Day 60,   8 miles

A lovely morning hike into Castella.  Just 8 miles.  There is a campground to shower and a convenience store to purchase resupplies.  The plan was to hike on into the afternoon.

Shortly after arriving at the campground,  I went to the washroom and washed my hands in the sink.  A luxury.  I glanced in the mirror.  I haven’t looked at myself in the mirror for around a hundred miles.

I saw it immediately.  On my neck.  I calmly hiked back up the hill to where the kids were chatting.  I got out my first aid kit and waited till there was a lull in their lively conversation.

I held out my tweezers and said,  “Can one of you get this tick out of my neck please?”  And, “We really need to start looking more closely at each other!”

Like I said, Sweet Virginia is a brave chick, surgically removing it.

I must have picked up the tick from the damp bushes along the overgrown trail.  I was covered in mosquito bites and I thought that’s what it was, so I had been avoiding touching or scratching it.