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I’m normally verbose, so I’ll keep this report brief. I started off in the morning by leaving the house at 6am. The drive was beautiful and peaceful; the air was crisp but tolerable; the sky was infinitely blue. Traffic was light as I sped through many of the waiting green lights. I arrived at Bandy Creek visitor center at about 9:45am. The Ranger led tour…
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Section II, Team II, REPORT Sheltowee Trace from Charit Creek Lodge to End of the Divide Rd, 30.5 miles (56.5 miles total YTD) Every good adventure requires calamity, and this trip was no different. I recently bought a new battery. The shop had installed it, and the car was running fine. So, when I set out for my Big South Fork…
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Adventuring requires a special kind of crazy person. Packing for every trip is always different and always takes a considerable amount of time and planning. Each “T” must be crossed, and every “I” dotted in order to have a safe and fun trip. First you must look at your maps to see where your water sources are. Do they follow or…
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When I was warming up my car this morning before my commute to work, I saw this solid pillar of light piercing thousands of feet into the heavens. I couldn’t help but be a little selfish and hope it was for me.
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The tree in my front yard is dying. It was once a good tree; beautiful with climbing ivy and thick shady boughs. Every year when spring came it bloomed little white petals, joining the local dogwood understory, that lines the concrete paths of our urban dungeon. Every year it gave me comfort to see it regain its vitality. This…
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Trip Report: Section 1, Team Two, Sheltowee Trace, Hike from Burnt Mill Bridge to Charit Creek Lodge Parking Area (Approximately 26 miles total). To start my report, I must preface with this: At the ranger station I bought a sprite from an outdoor vending machine. The soda can was WARMER to touch than the surrounding…
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Packing for a backpacking trip is similar to going on vacation, but you have to weigh and measure the value of every item you bring because EVERYTHING is going on your back. A lot of times I “customize” items by cutting off extraneous bits and pieces here and there to subtract weight. Most items are multi-purpose,…
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Getting ready to dehydrate some Granny Smith for my big hiking trip next weekend. I should have bought the small ones (they fit in the trays better). Oh well. I’ve been trying to keep dehydrated fruit on hand. I have a hard time eating apple peels in their natural state. I like the dried variety much better. Thank God…
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This morning at about 6:30am my wife and I were asleep in bed. We were both awakened to hear a loud “pop” like the seal of a window being cracked, and then a scraping sound like a window being opened. I immediately rolled over to make sure she was still in bed, who responded with a “what the hell was that?” So, I immediately…
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One of my favorite things about Tolkien is how he describes a typical Hobbit. They are amiable, brave, stout, hardworking, ritualistic, yet complacent, cranky, boring, non-imaginative little creatures, who never do anything inappropriate like take adventures. Their chief goals in life are to eat, reproduce, and pass on heirlooms to their children. Anything outside of…