This spring, summer, and fall of travel continues to be a year of flexibility and change.

I make plans, and they change. New plans are almost cemented in place; they change.

I hated planning. It would drive Jim, my husband, nuts. He would almost have to corner me before I would commit. Once a plan was implemented, moving forward and getting excited was easier. But committing to a plan? That was hard.

It began last winter with an itty-bitty infection that decided to hang around and hang around. Driving to Alaska was out, and I started waiting. Waiting to see if the infection would return. It did, more than once. One day, I decided that waiting was not how I wanted to spend my summer.

I made plans, and off I went to Vancouver Island, BC. I visited with friends, saw amazing things, and participated in fun activities. I also attended a workshop on Cortes Island for a week. Throughout the week, I hiked, sailed, kayaked, and learned about the rainforest. I will never see lichen, moss, and green things the same again.

I grew bolder and planned a ten-day trip to Haida Gwaii, formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands. I traveled by long ferry rides to the land of totem poles, rainforests, and whales. I saw interesting things and left with a wealth of new information and a wish to return.

Upon my return to the mainland, I planned to take the ferry to Bella Coola, British Columbia, and drive “the hill” back to Washington state through BC. A landslide and flooding of the Chilcotin River stopped my plans. I returned to Vancouver Island and slowly headed south.

After returning to the United States, I volunteered with the Washington State Parks for three weeks. Well, that must have been planned. No, it was not. I applied for this position in June and never received a callback. As I was driving north into the wilds of Canada, I received a phone call. Someone had a “change of plans,” and the parks needed help with surveying. Doesn’t that sound familiar? I surveyed several state parks in the Seattle and western Washington state.

After volunteering, I planned to visit the Olympic Peninsula and slowly meander south. Did this happen? As you may well know by now, No, It Didn’t!

A good friend of mine, Mary, aka Zee, got in touch and was looking for a partner in fun to go on a few-week adventure along the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. The Range of Light.

We hiked, camped, and kayaked through early fall. We spent time in Virginia City, NV, and Bodie State Historical Park in northern CA—ghost towns of the mining era. Heading down the 395, my kayak experienced high mountain lakes while the aspen quaked yellow. Some days, we only traveled 30 miles before we found our next campsite for a few days.

We continued our southerly journey stopping to visit Manzanar National Historic Site, a World War II Japanese Internment Camp.

 “One Camp, Ten Thousand Lives; One Camp, Ten Thousand Stories.”

It is in a rather desolate area with a constant wind. I am glad Manzanar is being preserved as a reminder of a moment in American History.

Our last southerly stop was the Alabama Hills. The hills are a formation of rounded rocks and eroded hills set between the jagged peaks of the Sierra Nevada and the geologically complex Inyo Mountains. The same uplifting 100 million years ago shaped both geologic features. The hills are located west of Lone Pine.

In 1920, Hollywood filmmakers became interested in the Alabama Hills for its natural scenery. Since then, over 400 movies have been filmed here. The first movies were the westerns; Gunga Din, How the West Was Won, Hopalong Cassidy, Rawhide, Wagon Train, Have Gun Will Travel were among many films shot in the Hills.

I kept expecting to see John Wayne come riding out of the hills. Did you know he had to be taught how to ride a horse? Who else came out of those hills? Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Gary Cooper, Gene Autry, and any of the Singing Cowboys. But wait…there is more. No movie would be complete without the army riding in to save the day. But wait…there is the Lone Ranger and his faithful sidekick, Tonto, coming in to save the day.

When the hills were not filled with westerns, parts of Star Trek and other sci-fi films were produced in the hills. Well isn’t that cool. I love Sci-fi movies.

After traveling with Zee it was hard to say goodbye and become a solo traveler again. I traveled west through Yosemite National Park, visiting the valley floor and the Hetch Hetchy area of the park.

I had planned to visit friends in Sonora and Cool, California, when I got a text. Oh no, can my plans change again? Yes!

Those who have followed my adventures know I occasionally house-sit and pet-sit for friends. You might remember Woody the Cat. Woody, Rocky the Dog, and my friend Mandy live in Salinas,

California. Mandy needed some assistance. She needs to spend her days with her dad and could use some help with her animals. I truly believe all we can do is help when we are asked. Plans changed again, and here I am in Salinas. I have been here for a few days and will be here as long as needed.

“All we can do is walk each other home.”

Currently, I have no plans! Well, I do plan to get my bike out and ride the marvelous paths in the Monterey area. I plan to put that kayak out in the Elkhorn Slough. But I am not planning beyond that. Well, yes, I am. That will be for another post.

This has been a year of flexibility and change. I am not always comfortable with change yet I realize that change will happen whether I am ready for it or not. This is life. This is my life. This is your life.

Today I am thankful for adventure and change and the excitement it can bring as I find new places to explore and new people to meet. Today I am thankful for my friends near and far who when needed I can reach out and help. Today I am thankful when friends reach out and help me.

Today, I am Thankful.