A Living Magazine - Day 8 - Big Valley Walk

I woke up to the pitter patter of light rain on the edges of my tarp. I was able to sleep and extra hour, until 6:00 am. I knew a long walk was ahead and I was actually looking forward to it. I had about 20 miles to cover in order to get to Napa. that meant about 7 hours.

After packing up, I stepped down into the parking lot where I had stopped the night before. And, I had to laugh at the message I hadn't seen on the wine tanker truck in the dark...

Love it!

I got on the very busy highway and began my trip to Napa. I really wanted a coffee but was running out of money. The only place for the next 20 miles was the Fremont Diner, a neat little place with every table filled.

Crappy Coffee, Cool Logo

I ordered a coffee to go and the woman said, "OK, that'll be $2.71. I'll be right back when it's prepared." Now I know many of you are used to a $5.00 joe at Starbucks or wherever. But, I'm a 7 Eleven kind of connoisseur. It's a $1.29 there, and it's good, dark, rich and tasty stuff. I had exactly $10 left to my name; well, now $7.29.

I paced around the parking lot wondering how large this cup would be. After 5 excruciating minutes, she brought out a tiny 8 oz cup. With the typical fake enthusiasm of a person who knows she is ripping me off, she said "Enjoy!!"

I reached out for it and asked, "$2.71, huh?"

She replied with, "It's good coffee!"

I just grinned widely with my own fake enthusiasm and said, "It better be." I added some cream and sugar, and then took a sip. It was the weakest, shittiest coffee I'd ever had. It didn't even taste like coffee. It was more like lukewarm lake water. I growled and looked back at the diner. Then came one of those choices: Do I ruin her day or do I just literally suck it up? I swallowed my pride and irritation, and like a good doobie, I chose the latter.

Back on the road with my over-priced lake water, I began to hit my stride. The traffic was very busy with Sunday drivers and tourists out to explore wine country. For the first 5 miles there were no shoulders, and actually, no break-down lane either.

Try to hitchhike on this road!

It was touch and go at some points. And, California drivers don't seem to have the foggiest clue about what to do when approaching a hiker. They slow down; they swerve at the last second; they act confused. Whenever there was a long line of traffic coming toward me and one car would move far out of the way (as he should be doing), I'd give the peace sign, and then - having seen how to do it correctly - like magic, all the cars behind him would follow suit. It was like herding cars.

When I needed a break from all the death defying, I found a little extra piece of pavement and took this shot of the edge of the Napa Valley...

Can't Beat the View

I kept seeing honey bees dying on the side of the road. Presumably this was from collisions with cars?...

Poor Bee

Finally, a wide break down lane emerged. But still, it can look intimidating, although I'm so used to it now that I have no fear anymore...

The Joys of Oncoming Traffic

Somehow signs can become iconic after I've seen them enough times. So, here is one picture that I can keep as a reminder of this phenomenon...

There are always plenty of plants to look at and classify as I pass by them. It is a way to kill the time and sharpen my identification skills. Here is a beautiful and healthy specimen of the plant I've spoken about here several times now...

Wild Fennel Plant

Winding up the longest part of this trip, I came across domestic grapes that had made their way outside the confines of a vineyard...

Domestic grape vine breaking out on its own.

Bunch of Immature Grapes - Super-sour

I "got off" at the first exit I saw to buy some water and some peanuts for energy. I also took the opportunity to dry out the sleeping bag, backpack, jacket and tarp. It had to be done, or they would mildew and mold. Ultraviolet rays from the sun and the high temperature that sunlight raises the material to, also kill a lot of stinky bacteria.

The curious and somewhat leering Pakistani store owner came out and stood by the grass staring at me. I think he imagined I would be setting up camp there in his parking lot, and looked relieved when I packed it all up again and walked away...with a little wink at him.

Going back to the on ramp of the highway, I saw a great little spot to go and rest for awhile...

Having a Rest

After my rest, and right as I walked back out onto the highway, I saw squished fruit on the ground. Yes! I looked up and sure enough, there was a tree with the tiny sweet plums I've grown to like so much (in moderation, ha!)...

Who knew plums could be as small as cherries?

[Sorry about the focus]

When I arrived at the First Street exit of Route 121/12, I had to choose whether to go left or right to get downtown. As with many places I've been to, signs are woefully lacking. But I chose correctly for once and entered the outskirts of the town of Napa. I must have walked 5 additional miles just working my way in toward the center, finally finding it.

Locating all my favorite - or most useful - places (McDonald's, Walmart, Subway, the local library, parks and bike paths etc.) would have to wait until the next day. My laptop had run out of juice the day before, and there was no place to plug it in. Unlike the East Coast and Midwest, (and except for expensive coffee shops and cafes) restaurants in the Southwest and California do not provide outlets for Wi-Fi users. Sometimes I can find a soda machine near a grocery store and sneak my laptop's AC adapter into its outlet. But no luck on this day. Besides, I was exhausted.

My one and only mission at this point was to find a sleeping place. As I have just spoken about in the last two posts, I'm going back to letting my intuition (the Spark) do the leading. I simply walked until I felt like a street or direction was right, and then followed it. Sure enough, I happened upon Lincoln Ave, and looked down to see this...

Now, I'm not superstitious at all, but I took it as sign, having just dreamed about the word (which is also the name of my publishing company). This Omega is a very well-known sidewalk contractor around here, and I'd seen the logo a thousand times, but this one seemed to be a message, from me to me: Wallk this way!

Eventually, near the end of Lincoln Avenue I saw yet another field. This one had no signs and the fence was broken at the end where I stood. It was a great place for sleeping. Interestingly, for the first time since I began doing these journeys, someone else was in my sleepy field! Another homeless guy found a sweet spot behind a small grove of trees. I could see his gray, messed-up hair sticking out of his sleeping bag. He didn't move at all, as I observed him from the road, through the fence. He would stay there all evening, all night and into the next morning when I left to walk back down town. I actually began to be concerned for him. Honestly? I thought he might be dead.

I still had a couple hours until the sun went down, so I decided to explore for a "Site B." Only 20 feet away, I found a 1.5 mile river path. I entered it and walked along, checking out the edges for alternate sleeping spots. Though the signs said, "Please stay on the path," it was obvious that hundreds of people had diverged and made a labyrinth of twisting hidden trails all along the path. A few were kind of creepy.  One had a blue tent-like tarp covering "something" up. I didn't check under it. At another location there was a small pebble beach that was right along the river.

I climbed down the steep bank to check it out. In the corner of the beach, near a clump of small fallen trees was an old nest left by some other ragged soul. It looked uncomfortable, filled up with old dirty pillows, stained blankets, a large bottle of Jergens body lotion (?) and container of chewable Tums. My own stomach was turning a bit, imagining what person could possibly sleep in such a disgusting nest. But... Everyone has different standards I guess? People laugh at me for what I am willing to put up with too.

It looked like the area had not been used in a while. But it was hard to gauge. Here in California, the lack of weathering on objects can be deceptive. Regardless, I made a mental note about being able to have direct access to the river, so that I might be able to wash up there the next day.

The sun was going down and it was time to head back up to my shared field, and saw this funny piece of paper at the base of a holly tree...

Ha, ha!!

All in all, it was a very productive day. I walked well over 25 miles. I was getting used to not eating very much again, since I had now run out of cash, except for coins. I had my sleep spot for the night - and maybe several nights, since I might stay here until I receive my hiking boots. And, it was a really great little town, despite being very large in square mileage. It was laid out well and easy even for ME to understand.

The next day would have a bit more happening, but this day was a success. I was in Napa! 

Napa Sleep Spot.