winter – trailchaser2020

Déjà vu All Over Again

Lately I have been reminiscing about the events of the past year. Specifically, my postponed Appalachian Trail thru hike attempt. A year ago I was depressed that the pandemic had sidelined me but then I decided to complete the Western New York Summer Hiking Challenge as fast as I could. Last year, I was so angry about losing my six month hike that I completed all the trails necessary for the challenge within a couple weeks and I was the first challenger to finish all the trails. I hiked away the anger and most of the depression.

This year, my thru hike was postponed again. Not by the pandemic but by a beautiful new grandson born on March 3rd. He’s the light of my eye and I could never leave him for six months when he is so little. My son and his wife appreciate me being available to help with him, too. So, here I am again another Spring watching hikers leave to begin their thru hike journeys. I must say I am not angry or depressed this year at all. I know my time will come.

In the short term there are other trails to hike! Again this year Outside Chronicles put together a Western New York Hiking Challenge. Being first to finish the challenge last year was exciting for me. It gave me a goal and a purpose and bragging rights. This year, I had to retain my crown. Signing up for the challenge costs $20 for an individual (you can even register your pet!) and you get a packet of maps and thorough instructions. In order to complete the challenge you must complete 20 out of 32 trails. There are four sections of Western New York with 8 trails in each section. You must complete five trails out of each section. On each trail there is a landmark where you take a selfie to submit to the challenge website in order for the trail to be marked completed. When you finish the challenge you will receive a patch and sticker. Outside Chronicles also donates all profits to different causes. The Winter Challenge raised $36,000 which was donated to Beaver Meadow Audubon Center.

This new Western New York Hiking Challenge will directly benefit the Finger Lakes Trail Conference and the Western New York Land Conservancy. Definitely check out the links above for further information.

The WNY Hiking Challenge started on March 21 and runs until November 19, 2021. So, on Sunday, March 21 I began my first to finish attempt. Now, I really didn’t know if anyone else was even trying to finish first, I just knew that there were A LOT more challengers this year than last year. So, I decided I would try to hike five hikes a day for four days. In a row. I never thought of myself as competitive, but apparently I am as soon as I put on my hiking shoes.

Sunday, March 21, 2021

I wanted a grand start so I began my journey in the dark and drove to Golden Hill State Park to see the sunrise. It did not disappoint!

Royalton Ravines was next.

Next up Lockport Nature Trail, Bond Lake and Art Park.

Then I still had a little bit of adrenaline so I went to Tifft Farm.

It was cool how I started the day at Lake Ontario and ended at Lake Erie.

15.3 miles.

I went home, had a hot bath, put bio freeze on my legs and slept like a log.

Monday, March 22, 2021

I woke up before dawn again and saw the sunrise at Knox Farm State Park. I have been here many times so I took trails and turns that I haven’t done in the past. I found a deer leg and I used a stick to push it into the brush so an innocent child wouldn’t see it, then I decided to put it right here in my pictures. hahaha! Then I drove to Emery Park and enjoyed the waterfalls there. This was a beautiful hike. After, I met my friend Barb at 18 Mile Creek where we picked up trash including a poopy waterlogged diaper. Gross. Then Barb joined me at Franklin Gulf, too. I have to add that it was wonderful weather. Cold in the morning, but by the afternoon I was in short sleeves. We stopped at Rayzor’s Dawg House in Eden for a bite to eat. Highly recommend!

I started feeling silly. Snapchat makes me laugh!

As I was driving home I realized there was still some daylight left so I visited Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge. It was sunset and so peaceful. It was a wonderful way to end the day.

16.1 miles

I went home, had a hot bath, put Biofreeze on my legs and slept like a log.

Tuesday, March 23, 2021

I woke up again in the dark trying to get to Sprague Brook mound before sunrise. I missed the best part by a few minutes. I absolutely loved this hike. There was a lot of snow still on the trails. I realize now I didn’t take very many pictures because I was cold and tired this morning.

This day was a big driving day. I think I put 150 miles on my car or something outrageous like that. The next park was Chestnut Ridge. I love this hike. There were some sketchy sections with ice and snow still covering some of the narrow paths on the ravines. One false move and splat. Hiking solo I tend to talk to myself sometimes. As I was tediously picking each step on the ice I repeated to myself, “You are brave. You are careful. You will not fall. You will be okay.” It helps me to say positive things to myself when I am worried.

