Day 69, part 3, Sunday, October 16, Whitehorse layover, day 21
I decided that it was impossible to get any more information from anyone today to make an informed decision on my options. With the snow now in its 21st hour, I also decided to stay put for the entire day and read, write, think, organize my cozy campsite, and walk Donner on the ALCAN. I have never driven in snow in 24 years in anything but the Defender , in 33 years in anything but the Defender or my capable CJ-7 Jeep, in 44 years in anything but my Defender, Jeep or very capable International Scout II, and so I not only do not trust any other vehicle, but more important, I don't trust my innate snow-driving skills. Those magnificent machines compensate for any driving deficiencies - except common sense - of their drivers and so without them, I am a mere mortal on snow and ice.
The room I am camped in, despite its interior decorating challenges, is actually quite cozy. It poses the same space challenges as my tent and the Defender so the adjustment was minimal. It actually is several rooms in one, a bedroom, a kennel, a kitchen, a dressing room, a library, and an office. The only constraint is that to go from using one room to another, I must move things around, which at times is a challenge since I have at most about 12 square feet of free space in which to move around, and 1/3 of that is usually taken up by Donner following me around, anticipating a walk, a ride in the car, dinner, a dog treat, or part of whatever meal or snack I am preparing for myself. I upgraded his sleeping accommodations to part of my cot not out of kindness of my heart, but simply to get him and his dog bed out of the way to give myself more room to move things around.
I still do not think Donner comprehends the nature of this long layover, probably thinking that we are here to provide some new form of entertainment for him, in a sense, he would be correct since one of the reasons for this long road trip was to expand his universe, and whether I like it or not, the nature of this layover was expected to be a part of these trips at some point. His predecessors had to go through Defender - initiated layovers in Newfoundland in 2002 and Quebec in 2011, so now it is his turn, although he had his first turn for 10 days on this trip back in Quebec.
Despite the challenges and complexities added to these trips when traveling with my dogs, especially during vehicke-problems, I will readily admit that they are an absolute joy to have around. I simply would not be able to take it otherwise.
Back to my room (camp). Whatever shortcomings this room might pose, none of which I have even focused on, I am eternally grateful to Aileen, the manager, for making it available to me after she learned of my predicament. She not only is saving me a bundle, but this experience is transforming the way I shall think about the way I live back home.
As I wrote, I am reading the book Stefanie gave me, Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol. It is filled with real and imagined places within blocks of where I live in DC. But as I read about those places, I feel no longing whatsoever to get back home. At the rate I am going, though, I may not have to worry about that.
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