June is working hard to make up for the months that preceded her. April and May were cold, overcast, snow was still on the ground. June, thus far, has been a definite improvement. Today was the nicest day all year. The sun shone brightly, and the temperature was in the 60s.

Temperatures in the 60s are warm to me. I can’t imagine 110˚ F heat, like they are experiencing right now in southern California. If temperatures get into the 90s here, and this has happened, I will be extremely uncomfortable.

We did squander some of the day. We went to Anchorage, to Office Depot, and picked up topo maps of the Yukon Territory. This is where we are headed. Pete figured out the cheapest way to get these maps – I cannot explain the process, but it involved transferring computer data.

The man is a genius. This is what Becky and I should have done when we went and did a similar trip. We did have books with trail maps in them. But these maps, they are the real deal.

What we don’t know is what the terrain will be like. Could be that the trails are too marshy for our liking and that of our horses. It’s an adventure and an adventure is always an unknown.

We went to REI after spending considerable time at Office Depot. There Pete purchased a Therm a Rest, an inflatable ground pad. He and the clerk deliberated over the various types of air mattresses for what seemed like hours to me. I started to not feel well. I feigned interest for a bit, but it appeared as though the clerk/customer interaction was going to go on for a long, long time.

I finally found a small chair and a table next to it, which had a book on it. It was about the history of African American runners. When finally, the narrative had my undivided attention, Pete reappeared. He had purchased a mattress that comes with this device you blow into to inflate it. I equated this purchase with the expenditure of energy. You want to save energy on the trail, not squander it.

My gut was hurting, so we came home and curtailed our shopping spree. When I feel crappy, I am faced with two options. I can either tough it out, which is what I usually do, or I can give in. Today, I gave in and took a short nap. This is the first time I have acted upon this second option in years.

This did enable me to get through the evening and begin packing for the trip. Pete, he worked on the hoop house garden, which of course is a sight to behold. Me, I did nothing of note, but what I did do is now packed nicely in the trailer.

I’d been working all along – I spent a whole day a few weeks ago sorting out horse gear. I shudder to think of what I would have had to deal with if I hadn’t done this – there was still more than enough sorting to do.

Nice to be here working. Count my lucky stars – I was not sequestered in the former banquet room of the Eagle Hotel.

Next: 155. 6/7/24: Glennallen