It is always tough getting a group together in the same place at the same time and Ken was excited to get up the Hill so we thought we could use his pending birthday as a hook. Like so many finely baited hooks, the fish gets away. We had a high of 7 people scheduled to come at one point, but just the 4 of us made the trip, however, it is never just about the numbers and this trip was another example proving that theorem. It always brings me great joy sharing the Hill with others and we certainly did a lot of sharing on this trip.

I built a plywood box for the truck to help protect the 40 or so plants I was bringing up along with the leather couch to finish off furnishing the kitchen annex cabin. It turned out to be a very heavy load so I am glad I decided at the last minute to air up the air shocks. Unfortunately, the passenger side hose was torn so only my side had the extra support but we were driving down the road a tad cockeyed, listing to the starboard. My neighbor Clint helped me load the loveseat and the 2 monster plants that have been on the side patio for about 5 years; a giant Prickly Pear cactus in a pot and a blue agave in a plastic bin. It was an effort.

By the time I got the water barrel and the 35 or so other plants and hose and soil and compost all loaded in there, I was worried about taxing the truck yet again. I have told trucky many times I was done taxing it so much, but it never seems to end. K helped me with the ice chest and my snacks and I was on the road about 8:00. Not wanting to go through the Agricultural Inspection Station outside of Reno on highway 395, I took Highway 89 out of Truckee through Loyalton to Hallelujah Junction. I was much relieved when I got through the gate and up to the cemetery. I unloaded all the plants and soil at the cemetery where we would plant everything and only did damage to the big Prickly Pear, losing many paddles as it smashed to the ground off the tailgate.

I was as excited to have all those plants out of the yard as I was to have them up here, so in both cases, the celebration had begun. I got up top now 90 percent lighter and had a beverage. I called K to let her know all was well and Billy pulled up to my elation. We shared stories of our drives up and got to unloading. He as usual, brought many chairs, a wash table and water jug, and much food and beverage to share with the group. He is one of the most generous people I know. Bill and I were just about finishing unloading when Ken and Kevin pulled up in Kenny’s new to him van. It was a much welcomed sight.

Ken had a tan beater van he literally loved to death back in the early days of our adventures. It was a 2-wheel drive, 6 cylinder, three on the tree masterpiece that went everywhere. They were inseparable. On one of its last trip, they overheated about half way to the Black Rock where they were meeting me on my motorcycle, they found they had a coolant leak. In Fernley, they added some “Stop Leak” and bought 4 jugs of coolant and kept driving, periodically stooping to check the radiator. It was like the Jeeps of World War II, it just kept running and getting him to where he wanted to go. After the van finally had to be retired, Kenny took some 15 years to choose another. He finally had the bed installed in the back and this trip was its maiden voyage. There was much rejoicing!

With the boys gathered, there was much commotion, unpacking, getting things settled, showing them the new kitchen annex cabin, filling up the cabinet with goods, and finally settling in. It was soon cocktail time and Kenny’s favorite beverage, the Manhattan, was about to be shared. As with several prior trips, Ken, Bill, and I each had 40 ounce containers of pre-made chilled Manhattans ready to be consumed. Since we had a birthday boy, we went with his Manhattan brew first, and what a brew it was. We decided upon the lower terrace to consume and share many words, and boy did they flow.

Ken had had a memorial for his father who passed 2 or 3 years ago so he was very emotional about the family gathering and recent events. It poured out of him. It was good. I don’t think a single one of us has their father’s alive now; in fact Mario may have been the last, so needless to say, it was still very raw. Bill talked, Kevin talked, I talked and Bill, Ken, and I drank Manhattans until it was time for Kevin to get his dinner going. He went up to the kitchen and I followed a little later to give him a hand and spiritual guidance. Kevin whipped up massive tortillas with melted cheese, guacamole, lettuce, salsa and some killer tri-tip BBQ’d perfectly. When it was time, I called for the boys still down below.