Then I drove all the way over to Genesee County Forest. What a beautiful back country drive.

Then I met my friend Barb again at Beaver Meadow Audubon Center. We explored trails and found a dead deer right off the trail. RIP.

I met my husband at the house around 5:30 and we scooted over to Reinstein Woods Nature Preserve. He likes to hike the more level trails with me.

16.3 miles

Once I was home I went into overdrive. Wednesday would be my last day. I planned it out that I would spend the night at Eastside Overland Trail to end my challenge hikes. All my backpacking gear is organized, so it only took about an hour to make sure my backpack was ready. I took a hot bath and applied the Biofreeze. When I woke up my phone had a message from my son. My grandson had kept them both up again and they were desperate for some sleep and asked if I could help. I couldn’t say no. I spent the entire day Wednesday being the best Nana I could be. I didn’t miss the trail at all!

Thursday, March 25, 2021

I woke up early Thursday, but not soon enough to see the sunrise on the trail. I decided to start my day at Eastside Overland Trail. It seems like this is a party place and I picked up quite a bit of litter. There was even a burned t-shirt. I hope the person wasn’t in it when it was on fire. One of the important signs indicating a turn off the snowmobile trail into the woods leading to the lean to trail was chopped down and burned as well. If you hike this, make sure you are paying attention.

Now onto the Zoar Valley trifecta. Deer Lick, Valentine’s Flats and Holcomb Pond. This was going to test me for sure. I had a little drive to get to Deer Lick so I drank water and ate some food. No one was at the parking lot when I got to Deer Lick. This is one of my favorite hikes – I sure do say that a lot!

Zoar Valley Valentine Flats is always beautiful. So peaceful before all the crowds start visiting in the summer. I did not climb the pyramid because I was hiking solo and I was already tired and didn’t want to push my luck.

To read a little history of the Thomas Dutton grave, click here.

For my last stop at Holcomb Ponds – I am not going to lie – I was tired. I set off from the parking lot and made my way through the beauty. I forgot about being tired and just took my time and enjoyed the fragrance of the forest. I lingered at the challenge landmark spot – it was moved to around the pond a little directly under some glorious pines. I picked up some trash and ate a snack. Just so grateful to be able to do what I love most.

15.4 miles.

If you have any questions about any of the trails I’ve done, please ask. Most of the trails were frozen, icy and or snowy, but I’m guessing that will change or already has. I hope to meet you on the trails. I have a few more to go to finish all the trails on the challenge! But for now, I can retain my first finisher title!

I used the Avenza app to help me navigate some of the trails. Outside Chronicles has a great tutorial on how to use the app, here. I also used our town printer – Alden Advertiser – to print the maps in color. It only cost $10.00, a heck of a lot cheaper than using up my color ink cartridge on my home printer. One other note, I found that some of the mileage on the maps provided were slightly more or less than my calculations. Just keep that in mind when you hike the trails. The most important part of my success though was my husband, Dave, he supported me, cheered me on, applied the Biofreeze and even walked a trail with me. Thanks, honey. And a special thanks to Outside Chronicles, Mike Radomski.

Happy trails.

Here are a few extra photos.

Biding my time until Plan A.

Welcome to 2021.

Here we have a whole new year full of opportunities to capture our dreams and follow our hearts. Let’s GOOOOOOO!

This article may be all over the place, so bear with me, please. First of all, I want to say, I am one of the very few people that did NOT want 2020 to end. With 2020 ending it meant my name, Trailchaser2020 becomes kind of dumb. What was I thinking naming this blog that? Anyway. Also 2020 was supposed to be the year I completed the Appalachian Trail and well, we know that didn’t happen. Whaa Whaa.

Here’s what I look like when I don’t get what I want.

I know, I know….I did do A LOT of hiking in 2020. I think I jinxed myself by naming this blog Trailchaser2020. I ended up not just chasing one trail in 2020, but 100’s of trails. I averaged 3.5 miles a day of hiking for 2020 according to my iphone tracker. The accuracy is to be determined, but I can honestly say I hiked over 1,000 miles in 2020. Not too shabby. It’s not the 2,193 miles I was hoping for, but I’ll take it.

