Hello Everyone,

I am at Camp 19, about 20 miles east of Waldport, which is on the coast.

I trekked 15.13 miles today and it was a little less than I had planned because I wanted to make Waldport by tomorrow, but it turned out to be a challenging day because of the blisters on my foot.

My night was uneventful and no one came to chase me away. I always sleep fairly well and outside noises don’t bother me anymore because of all the strange places I have slept.

The weather indicated that there was a chance of rain today so I dressed for it and kept my rain gear handy. It actually turned out to be a warm day in the high seventies and low eighties. I have no cell service so I don’t know what the weather will be tomorrow and I’ll assume it will rain.

I had trouble with the one big blister on the ball of my foot yesterday and decided to cover it with thicker mole skin. The blister has actually gotten larger and was difficult to keep covered up, so I wrapped duct tape completely around the top and bottom of my foot to keep it from sliding (duct tape, good for everything, don’t leave home without it). This seemed to help a little though I still found myself limping and cupping my foot so I didn’t put direct pressure on it. This must have caused my other toes to move up and out because I got two more painful blisters on my big and little toes. Both were actually covered with mole skin! Now I have four blisters on my right foot, the snowball affect from the wet shoe.

My day went slow and I stopped frequently to check on the wrapping. The frustration must have shown on my face because a young woman saw me, turned around, and asked if I was alright or needed a ride. Another nice person, and actually, pretty trusting.

I also ran into two bicyclists that were going from Astoria, Oregon, to the east coast. It was only their third day and the excitement on their young faces were priceless. After they told me how far they had come it made me realize that it will take me about twelve days to trek to their starting point. It’s always nice to have people stop and chat and there have been so many that most of the time I don’t even mention them.

I found this spot right after I said my good byes to the bicyclists. It’s on a gravel road used for the steelhead restoration project along the river. It appears well sheltered from the wind as it had just picked up.

There is no cell service but I’ll send this out in the blind anyway. Hopefully I’ll make Waldport tomorrow and I’ll send out an updated blog. If my feet are still bothering me I may find a motel to soak and rest my feet.

As always, please keep sending me your positive thoughts and prayers. Please excuse the typos, spelling, etc.

Best wishes,
Ted