I mean it is but also these roads are rough riding on the mountain bike too. Sometimes you just got to drive and ride slowly on these rough as duck roads so you don’t break even more shit then absolutely necessary, especially out in the remote country.
Notes
People often idolize my life
I talk to people with families and homesteads and they often idolize my life of traveling, riding trail, camping and kayaking in state and national forests. How I do so much on my own, how I manage to get away and travel so much without a home, a family or livestock to look over.
I mean they’re not wrong but at the same time I do wish I had a place to call home, something more permanent than a moldy apartment and a two or three night stand in the wilderness. But I know what I would have to give up to have a place called home.
Truth is basically what I want is a hunting cabin 🏚️
When I look at houses, it’s really the hunting camps that appeal to me but few are close enough to work. You know that red painted red plywood dry cabin in the woods with an outhouse and maybe a few solar panels. No central heat, just a woodstove. And indoor plumbing just somehow Jerry-rigged together.
I have the money, I could buy a hunting cabin if I wanted to. Maybe I should have looked more at that cabin on acerage that was available in Rennselaerville but has long since sold. But new properties keep popping up. But could I even live there full time? Or would I have to continue to rent a dump in the city for weekdays? And do I want to buy in New York State and be tighted to the shit government and the bad gun laws?
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Waiting on the sunrise 🌅
I’m just sitting down at Lost Pond wondering when I’ll see the sun rise. A quiet, serene morning, planning to stay up in the state forest, ride mostly road and explore. Cooked breakfast in the darkness, ran some label jobs for work, had a nice long toke, and some coffee and thinking about the day ahead.
Not a real cold morning compared to recent days. ☕ Going to be a real beautiful day, almost better than yesterday which is hard to believe. As the time hasn’t changed yet, the sun is moving slowly over tree lines but it’s certainly not as dark as it was. Sunrise officially was at 7:21 am but it was longer than that when the sun rose over the horizon. Still a pretty sunrise. Not as frosty as yesterday and things are warming up quick with the heat from the sun. That said, I’m heading back to camp to sit by the heater a bit.
I would like to spend the day riding and exploring. 🚲 Days are so dark and short this time of year. I’m thinking of not just riding in the forest but maybe on some of the back roads down below. I know they are narrow and there is a good chance I’ll get chased by a pitbull or two but I like seeing rural homesteads and farmsteads up close like you can only see them on a bicycle. 🐄 Nothing too ambitious today, tomorrow is a work day and I’ll be driving 🚘 home. I think I’ll work the balance of the day from Glimmerglass State Park, I’m hoping they’ll have electricity I can plug my laptop into 💻 and I might find time for a quick paddle on Otsego Lake 🛶 plus it would help with the solar on the truck if I didn’t have the kayak on the roof. I want to be home tomorrow early enough to avoid driving in the dark plus I have all the GOTV jobs to request from down in the library 📚 in the evening.
Yesterday I went down to Nine Mile Swamp 🛶 and kayaked for much longer than I expected but alas I went slowly except towards the end when I had to pee. 🚹 The new stone wall there as part of the new boat launch was perfect for such purposes. Drove down to Rogers Center and hiked around the Farm Tower trail and some of the wildlife ponds until around six when I headed back to camp. 🍦 Didn’t get ice cream but I made some excellent chicken 🐔 soup when I got back to camp. 🍲
The sweet taste of silage on the air 🌽
Wasn’t necessarily planning on coming down to the Rogers Center but I’m camping far enough south in the state forest that it makes sense. Had an hour or so in the evening before dark so I didn’t feel like rushing back to camp. Tomorrow all day I’ll be at camp or at least based out of there spending riding trail and exploring the state forest, maybe some relaxing in the hammock getting caught up on reading.
I kind of want to get pumpkin ice cream at the Sherburne ice cream bar but I don’t know it’s cooling off fast and time is tight as darkness approaches. I’m eating so much junk food these days at the campaign committee. I try to eat before going and pilling on the salad and vegetables but it’s tough – those egg rolls were good last week. Plus I want to get back to camp, cook up some dinner and crack open a beer. Maybe Monday but most dairy bars are closed Monday especially in late October.
The hardest part is all in my mind 🧠
Buy! Buy! Buy! The mental health advertisers say, you can get affordable treatment to whatever ails your mind, be it schizophrenia, anxiety or anything else that we are more than happy to sell to you. Addicted to pot? We’ll sell you a remedy for that to if you lay down you’re hard earned money.
I am trying to be relaxed 💤 as I enjoy that last final blast of autumn colors and mild weather up here at the Charles Baker State Forest 🍁 on this long weekend after the Columbus Day Weekend. My cold is mostly done though it still find myself with a deep chest cough from time to time. Yesterday blew by so quickly with so much work to do, jacked up beyond belief on caffeine pills. 💊 I know I shouldn’t abuse them. But I did. Then I smoked some pot – only a single hit but I said some long winded things in a work email or too 📧 as I was a bit high – so many things to do yesterday and I kept getting further and further behind.
It was a nice night last night with the moonlight 🎑 and the colors are pretty good up here. Listened to 99 Percent Invisible podcast on Robert Moses until late into the evening. 🎧 Had a small fire, 🔥 it sure gets dark early this time of year. Just such a busy day with remote work 💻. I probably should have been responsible and just worked from the library yesterday but I wanted to get away with probably the last real nice weekend of autumn. 🏕️ Plus who knows how much I’ll be able to get away come November especially if I’m delaying that oil change I either need the shop to do or I can do. I’m at 35% oil life left. 🔧 I could certainly do it myself. Moved the truck to a flatter spot, checked the oil 🛢️ and added a half quart as it was down a bit. I wanted to do that before I left home on Friday but it was dark and I couldn’t read the dip stick.
Went out for a bike 🚲 ride this morning, watched the sun rise over Lost Ponds 🌅 and headed up to the Old Fire Tower 🗼 site. Thought about camping 🏕️ up there but I kind of really wanted to do Lost Pond instead. So much quieter then the campground. Surprised I haven’t seen any equestrians ride by – the trails are all open for another two weeks 🐴 but maybe they stay more down by the Main Assembly area. This afternoon going to paddle the Nine Mile Swamp. 🛶