It is winter in the desert. I first started coming here to go fishing during the Pacific Northwest winter and it has become my winter home because, at seventy one years of age, living outdoors during the Cascade Mountain winter is just not possible. Injuries I suffered during the semi truck accident in 2018 make it impossible to sleep in temperatures below 50°F. The temperature here in the desert gets that cold, last night was 42°, but not as often. I am definitely not alone out here, a failed American economic system is producing increasing numbers of refugees left behind by the cost of day to day living. They are mostly older people whose American Dream has come to an end in the cold, windy desert.
This federal government land we are on is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. It doesn’t matter if it is run by the Republicans or the Democrats, they do a terrible job of managing natural resources. Now that the American government is collapsing, it’s logical that land mismanaged by the BLM is the first to go. There are public federal facilities here, closed(again) for legitimate use, but open to anyone to use without management or rules. A local lake has been overtaken by invasive aquatic vegetation, nobody cares. It’s like they know they are going out of business, why put in any effort when you can sit there, do nothing and collect a fat government paycheck with full benefits?
On a real life level for me, the dead lake means no more fishing at one of my favorite fishing spots. No more salmon on the Columbia, now no more largemouth bass on the Colorado? From a distance, you would say “what a beautiful spot”. The problem is that it looks just as beautiful when all the fish in the lake are dead.
So far, the invasive vegetation seems mostly confined to one Colorado River backwater, but it spreads fast. In about three years, give or take, the vegetation went from unoticeable to covering the entire lake. I still want to go fishing while fishing is still something that can be done, so I had to find another place to go fishing. I went to a place where the fishing is not usually very good and had a few days of good kayak fishing. You can read more about the kayak fishing HERE or click on the photo below.
It has been very windy. It seems to be getting windier here every year. It’s not just me, local fishermen I know say the same thing. The desert is a harsh enough place as it is, the weather seems to be getting much more extreme. Even if the sun is shining without a cloud in the sky, the 20 mph desert wind can make for a miserable day.
I try to go kayak fishing whenever I can. If it’s too windy to go fishing, I try to walk at least four miles in the morning. I get up early anyway, hiking in the desert as the sun comes up. If I am trying to be creative, it gives me a chance to get my thoughts organized. I get back to camp just as the sun rises over the hills, put out the solar panel and open up the office.
Like other Americans on a fixed income, the price gouging, cleverly labeled “inflation”, has made the “golden years” another one of America’s big lies. Work hard, obey the law, pay your taxes and someday you will be able to retire and enjoy the final years of your life. One hundred percent total bullshit. The cost of basic necessities like food, housing, healthcare, gas, etc., has risen way more than the government claims. Like a lot of older Americans, my disposable income is zero. I hate going into town to buy food and gas, which is about all I can afford. Like I learned from my long time in business in California, if you don’t want to spend money, don’t get in your vehicle.
The holidays are an odd time here. Many of these people are away from their families, not enough money to buy Thanksgiving dinner somewhere. A church group(I think) comes out here to hand out bags of food, but not many of the people who, like me, live a mobile lifestyle, accept them. I’m sure they mean well, but charity is not what I want or need. Shoot somebody in the head and give them a cookie. No thank you. Oddly enough, while the homeless people were refusing the charity dinner, the folks in the $50,000 motorhomes with the American flags fluttering in the breeze were lining up to see if they could score a free meal. My Thanksgiving dinner was like most other days when I am fortunate enough to have food for dinner.
The sun will rise in the morning and go down at night no matter what happens. I believe that the next year is going to start a turbulent and unsettled time in the United States. Seems plain to me, maybe I’m wrong and everything will be sunshine and roses, but I don’t think so. If we knew what was going to happen, we’d stop what we are doing.
