Out of Mind, Out of Time

Paradise Found...

You know that old saw about the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach? Well it works in reverse, too.

Nature-boy has been leaving me food. Fresh meat and vegetables! I hear him rustling in the brush just outside my lean-to in the morning. I think he makes a lot of noise to wake me up so a wandering animal doesn’t get my food before I wake up.

That first morning after my abortive hunt, I heard him moving around so I folded my two skins and put them close to where he was. Maybe he knows what to do with them. All I remember from that website on tanning skins was water and salt.

I hope whomever he’s getting the food from doesn’t mind sharing.

I’ve been exploring. Today, I went south.

COMPASSES ROCK!!! I would have gotten lost days ago with out it.

Anyway. I left camp at dawn and started walking. Around maybe ten-ish, eleven-ish, I ran into a wall. Almost literally.

I don’t think I’ve described where I am too much. See, there are hills not too far away – ten, maybe twelve miles – to the north and to the west. Well, they look like hills, but I’ve discovered I’m in the middle of some medium range mountains.

Well, I didn’t think the mountains ran south of me. There’s lots of trees and climbing vines. If you’ve seen Disney’s Sleeping Beauty, you know what I mean. Well, I was trying to push through the vines and stuff when I reached the stone behind it.

I had some time, the sun wasn’t overhead yet, so I felt along the wall. I found a cave! This was so great! I wasn’t looking forward to sleeping on the ground unprotected during the winter. The cave should have been completely dark, but there was a light coming from the other end.

I made my way through the tunnel and found Paradise.

It’s gorgeous. My private Paradise is a relatively small valley surrounded by sheer cliffs. There was a small river running through it. There were trees and a clearing on the other side of the river. I traced the course of the river back and saw a beautiful waterfall.

I climbed down to the valley floor to look around for a bit. I was surprised how few animals I saw. I think I can be safe here…