A few ideas about the next trek to the top of the watershed:
* I'm not driving 250 miles next time. I want to backpack out of Florence or Edison lake in the San Joaquin River watershed.
* Buy the bug-proof clothing and a ton of bug spray. I will not go to sleep in my tent again staring at splotches of my own blood coming out of smashed mosquitoes.
* Get a scientist to go with me. Maybe a hydrologist. Maybe a geologist or a biologist. Might be a little more crowded. But it would make good conversation. And what about asking other journalists to join us? A few issues-oriented discussions over a campfire?
* Take another 20-something along. Mark Crosse and his son, Tim, came along and it was wonderful hearing Tim's thoughts. He's also amazing at quoting the funny lines in the film "Ghostbusters."
* The elevation-reading device from L.L. Bean does not work. It measured at least 400 feet lower than we actually were most of the time. But the temperature, time and barometer stuff was pretty helpful.
* Nothing else. Other than the bugs and the cheap elevation gadget, I had the right gear and the right distance at the right elevations. Too bad spring was just popping out at 11,500 feet in August.
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