -
Pilot Trail
I’ve taken pictures here before also, but, again, each time the light, the vegetation and the trail are different. Copyright © 2023 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
