Real Cowboys Do Exist: VC Trip Day 1

For those of you who question the existence of real, live cowboys (I certainly did prior to this trip), I am here to tell you that they are in fact, not mythological creatures. No, no, I can now add to the cast of characters in my life story the men and women I met on my recent stop at the Virginia Lakes Pack Station.

Day 1 began like this: 4 women meeting up (mostly on time, yours truly may or may not have been a bit tardy for the occasion) for a long and hilly ride into the Hoover Wilderness. All 4 are therapists, so you can imagine that the content of our conversations provided a broad range of entertainment and depth.

All 4 are here for different reasons. The Green Lady, mother of 2, has not been away from her children since prior to giving birth to her 3 year old. South has never been in the wilderness quite like this before. And Spirit Deer has recently gone through a divorce. All 4 in very different places in life, and yet somehow have arrived at exactly the same place. This is sure to be a spiritual journey.

Much of the drive looks like this.

We drive on narrow, windy forested highways further and further away from civilization. We pass towns that features signs such as "Population: 110" (I joke that if we hit someone, we will wipe out 10% of the town), "Double D Extreme Sports" (the joke here is just too obvious), and other such gems that look like they stepped straight out of 1952.

California or Montana? You decide.

We must be getting close now...

Volleymeg, you aren't in Oakland anymore.

It is times like these that I fully appreciate my white privilege. Our cashier at the gas station may or may not have a full set of teeth, let alone a middle school diploma.

After a small detour (which resulted in the viewing of a breathtaking lake at sunset), we are feeling victorious when we finally arrive at Virginia Lake Pack Outfit. I feel like I am on the set of an old Western: a leather tent called the Taj Mahal (our home for the night), horses in the distance, and cabin-like buildings. Even the bathrooms are labelled "Cowboys" and "Cowgirls." We are greeted by the Green Lady's father-in-law Cool Hand, the cowboy in charge of the station, who states that we are "just in time for dinner."

We enter the main cabin to find a pack of about 5 cowboys- complete with hats on inside- sitting family style around platters of steaks, potatoes, and corn (would there be any more appropriate meal?) One may even be chewing tobacco; it's seriously debatable. We meet Backpacking Girl, the Green Lady's step sister-in-law, or something. She will be packing in with us and staying the first night at our camp.

We have a family dinner, which concludes with a warning:

Kidd (one of the cowboys): "Don't be afraid if you hear shot guns in the middle of the night- it's just us fighting off the bears."

For real?!?

The main cabin, home to family dinner.

The Taj Mahal