Well, Murphy's got his hand in the pot. We were camped up at Fish Creek Ponds for 24 days. The first two weeks on Site 143 and then 10 days on 157. Last Thursday (the 16th) was our last full day on 143. I had all the stuff we had set up on the site piled up on the boat trailer ready for the move. It was going to be a simple matter on Friday morning of register for the new site, move the boat trailer and the boat to the new site, and hook up the trailer, go to the dump station, and then to the new site.
In checking some final details, I was up on a ladder cleaning two weeks of pine tree debris off the one slide that doesn't have a slide-topper. I lost my balance and started to fall backwards and could find anything to grab onto. I made a conscious decision to land on my feet, avoiding back, neck, or head injuries. The folks at campfires two sites away heard the pop on my ankle and then my hollering. Luckily, one of gals is a nurse, fire fighter, and former EMT. She checked me out and with the help of her husband and two other couples, got me comfortable and stabilized the ankle.
It took well over an hour for an ambulance out of Saranac Lake to arrive. They moved me to the ambulance and administered morphine which really did not touch the pain. Off to Adirondack Medical Center we went. They took good care of me and sent us home. We arrived back at camp around 3:30 AM.
Those three couples were lifesavers! They took charge and got us moved and setup by noon on Friday. I never left the bed in the trailer. When they were done, one of the guys joked that I was never gonna find any of my stuff, them being unfamiliar with our rig and my gear. They checked on us throughout the day and evening on Friday, and on Saturday.
Saturday morning some folks from my ambulance squad drove up and brought everyone and everything back home safely. We are truly blessed with friends, new and longtime.
My heelbone is fractured into at least 6 major pieces. Some soft tissue damage is yet to be determined, but should heal along with the bone. I'm on the couch most of the time with the injured leg elevated on pillows.
We went to see the ortho doc earlier today. I'm scheduled for surgery on the 12th of July followed by 8 weeks in a full cast. Then it will be another 4 weeks in a removable walking cast and then finally, back to shoes. All of my left shoes will be worn out so it will be new foot gear time as well.
If you do the math, I should be two weeks into wearing the walking cast by the time the M&G rolls around. I don't know if I will be able to get around enough to deal with the trailer and drive up to Old Forge. Gail is unable to do those things these days. It's an unknown at this point. So, maintaining a super positive attitude about all this, I am not cancelling our reservation yet.
One possibility is that we could drive up in the Jeep, stay at a motel, and spend the day and evening with you folks on Saturday.
So, that's my sad tale of woe. We will be there if we can.
