(Day 142 / -87 lbs.) Freezing My Butt Off

Ah, the Great Outdoors! Trees and woods, rocks and rills (rills?!?), valleys and templed hills, my heart with rapture fills...

You know the rest.

My two sons, my brother-in-law, and I just returned from a hunting trip in Central Oregon and I've got to say, it was awesome! Before any of you friends of animals get in a twist, no, I didn't kill any of God's little furry creatures- nor have I ever. Truth be told, I'm not much of a hunter. I'm big and loud and not a very good shot. A deer would probably have to wrestle my rifle away from me and shoot itself.

But I love to go hunting. I love crunching through the woods while armed and hanging around the campfire. I love being “out there” as a primitive man, tracking my next meal- at least pretending to. I love everything about hunting, minus the killing. Which is why, after 20 plus years of hunting and a multitude of animal-in-the-cross-hairs opportunities, I have yet to shoot a living thing. I'm sure I could, but my family would have to be pretty hungry before I could pull the trigger.

Predatory wimpy-ness aside, it was a great time. Now on the accommodations wimpy-ness; butt-freezing-wise.

It was c-o-l-d, cold. Highs in the 50's, lows in the 20's to 30's, cold. Too cold for a tent, cold. Two sleeping bags, wear a full set of sweats and socks to bed, cold. Yeah, it was a little chilly. We survived.

Oh, and my “bed”. It was one of those accordion-style collapsing cots with a zipped-in air mattress. Really comfy- when it isn't broken and the air mattress actually holds air. I was really looking forward to a comfortable night off the ground. I set up the cot- only to find that four legs (one complete side) were broken- probably from one of my daughter's slumber parties (trampoline-fun). I jerry-rigged the legs and inflated the mattress; hoping that all would be well, only to return to a flat mattress. I refilled it prior to climbing into bed and spent the rest of the night clinging to one side of the cot while the air left the mattress and I sank to the ground in a shivering heap.

Nights were a little tough.

The days were great. My youngest son and I hiked for miles (about 6 per day) up and down hills and cliffs, gullies and some awesome terrain. It was strenuous but I made it through- a heck of a lot easier than last year. Had I not dropped the 80+ pounds I would have croaked. As it was, no huffing and puffing, no sweating, no problem. Four months ago was a different story.

I was able to maintain my usual eating patterns and food choices, less the smoothies. I made up for those by eating the components separately; protein mix (made like hot chocolate), berries, peanut butter, etc all work pretty well by themselves even in small amounts. Easy-cheesy.

All in all it was a great time and after my weigh-in this morning I'm feeling pretty good about staying on-plan no matter what I'm doing and no matter where I go- something sure to continue as long as I am committed.

We're doing it again next year- in a trailer- with beds- and a heater.