QUEST: July 31

River

Today I walked 12 miles to the last place Kathryn needs to place Quester – a lovely campground right on the Chama River.  I’m only eight miles from the monastery.

My reservation doesn’t start until Friday, though, so I get to hang out here by the river for two nights.  I really don’t mind one more rest day before the final stretch of the Big Walk.

There’s something really nice about sleeping next to a river.  When I was a teenager, one of the houses we lived in was in Georgetown, Colorado, right on the bank of Clear Creek.  My room was the attic, and I slept near the outside window where I could fall asleep to the sound of the running water.

(On Father’s Day, I called my dad, and I thought to thank him for assigning that room to me.  He confirmed that it was his idea, and that Mom had never really bought in to the idea.)

Nowadays, people run noise machines next to their beds which attempt to replicate this very sound.  I think there’s nothing like the real thing, though, and I’m looking forward to reliving the experience over the next two nights.

Thanks for following my Quest.  If you’d like to respond, please post a comment here, or  send an email to michael@michaelhume.net.  Either way, I look forward to reading your views when I return to my screen in late August.

Michael, Wednesday, July 31, 2024