When you make your Plan A, you should have a Plan B. A back up. I didn’t have that. I still don’t have that. My ONLY plan is to thru hike the Appalachian Trail. My pack is just waiting for the right time. This year the Appalachian Trail Conservancy is again asking hikers to postpone their thru hikes due to Covid. Would that have stopped me this year? Probably not. I understand the risks better and know how the trail community is adjusting to Covid to protect everyone. I would have totally hit the trail in March this year.

BUT! My son and daughter-in-law have blessed me and our family with the addition of my first grandbaby due in March 2021. There is NO trail in the WORLD that would tear me away from spending the first year with my grandbaby. I just couldn’t imagine spending six months away from him while I hike. Babies grow too fast and I don’t want to miss it! So my Appalachian Trail thru hike will wait for me and I will dip my boots here and there on the AT this spring and summer. ( I will be patient, I will be patient, I will be patient.)

Some of the hikes I already have in the books for 2021 are Hocking Hills State Park in Ohio. If you haven’t been, you must. Seriously, go right now. Read the rest of this later. It is stunning. My next article will be all about it because I have a lot to share. Here’s some sneak peek pictures.

Some other hikes in the works are section hiking the Conservation Trail in New York, Cranberry 50 in the fall, and two or three hikes on the Appalachian Trail. I have a lot to look forward to this year.

So, please wear your mask, get the vaccine if you can, wash your hands and last but not least, Take a HIKE!

I’m Hiking Alone. Ha!

It’s true. Almost everyone I meet when they hear that I am hiking the Appalachian Trail they ask, “Are you hiking alone?” Yes. But, there’s a big, HOWEVER! I am hiking alone with the hundreds of other thru-hikers and section hikers on the trail. Most thru-hikers start out “alone” and acquire a trail family aka “tramily” along the journey. Being a friendly sort of person there’s a good chance I will be hiking with others along the way.

It makes me proud to be a solo woman attempting a thru-hike. Walking alone lets me dictate how far I go, how fast I go and if I even go at all. I alone make the decisions that impact my hike. That being said, there’s no one around to grab the snacks out of my backpack, consult the map with, or try to save me before I fall in a creek. It can be pretty nice to have a helping hand when needed.

These last few months I have found some amazing friends to hike with around Western New York! Now that Winter is here Outside Chronicles has announced a WNY Winter Hiking Challenge. Hikers are challenged to complete 6 of 9 trails around Western New York. I am hiking the trails along with Kim, Stephanie and Sara whom I met through the Allegany 18 Challenge I completed over the summer. I couldn’t dream of better hiking partners. These strong women inspire me, make me laugh, encourage me to push myself and they also bring good snacks.

Our first hike took us to Chestnut Ridge Park in Orchard Park. The challenge landmark was the Eternal Flame. Being hardy hikers we decided to go the long way. Unfortunately, we became a little misguided, but Google set us straight and soon we were at the “Not so Eternal” Eternal Flame. The flame was out! I had my mini Bic lighter and Stephanie bravely climbed the ice-covered waterfall. She waved that little flame all over the grotto and could not get it lit. As you can see from the photo above, we were still all smiles. If you attempt this hike in the winter, I highly recommend microspikes.

Still feeling strong we headed to the Knox Farm State Park to find a little pond. We circled around the park and asked directions a few times. Finally, we found the right little pond for the challenge photo. Knox Farm was tricky as the trails were not well marked or at all.

We just didn’t get enough so we all headed out again a couple of days later (minus Stephanie) to Zoar Valley MUA. This was my first time at this amazing park. The trail took us down into a gorge along the Cattaraugus Creek. The challenge landmark was the confluence of the Main and South branches of the Cattaraugus Creek. It was amazing! I highly recommend this hike and again, in the winter, bring your microspikes.

Our second stop that day was to the Erie County Forest to find “A Bridge Too Far” for the next challenge landmark. This trail had a few footbridges to cross and was so beautiful. It was a really nice hike. “A Bridge Too Far” was just far enough.

After those two hikes, we eagerly drove over to Sprague Brook Park for the trifecta for the day! It was getting later in the day, but we were determined to find the challenge landmark of a “unique tree”. Unfortunately, we were all unfamiliar with the park and the trailhead eluded us. We wandered around for a few miles and called it quits before it got dark. We obtained better directions and a few hints and plan on returning to Sprague Brook to find that darn tree! All of these hikes were made immensely better by hiking with good friends. Maybe one of my friends will meet me for a few miles of the Appalachian Trail this year. Until then, I look forward to a few more hikes with them before I leave in March – alone!

