New Life Chapter Ahead

It's been a long time since I've blogged, so much going on that I just dropped out for a while. In June of 2015, at 60 yo I retired (yay me!) Originally, my goal for retirement was to sell my house, buy a van, and travel across the country for a few years exploring, paddling, hiking and meeting new people before deciding where to live. But instead, a year before retirement I met someone and we dated for a couple of years, but finally came to the realization that we just weren't each others"the one."

So, back to plan A. I bought a used Chevy Express cargo van, and with help from the ex-boyfriend, now friend, we'll turn it into a home on wheels; solar, vent fans, a bed, small kitchen/work area, bathroom/shower facilities, etc. I did the carpentry work, and he did the electrical/solar.

I've embraced minimalism for several years,so living out of a van shouldn't pose too much of an issue.  I plan to travel in a manor that I can take advantage of moderate temps and spend lots of time outside hiking, paddling, biking, taking pictures, keeping a nature journal and meeting other like-minded people. I had considered a YouTube channel to document my new lifestyle, but to be honest, it's just too time consuming for me and I don't want to worry about internet access.

I found a used 2012 van with 78K. It had a few dents and scratches, but I was more concerned about the mechanics, after all I will be taking it to lots of off road places.. As for the mechanical, I had a pre-buy inspection done by my mechanic and he gave it a clean bill of health and so I began the process..

There wasn't a lot of time to get it road ready before we both had to head north to differing destinations, but we got busy and installed two Fantastic fans in the roof along with a battery and monitor as well as a continuous solanoid to allow the house battery to charge off the van battery.
Unfortunately, we had major issues with the cruise control (shipped wrong one twice) so I went cruiseless for the first trip.  I bought a twin futon mattress and a 12 v fridge and headed  for Michigan, then on to Wisconsin and Minnesota. 
Onward, as my friend Anne says! Here we go!

Richland Creek Wilderness Area/ Sandcastles and Waterfalls

Over the MLK holiday I was able to visit this beautiful area, thanks to Smokehouse and Hiker-doc who made the trip possible.  I had a long weekend so I wanted to explore a little farther north than the Ouachita’s.  I contacted Mike(Smokehouse) who suggested Richland Creek and I jumped at the chance to go, having read all the wonderful reports and pics here on the forum. The deal turned even sweeter when he later mentioned that Eric (Hiker-doc) was leading a day hike to the Sand Castles along the Big Middle Ridge Saturday and we could tag along then continue down to the waterfalls. I contacted Tony (Laser) and a couple of new Texas hiking friends and we worked out the logistics. One of the Texas crew had to cancel at the last minute, so it was just two of us, Tom and myself meeting up with Tony, Mike, Reggie. We would then meet Eric and his crew along the way and head to Richland campground where we planned to leave a car and head up to the drop off point.

   The best part of the plan was obvious after looking at the topo map….1) no steep, strenuous climb UP to the Sand Castles, and 2) we didn’t have to cross cold thigh high creeks to get there. There were icicles hanging from all the falls we stopped to photograph on the way up the road!

   I was quite happy to have a guide as we followed old road traces and faint trails along the ridge, arriving at the Sand Castles mid-afternoon. All I can say is wow, what amazing geology! I really enjoyed visiting with Eric and his friends and was sorry to see them go.
  After they departed we headed down a few ridges along another pretty faint trail, arriving at top of Twin Falls where we camped for the evening. So, this is the area where Ed Cooley had his moment of disaster, I thought.  Zac joined us as there, having gotten a later start from Tulsa than he'd anticipated. He hiked in from the campground and told of cold, high water crossings, brrrrrr. 

   The next morning was a lazy camp morning since we really didn’t have many miles on this trip. Mike, Tom and I hiked down to see the falls from the bottom, and then on to Richland Falls. So beautiful! We hiked back to camp and when everyone was ready we made the decision to cross the creek in order to access the more traveled trail heading to the Richland campground. However, Mike's friend Reggie had other plans. While Zac chose to cross the creek to the trail, Reggie hiked farther downstream in search of a good crossing, with Mike,Tom,Tony and myself in tow. So from here we decided to bushwhack along the less traveled side of the creek until we found a good crossing.
    This was my first experience at being off trail and it whetted my appetite for more. We came upon a suitable crossing and just as we did, we heard Zac across the creek on the trail. Once we crossed the creek, which had dropped out enough to be only knee high or less, we made our way to a campsite about a half mile in from the campground.

   The next morning (Monday) was a quick hike to the campground and a waiting vehicle, but not before a very cold water crossing, complete with ice, at about 9 am. It was a great hike, not many miles but great scenery and lots of fun, I can't wait to go back!