The

The I've been working as a wilderness guide out near Mount Shasta for about three months when I first

met Noah. I moved to California from Minnesota, so I didn't really know anyone outside of my

coworkers. And since the town is mostly a lot of tourists, I'd have to drive down to Reading to

find people that weren't just

working or passing through. And that's how I met Noah and her friends while hanging out and

watching the Vikings at a bar. She was nice and really pretty, too, with those deep brown eyes that

she said came from the Italian side of her family. We swapped phone numbers, went for some coffee and drinks a few

times, and then when things started getting a little more serious, coffee and drinks turned into

longer and less public meetings. Noah thought it was cool that I got to work with nature, but it

never occurred to me to turn a trail hike into a date. She lived down in Reading and I preferred

heading down there since she had a nicer apartment and a cat. And there was also way more to do

down there, so in the end, it was Noah who asked me if she could drive up to Shasta some time

to check out the trails that I worked. No, I thought it sounded like a great idea, and like I said, I was kind of kicking myself for

not thinking of it sooner.

She was super into nature, and so I could impress her with all of my accumulated knowledge,

and it'd be cute to spend some time out there alone instead of surrounded by other people

down in the city.

She drove up to Shasta in the morning, and then after

spending some time putting a little picnic together, we drove out to the trailhead near the upper

sand flats and then hiked into the woods from there. The first thing I told her about,

because the ladies always loved this one, is how old-timey prospectors used to keep ringtails

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