If you want to go hiking, send me a message!

Happy Trails!

My goal is still 2020!

I announced my intention to thru hike the Appalachian Trail in 2020 WAY back in July of 2015. Some people seem to be assuming that I have given up on it. What??? No. I still intend on starting my hike in April of 2020. Ready or not here I come. This summer I will be buckling my pack and staking my tent even more; going to places I have never been and gaining some valuable experience. And I’ll even write about a few of those adventures. Plans are in the works for a trip to the Maryland section of the Appalachian Trail, and a possible trip to Maine. I’ll, of course, also keep hiking around Western New York.

Right now though, Mother Nature has not yet received the message that Spring is about to be here and has been unleashing some serious snow and cold around here.

I’m not letting that stop me though. I revisited an old favorite place to hike, Tillman Nature Preserve. The last time I visited there was a monsoon! (Read about it here.) I was up past my ankles in water while hiking in my work boots and a skirt! (This was back when I didn’t prepare very well.) It was a little different this time. The weather was cool, but it had just been raining so the trails were mushy and muddy in places and downright ponds to walk through. The boardwalks and waterproofed boots were sure handy!

Of course, I always say – It isn’t a truly good hike unless there’s a little mud!

Before and after of my boots.

Tillman Nature Preserve has a great loop trail that is just over 2 miles. It crosses and recrosses a road and is completely and utterly FLAT. There were a few interesting photo ops though.

Some kind of fungus, a neat little bridge and it seems as if someone built a couple “shelters”. Only one seemed to be big enough for me to get in, so I did.

As you can see by the sunshine over my shoulder the shelter is not very weatherproof, but it’s still fun. I cleaned up some litter around the shelters and on the trail.

There must be at least a six pack of Bud Light and a couple Gatorade bottles. What a shame. I’m glad I brought a bag to collect it all in. I actually washed and kept the orange shaker bottle. It looked brand new! I’m guessing it fell off a fat-tire bike rider.

A week later, my big green pack was looking sad, so I packed it lightly and buckled it up to revisit Hunters Creek Park. I was worried about the snow in the parking lot, but I didn’t need to be. So many people love this park it must have been plowed. I put on my micro spikes for a short hike around the most used trails. The trails with no human tracks made me nervous. I didn’t want to blaze my own trail yet and I had left my snow shoes in my car.

It was not even 30 degrees, but I was plenty warm with my layers. I was confident hiking on the icy paths with my micro spikes. I had my taped together, well-used map, so I didn’t get lost. Although at one point I thought a blue dashed line was the creek when it was actually a trail. Oops. So much for having a map. I am seriously considering taking an orienteering class this summer.

I love this picture below of the brilliant sunset (my AT dream) behind poles (work, life) with a directional sign (chose left or right). I don’t want to go left or right; I want to go straight into that brilliant dream!!! Those poles can just get out of my way! When I’m on the AT, I will take many photos of the sunset I am sure; and NONE of them will have poles in the way!

See you on the trails!

No Choice, Joyce

Well, that was a learning experience!

Packing my pack on Thursday night, I proceeded to: crack my headlamp, have my water bladder leak all over the padding of my pack and removed, replaced and added extra items at the last minute. I ran out to the local hardware store and bought a $5 headlamp, my pack stayed slightly damp and I carried probably about a pound of extra weight on items I never looked at while hiking.

We started out Friday headed south to the Morrison/Rimrock Trail Loop in the Allegheny National Forest. We had all the excitement of kindergartners on the first day of school! It was snowing, but we laughed and didn’t care!

IMG_20160325_110939919 — *The snowflakes were small and we bundled up.*

This was my first time carrying my pack on a hike. It was almost 30 pounds. Filled with everything I would need to survive one night and two days in the woods. Morrison Trail including the Rimrock Trail is about 12 miles long. The terrain is very steep in sections and also beautiful as the trail follows the creek. There are many creek crossings where I am beholden to my hiking poles for saving me from getting wet. I know I would not have stayed dry without them! I think I may have even kissed them once or twice!

