By DAVE CAMPBELL

209 Living

I recently took a week off and went relatively unplugged. For a few days I was out of cell range and without electricity or running water. It was heavenly. No politics. No shootings to hear about. No excess stimuli.

It was heaven – eventually. My first night in the woods, we did not eat until very late. I don’t know if that was the cause, but that night I did not sleep for beans. It was like a made-for-TV-movie depiction of a bad LSD trip. Lights – flashes – sirens, all night long. One after another. It was truly bizarre.

I went in search of an old lumber mill from the 50s, but could not find it. While walking through the woods I did come across an abandoned shed near what appeared to be an old horse pen. I had to wonder what the purpose f that old dwelling once was.

Walking through the woods at 5,000 feet can reveal visual treasures we do not get to see very often. Trees that grow out of rocks, vistas not impeded by pollution, and wildlife.

I left the woods of Humboldt County for my fishing holes in Shasta County, and the change of scenery did not disappoint. Fish, pelicans, otters, deer – just beautiful. I saw an Indian burial ground – at least that is what the locals told me it was – with graves that appeared to be above ground, covered by rocks. Driving through Lassen Park was a treat, especially with the leaves starting to turn colors.

But like my mom would say on our way home from Reno, it is back to clipping coupons. That and plugging back in.

I am ready to go back again.