Day 3: Wildflowers & Rattlesnakes

Tuesday started beside a puddle from the overnight rains. Having parked on a back lot behind some buildings in Buena Vista, the sandy lot was moist and puddle-filled.

With lots to get done before going to work, I left the lot early and visited the gas station where it cost $105 to fill the RV tank, courtesy of the energy policies put into place by the Biden-Harris regime. Last year at this time it cost me between $65 and $80. What a difference a year makes!

After filling the tank, I went over to the hardware store and filled the on-board propane tank. Propane fuels the heater, stove, and refrigerator. (If I had a working hot-water heater on the RV, it would also fuel that.)

Next stop: the National Forest. I had lots of grading to get done, and I needed a quiet place to work.

I found a campsite loaded with wildflowers in hues of pink, coral, blue, purple, and white. The grasses, still vibrant from the rain, burst forth in the scent and shades of green.

With Buena running around off-leash while I traipsed through the wildflowers, I determined I should gather some firewood. After working all afternoon, I might want to enjoy a fire later in the evening. Since I'd camped here about two years ago, I knew lots of dead trees and easily-gathered firewood could be found on the hill across the small gully.

"Come on, Buena, let's go up the hill," I called to her, and she sprinted ahead of where I pointed.

With Buena running through the trees and looking for chipmunks, lizards, or anything that moved, I gathered up an armload of dead wood from fallen trees and hauled it back to the campsite. Then, I gathered another load.

Looking at my growing pile of sticks, I realized I needed some thicker wood, something that would burn a little longer. I found a large, downed tree with large limbs about halfway up the hill.

Now, the way to gather wood without a chainsaw involves finding a large enough rock to break the wood. I found a large granite stone weighing about 25 or 30 pounds and pulled it upward from the moist earth with both hands and carried it over to the fallen tree.

Breaking the wood was actually a matter of physics: weight of stone, thickness of wood, velocity of throw, and point of contact. I had to aim it right and throw hard because the branch I wanted was about six inches in diameter.

I aimed.

Threw.

And the rock bounced off the wood.

Erghhhh!

I must have missed that point of contact or not thrown hard enough. Fortunately, the stone didn't roll far, and I reached down to lift it again. Just as my fingers grasped the rough edges of the grey stone, I heard the sound like a rustling of leaves. As the sound became clearer, I recognized it for what it was--rattlesnake!

My eyes darted toward the sound.

Sitting there in the dappled sunlight, no further than five feet from where I had been working, the snake's body glistened yellow and brown. It lay curled over on itself in about three or four loops, and its body was about as thick as my arm.

My scream echoed against the hill and through the trees.

Buena came running, but I didn't want her near the snake.

Hurrying away from the fallen tree, I called to her, "Let's go this way!" I pointed back to the RV and hurried down the hill. Maybe I didn't really need to have a fire after all.

The afternoon brought thick grey clouds, which eventually broke into rain. I spent the afternoon grading student stories inside the RV. It felt cozy as I sipped warm tea while reading.

At sunset, the sky lit up in a brilliant orange, and I determined it was time to end the work day.