Heat stroke and TMI

Did you read the subject line? You've been warned.

I had a big, empty day last Sunday, and nothing to do in it. So I decided I'd go hiking. The nice thing about Tucson is, if you want to escape the heat, you can drive for an hour and do it. Catch is, I didn't feel like driving for an hour. So I decided I'd go back to the Sabino Canyon area and hike up Bear Canyon. Bear Canyon has water flowing year-round, so it's always about ten degrees cooler hiking along the canyon than anywhere else at this elevation.

I could have taken the tram back to about two tenths of a mile from where the trail first crosses water, but it was only about a mile and a half back there, and I'd hiked it before. I decided I'd just go on foot. And this is where the debacle began. I think I was parked in the other parking area the last time I did this hike. The trail I took cut through white rock, which is highly reflective of the sun and heat.

I was wearing sun screen and had three liters of water with me, and yet, very soon, I was really feeling less than chipper. I think it's time for new hiking boots, because the heel cup on the left one was loose and I could feel a blister coming up. By the time I reached the first water crossing, my heart was pounding, I'd used 2/3 of my water, and my limbs were leaden. I thought I was going to trip over the gravel on the trail.

I stopped at the second or third water crossing and found a shady spot where I could sit down on a rock. I ate both my snacks and sat for twenty minutes. I'd have taken a nap, but I kept feeling like something was watching me. I could have been hallucinating. It's certainly the best explanation. But the thing I was hallucinating had a definite geographical position, and I'd been handed a flyer warning about "problem" mountain lions (i.e. mountain lion sightings in daytime, of mountain lions which displayed no fear of humans). So I figured better safe than sorry.

I took off my shirt, soaked it in the river, and wrung it out over my head a number of times. Put it back on, soaking wet. Then I soaked my hair in the river, and then my hat and put that back on. Then I stepped into water up over the tops of my hiking boots. I know that makes some people cringe, but my hiking socks are meant to function wet or dry, and it's like built-in swamp cooling for your feet. It actually made the boots more comfortable, because the loose heel cup swelled a little (confirming my analysis that it's time for new boots).

I ran out of water about a mile from the parking lot, but that was fine--I bought some when I reached the visitor's center. The hike back was far more comfortable; I was in no danger. I even noticed the little lizards crossing my path and some of the spectacular views. With all the rain we've had this season, the desert is positively lush. And the prickly pear fruit was about perfectly ripe, which means it was this rich, red color. I really have to invest in a decent digital camera so I can show y'all this stuff.

I did not get sunburned. I did get blisters. And when I got home, I discovered I'd been starting my period (early) and hadn't known it, which is probably why conditions I've hiked in a hundred times before unexpectedly decided to kick my butt. I feel off-kilter and listless enough at that time in my cycle, without adding hiking in 100-degree heat. I was still pretty strange all through Monday, but by Tuesday, I was feeling better.

Altogether, this is the closest I've ever been to heat stroke in my life. Even knowing exactly what was going on and taking the appropriate measures to treat it, it was pretty damn spooky.