Tale of two hikes

[glad1 2,832]

I'd been planning for most of the week to go for a long hike today. It wasn't as far as I'd hoped, but it wound up being two hikes, as the first got cut short when I found the trail badly flooded barely ten minutes in.

So, I had to find another park that wasn't too far away. Of course, by the time I got there I was practically desperate, seeing how I'd already drank my first one-liter bottle. I don't think I made it much more than a hundred yards into the trees before I pulled myself out and peed and peed. I kept looking to the sides and behind me, in case anybody came by.

That done, I continued with my walk and concentrated on my mission of finishing the second bottle. I wasn't paying attention to the time, but I doubt if it was more than another fifteen minutes before I felt more than a little full again. And I still had half the bottle. So, I told myself I'd hold at least until I finished it and then see how much longer I could last.

I actually surprised myself how well I did. But, seeing how I was becoming more than a little uncomfortable and there was no reason for me to prove anything, I stopped again. While I was in a more remote  place than when I first stopped, this time felt more exciting to me,, either because I was holding more or I'd been thinking too much. I was pressed tightly against my shorts, so by the time I got the leg opening aside, I was already in midstream, and totally soaking the side of the path. If anything, I peed even stronger and for longer than the time before. Talk about relief! It was only after I shook the last drops off that I caught my breath again. 

I was still only halfway through my hike, but nature never ceases to surprise me. The path I was on was getting muddy and I knew there was a creek I needed to cross. While it was manageable when I was here last week, I knew it would be up to my knees today. So, I needed to turn around and either return the way I came or take a shortcut across a field to my car.  

In the end, I chose the latter. I'm sure I could have done the extra couple miles, but I had finished my water and it was starting to get hot. At least by the time I'd crossed the field and got back into the last of the forest, my bladder was good and full again. Not that I was disappointed or anything, but I kinda wish there had been people on the trail today.