Nomad Life - Day 351

One of the perks of having a dog is sometimes that they want to snuggle in bed.  On the other hand, Enzo woke me up a few times during the night and, when I went to use the bathroom, he took over the entire bed.  When I tried to move him out of the way (0500), he must have decided he'd have better luck with Kerith and left the room.  With a dog free guest bed in San Rafael, I managed to sleep until 0730 and then did some reading and puzzles.  At about 0800, I went downstairs to eat breakfast and then started getting ready for a morning dog walk.  Just then, though, Kerith texted to tell me she was doing her "morning rituals" and wouldn't be ready to go anywhere until about 1000.  This was fine and I spent time catching up on some computer stuff.  It factors into my Nomad Life later so I'll mention that I felt some Achilles tendon tenderness during this time but thought nothing of it.  I became so engrossed in my work and somehow lost track of the time - as a result, Kerith came down to the living room and didn't find me.  And, when I did realize it was almost 1000, I started getting ready, thinking I'd time her arrival and Maverick's eye drops just right.  Somehow, though, she departed on the walk with the dogs and I "missed the bus".  That was OK but I'll admit that I had wanted to go.  Oh well...  When Kerith and her dogs returned from their rounds in the neighborhood, she told me how they'd taken the longest walk they'd done since Maverick's surgery.  That seemed like good news so I consoled myself that she had promised me another Kerith/Jim hike.  After she felt good about leaving the dogs home alone again (1120), we departed from her home and drove (via US-101) to Mill Valley.  The day was already sunny and warm (mid 60s).  Unlike our earlier attempt to get gas, Kerith was able to reach the Arco Station in Sausalito where I'd poured gas on the pavement back in December 2025 (ugh...).  The prices where were much lower there than anywhere else nearby and I (once again) thought about how expensive it must be to live in the Bay Area...  Kerith admitted that she didn't like the pumps very much either and asked if I could fill the tank.  After agreeing, I was VERY careful and we soon were ready to continue to our adventure for the day.  While making our way to turn north on US-101, I got a brief view of Alcatraz Island - wow!  Kerith eventually got us to some back roads that led into the downtown area of the town of Larkspur and, soon after that, parked her car in a residential neighborhood in the Baltimore Canyon.  Almost immediately, I started asking her about whether we'd been there before - the swanky homes and ubiquitous redwood trees were so familiar,  Kerith pointed out that we had hiked on a similar trail in Mill Valley the previous year and that this (the Dawn Falls Trail) was one of her favorite hikes.  We started hiking, armed with water bottles this time, at 1210.  Like yesterday, the temps were very high (high 80s) but we were able to stay cool in the shade of the redwoods.  During the course of our walk in the woods, we hiked through neighborhoods, a dry river valley and up a steep slope that led to the falls.  We encountered lots of dogs and Kerith wanted to greet every one of them.  My legs and feet felt good (in the newer boots) and we had more good conversation.  Kerith, who had just returned from a multi-day hike in the Dolomites, stayed in the lead and I was content to stay behind, especially since I had no idea how long we'd be going.  It was a wonderful walk and I really felt comfortable with Kerith's pace and upbeat energy.  We turned around after seeing the dry falls and returned to the car - when we finished (1440), my pedometer said we'd hiked about 5.8 miles.  Next, we drove into Larkspur again.  Feeling hungry, we stopped at Zonda Meats (a place Kerith's friend, Amy, liked to eat) and ordered some food (empanadas and a Milanese chicken sandwich) to go.  The staff were very friendly and we definitely got a good meal deal (1455).  I had to laugh when Kerith told me she wanted to find a good beer.  I suggested that we stop at a nearby grocery or liquor store but we went back to her house instead, where she opened up the second bottle of Pliny the Elder and poured two glasses.  Within minutes, though, she asked if she could have mine and I opened a bottle of wine from her extensive collection.  For the next hour, we relaxed on Kerith's patio and enjoyed the endorphins we'd created during our hike.  The temps were very warm (high 80s) but we stayed cool in the shade.  Overall, the vibe was really great and I felt even more certain I'd made the right decision to drive over to the Bay Area from Nevada.  Eventually, we ate the dinner we'd brought home (very good).  At about the same time, Kerith gave Maverick more eye drops.  After that, we took the dogs back to Los Ranchitos Park and then called an audible - I ran back to get the folding chairs and we spent another 45 minutes resting in the shade while watching a young family playing with their frisbees on the grass of the park.  It would have been very easy not to move from this spot for the rest of the night but, as it got dark, Kerith suggested we return to her house for some movies.  She'd never seen it so I suggested we watch “The Way” - she really seemed to like it.  Unlike last night, she was not ready to go to bed early and we ended up finishing the last two episodes of “The Rainmaker” series (Season 1).  I tried one of her delicious vodka drinks in a can and was feeling pretty relaxed until I suddenly discovered scary evidence for heel bursitis on my other (right) foot.  Ugh...  Hopefully, the terrible two year ordeal with the left foot will help me get back to health again soon.  At 2200, Kerith finally told me she was ready for bed and we said goodnight.  I was tired (and a bit worried about my foot) so only did some Duolingo before going to bed at 2230.  It's been a wonderful visit to San Rafael and I'll be sad to leave in the morning...