2S2G* - Owie! - Day 10, Sun., June 22

*2S2G = Two Susans to Go

That did it. I woke up at 6:00 a.m. and could barely walk. Hobble or waddle would describe the way my legs acted. Two major blisters throbbed on my small toes.

Them dogs were barkin'! Feeling better this afternoon.

I guess 15-1/2 miles on top of all the other walking/hiking we did showed me my limit. I texted Susan M. to let her know I wouldn't walk today and to go ahead without me. She has never been to Multnomah Falls or Horsetail Falls, two of our many choices for walks today.

Susan M. was raring to go and did the 10K Multnomah Falls to Wahkeena Falls Volksmarch as well as an 11K Volksmarch in Cascade Locks to an overlook. Good for her. I hope her feet and legs don't hurt her tomorrow.

Today was a blessing for me. I relaxed, caught up on writing thank you notes, made up chicken/black bean salad and tuna salad for our road trip, cut up celery stalks for snacks in the car, iced my knees, started packing to head for Boise tomorrow, repacked my purse, played Scrabble online, read blogs, and enjoyed the quiet.

This evening we will see "Chef" and may crack open a bottle of wine to celebrate completing the walking weekend. I'm super happy I was able to do two hikes in the gorge I hadn't done before, along with others I had.

Our weather has been perfect for walking...mostly sunny with only brief sprinkles one morning (and that cleared up by 11 a.m.). Even if the weather had been warmer, the deep shade and breezes of the canyons would have kept us cool for most of the day.

Plans, as life, change. We will be heading home to San Antonio six days earlier than we thought. We are back to Susan M.'s original plan of a break-neck pace through the state capitals to walk Boise, Salt Lake City, and Santa Fe, then a long drive home to San Antonio. Oh, we are going to make one extra stop to see Timpanogos Cave outside Salt Lake City, Utah. Our anticipated arrival home will be late Thursday night. The pluses: We won't have to spend a lot of money on motel rooms, and we'll be back with our loved ones sooner.

Lots of memories have been made and we've laughed and fought like sisters. The walks and hikes are the cake; visiting friends and relatives along the way is the icing on the cake. Susan and I know each other better and we're good friends, but I don't think we'll be spending any more overnights together. That part didn't work out well.

Susan had the oil changed on her car today. Tomorrow morning we head for Boise at 7:30 a.m. with a breakfast stop to see long-time friend, Daily, in The Dalles, Oregon. All being said and done, Susan and I walk well together, have thoughtful conversations, like the same music, and we do a good job splitting the finances.

Time for me to finish packing before going out tonight. Travel Bug out.