I did not go too far per say today. I did not include, but will mention it, my round trip to Walmart in St George to refill some prescriptions, leaving my lights on and waiting over an hour for my Battery Tender to charge it up, right by the big door where the carts are kept… I actually owe Walmart some electric power… but they don’t know where I live!

I never wrote about my good experience with BMW of Las Vegas… on a Friday, down to one tech, the other ones being in Daytona Motorcycle School. Gerry and Peter’s shop had me out of there in about an hour with 3 new tires… of course 3… doesn’t every one buys 3 tires?… And only in Las Vegas will Business card look like a chip!

I thought it was very cool… Those are hundred dollar chips by the way… and no!… no monetary value besides having their info just in case… Beautiful store, pleasant sales people and always coffee, donuts, cookies, ice cream… Internet! Thanks guys… well deserved and wish you great success…

This is where I live… with this great little lake just a couple mile away. Fishing licenses by the way in Utah for out of State residents is $12 a day, $32 a week or $70 for the season… I guess I will just live with the memory of the 18″ trout that I cooked tonight. Michael stopped by after his own fishing… trying to add to my given trophy, but has not done so well… the dogs were wet… you guessed it!

This is simply BLM land north of Snow Canyon as my previous maps have shown, and deserted.

We even have our own Red Rock Mountain, but few are the ones seeing it. I call the perfect setting. I am sure that there will be some other campers during the weekend, with so many square miles of space no one will feel crowded.

I have to keep telling myself that it will not be this way everywhere I go!… and that has brought a point of thought in my mind, a few actually. One can think a lot when roaming freely on the roads… My likings such as motorcycle riding, dogs such as Spirit and the many others I have been meeting lately, photography, cooking, seeing the highlights that this country has to offer and finding my own highlights (such as this lake!)… I know are shared by many others.

It is not a worry, that would be too strong of a word, but maybe a concern, wondering if my lifestyle is as my likings shared by others, maybe desired. Not as a two weeks vacation, or even six month or a year, but as a permanent (as permanent the word can mean). This campsite has been the most comfortable place I have been in a long time, shared only by the one on the South Rim, Grand Canyon. Why?… because there is not a soul within miles… the nights are silent as I have ever experienced, without any distant traffic, nothing… The days will see an occasional car go by, birds singing, squirrels running within the dry leaves, life is felt to my own liking…

I know that we change… I don’t live on a sailboat anymore!… But with no coincidence I have found a parallel situation. Not an easy one sometimes. The physical comforts are not quite there all the time!… but the comfort of the Soul is constant on my present little Island.

I have been fortunate to meet some great people since I have left. Friends I would never had a chance to meet if I had not embarked myself on this Journey, that in itself makes it all worth it, it is “gold” in my life… they are my dividends, a great return that was not planned. I know that I will try to see them again, maybe next year, maybe in two years… who knows, but the memories are there… the phone calls exists and so does the e mails. They have brought warmth to those moments spend together… some repairing my rig, eating a prepared meal, showing me around their personal routes, laughing, solving life’s obstacles in lengthy conversations, including me in their own family functions as one of their own… but I am always back… solitaire with my buddy Spirit!

And one could think about settling down, specially these past days witnessing this incredible area so close to many wonders that Utah has to offer, but I know that soon I will be moving on to the next little “space” that I can find! It must be in me… a feeling that grows to move on even if the present can be so perfect as it is here… I think that is the “core” of my thoughts… why?… I yet have to meet someone like myself with the same thoughts…

When I think how long I will be on the road, I think… maybe ten years?… maybe more… As I see the beautiful lands, valleys and mountains in such profusion specially around here, I keep asking myself why could I not just settle down and nurture what would be permanent under my feet…

And I know that I cannot!

So I go on… always with a bit of, should I say, sadness, specially when having found such a great base camp, friends near by… and at the same time great excitement and curiosity roaming on the free path ahead of me. Hope all this makes sense… If nothing else I have the feeling that you are enjoying the pictures!… My present backyard… literally.

Cannot forget the trout!… It was plentiful for one… sorry… there was no leftovers.

Some saute thin sliced red potatoes and red onions, dash of salt. Cleaned the trout of it’s scales, guts… rinsed well and right into the pan with some ghee (clarified butter). Could have used a larger pan for this one!… Medium temp and covered with foil to also give it a baked effect.

Remember this is camping Micro Cooking, not much counter room or need for much effort… Squeezed in the juice of a lemon… and as it cooks that is when I remove the skin… keeping the task easy! The trout went onto the potatoes and in the same pan some cherry tomatoes, half and half and I had some grated Parmesan that I added giving also a great “zing” to the potatoes combined with the aciditic taste of the tomatoes… The meat tasted fresh… almost makes me want to go ahead and buy a License! Questions?… just ask… You can add some hot sauce… vegetables with the tomatoes… no cheese… different cheese… or try it as I made it! You’ll enjoy it…

Till next time…

You be well…

Ara & Spirit

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 10th, 2007 at 11:24 pm and is filed under travel, spirituality, pit bull, sidecar, motorcycle, cooking, photography, riding, homeless. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.