I called and called and finally walked out to the cocktail lounge to peer down and yell at them to get going. It still took them 15 minutes to appear from around the rock formation, and what a sight. They were walking/shuffling/stumbling arm in arm, with lots of movement and flailing but very little progress. It was like the scene in Monty Python and the Holy Grail where they are riding and riding and never getting any closer. These guys just laughed and giggled and shrieked until it all came tumbling down. Bill landed on his knees but rolled fairly gracefully to his back, clearly demonstrating his Coast Guard skills are still intact. Kenny landed face down next to Bill, but quite expertly got his hands out in front of him to prevent a Bob Holmes. These boys do cabaret.

After a quick medical check, they were deemed fit to continue. Kevin served up some fine vittles, but Kenny somehow served himself. He had the massive tortilla with one tiny piece of meat and one tiny dollop of guac. After a good laugh, Kevin served him up right, but he was unable to continue and had to retire from the event. Kevin walked him down to his van and he was out. The 3 of us consumed more of Kevin’s fine dinner and then Bill and I struck into the wine I brought. Kevin soon was off to bed and Bill and I carried on on the new couch for a while, tucked inside the warm confines of the annex and out of the cool night breeze. Showing signs of much maturity, I did not drink the last pour and was greatly rewarded. Although the alcohol was creating much heat, I slept like a stone.

I was surprisingly unhungover and eagerly looked forward to a great day. Kevin and Ken as usual were up at dawn, and Bill as usual joined us much later. Ken and Kevin went on a fine walk out to the Eastern neighbors gate. Bill and I filled up the water barrel and headed down to the cemetery to begin planting. It wasn’t exactly what I wanted to be doing, but we had a good long morning and it wasn’t too hot so we got to it. I was extremely grateful for Bill’s help. Just him being there with me was great motivation, but to only have to do part of the shoveling was extraordinary. We started with the biggest plants and got them planted at the old gate Bob and I first put in just above the cemetery and below the “Big Mike Way” sign. I will cut down the Juniper on the other side one day which will make the planting and the entrance even grander.

We then powered through planting 3 of the 4 15 gallon agave and watered them in pretty well. I had wanted to quit by 2:00 and it was just a little after as we dumped the last of the water barrel on the prickly pears. Back up top, we ate a big lunch, showered, and prepped for dinner. Kenny vowed to stay conscious for more of this evening, as we have heard many a time. All of us being a bit taxed from our days adventures, we opted to have cocktails on the deck. Bill brought his canister out, and I brought mine out and we rotated but only for 4 or 5 rounds as to maintain a little bit better than the previous night. Ken BBQ’d olive oil and rosemary chicken breast which was some of the best chicken I have ever had. Especially for being thick firm breasts, they were extremely juicy and supple. He BBQ’d corn and zucchini, and Bill made up some delicious chili Verde and rice. An excellent meal.

After our feast, Bill brought out a present for Ken of candy and gummies and then we presented Ken a surprise birthday cake that K had bought for me. It was really fun and I think Kenny will remember all of it. We started a great fire in the corral and lingered for quite a long time sharing old tales and many many laughs. The sky cleared of early clouds and the stars were great. Although the alcohol again created much excess body heat, I slept like a stone. Kevin and Ken were again up stupid early and I again was not hung over, and Bill joined us a little bit later. Unfortunately, Ken and Kevin were making departure day plans and it was soon time to go. After they were off, Bill again joined me down at the cemetery where we planted the last of the 38 or so plants. It looks great and hopefully will somewhat offset the pain of the loss of so many trees.

It now appears we only have 1 of 12 trees alive around the cemetery. One of the 2 Big Leaf Maples died; 4 of the 5 trees behind the trailer died, both the Crabapples died, and 5 of the 7 plantings below the deck died, so we are 8 for 32. Hoping to do better with the Cacti, agave, aloe, and the 2 grassy things. Bill and I were done by 1:00 as hoped so we were back up top for a good lunch and got cleaned up. I could not keep my eyes open, so about 3:00 I went into my cabin for probably my first ever nap up there and slept soundly until 5:00. It was perfect as I felt a lot better and Diego was supposed to meet us at 5:30.

