711 January 21, 2022 Friday

I had a great walk in the state park and enjoyed the “company” of my friend Vicki.  We chatted as I walked and the time passed quickly.  It is a goal for me to try and stay more connected…I am not really good at it but I know how important it is especially as we have decided to live such a nomadic life.

The Borrego Springs Farmers Market happens every Friday from 8am to noon.  We planned our schedule around this event.  I love to walk through a market and this one has a lot of delicious choices.  We started at the French Gourmet Bakery.  We allowed ourselves 2 fresh croissants.  We visited the tamale lady and chose two different vegetarian options.  The organic produce vendors had busy stalls and we stuffed our bags full of healthy vegetables…asparagus and greens and avocadoes and cauliflower and Brussel sprouts and snap peas.  Then we picked fresh fruits and berries.  We stopped at the Mediterranean guy and got hummus and beet salad and stuffed grape leaves.

This afternoon, Tim biked and I went back to town to gather a few groceries. 

I had a chance to talk with another old friend, Melinda…so nice to catch up.  I enjoyed our visit very much!

We packed salads and took them to a new park that we have never visited before.  We loved those buttery, flaky croissants and the fresh spinach and strawberries.  I also got these tiny little sweet yellow tomatoes.  When you eliminate most of the fatty, sugary, processed foods from your diet…it is amazing how wonderful whole foods taste!

We walked the trails in the park.  There are pretty little churches across the street with lovely mountain views. 

Since our last trip to the desert the other day, our thoughts have often drifted to the “hiker.”  As we drove through Fish Creek Wash, on our way to Sandstone Canyon, we passed a guy hiking.  As we always do, we stopped to ask if he was okay, if he needed water.  He said he was good and we went on our way.  We had both noticed and commented on the fact that he had no gear and it looked like he was only carrying a small hydration backpack.  We decided that he must have a car parked somewhere nearby.  Around dusk that same evening, about three hours later, the “hiker” walked past our campsite.  We were surprised to see him still walking.  He had hiked at least another 7-8 miles since our encounter earlier in the day.  We stopped him and asked him if he needed water.  He said he only had about one-half bottle left.  We tried to give him several bottles but he took only one.  He intended to hike through and said he would probably have to negotiate his way in the moonlight.  We asked him if he had eaten, if he had food and he said he had eaten awhile back.  We gave him a couple of protein bars.  We asked him where he was going and he stated he was headed to “Hollywood Campground a destination south and west of here.”  We knew that the hike through the remainder of the canyon was at least a mile long and then there were mountains.  We knew of no campground within walking distance and no campground at all by that name.  We asked him if he had a map and when he said he did not, we asked him to look at ours to orient himself.  He said that he had his phone and if he ran out of battery, that he had picked out some landmarks along the way.  He seemed resistant to any help.  He walked away from us then, on into the canyon, into the darkness.  He was wearing long pants, Tevis sandals, and a short-sleeved shirt.  The forecast was for 45 degrees.  We felt bereft after he left us…should we have done more?  We were concerned for his safety.  We were in a very remote location and he was walking even further into the wilderness.  Would he be, okay?  We immediately wished that we had told him to come back to us if he ran into trouble.  When we took our hike the next morning, we kept looking for signs of his passage…we hope that he made his way.