Getting away 2020
Memorial Day Weekend 2020. Downtown Bend was finally open after a two month closure for Covid 19. My emotions had run the gamut. I was tired from 2 am wake-ups with my head spinning. Marsh and I decided to head south and east and Suzanne said she would handle the weekend at Cowgirl Cash and Arrange. I'm frequently grateful for our partnership in the store.
Our trip started in Klamath Falls and the newly built and expanded Spence Mountain Trailhead. We camped in the parking lot near Klamath Lake and enjoyed the many species of birds that make themselves known there. We decided bird watching may be a thing for us one day.
Next We headed to Mount Shasta. We had our backcountry skis with us and decided to walk up hill awhile and see how far we got. We had to walk 2.5 miles on a dirt trail with our skis tented on our packs before we hit snow. I may not have many of those excursions left in me. We made it to just about 9500 feet in elevation and had a great ski down.
The next morning we headed to Hart Mountain Antelope Refuge outside of Plush, OR. We drove the scenic route through Shasta City, Alturus, and Adel. We were self contained and didn't need much but water and enough food and beverages to last us a few days. We camped at the Hot Springs campground along a creek in an aspen grove. The hot springs were an easy walk away and the hike we took up Barnaby road led us to a huge rock cairn and we were able to see California Big horn sheep with our binoculars. The wildlife is plentiful... people are not. Day two at Hart mountain we rode our bikes down Poker Jim Road. We stopped and explored the rock cliffs near the river and found obsidian flakes where native Americans had sharpened their spears before their bird hunt.
The trip and the long days of hiking gave me time to reflect on where Cowgirl Cash is going with the future slightly uncertain for brick and mortar shops. I've decided to keep moving forward hopefully, yet cautiously. My shared space situation with Arrange is working nicely, and the locals have been generously shopping and spending.
I will be promoting Cowgirl Properties once again. Who wouldn't want to move to Bend for a little fresh air and elbow room after a global pandemic?
I live a cowgirl lifestyle without a horse. It's a life of freedom, self expression, honesty, joy and grit. Check back to my journals for tips from a native Bend girl, that is willing to disclose her secret spots occasionally. I'll also share my favorite streets in old Bend and beyond. Places where space and sky and flowers and breezes are plentiful, and a horse or goat and a bee hive is welcome.
What does your Cowgirl property look like?
