Hello Everyone,

I made it through Gardnerville and Minden and camped about two miles north of Minden, and twelve miles from Carson City. My spot tonight is probably my least favorite of the trek because I found myself in the usual position of looking for a place too late in the afternoon and taking whatever I could find. I haven’t been through here in over fifteen years and don’t remember the area. I am only about 60′ from the road and behind the biggest and only tree or bush I could find for miles. I am still a little visible from the road so the first thing I did was take off my bright florescent orange t-shirt. Had I known the terrain was so flat with nothing but miles of low grass I may have stayed in town.

I was tired and my foot was bothering me and I didn’t think I could go any further. Luckily I got a gallon of water from the Dollar Store at the edge of town or I would have been stuck without water tonight. When I left town I could see lots of trees and bushes down the road and figured there would be plenty of places to camp. Wrong! The nice area is part of the city’s sewage treatment plant and settlement area for over a mile.  After that, it’s just miles of open grass land, so I just decided I’d take the most secluded spot that I could find.

I started my day late again and even though I got up early. I try and take my time in the mornings and not rush, but that always seems to come back and haunt me, as it did today. I also made the mistake of only eating two whole grain fig energy bars and a few pieces of turkey since I wasn’t hungry. I know better than not eating a big breakfast, whether I am hungry or not, because inevitably I run out of energy quickly. Yes, that happened to me within the first three miles. Then what really did me in was a big billboard with a giant picture of food, and it was another nine miles away. I was ready to stick my thumb out and hitchhike. Funny when you see certain food and then crave it.

The day didn’t start well for me either since those first three miles were fairly steep downhill miles, and that really flared up my plantar fasciitis. Those downhills are really killers because I also ended up with a blister on my left little toe. I had actually taken the toe sock liner off my right foot because the bulk cause to much pressure on the little toe. I left the toe sock liner on the left foot so I would not get blisters between my toes, and then I end up with a blister on the bottom and front, like the right toe. I have three different type of wool socks so I’ll try a different variation.

After that third mile I was in such pain in my heel from the plantar facilities, that I broke down and took two Advil. I try not to take anything while I am walking because it could mask the pain and injury, and then I might injury it further. I would describe the pain for me like stepping on a small rock with your bare heel. I found myself only walking about two miles an hour on level road and after a while it wasn’t quite as painful. It does seem more painful for a while after I stop.

When I finally hit Gardnerville I was surprised at how big it has gotten. I actually first saw it in the early 1960s when our family stopped there on the way to Lake Tahoe. I still remember stopping at a Frosty Freeze, which was the only fast food place in town. Now both Gardnerville and Minden are just one connected city. It still seems like a quaint little place since much of the old business area is made up of the old original buildings. Again, walking slowly (more so than normal this time) you see so many little things you don’t from a car. There was a pretty little house on the Main Street that had a marker stating that it was the first house built in the town during the late 1800s for the owner of the mill. The mill is still right across the street. There was also a nice little brick house that was once the local newspaper office that failed in 1946. There is a marker nothing the location of the toll road up to Genova, which is near Lake Tahoe. That was back in the 1800s, a toll road. Just like any old town it has lots of history and you just have to stop look for it. Sorry, there goes my Huel Howser moment.

Thankfully there are a lot of stores in town because it was warm again today and I stopped several times to buy drinks. The temperature was suppose to be 87 today and it was until I started through town. It must the all the asphalt and buildings that trap the heat because it jumped to 95.

I do not always mention the people that I meet because sometimes there are many that just approach me and ask a few questions or say he’ll, which is almost every day. I did forgot to mention a man that I met yesterday that was riding a bike in the opposite direction about three miles from where I camped. I usually get hellos, and lots of thumbs up for bike riders, but this man made it a point to stop and chat, if you want to call it that. Now, I have met so many people on my treks and I don’t think I have met one that annoyed me. Well, maybe the Dude Guy, for those of you that remember my first blog. Well, this man tells me he started at North Lake Tahoe, is going over the pass near Walker to the Central Valley, and then to San Francisco. He told me he was fifty, had walked the Pacific Crest Trail, rode a bike from San Fancisco to Baja California, biked in Europe, and was in the army. Very interesting guy, but never did he look at me for more that a few seconds because he was texting the whole time we were talking. This trek is suppose to broaden my horizon, teach me to appreciate things more, teach me to be tolerant, be a good person, etc., etc, etc. But, I was so annoyed that I wanted to grabbed his phone and smashed it to the ground! Ok, I didn’t, I just told him I had to go. And then, he had two shake my hand twice with his sweaty leather bike gloves. Ugh!

Well, I am laying here ready to read my book, while I listen to all the cars going by. I have gotten use to the various sounds, including cars, though I have never trekked in such a populated area, and this is not really that populated. I am sure it will get busier as I approach Reno, but once I am north of there I look forward to it being more desolate.

Hopefully I’ll update my blog tomorrow. Please keep sending me good positive thoughts and prayers. Please excuse the typos, grammar, spelling, etc.

Ted