Tripping

A paddling friend invited me to do something this weekend and I said I’d be away, taking a little vacation. He observed it must be quite a break planning a trip for myself instead of our paddling group. One would think.

And one would be wrong. Let’s begin with the trip concept. For the group, I solicit some ideas, opinions, preferences, etc. I boil that down to a choice that seems to engender the consensus of the group and post it on the calendar. That’s it. If it appeals to you, fine. If it doesn’t, don’t go. You’re getting a free organizer/guide. If you want something that fulfills your specific personalized needs, hire your own guide or a travel agent.

It’s a little more complicated on the other end. I ask my traveling companion what she’d like to do. “You know what I like. Come up with a few ideas.” I know what she likes? You mean, this week or two weeks from now? If I had those powers of prediction, I’d be going to Vegas and playing the wheels. And, I’d have a better chance of being right.

I have two choices. I can say I don’t know her preference and need for her to just tell me, suffering the consequences. Or, I can go through this initial round, be wrong, get mildly admonished and move on to round two. I’ll go with mild.

That provides some additional direction and I generate that list, which of course will still prove to be inadequate. But, in being told why it falls short, I acquire some additional specifications. This cycle will repeat three or four more times until we have a winner and she beams with delight. Then, she’ll get a serious look. “This is something you want to do, isn’t it? The trip is for both of us.” Hasn’t that been made obvious in this process?

Actually, it is okay with me, but the screening has been subtle. Any concepts that aren’t appealing to me never make the list presented to her.

Now it’s time to research and make arrangements. While some of our group expeditions may appear complex, all they really want is access to the water and a small slab of ground to pitch a tent. It can be more than that, depending upon the subset of the group and type of event, but it’s usually pretty simple to research weather forecasts, tides, and other key variables. It really isn’t that hard to exceed the free services expectation.

Not so when you’re traveling with someone who views keeping a thousand balls in the air as child’s play. She’s expecting that every minute alternative for every aspect of the trip has been surfaced and the perfect choice has been selected and confirmed. How do you find the thread count of the sheets used by this B&B and if that restaurant uses real butter in their sautéed vegetables? And, of course, the itinerary will contain an extensive detailed timetable. I’ve shot myself in the foot by being good at this on previous occasions, raising the expectations.

For our group events, I pack a toothbrush. And, a paddling outfit. If the trip lasts less than a year, one outfit is more than enough.

On the other side of the coin, I have to add a razor and other grooming products. Then, I consult the itinerary and must pack the appropriate garb for each entry. She’ll change clothes a few times a day to suit each event and I have to approximate the pace. A medium duffel bag gets me through almost all paddling events, but we’re talking a large suitcase here. For me. She’ll triple that with her road ensemble.

Virtually everyone has been happy with our group outings. There is almost always a small percentage that lives to wallow in issues, as there is in the macro arena of life. When the few lodge their complaints, I smile politely and say I’m sorry it wasn’t to their satisfaction. And, I’m glad as all getout I’m not living your miserable life that dwells in the negative aspects of everything. I don’t say that.

Sidestepping the gripes isn’t an option on the private side. When the dissatisfaction is expressed, I have no choice but to bring things into compliance. Oh, I do have a choice. But, I have to think of how I want to spend the rest of the trip.

So, all in all, it’s easier to plan the group trips. But, I’ve been tongue-in-cheek here about the personal ones and wouldn’t do them if they weren’t extremely enjoyable.