Day 55: Entering Dark Sky Zone

Today’s blog begins with Ishaq’s anecdote from the middle of the night. He woke up to what he thought was Tian’s (my) new, unlocked snoring pattern. He shone a light outside his tent and saw 3 raccoons on the tree next to him. Never in his life has he been so close to a raccoon. One raccoon stared deep into his soul. He felt seen in a way we, Spokies, have never seen him.

I also had my nighttime adventures in my tent. For some reason, I kept falling in and out of sleep. Ramona was awakened in the middle of the night (out of character for her) by a nightmare featuring a realistic-looking snake. I don’t think I did much to comfort my tentmate.

The piercing Utah sun awakened me from my slumber, and Ishaq immediately implored me to charge my phone. Although he didn’t know what today would hold, he believes that some Star Realm battles would be necessary, and there goes my emergency portable battery. I suppose entertaining ourselves can be considered an emergency. I walked over to my bike, intending to charge my bike computer, where I found my handlebar bag opened and the plastic cover ripped. Turns out, the snacks from my bike bag were not the only things ravaged by these stealthy raccoons. A half-eaten bagel in the grass was also the last remnant of our stolen bag of bagels. After Ramona returned from her walk, she told us about the ripped trash bag she had to clean up and the open cooler.

After a demure morning of breakfast and indecision, we decided to let Sarah and Greta run their errands (laundry and dinner shopping) before we collectively go on a scenic drive. The rest of us camped in the visitor center of Capitol Reef National Park to get some stuff done with their WiFi. I hid in the movie room with a film of Fruita showing every 30 minutes. The rest of the Spokies spread out across the visitor center. There wasn’t really a good place to work. The center should seriously consider renovating to accommodate work-starved bikers. I had many emails to send, so I was typing away at my laptop. Planning for a cross-country trip never stops.

After 3 hours of running errands, our troopers finally returned. We were momentarily distracted by the Which Spokie are you? quiz. Inspired by Spokes 2024, Charles was trying to create a bigger and better version of the quiz. Only in the late afternoon did we actually set out on the scenic drive. Unfortunately, Capitol Reef welcomed a tough crowd. While I loved the scenery, not everyone was satisfied with rock after rock. Ishaq chose to sleep during the drive. Greta regretted not buying a geology book to learn more about Utah’s rocks. Everyone was wiped out by the end of the drive, but I got some cool solo pictures.

Greta volunteered to be the head chef for tonight’s dinner. Ramona, Ruth, and I helped prepare dinner while everyone else went off on side quests. Cutting vegetables at the campsite was so serene, in part because some key players were missing. I could be cutting vegetables with the girlies forever.

When the rest of the crew returned, Charles and Ishaq proclaimed, “We were robbed”. The national park grocery prices were no joke. Greta related to their dismay. She made a fire bean salad for dinner, but ran out of steam when it came to the potato salad. Thankfully, Ruth and Charles came to the rescue(?) and cooked up some delicious(?) concoctions.

We rushed towards a sunset trail point to do some last-minute hiking, and didn’t even manage to see the sunset. At least the stars were nice. The night was surreal. I thought I was trapped in a dream or memory. I couldn’t remember if I had ever seen so many stars in my life. The stars wrapped around the night sky much like a planetarium. Stars were lining the horizon, too. I suddenly recalled a play I watched in San Francisco where two characters were lying down on the roof of their car while watching the night sky. I didn’t understand the allure two years ago, but lying on the too dirty ground, I finally understood that scene. The wonder of the night sky and the people that you choose to share that moment with are special. To live is to experience, and there is much more to come.