An Unexpected Layover In The Wilderness

We were in Colorado heading toward Utah to help Mr. Right’s family move. They’d bought a home in a small canyon community surrounded by luscious green mountains. Normally, the trip takes three days driving and two nights camping with no cell signal most of the way. Somehow, while wandering through mountain towns, we got word from the family that they were all sick with the Norovirus.

Mr. Right and I made it through Covid-19 (so far) without any issues due to lying low for two years, wearing facemasks, getting vaccinated and booster shots as soon as possible. But I’ve never felt so sick as with that Norovirus. We both caught it from our grandkids in February and now refuse to be near anyone who has it or had it within the previous five days.

Highly contagious, our violent vomiting continued for 12 hours as we lay side-by-side with matching buckets of wood shavings on either side of the bed. Even in our small 420-square foot house the bathroom was too far from the bed to make it in time. When not throwing up, we took turns wiping the other’s face with cool washcloths and encouraged hydration. It then took an additional five days for recovery. I made a pot of white rice, and we’d take a spoonful once in a while to calm our tummies. We swore never to go through that again if we could help it, therefore, we had no choice but to remain in the wilderness for an additional four days.

We began mapping out various U.S. Forestry Service roads and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for free camping. One night we camped on the bank of a small river in the San Juan National Forest. The following two nights we spent at 9600 feet elevation on a mountain ridge. Mr. Right parked Clarabelle the Campervan amidst 100-foot Ponderosa Pines and quaking Aspens. (FYI--If you scratch the bark of a Ponderosa Pine, it emits an aroma not unlike vanilla extract.) Looking down off either side of the ridge, we could see springgreen meadows, dirt road switchbacks, and a few courageous tent campers far below our camp. Far braver than me because black bears, mountain lions, elk, and moose roam the mountains, all of which can be dangerous depending on the time of year. I don’t camp in a tent; I like the safety of having a metal barrier between me and the animals.

Sounds of our laughter mixed and echoed with the wind through the trees, wild birdsong, and buzzing bees. Time-worn boulders, weather ravaged, cracked, and etched with oddly distorted rocky faces laced the mountainsides.

Finally, word got to us that the family was well and ready for our visit. We arrived and a moving truck showed up. Everything was loaded and a caravan of vehicles drove one hour to the family’s new, large, retro farmhouse. Up the steep driveway we all went parking on the level ground in front of the big red barn.

Everywhere we went, beauty surrounded us. Everywhere we traveled, the vastness of this country amazed us. We learned that no matter how important people think they may be, we are all just specks in the space we occupy.