Last night the mosq’s were torture. I checked the van ceiling to discover beaucoup mosqs. Hot night. Tried to pull sheet over my head for protection. I squashed several under the covers leaving some of my preciuos bodily fluid. Just awful. AM was cooler w/ fewer in circulation.
Drove to Diamond LAke USFS info booth to buy the forest’s rec map. I filled up the h2o tank & sloshed out the new soar shower and filled part way.
Drove to Lemola Lake and my start on the North Umpqua River Trail, abbreviated as NUT. Hot & clear. Mosqs not so bad @ approx 4000′. Rode 9 miles out & back to wilderness boundary. Mosqs too thick to linger anywhere so I rode almost non stop for 2 hours, 17.67 miles & 1448′ vert. Great small clear river up here @ source.
Found camping spot just below dam that creates Lemola Lake. Had a solar shower out in nthe breeze.
Tomorrow is Dread & Terror section. I listened to Tracy from Toketee tell me about h2o level on D & T that has closed the trail. Flow rate changes based upon electricity demand. Sometimes the flooded section has been ankle deep, others thigh deep. There is an exit b4 the flooded section. I plan on riding to flooded section & see if I can walk thru it. Tomorrow will be a ST downstream and a gravel logging road climb back to van.
Van gets pretty hot in sun and doesn’t like to shed that heat.