[Day 32] Conelo Hills

I began in the freezing canyons of the Conelo Hills this morning. The objective identified the Miller Peak Wilderness Boundary as the goal destination for the day. With an 8pm start, I made my miles over the relatively flat day.

To an extent, every hike provides an amount of introspective reflection. Some days, the mind provides agency to rework a memory, regret, decision, or turning point in life. Other times, the mind evaluates personal impact on immediate attachments and environment. Recently, I’ve pursued some minimization efforts — both consciously and subconsciously — for a smaller social footprint. I often take the approach of a solitude maverick, which is manageable on the trail, but doesn’t translate all too well to civilization. With relationships, I’ve been operating on the basis that something shouldn’t be, especially when I don’t understand motives or feel there is a proper binding agent or experience. Rather than pursue a renegade style of isolationism, I have conceded to try for connections of organic authenticity rather than ulterior purpose. My perspectives and pursuits may often be too purposeful, but not everything should be so strictly of intention and deterministic. I do not know what sparked the thought of friendship today.

After a few bumps in the terrain, I hooked around Parker Lake, headed for the last sky island of the trail — the Huachaca Mountains. Daylight soon dwindled, and I initiated the climb into the mountains dry on water. Luckily, I salvaged a few liters from pools in a creek bed. I made the vast majority of the steep climbing done towards Miller Peak, and I positioned myself nicely on the crest of Huachaca Mountains for a summit tomorrow.

The water I scrapped from puddles for dinner must have been high in calcium, since limescale and cloudiness formed after boiling. My campsite is a warm 50°F — the wind blows high in the trees above me. Arizona concludes tomorrow.

Signing off,

Zeppelin

“Freak on a Leash”