Up the Hill he came with his helper Brian and a new guy. Diego looked great but was talking really loud. Not sure if he is losing his hearing at such a young age to all the construction work and tools, or maybe they were yelling over some loud music in his truck, but he seemed to be as happy and energetic as always. We walked around to the various locations of the projects we wanted him to do for us and he asked questions and got a handle on each one. He talked about his big project in Woodland and another big project up here in a couple weeks, but he said he would do our work no problem and to just call him before we are up next time and we will get into more details for each job so he can just come up whenever he has time instead of waiting for me to be there. Plus I hate to hear all the noise!

We walked down to the lumber pile to show him all the material I already have and to help himself to whatever he needed. As I was pulling off the huge billboard tarp covering the lumber, he kept seeing packrats I was exposing under the tarp. He was giddy with seeing so many and little babies and he just kept saying, “There’s another one, see, see, right by your foot”. I was grateful I could not see them as I was pulling back the tarp in my hands, but I was happy to see they had moved out of the shed and down here and hoped they would stay. We have been very fortunate to have so little poop and pee on the counter and sink these last few trips.

Diego was gone after about an hour and it was well past cocktail hour. I had laid the fire for the briquettes so up that went. I decided I couldn’t do Manhattans a third night, so I added some ginger ale and made a fine cocktail for us. Billy got out another cheese platter with his Persian cucumbers, Gouda, Blue cheese chunks, and a little leftover chicken from Ken’s meal to share. The appetizers were nearly enough for us as we both ate a lot at our fairly late lunch, but somehow we found room for some chicken thighs, sausages, zucchini and red pepper. It was a fine meal to celebrate a fine day. We started a little fire in the caldron on the deck that Ken donated to the Hill and we sat around a great little fire sharing all manner of talk, thoughts, and wisdom.

It was well after dark, but not too late when we retired. I again slept well but my arms went numb a couple times during the night, interrupting what was otherwise a great sleep. I was up fairly early and packed up my cabin before I went outside. I took some time out on the tip of the lower terrace in the rock perch and then sat in the chairs down below by the big Juniper that often has a ton of bird activity. None today, but still a great spot and loaded with wildflowers. As I got back up to the kitchen, Billy was already sitting on the Western Addition in the shade having some breakfast. We didn’t linger long before we got at our morning tasks.

I watered the living trees up top while Bill took down the canvas tarps that served as a windbreak for our plantings. When we got done with that, we set about propping back up and re-securing them with baling wire to the metal stakes and T-bars. With these 5 Christmas trees back upright, they again looked like a decent semi-natural screen for the roof of the kitchen. After a short break, we assembled the 3 additional trees I brought up last trip and set them in place. They look great and we were much pleased. After we gazed favorably upon our fine work for a spell, we went back up to the kitchen for an early lunch. Checking back in with our spouses with our pending return, we shared some of the woes, and troubles, and hiccups in our lives over a celebratory cold beverage and the last of our lunch.

With that, it was pack and load time. Bill helped me add some bleach to the kitchen tank and we picked up all the detritus of 4 guys for 3 nights. We were rolling by 2:00 just as planned. I can’t thank Bill enough for his help. At 10 years my senior, he is a physical specimen, no doubt from his training during his Coast Guard years intercepting drug boats between Florida, Cuba, and the Bahamas. But he also won a World Championship as a rower as a Coasty so he has always been a great athlete and in really good shape. Although we each broke a plastic chair or two and fell over a couple times, it was a fantastic trip, full of accomplishment, joy, celebration, friendship and sharing.

Hart Hill; Kenny’s Birthday Gallery