July 5th 2022, 3:13 am

It really is just simplified living. Today I walked twenty miles during the span of 11 hours during which time I stopped on occasion to eat. Upon arrival to camp I pitched tent, went to the river for a bath, and now the only thing on my mind is a heightened sense of appreciation for this thin mesh wall standing between me and a swarm of agitated mosquitoes. In a few minutes I'll be asleep here, loosely nestled among the trees between a rushing river and the cliffs it carved. Tired from the days exertion and undistracted from the many noises of regular life, my mind wanders through day dreams and observations reminiscent of childhood.

This section has been entirely remote. Even the ressuplies are backcountry at occasional general stores. I've been seeing less hikers, thereby spending even more time in solitude. The few people around are previously unfamiliar and my energy toward building new relationships has dwindled. Without friends to spend some of the time with the blurring days are more commonly remembered as a a continuous process. But then in this solitude thoughts are given the liberty of time. Im often engaged in almost singular thoughts for hours at a time, much of which seems to be a release of random noise but some of which is not. I think I expected there to be more "philosophy" or profound mental experiences when relieved of the overhead required of typical social and other mental preoccupations, but as seems to be the case with everything else, beneath it all things are quite simple. Maybe that's the beauty of it. Remove layers of noise until you discover a simple truth which matters. Throughout this trip I am constantly asking myself what in my bag is important and what is just unnecessary weight, shedding that which answers the latter. I ask my omnipresent thoughts the same. Through this I've indirectly been realizing some things which are important to me that I previously thought weren't and visa versa. Other times I'm merely adjusting my perceptions to better reflect an honest opinion. Few of which come as a suprise once viewed in this raw environment. Reaching this level of intellectual honesty though is not something I could simulate under previous circumstances. The undistracted mind roams more freely and with less noise inviting the observing consciousness to a more honest reflection of itself. It's a step toward mental freedom that I presume borders a meditation. Maybe if only I left the judgement aside.