Out At Last

Day 353: I got out! It wasn't much of a hike and it almost didn't happen, but since I allowed myself to be convinced that I really should get a flu shot even though I'm having no social contact, I decided I'd check on my Shaggymane patch to see if dinner had sprouted yet. I pulled up at the little-visited trailhead, got out of the car and was just shouldering my pack when someone else pulled in and parked 25' away. In all the years I've hiked this particular trail, I have never seen another car at the pullout. Why this day? Thoroughly peeved, I took off my pack, got back in the car and drove to a different spot. I know the area. There's more than one way to get where you're going if you're familiar with the network of bunny trails and interconnections, and there are multiple options for making loops so you don't need to backtrack. Some are brushier than others, but that's never stopped the Crow. Plan A was quickly revised into Plan B, and incorporated a side trip up "Manke Mt.," unofficially named and not a summit of any significance despite its hand-carved waypost. A little over four miles later, I was back at the car without retracing any of my steps, but with no mushrooms in the bag. Then it was into Eatonville to get my vaccination, and when I told the pharmacist I'd just come in from hiking, he had one pressing question: "Did you see any mushrooms yet?" Yep, competition is strong in these woods!