Tubing Troubles

We did end up doing some stargazing last night. It was the second time David has seen the Milky Way, the first being last summer in Bend. I was pleased to be able to identify a couple of constellations, Cassiopeia and Sagittarius, a somewhat noteworthy accomplishment given the number of visible stars. We would have stayed outside longer but the “mossies” (mosquitoes) had discovered us.

This morning we awoke to an all-too-familiar smell of smoke. There’s a nearby fire that was started by lightning, it was a bit hazy and the air quality is less than perfect.

The fire didn’t stop us from eating breakfast al fresco and then going into Leavenworth to walk around. Besides caching-related exploring, the first store we entered was the local bookstore which had the mystery series by Ellie Alexander that I enjoy and already have copies of (it takes place in Leavenworth and the protagonist is a female beer brewer) but not much else of interest. We went into the bakery where David had already bought an iced tea, and I probably surprised him by suggesting we get a soft pretzel rather than something chocolate; although the pretzel was ok, it did not taste Bavarian to me.

By 10:30 it was already above 90F/32C so we went back to the B&B to chill, literally and figuratively. We stayed inside until just before our 2:30 Wenatchee River tubing reservation. As an aside, when we were in San Antonio this May, in similarly hot temperatures, we tubed down the Comal River in New Braunfels (midway between Austin and San Antonio) and both enjoyed it very much so we figured we would try the Wenatchee, and even discussed how many other rivers we might tube on. The trip started auspiciously, with a ride to the starting point, our selection of purple innertubes and two frisbees apiece to serve as paddles. The water was the perfect temperature (unlike the air) and the river was moving well. We enjoyed a short section of minor rapids and then a leisurely ride down the river for a while.

Then I had the “it seemed like a good idea at the time” thought to get out of the tube to get wet to cool down. I was fortunate to have no trouble disembarking and pulling my tube ashore. David followed me but wasn’t so fortunate, he flipped over and his eyeglasses “jumped ship” into the river. Although we searched for a bit we were unable to find them. Later in the ride his favorite Houston Astros baseball cap and one of his frisbees decided to join the glasses in never-to-be-seen-again-land and our dry sack chose to wander downstream. I was a bit behind him but was able to paddle, escape my tube and catch up with the dry sack. This was turning out to be a very expensive tubing expedition.

Steering an innertube down a river with a single “paddle” is not easy. We agreed to “walk” our tubes for a while in the hopes of finishing before the end of business hours to be able to order new glasses today rather than waiting for tomorrow. When it seemed ok, David gracefully jumped onto his tube, stomach down. I tried a similar maneuver and failed spectacularly. The dry sack remained safely around my waist (its new location after the previous escape attempt), and my prescription sunglasses graciously remained on my face. Alas, my baseball cap, both frisbees, my water bottle and the tube raced downstream faster than I could walk. David was far enough ahead of me that he was able to rescue the tube, my water bottle, and a single frisbee. I walked and swam and successfully reclaimed my hat from the current. At least this gave me the opportunity to get soaking wet, though this wasn’t how I wanted it to happen.

Eventually I reboarded, we each used our lone frisbee to paddle, and we rode, walked, and swam our way to the exit spot without losing any more of either our possessions or our dignity.

I’m pleased to report that David was able to order glasses, and we are incredibly grateful to both of the  Portland households who are headed to Seattle offered to bring his backup pair from Portland to Seattle this weekend; David and his other glasses should reunite by Saturday morning.

This evening we found ourselves discussing how long his arms are relative to reading menus in Seattle and noted that they are not as long as Brother In-law Long Legs’ arms (“BILL” is the tallest geocacher we know, and based on his size would be a forward or center on a professional basketball team), so we may purchase some dollar-store readers.

The car was in the sun and exaggerated a bit about the temperature, showing 116F/46C when the phone apps had a much more modest 101F/38C. After leaving the river, we found a fruit stand and got apples and peaches but no berries. We then visited Safeway yet again – my 4^th visit and David’s 3^rd – to forage for an indoor dinner, it being too hot for the third consecutive day to consider going to a restaurant.

Our woes continued, temporarily, when my passport performed an invisibility act. We systematically searched many places before it deigned to reappear and I’m happy to report that it was found after a systematic search and not a single swear word.

And so concludes Chapter 3 of our trip. Looking forward to Chapter 4 in which we will reunite with friends for another incredible weekend.