Paddy Creek Wilderness

So, I just spent 3 nights in and near the Paddy Creek Wilderness. It is a very beautiful place! One night in a campground, 2 nights in the backcountry - I saw two other people (both in the campground). It's forest as far as you can see, and all old-growth stuff - the really good and fun forest. A pretty tame trip by backpacker standards, just 20 miles in a loop over two days, but a series of first's for me: first successful nighttime panorama shot, first solo backpacking trip (hard to believe, eh?), first trip w/o my contacts, first off-trail in a heavily forested area excursion, and my first wild armadillo sighting! So, for now, I'll count it as a feather in my cap...

After lunch and a nap atop a small cliff, I was feeling good, so decided to cut the corner of the loop trail through a drainage. Turned on the GPS and set off into the woods. In the underbrushy creek bed, I lost the GPS! It fell off my pocket! Frustrated, I retraced my steps and eventually recovered it less than 50 yds from where I noticed it missing. That's when I saw the armadillo - I never would have expected that up here!
I camped last night on a ridge above the river valley, pretty much just for this shot:

This post's sign of the times: I heard as many rifle shots and I saw deer - and 4 of them I saw while driving out of the woods!


Next up - I think I'll camp out by the riverside for a couple days. Owl's Bend, (or Powder Mill ) area in the Ozark National Scenic riverway system - maybe try to catch some fish for dinner. Then up to Taum Sauk before heading further east after the weekend...