LASSEN VOLCANIC NATIONAL PARK: KINGS CREEK FALLS, BUMPASS HELL, SULPHUR WORKS June 26, 2021
With a new partner to come over to my home the night before, I let him stay in my spare bedroom. Up at 6 a.m., Saturday, we had breakfast, me with my economy cereal. Loading our things into my electric car, we took off by about 7 a.m. Heading north on U. S. 395, we were entertained by my music on my car audio system. Using the rest area along the highway, we made good time to CA 44 where I detoured to the Hat Creek vista point. By Eric, this was the first time that he'd been here.
We found the trailhead parking by my car navigator, and started our short hike. The trail descends with various signs to the falls viewpoints. We scrambled down to the bottom of the falls for photos and video, and Eric took a wade in the stream. With other hikers taking baths or showers in the falls, we started back on the alternate Cascades trail, with steps. This was very scenic, with sights of even more falling water. Back to the car, we motored up to the highway summit, for me to record the trail conditions to the top of the peak. No snow on the trail, so good that I had forgotten my ice ax.
Worried now about the car range, it took a lot of power to motor up to the highway summit, so I decided that we had to get to the Supercharger in Red Bluff, CA, some 48 miles downhill. As we descended, the re gen replenished the range. We stopped to hike to Bumpass Hell, with lots of hikers. Then to stop at the Sulphur Works, where the mudpots were bubbling good.
At the SW Entrance visitor center, the ranger told us there was an EV charger. It required downloading an app, and the Wi-Fi was terribly slow. The desk ranger told me to go to the store cashier, where I paid $3 for an hour's charge. It took a half hour to get the charger charging the car, from the time that I first plugged in. I sat in the car, as I got enough extra range to securely motor to Red Bluff, some 28 miles more.
With even more range as we went downhill, we had some 71 miles of range left as I got to the Supercharger along Interstate 5, so charging at the park had been unnecessary. I plugged into the Supercharger, with only 35 minutes to wait to a full charge. Going to a nearby eatery, I had a salad, while Eric had a breakfast. We had a highly unproductive discussion, and on the drive at night back to the Park SW Entrance campground, the arguing did keep me awake. I paid $20 as I didn't have the exact change for the $16 camping fee.
I tried to doze off in my car trunk, but I forgot my foam pad. I had no cellular signal at the campground parking lot, so my wireless devices were near useless. Near out of charge anyway, I decided then that we didn't get along, and unable to sleep, got up past midnight to abort the trip. I awoke Eric, who didn't have the courtesy to tell me where he chose to sleep, so it took me 15 minutes to locate him. We shortly motored off, and I had been informed that I also had an earlier than scheduled delivery at my home, some thermal curtains worth some $300.
With diet soda and music, I safely made the 3 hour drive back to home. Eric took his things and left for other lodging, and I went to rest back in my bed, with my important package secured from any porch pirates. With his constant verbal attacks, some looking to be extreme and even near nut job, I wanted no more of him. Open to a change in his behavior, I prefer ego massages versus crazy argumentation.
I like road trips to be fun, with never such heavy, unyielding disagreements on life views and politics. He disliked my comments about the hateful, violent, and racist enviro hiking club, urging me as they do, to move on. Refusing to listen as I had mostly enjoyed sharing the sights and climbs with friendly enough people who shared expenses, I figured a personal loss of some few thousand dollars from the rideshare denials and potential lodging exclusions.
Maybe paranoid about my home computer security, I had noted suspicious changes to my everyday settings. As I allowed him to watch a movie, he had been left alone in my living room, where my main computer sits. As I got up the next morning, I did a virus scan and changed passwords. Easy enough to do, this would allow me some peace of mind. Then to do webwork, as I was up at 1 p.m., Sunday, too late for my daily morning peak bagging. Maybe a bit too trusting, I feel safer and more secure now.
Now onto other things, and to try for other partners. Perhaps too paranoid to have anybody along and in my home, I may refuse to have any roommates. Could the Club funded by dirty energy be trying to harass or "get" me, as some of them had said would be "good?"
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