Brett Bramble Walks

I slept great and woke up feeling wonderful. I had a dream about a girl from a very long time ago and thought it was strange but the dream was a good one so I just went with it. I opened my tent to pure beauty. Windmills standing still and the sun moving over the mountains. 
It was cold but I had everything I needed to stay warm. I packed up rather quickly and got on the road early. I had quite a day planned. I was facing the highest peak on hwy 50 in Nevada. There are at least 11 mountains that I have to cross in the next few weeks but this is the highest. My goal was to at least reach the summit. It wasn’t going to be easy, but I knew it was doable. 
I got rolling and there was a small steep hill and then about 6 miles of downhill. I walked 8 miles without stopping. I took a break at the bottom of the incline up to Connors Pass. It was steeper than the one that I crossed yesterday. The weather was great and I was in a good mood so I pushed on. 
Traffic was a bit of an issue today. For the loneliest hwy in America, there sure are a lot of cars. Just saying. I didn’t let it bother me though. Most of them were nice. 
I saw a building with signs all over. There was a bar/RV park/motel/convenience store.  That what it claimed to be anyways. Major’s Place is what is was called. I walked in and almost walked right back out. The place was unique and interesting, but the woman behind the bar was looking at me like, “why are you here?”
I sat down anyways and asked if they had food. She had no. I saw a huge sign that said “pizza” and kind of pointed to it. She told me that she could do that. So she made a pizza. Some frozen brand like tombstone or something. I also got a gatorade. Since she didn’t seem to be in the talking mood, and I was the only person in there, I decided to walk around and look at the decorations. 
There were dollar bills all over the walls that had people’s names or something funny written on them. I read a few as I walked around. One said John Depp and one said LESBO. Those are the only two that stood out. Most were like Smith family road trip 9-6-15 or something like that. There were some slot machines, pool tables, chandeliers made from antlers, and the occasional gym like a pair of shorts hanging from the ceiling with signed dollar bills hanging out of the pockets. 
Weird place. I sat back down to order my pizza and while I was eating, I finally decided to try to talk to this lady. I let her know I was walking and she gave me just a little better treatment after that but still wasn’t impressed. 
She did help me out though. She let me know what was up ahead and topped off all of my water bottles. I threw my trash away that I’d been carrying and charged my cell phone. Then asked how much the pizza and gatorade were. 13 freaking dollars! I was going to put a dollar bill on the wall but not after that. They had enough of my dollars already. Plus, I want nothing to ever do with that place again. It was a fun experience though. Glad I went in. I’ll just never go back. 
After Major’s Place it was all straight uphill for about 5 or 6 miles. They were pretty rough but I just kept going. Slowly but aurely. When I finally reached the top it was all worth it. There’s something about walking up a mountain that makes you happy. Maybe because you know the hard part is over. I don’t know. I looked back and thanked the land that I crossed yesterday and looked back to the west and said hello to the other side. 
There was a sign that said 6% grade for 4 miles. I looked at the sun and knew that I could definitely make it those 4 miles downhill. So I did. Every step was bonus today as my goal had been reached already. I made it to where it flattened out a little and the sun was getting low. There is a state prison out here and decided that it would be fun to say I camped next to a prison. So I did. 
I found a spot across the street and with a good view and set up. Watched the sunset as I was doing it. I made some dinner, ate, and then checked the Falcons score against the Aints. We were up by two touchdowns at halftime. Perfect. 
Another good day in the books. I only have an easy 17 miles tomorrow to Ely, and I get to stay in a hotel that a friend arranged for me to stay in. Now back to checking my Falcons score…

I will update the last few days when I can get to a better place to do so but I wanted to blog about today while it is still fresh on my mind….

