Cooked Feet!

Yup, I said it. Cooked FEET! Sounds gross, but that's what I'm about to do. I'm about to COOK (well, really bake) my newly purchased SOLE inserts in the oven at 200 degrees for 2 minutes. Then I'm going to slide them into my hiking boots and immediately stick my feet in my boots. My feets are going to get cooked! hahha! I went to the local REI store in search of some inserts for my boots. Seems as if I beat the crap out of the Superfeet inserts I bought in early May. So I need to find something a bit more sturdy. The guy in the shoe department recommended these, the website gives it great reviews and says: "The Heat-moldable three-layer design ensures a personalized fit and ample support to help control motion and absorb shock." And this is what I need. Because REI is awesome, I was able to return my old Superfeet for a full refund and apply the $30 to the new SOLE inserts, which were $45. So I paid $15 for some new inserts :) Got to love the return policy at REI! Will test them out this weekend on a hike. Til next time. GET OUTDOORS!!!

1/2 mile workout. Seriously.

Seriously, we walked around a middle school track for 1/2 mile Sunday evening. hahaha! It all started with a ride to Harris Teeter Grocery store to pick up a $1 movie rental at a red box. After we got the movie, we had all intentions of going home. Well.... we decided to peek into the local Block Buster that was closing down and promising "close out " prices. They lied. Nothing really worth stopping for. Most movies were still $14.99 to $7.99. So... we decided to go on home. Well, as we passed the local middle school, we saw this guy in the center of the track field, attempting to fly this ENORMOUS kite. We decided to pull over and see if we could watch. This kite was so big, I thought the guy would fly away if he got a big enough wind. So we parked the car and walked to the track. We were already wearing workout clothes, so we used the excuse of walking around the track to spy. hehehe! After one lap around the track, the guy decided to deflate his kite and wrap up his wrist straps and kite rope. Bummer, we didn't get to see the big ass kite fly :( Oh well. Boo thinks the kite was made for water kite surfing. Either way, it was a cool little adventure that got us outside. :) Til next time. GET OUTDOORS!!!

Dog, Rain, Miles

Today I decided to take my baby brown hound (chocolate lab) on Kings Mountain Trail, the 16 mile loop day hike. We both got up around 5:30am and snuck downstairs. Leaving Boo and little dog still asleep. I slipped on my hiking pants/shirt/new rain jacket/and boots, grabbed the leash, and my day pack. I was just about the sneak us out, when Boo and little dog appear at the foot of the stairs. I gave Boo a good morning kiss and he took little dog out so I could make a get away. If she knew that Thing 1 and I were about to go on a hike without her, she would of been pissed! I decided not to take her b/c I didn't think Thing 2's short little legs could handle the mileage. So she was to spend some quality time with Boo today. Thing 1 and I made our escape and were zooming down the highway at 6:15am. We made it to the Kings Mountain State Park around 7am (when the park opens) and after paying my $2 entrance fee we drove to the trailhead. It was still pretty dark and rainy out (it rained the entire time).

My brown hound and I stepped on the trail at exactly 7:15am and started our hike. Don't tell the state park, but he was off leash the entire time. He is such a good dog. He has learned to hike directly behind me and he listens to voice commands. Plus, we didn't see another human being the entire time we were out and I had a trek pole in each hand. Around mile 9, I found a stump to sit on and we took a 15 minute water/snack break. I have to say, that this time around on this trail, I wasn't stopping as much. In fact, I didn't stop on the uphill climbs the entire time. I think my lungs are almost in hiking shape!

We did catch glimpses of all kinds of wildlife. We saw several deer. Around mile 5, I heard a high pitched shriek and then saw 5 huge white tailed deer gallop up over a ridge and disappear on the other side. It sort of startled me b/c I didn't think deer made noises! We saw a couple of turtles right on the trail and around mile 12 we saw a coyote! At first I thought it was a fox, but it was too big to be a fox. It looked like a medium sized light brown dog with a fluffy tail. As soon as it saw us it took off. It freaked me out a bit b/c it was the first time I'd seen a coyote in the wild while hiking. I was worried it would follow us and try to get Thing 1 so we picked up the pace for the last 4 miles and finished really fast! I kept looking over my shoulders to make sure it wasn't following us. We finally got to the car at 1:30 pm. I couldn't believe what great time we made. Six hours and 15 minutes. That's almost 3 miles an hour hiking. Whoo hoo! My baby brown hound is a little bad ass! hahaha!