IMG_20160325_134152458 — *Not so wide to cross here. This one was easy!*

IMG_20160325_130033844 — *Four little waterfalls in row. So beautiful!*

IMG_20160325_134201057 — *Everything was starting to turn that perfect Spring green. Shelly blended in!*

We stopped to camp after hiking about 7 miles. Unfortunately for us I could not manage to climb down a steep slope to the reservoir below where there was some flat land. (I slid down and got muddy and upset – poor Shelly.) Our little camp had to be set up on a slope.

IMG_20160325_185820679 — *Don’t do this unless it’s all you got. This was not ideal. We made it work.*

We ate our dinner at about 5:30 and hung out in my surprised (!) tent for a little while. It was becoming very cold and weather.com said it could be down to 26 degrees! Shelly went back to her tent and I was all alone. Being on the slope made it very challenging to sleep. We slid down in our tents because….gravity. Her tent wasn’t staying up with her hiking poles because she kept sliding into it. Finally, I convinced her to sleep with me in my one-man tent. Eureka should know that four grown women could sleep in the fetal position in the solo tent. The two of us only took up half the tent!

I do think this was one of the longest nights ever. I couldn’t stretch my legs. Our feet were pressed up against the tent holding us up. It was so uncomfortable. At least we were warm next to each other. Unfortunately for Shelly, I also snore. Loud. She woke me up a couple times to stop me. I stayed awake for awhile so I could make sure she slept a little. In the end I’m sure I slept more than she did. All I did all night was watch the time on my phone. Anxious for sunrise and being able to eat some hot oatmeal and a boiling cup of tea.

At around 6 am I heard a Barred owl saying “Who cooks for you? Who cooks for you all?” Shelly woke up and we chatted and stayed warm until the sun rose around 7am. We retrieved the bear canister and pots and cooked our breakfast as the sky became brighter and brighter. Packing up our tents we discovered ice coated everything! Our tents, poles, anything we left outside of our tents. It was really, really cold! Our fingers and toes were numb! But, we had a lovely view of the forest with the reservoir in the background! Staying positive here!

We hit the trail about 8:30am. The sky was blue and it was warming up. The trail continued up the mountain and we said if there was a flat spot within the next quarter mile we would have been so mad we made camp where we did, but there wasn’t. So, we made a good choice.

IMG_20160325_164435911 — *Beautiful, huge moss covered boulders. They look like they are sliding off the mountain, much like we nearly did the night before.*

The trail took us up the very last inch of the mountain, with no apologies. In my head I was drafting my next blog post -“I’m never hiking again. I’m quitting!” “This is too hard.” “I can’t do it.”

On one particular steep section, I stopped because I was exhausted and sweaty. I wanted to close my eyes, twitch my nose and be in my bed at home. Then it hit me. I HAD NO CHOICE. At this point of the game, the only way I would ever see my bed at home again was if my two feet kept going. I looked down at my feet and said, “Feet, you have to do this for the rest of the body. You must continue. You have NO CHOICE, JOYCE!” With that, I continued, I continued to complain, whine, climb and walk and eventually we made it to some glorious flat ground.

We were anxious to see some sign that we were going in the right direction. We knew we should be coming up to a turn in the trail. We finally saw a sign and made the turn. Walking and walking and walking we thought maybe we turned at the wrong spot! At worst we would have to walk an extra 2.6 miles, lucky for us we came across some day hikers that told us the parking lot was about a mile away. Can you hear angels singing? I can.

IMG_20160325_115510031 — *Can you find Shelly?*

Hiking out that last half mile was hard. Who am I kidding, it was all hard. If someone would have asked me on Saturday, if I would do this again I would have said, maybe. Today, I can’t wait to hit this trail again – in warmer weather! Now that I know where to stop to camp it should make that part so much more tolerable.

I want to thank my good friend, Shelly aka livingonthedirt.com. She taught me how to adjust my pack straps. It was magic! She taught me about bear canisters and cooking away from your camp to discourage animal visitors. She gave me a pat on the back when I fell and slid down the mountain. (It helped, it really did!) She also listened to me whine and complain and when I look back at myself, I wish I didn’t do so much of that.

Watch out, Appalachian Trail. I’m getting ready!

18 Mile Creek and a Tent!

Located about 40 minutes from my house is a hidden treasure. 18 Mile Creek Park in Hamburg, NY is spectacular! The trail is about 5 miles to the end and back. Easy, peasy. The hiker walks above the creek on the main trail along the rim of a ravine. This affords the hiker with magnificent views of the creek and ravine. There are two side trails that will take you down to the creek if you want to fish or wade in the water on a hot day. I can’t wait to go back during the summer.