I woke up early and knew I should get up and moving because I had a long way to go today. Mostly uphill also. I wanted to have plenty of time to get up and over the summit. I turned the TV on and started getting ready. I went to the cafe for breakfast and to tell the owner goodbye and thanks for a good stay. I said bye to a few other people I met while I was there also. 
Before I left, I did one last use of the WiFi and then I took pictures with the Welcome to Nevada sign and the Hwy 50 sign. Had to climb it of course. Then I finally got going. My phone and body were still on mountain time so it was actually earlier than my mind thought it was. 

It was a slight incline for 17 miles. Not too steep. Some parts were harder than others but none of it slowed me down. I was thankful for the long, gradual incline. I was also thankful for the weather! For once, I finally got a good day. 72ish and clear with a light breeze. And it was actually NOT blowing in my face. Unbelievable!
The scenery was phenomenal. There were moments where I just stopped dead in my tracks to take it in. I saw a coyote trying to cross the road. He saw me and then turned around and ran away. He was too swift to get a picture. That was the first time I’d ever seen a coyote in person. I’ve heard them a lot but have never seen one. 
The traffic was light but every now and then a wave of cars would come through and it would be a little hectic for a minute or two. But there were times where I would go 5 or 10 minutes without seeing anyone. It was so quiet and so peaceful. I was able to really take in my environment and enjoy the moments. 
It seemed easy when I made it the 17 miles to the summit. I stopped and turned around and when I saw the mountains and canyons that I walked through in the distance, I almost teared up. They didn’t come to surface but I had a great moment with myself of the accomplishments I’ve made. Utah was hard. Very hard. I had some rough days and things were starting to overwhelm me a little. But as I looked back at the memories from the top of Sacramento Pass, I knew right then and there that I was going to make it to the the end of my walk. This was the first time that I was absolutely certain of it. I turned back around and pointed to the west and down I went! 
I made it another 5 or 6 miles down and then the sun was going down and I wanted to start setting up camp. I found a spot too good to pass up. The views are absurd. I can’t believe I’m actually here right now. 
I put the tent up and made dinner. I used my camp stove in the street. I did that because I am camped in high grass and it’s very dry and I don’t want to accidentally start a wildfire. So I went to the road and no one came by thankfully. That would’ve been a weird one to see.
I sat around and ate while watching the constantly changing colors of the sunset. Such a good day. I’m loving hwy 50 in Nevada. So far, so good!!!

 It rained all night last night but I was able to stay dry. It was pretty cold in the morning but I had all the clothes I needed to stay warm. I packed up and Ruth helped me out again with Lieutenant Dan. I was able to walk with just a backpack again. 
She dropped me off at the same spot from yesterday and I started to walk towards Delta, Utah. The rain from last night kept all of the dust down which was nice. The wind was blowing kind of hard but it wasn’t so bad without the stroller. 
I took advantage of not having my stroller and took some off road paths to shorten the distance. I had to cross a few fences. I looked ahead and was entering a huge open field with a bunch of Bulls. All I could look at were the sharp horns and they were looking at me trying to figure out what to do. I made sure I had an escape route. About 30 feet away was a barbed wire fence that I could easily jump. 
I started to go slowly and walked closer and closer. I got to the point where I was closer to the bulls than the fence and figured if they attacked me I’d just try to hop on one and have fun with my death. I’ve seen what Bulls can do to people. Here’s a fun story…
I was running from the bulls once at an event in atlanta. I had my gopro and was filming it. Well I caught this guy getting trampled by Bulls on camera and was asked to come on the news to talk about it haha. I found out later that the guy was ok but broke his hip. The video is on youtube under my name  atlsoleskater. 
Anyways, I was walking slowly and they started running around crazy. Most of them ran away and were out of reach. Some of them were just running in circles because the others were running and they didn’t know where to go. Luckily, none of them were showing signs of aggresion. They were just being cows. I walked on through unscathed. 
I had to cross hwy 50 and stay on it for about 10 minutes. In that 10 minutes I almost got hit by tractor trailers twice. I got off the road and literally walked through the desert. There wasn’t even a road or trail. I knew the direction I needed to go and walked that way. After walking through the sand and sagebrush, I found a gravel path that followed power lines that headed into town. Perfect. 
It was great for a while and then it became overgrown. I had to trudge slowly through bushes and brush. Always looking out for snakes. I was telling the story of my walk to myself out loud so that I was making noise. I wanted to scare off any snakes that may be in there. I was talking loudly. Some antelopes popped out and hopped off. I followed one of their paths and finally got through the bad stuff. 
Shortly after, Ruth called and said that she set up an interview with the local newspaper. She came to pick me up and had a BBQ sandwich for me. I ate and then we went into the newspaper place for the interview. 
The reporter was young and wasn’t really prepared for something like me. I had full control. I watched him press record on his phone and then I started talking for like 30 minutes without being interrupted. I got it all out there. We’ll see what they come up with. We all took a few pictures and then I went back to my walk. 
It was beautiful out. In the 70s with cloud cover here and there. A light breeze and beautiful scenery. I was loving it. I stopped to take a picture every so often and then made it into town. 

