The flu hits hard: Thermopolis – June 3 and 4
Monday June 3, 2013
June 3
Uggghhh. Last night I slept. Sort of. I alternated between stifling hot and freezing all night long. I wake in the morning unable to lift my head. My throat is so sore I can barely swallow. I also am immobilized by a general achiness and fatigue that says we will not be doing anything at all today, let alone a day ride down the Wind River Canyon. The only thing I manage today is to slobber and snot all over my makeshift pillow and crawl out of the sleeping bag to go pee on occasion. I also manage to woozily weave my way to the office and pay for another night, since I know I’m going nowhere tomorrow.
June 4
Sometimes you feel so crap, you just wish you could die to end the misery. That was yesterday. I can lift my head today. It doesn’t hurt as badly to swallow. I still feel like shit, but I don’t want to die. We’ll call it an improvement.
I manage to walk to the nearest pharmacy and go through the rigamarole to get the good stuff – pseudoephedrine. The pharmacist is very kind and figures out a way to circumvent the Australian address on my licence. He’s interested in my trip – but the whole time I’m there, all I can think about is how hot I am and how out-of-body I feel. Once I get the drugs, I decide I should ride up to the hot springs.
The public pool has a time limit because it is kept at quite a hot temperature. So going in the pool while I still have a fever is probably not the best idea.
I hope the supposed healing waters work quickly, because I’m only in there for about 30 seconds. I’ve barely gotten myself wet when I realise that the world is starting to recede, spin and narrow. Crap!
I haul myself out and sit on the edge of the pool with my head on my knees, trying not to pass out. Once I think I might be able to make it to the change room, I stand up woozily and wobble toward the ramp. I grab the handicap rail on each side with both hands and shuffle toward the change room. Once inside, I sit on the bench with my head down for about 20 minutes before I can get dressed. I then sit there for another 20 minutes until I think I can ride back to the RV park.
I make it back to my tent and that is it for the day. Not my best moment – all my embarrassing moments seem to happen at public pools, even though there were no other visitors there today to see me trying to stay conscious.