IMG_20160319_142445894 — View from the rim.

IMG_20160319_142430789 — It’s a long way down!

IMG_20160319_143735204 — My camera and the sun did something wonky and I got a heavenly inspired photo!

IMG_20160319_143756259 — This is what I was trying to photograph. The water cascaded down the rock and froze. It was sparkly and beautiful.

IMG_20160319_144317883 — Of course, there was a geocache!

IMG_20160319_150427621 — Just in case you didn’t see the well worn trail come to an abrupt end, here’s a sign!

Okay, friends. Coming up this Friday I will be backpacking in the Allegheny National Forest. Shelly aka livingonthedirt.com and I will be hiking about 6 miles Friday, spend the night in the woods and hike 6 miles back out on Saturday. We can’t miss Easter Sunday dinner!

I’ve not had the chance to use ANY of my long hike gear yet. I set up my tent ONCE in my LIVING ROOM! My backpack still has the tags on it!! So, I spent Sunday doing some preparing. I gathered my guts and my tent and headed to my backyard with my dogs for moral support.

IMG_20160320_154442294 (1) — The tent I bought for about $50. This is not the tent I will use for the AT.

I scanned the ground for “land mines” aka dog doo. I found a spot next to our fire pit. Don’t worry, I would never set up my tent this close to a fire pit in real life. The first thing I looked for in the bag was the directions! I love the saying – When in doubt, RTFM. “Read the F’n Manual” Truer words have never been spoken!

I learned that you should read the directions once all the way through before you start. Good advice. So, now that I had a clue how this should end I started with step one and two. Lay out the tent and put the poles in an “X” on top.

That was easy.

Step two I had to put the poles in the grommets. Grommet? Isn’t that a British cartoon? Oh, no that is Wallace and Gromit. Gromit is the dog. These would be metal rings. Found them. Then I staked it at four corners. The ground was soft so the stakes went nice and easy! If I was sleeping here, I’d be worried they would pop out, but I’m not, so I didn’t care.

I attached the “dog-bone connector” – that’s what it said it was called in the directions, honest – at the center top and then the hook things (technical term) on the poles.

Hey, this looks like a tent! What’s this? I have to put a fly on?

Maggie was curious. Or she just wanted to drink my tea. So, how does it look? Wait, what’s this in the directions? Side ventilation? Guyouts???

I had to connect paracord to the sides and stake them out. Then the directions said something about guyouts? Huh? Oh, so if you don’t want your tent to blow away while you’re in it, you should attach “guy out lines”. Um. I may need help with that. I have no idea how to tie a knot.

Okay. Moving on. Let’s get in!!!

Not you, Maggie!!

Please remove your shoes before entering my home away from home!

I could actually kneel without ducking my head inside. Lots of headroom for me!

Roomy for a solo tent. Roomy for a 5’2″ woman.

I don’t look comfortable. And the grass was making all kinds of noise. It sounded like it was raining. I think I need to buy a small footprint tarp? Is that what it’s called? Something to go under my tent and above the grass. I’ll see about that before Friday. And I think I need a pillow. I know I NEED a pillow.

Well, I tried it out and now lets see if I can get it all to go back in the same small bag!

I DID IT!!!

My knees were a little muddy from crawling around on the floor, but the next task was packing my backpack.

Most of my gear. I don’t have a lot. Just the necessities.

Do I get points that my sleeping bag color matches my pack color and my NAIL color!!??? LOL!

I have no idea how to use this, but the directions seem pretty clear. Even if I have enough water, I may want to use this just to see how it works.

I researched google and was schooled by Shelly how to pack my pack. Sleeping bag on the bottom, heavy stuff centered. It felt pretty good. Now I have to unpack it all because I want to put a trash compactor bag in there to keep things dry if my pack gets wet.

I’m going to add a couple more things to this bag, like more clothes. It’s supposed to be pretty cold at night. My food will be added and of course, a bladder filled with 2 liters of water. That should bring me up to about 18 pounds in my pack. Doable.

I hope.

Thanks for reading. And please, if you have any advice, I’ll take it!!!