Ruth met up again for one more Rossiter session for me and she really unlocked me this time. I thought it was amazing that I could actually move my neck. I have always had problems with my neck and shoulders. I had forgotten what it feels like to be normal. So that was nice. 
That was that. Dinner and then I slept like a baby…

Ruth camped out in her car last night nearby and when I woke up we hopped in her car and headed for some breakfast. We came up with a plan for the day. She said that she was able to stay for a day or two and help out. With the walk and to use the Rossiter System on me to help my body out. We threw Lieutenant Dan into her car and I was able to walk with just a small backpack. Which ended up being great because I was able to take a shortcut through some forest roads that I wouldn’t have been able to go on with the stroller. 
I got going and she went to go scout out places to camp later tonight. The views I saw today we’re incredible. I didn’t have to worry about traffic at all and I was loving it. I actually had time to think. I was moving quickly and easily without Danny boy. 
This is the kind of walking I wish I could do everyday. Where I see more animals than cars. It was bliss. Ruth came to bring me a subway sandwich and I went on for a little longer. Storms were coming in soon. The clouds were getting pretty ugly. All I had after lunch was a water bottle. So I jogged some. It felt great to run along this gravel road with wild sunflowers being used as a fence to endless fields of hay. Just beautiful. And some great smells! Some not so great ones as well. There were lots of cows so every now and then you got a whiff of all that funkiness. 
Ruth came back and I’d gone 16 miles. Close enough to what I wanted to do. The storm was getting really close so we checked into the campground and set everything up. Rain came and went a few times and we did some of the body work between downpours. 
This system is pretty incredible. I’ll talk more about it later on but it’s fast and effective. I can move my arms, legs, and even neck way better than I could before. Pretty neat stuff. It’s a funny scene to bystanders who don’t know what’s going on and we had plenty of them at the campground looking at us and then looking away from us quickly haha. I was laying in the grass on a mat and she was stepping on me using hiking poles for balance and I was making all sorts of crazy movements and sounds as we worked through the exercises. The freakshow of the day at Antelope Valley RV Park. 
We headed to dinner at Mexican and tentatively made a plan for tomorrow morning. Looks like I may get another day without Lieutenant Dan and I won’t have any traffic either. Life is good. Ruth is awesome. 

