Day 611:<\/p>\n
I hiked from the stairwell mountain to the big mountain today. It was pretty peaceful, to be honest. There’s not a lot up there. It’s very cold. Even the skeletons are wearing leather armor to keep warm.<\/p>\n
There’s snow on the big mountain, which, I mean, of course there is. We’re higher than anything I can see in any direction.<\/p>\n
And what I see, mostly, is trees. Lots and lots of trees between where I’m living and the mountain range. It’s no wonder I had to climb a different mountain just to find this one.<\/p>\n
But to the east of the big mountain is something that looks more like swampland. And to to the south, some kind of plains maybe? \u00a0To the north, there was a whole lot of nothing interesting.<\/p>\n
I sat down in the snow in my wet diamond armor and my still-not-wool socks and I had a good cry. \u00a0As far as I can tell when I stand on the big mountain there’s no life anywhere near by.<\/p>\n
But as the haze cleared and the sun came out I noticed something a little odd…. one area to the north where the haze didn’t clear even though it should have… and I realized I was seeing smoke. Like from a cooking fire or eight.<\/p>\n
So I climbed down off the summit of the big mountain to the north just a bit, and discovered what looks to be a village or a town north of it.<\/p>\n
An actual village! With actual people! Or at least actual houses and some cooking fires and possibly zombies that will eat me.<\/p>\n
But it means there may be people there who’ve seen offworlders.<\/p>\n
(Or said group of zombies, hard to tell)<\/p>\n
It’s hope. It’s hope I’m treating with severe caution, but it’s hope.<\/p>\n
I clearly can’t walk there in a day from any of my current ground-level cavern entrances. So this means more tunneling or certain death via the local fauna.<\/p>\n
But I have it on my map now and I have some idea what I want to do. And I know I need to finish those socks.<\/p>\n
It’s been a good day.<\/p>\n
Tomorrow I go home and start making plans. Those plans will probably start with “get this place in shape so I can go away again for days at a time” but that’s OK. I’ll have a plan.<\/p>\n
And maybe someday I’ll have a way home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Day 611: I hiked from the stairwell mountain to the big mountain today. It was pretty peaceful, to be honest. There’s not a lot up there. It’s very cold. Even the skeletons are wearing leather armor to keep warm. There’s snow on the big mountain, which, I mean, of course there is. We’re higher than … <\/p>\n