Ice and Eskers

Woot! Another double hike weekend! I need a t-shirt that says “Hiking is my religion.” Being outdoors improves everything! I took advantage of some mild weather this past weekend to visit a long time favorite park, Stiglmeier Park and a new park near Honeoye Falls called Mendon Ponds Park.

IMG_20160227_104024288 (1) — *Boardwalk in the meadow where we saw the Red-Tailed Hawk.*

Saturday morning was pretty cold. I’m trying to thicken my skin so I didn’t back out of the hike in Stiglmeier Park. There was a new group to meet, Creation Exploration. The group met in the parking lot of the park and I asked about needing micro-spikes on the trails. The leaders both said, “No, I doubt it.” Well, the entire trail was complete ice. Note to self and others, when leading a hike always hike a little of the trail before everyone gets there so you can be aware of the trail conditions to inform your group how to prepare. Ugh. As we were sliding on the ice, one of the leaders smiled and said to me, “Should have worn your spikes, huh?” Okay, strike one.

We were walking the Seneca Trail and we were looking for wildlife! This was a slow paced walk through very flat (but, icy) trails. Some of the animals and birds that made an appearance were: White-Tail Deer (a nice sized buck!), Mallard Ducks, Red Tail Hawk, Cardinals, Black-Capped Chickadees, Tufted Titmouse, Red-Bellied Woodpecker, Nuthatch, Juncos, Downy Woodpecker and some cool tracks of little critters. There were probably others, I just don’t remember.

IMG_20160227_105833077 (1) — *A mouse probably made these tracks.*

We had a super view of the Red-Tailed Hawk swooping over a meadow and again hovering and diving down to catch some lunch and then again it was flying through another meadow. Birds are amazing, especially birds of prey. They fascinate me.

The group was small and some of us were new to the group. Everyone was nice enough, but since we didn’t know each other it was a little stiff. When I saw the Red-Bellied Woodpecker and pointed it out there was a man that didn’t believe me because it had a red head not a red belly. Well. Okay. But then another man in the group confirmed my call and the guy believed him just fine! Strike Two. Moving on then! They don’t get a strike three. I don’t need that. I kept my mouth shut the rest of walk. It was still a nice walk in a beautiful park. This was not challenging at all, except for the people part.

The weather on Sunday was AMAZING! It was forecast to reach 60 degrees and I think it was a bit higher than that. It is so nice to be able to hike in the snow while wearing just a fleece on February 28! We were hiking Mendon Ponds Park with my familiar Day Hikes group. The trail we took was the East Esker Trail. There were only 6 of us on this hike and I do enjoy small group hikes. I can really get to know every person and we are like a little family on the trail.

My friend Shelly (check out her blog at: http://livingonthedirt.com) hiked along with me. I was so glad she was there. Hiking up a hill, she commented that I was really keeping up and what a long way I’ve come so far. It made me feel terrific. Even I noticed that the hills weren’t so tiring as they were on past hikes. Like they say, the more you do, the better you get!

IMG_20160228_102521216 (1) — *Take a photo of the map with your phone. Very helpful if you don’t have a printed version.*

You are probably wondering what “Eskers” are in my title. I learned a little bit about glaciers on my hike to Mendon Ponds. Eskers are a winding ridge of sand and gravel that are very long and remind me of walking on an old abandoned railway embankment. They are created when streams flowed under and within glaciers. It is a little more technical than that so I’ve supplied the wiki address if you interested in learning more. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esker

IMG_20160228_113724734 (1) — *Learning about the Esker we are hiking on from our group leader.*

Shelly brought along her new camera. She will have to leave a comment below as I don’t remember what kind of camera it is. The pictures of my rear end came out lovely as usual.

facebook_1456942771031 — *X marks the butt.*

facebook_1456942749781 — *About to get my butt over this tree in the trail. Same day, removed my fleece because it was so warm!*

You can see how the trail conditions changed during our hike. Lots of snow and ice then it changed to mud then back to ice.

This hike was moderately challenging for me, it would have been more challenging if Shelly and I were alone because she marches me up the hills! Since we were with a group we stopped frequently and took pictures.

I made the final decision to not sign up for the Finger Lakes Trail Cross County hike this year. Too many of the dates conflicted with vacation and other events. Instead, I hope to backpack by myself or with my son in Alleghany National Forest or other places this Spring and Summer. This coming weekend my husband I are visiting Downtown Buffalo for a little City getaway. I hope to visit Tifft Nature Preserve to get my outdoor time in.