Had to swing by the post office to pick up some new business cards and my mom put some letters from some family members in with it. That was a nice surprise. My daughter did a drawing for me of us walking across the Golden Gate Bridge. I’ll try to get that laminated and put it on my cart. 
As I was leaving Salina, a nice couple pulled over and talked to me for a while about the walk and cause. They were very nice and respectful. 
I had a pretty good shoulder for the first part of the day. I’m back on hwy 50 now. It was uphill for 12 miles but not too bad. I made it pretty easily and then stopped at the top for a long break. 
The other side of the mountain had a smaller shoulder. It became an issue but wasn’t too bad. I stayed in control of myself. 
Once I was around the 15th mile, I came to a point where I had to make a decision. There was a campground 4 miles off the road. I normally wouldn’t even consider this but I was told that this is a really beautiful place and should see it. 
About two miles into the walk towards the campground I regretted going out of my way. I should’ve just stayed on the road and kept going. The wind began to pick up and was blowing hard right at me. Just when I was about to turn around, a truck pulls up. It was the lady who checked me into the hotel in Salina and her husband. 
They offered to give me a ride. I asked if they could bring me to the campground. I was so happy. We loaded up my stuff and they talked me into just taking me another 10 miles to the town of Scipio. There were about 3 things that I easily came up with to justify taking the ride. So we went to Scipio. 
Her husband showed me the best way to get to where I needed to go tomorrow and then brought me to the gas station to get a gatorade for me. Then they dropped me off at the city park and we said our goodbyes. 
I was excited about camping in this park. I had a great view, power, and water. Everything a person needs. There was a truck stop gas station with a dairy Queen about a half a mile away. I had plenty of time left in the day so I headed over there. 
I got there and saw a freaking camel. There were other animals too but the camel definitely stood out the most. They had a petting zoo at this truck stop. Yeah. 
It was closed today though so I couldn’t go play with the camel. I opted for a blizzard instead. Inside DQ, a woman who worked there told me that she’d lost her brother 13 years ago. We had a little moment then I ate my meal. I said goodbye to her before I left. 
Outside, Lieutenant Dan was getting a lot of attention. There was a crowd of people around it looking at the pictures on the side. I walked up and told everyone what I was up to. Real nice people. I scored a couple of bananas, a doughnut, a gatorade, $5, and I think a few more things that people just handed to me as I told my story. They were nice even without that stuff but it’s always nice to get stuff that I’ll use. 
I walked back and said goodbye to Mike the camel. I headed back to the park and realized that there was a huge rodeo ring there. That’s a new one for me..
I set up my tent and then sat on the bleachers to watch the sunset. Then some high winds and dark clouds started moving in and I knew right away that rain was coming. I went over and got prepared for that. 

Shortly after, I was met by Ruth. She wanted to show me the Rossiter System. She can heal people’s pain by basically stepping on them and doing stretches. She wants to try and reach out to people who are in pain and try to heal them before they resort to opioid pain relievers. I’m all for it!
We were in a picnic pavillion at a park in a small town and she’s walking all over me. In the dark with one little light on. It must’ve looked insane to everyone but neither of us cared. We got along well I thought and the stuff really worked. 
I feel a lot better than I did before she worked on me. I was in really bad shape. Still am to be honest. But I have more freedom of motion and a lot less pain. She says she will be able to stick around for a day or 2 and can help me get to San Francisco by fixing my body. I’m very grateful. I feel really good and I am ready to crash!!!!!!

Off day. 
Planned out the next 4 days, watched football, talked to family. 
It’s my daughter’s 6th birthday so I talked to her a few times. 
I’m working on the start of some big plans for San Francisco.  I’m excited about it.

Patched up another dang hole that was in my sleeping pad and sorted out the rest of my gear.. 
That’s about all!

