The Hike That Didn’t Go to Plan

Saturday, 9:40 p.m.

Maya and I planned an easy two-hour hike, which sounded perfect after a long week. The weather forecast said “light cloud,” so neither of us packed a proper raincoat. That was our first mistake.

About forty minutes into the walk, we followed a blue sign instead of the yellow one. We did not realize it until the path became narrow and the town disappeared behind the trees. Then the rain started—not light rain, but the kind that soaks your socks in a minute. My paper map turned soft in my hands, and Maya began laughing. I was annoyed at first, but the situation was too ridiculous to stay angry.

We eventually reached a road three kilometers from where we had parked. Across the road was a tiny café with steamed-up windows. The owner let us leave our wet jackets by the heater and served us enormous bowls of mushroom soup.

We never reached the viewpoint. Still, the soup tasted better than anything I have eaten this month, and the walk back to the car was full of bad jokes. Next time I will pack a raincoat—and check the color of the sign.