Thanks for tuning in to learn about my adventures in training for my thru hike of the Appalachian Trail. Until next time – Hike on!!

!*^% Snowshoes and Sunshine

What a beautiful weekend in Western New York! The weather was warm and the sun was shining on all creation! I was lucky enough to have both Saturday and Sunday planned for hiking!

Saturday morning I met my best friend, Linda and we drove to Bear Creek State Forest.

IMG_20160220_120825043 — *Finger Lakes/North Country Trail*

It is in or near Machias, New York. We were meeting our Buffalo Day Hike Group and the Foothills Trail Club for a joint club snowshoe hike. I’ve been on snowshoes maybe three times before and always had a good experience so I was excited.

IMG_20160220_111601818 — *The snow is about a foot deep here.*

As we were putting on our snowshoes, Linda noticed that one of her shoes was completely broken. She wouldn’t be able to wear them. We checked with the leaders, Chuck and Marty and they agreed that if she wore micro spikes and walked behind the group, she could participate. Phew! It was a long drive to the trail head to not be able to hike!

Of course the hike started up a hill. Hills are a challenge for me! I have no stamina and I get out of breath quickly. Now, add in that I am wearing snowshoes! Yikes. Well, we went slowly and stopped often as the rest of the group quickly hiked out of sight. Determined to continue I pushed myself further than I thought I would. The leader of Foothills Club, Marty, hiked back to check on us. Linda made a point of telling Marty that I was training to hike the Appalachian Trail. Marty looked at me cross eyed. I can only imagine what he was thinking of my goal. While he hiked with us for a little while, I told Marty I was thinking of joining the Cross County hike this summer. He was very nice and told me to join the half-hike group. It breaks the 96 miles into shorter hikes. I agreed that it would be a good place for me to start. Our slow pace was now a crawl and we convinced Marty to go on ahead.

IMG_20160220_113207526 — *I do not look happy.*

Linda and I pushed up the hill (it felt like a mountain) and I tried to maintain a positive attitude. About a half hour later, Marty joined us again he said it was only another half mile before the turn around point. Right then and there I said we would turn around now. Marty went ahead again and Linda and I were on our own going back down the hill. We had walked up hill a mile and a quarter, now we had to go back down! Our moods were elevated knowing that we were headed back to the car! I just couldn’t wait to get my snowshoes off! We were in the homestretch when Linda took a huge fall and twisted her ankle. When she fell I was in front, I turned around and saw her looking like a human sled.

IMG_20160220_115033517 — *Ooph! Poor Linda! I told her not to move until I got this picture!*

Linda was a trooper and slowly started downhill again. Suddenly she shouted that she heard voices coming. I’d be damned if the group caught up to us!! We high-tailed it the rest of the way and finally made it to the car. On our way home, we, of course, stopped to find a geocache. It was super cute!

IMG_20160220_140153814_HDR — *There’s a geocache hidden in this little outhouse!*

Linda had x-rays on her ankle and it’s a bad sprain, but nothing is broken!

Sunday was another beautiful day for a hike. It took everything I had to get out of bed. My legs were sore from using muscles snowshoeing that I don’t normally use hiking. The only thing that motivated me was knowing it would be a flat hike and there would be very little snow at Beaver Island State Park on Grand Island.

IMG_20160221_114741210 — *Short loop trail that had a great viewing area for bird watching.*

Chuck was again my leader for this hike and he razzed me a little about dropping out of yesterday’s hike. I told him I wouldn’t abandon him this time!

We walked around Beaver Island State Park for 4.5 miles and some of the trail was icy and/or flooded. My Keen boots kept my feet dry and warm!

IMG_20160221_105648108 — *So much happier on this hike!*

This hike didn’t have any falls, steep hills or snowshoes. Woohoo!

I know I have to continue to challenge myself on my hikes and my endurance needs to grow to successfully hike the Appalachian Trail. I’ll get there.

Next step, register for the Finger Lakes Trail Cross County Half-hikes.

	Janine B. on Déjà vu All Over Again
	Karen Godshall on Déjà vu All Over Again
	Melissa Sorci Taft on Déjà vu All Over Again
	Mariely on Déjà vu All Over Again
	Jeff on Déjà vu All Over Again

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