Woke up to the sound of geese attacking Lieutenant Dan. It was too cold for me to get out of my sleeping bag so I didn’t do anything about it. I waited a little while for the sun to come up and then packed up. Right as I was walking away a man pulled up and said that he had heard about me and wanted to say hey. I guess out here in the desert where there is no newspaper, word of mouth is how people spread the news. I made sure to tell him everything about the cause. He was looking at me like I was absolutely insane the whole time. It was weird. 
I went on into a small town and went grabbed breakfast at a place called Dave’s Trading Post. It was a little store with general items and gas. And a restaurant just because. Super weird. I walked on from there and ran into a family walking to the store from the other direction. 
Husband, wife, daughter, and dog. I told them about what I was up to and they said that they are both 4 months clean and trying to start a new life. They’ve moved away from everything they once knew and are trying to clean up. They seemed happy about it. I gave them bracelets and encouragement and rolled on. 
Not much happened between there and Salina. Just some pretty views and a lot of walking. I came into town and was a little freaked out. I had a weird vibe about it. It was just something I’ve never seen before. A little town in the middle of Utah mountains. 
I got into the downtown area and it was nicer there. I stopped in a cafe for lunch and the staff bought my lunch. I talked to a lot of people while I was in town. Including a man who was claiming that he was sober but had a fresh burn mark on his lip from a pipe. At least that’s what I thought at first. But the longer we talked, the more I wanted to believe him. He was nice and definitely had the passion to stop using. Hopefully I was wrong about the burn mark and he is in fact doing well. He’d lost some friends to drugs so he knows how serious it is. 
That was basically it. I went to a hotel and got off my feet. My feet and legs are not feeling amazing. I considered taking an ice bath. But I’m not that gangsta. I just laid in a bed instead. 

It was really cold this morning. I woke up before the sun came up and was really cold. I decided to go into the rest area bathroom to get ready. It was warmer in there. I put some stevie wonder on my phone and made the place my home. If anyone would’ve come in they probably would’ve just turned right back around when they saw the spectacle that I was putting on. 
When I went outside it was daylight. I was still wearing my jackets but it was starting to warm up. I packed up my gear and hit the road. I called my brother to tell him happy birthday before I got too far away. I knew that I was going to lose service at some point today. 
The views were pretty today. I had mountains, lakes, horses, geese, cows and other little things here and there. The traffic was still being ridiculous and unforgiving. I decided to just accept the fact that I was going to come within inches of my life on multiple occasions today. I didn’t let them get to me. I stood my ground and just walked along in lala land. 
It was fairly flat the first part of the day but a large hill was approaching. I made it to the top and took a break at the summit. There was a recent controlled burn on one side of the road. It was interesting to see the ashes of what used to be. I walked around to look for treasure that may have been hidden in the vegetation but found nothing. 
It was all downhill from there. I had planned on stopping at the 16 mile marker. That would’ve given me 16 miles tomorrow to a hotel where I can take Sunday off and watch the first week of football. I got to that point and was still feeling ok so I kept going. There is a small town with a gas station at the 10 miles marker. I figured I could make it there and find somewhere to camp near the gas station. If I made it there, my total for the day would be 24 miles. Well within my range. 
I got to about a mile and a half away and came up on a perfect place to camp. I decided to let the gas station wait for the morning. I had everything I needed with me. I pulled up and found a spot for my tent but before setting up I wanted to eat. I was starving. 
I went over to a shaded area with my food bag and made this: one pack of picante chicken Ramen noodles, one pack of chili ramen noodles, one crushed pack of cheese crackers, a handful of peppered beef jerky torn into small pieces. Yum. 
I ate and got full then headed back over to set my tent up. I looked around and there were ants everywhere so I moved and found another spot. Set up and that was that. Tomorrow I only have 12 miles to go and the next day I’m taking off. That’s the plan for now anyways. I may just keep going but I doubt it. 

