I was reading today about the massive case counts in Florida and it got me thinking about this thread today and how it had been silent quite a while.
Anyone been able to get out on some good trips this summer? I've enjoyed the trip reports I've seen on here. I've been able to go out backpacking once and hiking a few times, but haven't done much otherwise. Partly due to a big upcoming interstate move, but also because being shut in for a while kind of killed my motivation until recently. Seems like most places are open for camping, hiking, and backpacking to some degree now. At the same time, I've read lots of complaining online by people in various western states about people from out of state coming in droves for outdoor recreation.
I didn't want to post in here about plan changes until my big trip was either canceled or I got to go. I was afraid I would jinx the trip.
This has been the strangest year. Rather difficult one. We booked the trip the first week of January to raft the Gates of Lodore July 10-13th with OARS. Booked the trip before this COVID mess. My sister in law Jenni, my father in law Terry, and my friend Brete and his girlfriend Brandi. Brete and I had talked about going in 2019 but it wasn't a good year for either of us and we pushed it back to 2020.
I sat and watched all of my friends travel plans get canceled one after another. Trips to Paris, trips to Africa, to Disney. Graduation was canceled. In person labs and classes canceled. Felt like the world came to a screeching halt in March and stood in limbo for weeks.
My brother ended up in the hospital I work at on the weekends he was there 4 weeks left a couple days after our first case of COVID arrived. My brother was transferred to an assisted living center on hospice care. We thought we would lose him. He is still there and 2 staff members have tested positive so far. And we can't see him haven't been able to see him for weeks. He doesn't understand what is going on and thinks we have just abandoned him.
Of course this greatly upsets my mother. Who is overly stressed about this COVID situation. She won't go anywhere and has lost a friend to the virus. I think he was the 3 or 4th person in Utah to die. Older gentlemen in other wise good health but worked in a group home with challenged individuals.
In April OARS let us know they were watching the situation and would keep us updated as to the status of the trip. Jenni and I both wanted to still go, same with her Dad and Brete and Brandi.
Then the first of May Jenni and Kerry were riding ATVs at Coral Pink Sand Dunes. Jenni drove her ATV off a cliff. She died on impact. I lost Tyler 16 years ago, Jenni was his oldest sister. Jamie the youngest sister lost her husband to heart attack 7 years ago. I feel like this family is cursed.
Needless to say the month of May was pretty rough. OARS was great they refunded Jenni's money. Terry decided he didn't want to go, partly because OARS discouraged anyone over 65 not to go, but mostly because Jenni had died. Brete and Brandi backed out without telling me. Both are in high risk groups and were worried about getting COVID. But I didn't find out they ba ked out until after I had payed the balance on the trip. So I went by myself.
This was OARS first trip of the season, they had to cancel all of the previous booked trips. There were 10 of us guests, usually they have 25 guests on a trip. We had 3 separate family groups, 4 guides and solo me. At some point I will do a report. It was a fun trip. But tough every time they called up each family pod to get dinner. Jenni would have loved this river trip. I missed having her. We weren't always on good terms with each other, we are 2 very different women. But the past year we had actually started getting close.
All I can say is 2020 sucks. I am glad I did the river trip it was beautiful and I can't wait to do another one. Had the tables been turned and I was the one to die I would have been pissed if Jenni backed out of the trip. We lose loved ones in life but you have to keep living.
I also may have had a midlife crisis in May. Jenni's funeral was Saturday the 9th. My birthday was 10 days later. I seriously had had it with bad news and life is short you never know when your time is up. I bought my dream car.
Then I high tailed it to Idaho and met up with some friends to ride 110 miles on our bikes in Northern Idaho on the Hiawatha, Milwaukee and Trail de Coeur d'Alene. That didn't clear my head enough so I Spent an entire week in Southern Utah and Northern Arizona riding other trails.
After getting off the river yesterday and being completely off grid for 4 days I am ready to go back. I could easily become a river rat.
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Do you think it would be too much to ask him to include the Teton Wilderness with that map? 
