It seems like when a politician says he wants to be perfectly clear, the exact opposite will happen. So the only thing clear about this last election and endless campaigning beforehand is that we will get a brief respite before the next cycle of muddled politibabble begins. Hiking is much more simple and direct, and Clear Lake offers not only a destination of remarkable clarity, but also a segue from the morass that is this opening paragraph. On this hike with the Friends of the Umpqua Hiking Club, we had to decide whether to move to the right or to …