I walked across the street to the National Forest office before getting started today. I was hoping to get some information to help with camping for the next few days. The woman who worked inside was intrigued by the walk so I began to talk about it. Then I told her why and she was very happy that I walked in. Her family is going through some stuff because of addiction right now. We talked about it and I wished I could’ve stayed longer but I had to get going.
I stopped in for breakfast at a place called the country cafe. I ended up telling stories the entire time as everyone was interested and they didn’t charge me for my breakfast. Good day so far…
I start walking knowing that I have to go uphill for 12 miles today and then downhill for another 6. It started off ok and the first few big hills were hard but manageable. Jon and his wife, the people that fed me dinner last night, came by to bring me a sack lunch. I love when I get to eat a sandwich and other snacks rather than clif bars. 
Things were going well until the wind picked up. It was blowing nonstop in my direction all day after that. Not even a half a second break. Just a constant gust blowing right at me. The hills became harder and traffic was trying to kill me. Literally. They didn’t give a crap. I had to start walking further into the road just to get them to slow down. Sometimes that still didn’t work.
Just as I was about to just start standing in the middle of the road in protest, a nice couple pulls over and I calmed down instantly. We talked for a few and then went our separate ways. I stopped for lunch later on and was sitting by the road and getting pissed off again. Mainly at the wind but at everything else too just because.
Then of course, right before I was going to do something stupid, some nice ladies pulled over and we talked for a while. One of them had a granddaughter who had overdosed and survived. It was a good heartfelt conversation and I was very thankful they stopped. 
After lunch it was more hills wind and traffic. I was thinking of how I could rig up some retractable spike strips onto my cart. That would’ve came in handy today. I looked up and there was only one steep hill left until I finally reached the summit. I pulled off the road for some water and checked my phone. 
The woman I met this morning told me that she had a moment after I left and wanted to thank me for doing this walk. I brushed off all of the day’s struggles right then and there. She reminded me of why I’m doing this. From then on I didn’t care about the challenges. Just the objective. 
I put some music and reached the summit. On the other side of the mountain, my side of the road had two lanes. Beautiful. Now I could get some space. I still had to move into the lane to get some people to move over for me but it was pretty easy from then on. Just 6 miles of downhill bliss. 
I came upon a rest area and decided to camp here even though it says not to. This allows me to have water and a bathroom in the morning. Two pretty nice things to have out here in the middle of nowhere. Now I get to sit back and watch the play by play of the football game on my phone. 

It is starting to get really cold at night. I woke up this morning freezing. I need to upgrade my sleeping bag. I woke up and went into the bathroom with the heat on until the sun came up. Then I packed up and rolled out.
The wind was blowing hard right at me and it was still cold. I fought through it and tried not to get irritated. I had to turn music on in my headphones to help keep me calm. 
I passed some buffalo and that was the first time I’d seen any on this walk. That was pretty cool. The scenery was great all day. Mountains and farms. Healthy land and clear air. Just the stupid wind.
The wind let up a little in the afternoon and helped make things a little more enjoyable. After 15 or so miles I came into the town of Loa. I was met on the edge of town by some women at a nursing home. They had a bag full of snacks for me. Someone had seen me on the road and called to say I was coming. 
They were sweet. One lady had a dog that was barking so loud and wouldn’t stop. A little yapper. Everyone else was pissed about it except for her. I was so glad when she brought it inside. I said goodbye and thank you and walked away. 
Half a minute later and guy was running after me and hollered for me to wait. He wanted to talk also. He had a lot of interest in the outdoors and wanted to hear about the walk. He was very nice and offered for me to stay at his place if I wanted to. I normally would have but I needed to do some repairs on my gear and do laundry and a bunch of other chores that are just easier to do alone. He gave me the directions to the hotel in town. 
I checked in and got my stuff taken care of and was laying in bed watching tv. I heard a knock. I knew exactly who it was and what it was for. The same man came back to invite me to dinner. I happily accepted and he offered to pick me up later. 
I got ready and headed to his home where his wife was finishing up with dinner. Very sweet couple. They were Mormon and I knew that right away when I met him. I didn’t know anything about Mormons but I knew that Utah is known for having a large amount of them. I had no judgements about it or about them and was hoping they were the same towards me. 
It ended up being just that. They were very kind and I enjoyed dinner very much. I talked with Jon about my routes and he shared the basics of what the whole Mormon thing is all about. He gave me a copy of The Book of Mormon. He also gave me a sleeping bag liner that will help me out tremendously until I can get a new one. 
Very happy to have met them and I hope to stay in touch. The kindness of people continued today. I have a long 3 day stretch before the next town so I’m hoping to get some good rest and be ready for it.