Just a couple of things about the hike. It rained the entire time and my new jacket kept me dry. It was quiet chilly, and when I stopped for water breaks, I would get cold really fast. I can definitely see how someone could get hypothermia out in the woods. I have to remember to carry a fleece with me next time. Rain all day equals slick ass rocks and bridges. I came across a stream crossing and as soon as I stepped on the mossy covered rock, I slipped and fell right on my bum. I froze for a second, waiting to feel pain, but I didn't feel a thing. I was O.K. If you look at the picture of the rock on the right, you'll see a perfect butt indention in the rock. How lucky was I that my bum fell perfectly in the indention. (and for those of you thinking it, NO I didn't MAKE that indention when I fell! hahhaa!) For the next part of my review on the hike, I'm going to write in small font b/c I'll be whispering.

I think Kings Mountain State Park saw/read my blog about my previous review/complaint about the section of trail on their (State) side of the park. Remember I said it was over grown and I had to climb over and under lots of down trees. Well, this time around I didn't have to climb or scoot under one down tree, and the trail was cut back considerably. It was actually really nice. Oh, and that big tree that was toppled over a bridge, well it was still there, but it was off the bridge and it looked like they were working on getting it cut up. It was like a whole new trail. I take it back South Carolina, you've regained my trust in trails once again. :) And no webbing! though I think you can credit the rain for that. I will say that I did have to step over 2 down trees on the federal (Kings Mountain Military Park) side, but it was raining all day and the rest of the trail was pretty immaculate.

All in all it was another great day (even in the rain) with my trust companion. Til Next time. GET OUTDOORS!!!

More hiking in Hot Springs

I woke up around 6:30am and just laid in my hammock, listening to the light rain pitter pat on my tarp. I finally got out and walked to the bathrooms, changed clothes and washed my face. When I got back, Boo was up and chit chatting with the others who had started making the community breakfast. We pulled our camp chairs around the morning fire that someone had lit and soaked in the atmosphere. Now I'm not normally a coffee drinker, but a hot cup of coffee with a hot chocolate packet stirred in was a perfect morning beverage. YUMMY! Breakfast was good. They had plates and plates of cheesey scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, livermush (don't ask), fruit, and krispy cremes. I had a scoop of eggs, bacon, a sausage that Boo swears was the livermush, but I swear it wasn't, and a banana.

Afterwards, a group of us decided to go for a hike. On the Appalachian Trail (AT) from Tanyards Gap back into Hot Springs. It was only 6 miles, so Boo decided to test out his ankle for this hike. We all car pool up and park at the trail head. It starts with a walk on a pedestrian bridge over the highway then the AT climbs up for a good 1/2 mile. I didn't expect the climb right away. But felt confident about it when I didn't stop the entire way up :) Darby, Shrek, Macintyre, and Capital Bill put on a fast pace, but I was able to hang with the big boys and hold my own. We then hiked down into a gap talking about the music we listen to or sing in our head while hiking. I was surprised to find out that I'm not the only one that gets a song stuck in my head when I hike. For the next couple of miles the trail terrain was nice and rolling.

I decided to take a break before another big climb and so did everyone else. Darby was the only one that kept going! I found out later he made it into Hot Spings in 2 hours. He's a bad ass. As I was chit chatting away, guess who comes around the trail? Boo! He was only a few minutes behind us. :) We all start the climb together and soon Shrek and I kick it into gear and lose everyone. I think my heart rate and lungs are starting to play nicely together, (Finally!) cause on the climb I only stopped once. Shrek and I finally make it to the overlook (Lovers Leap) and take our time snapping photos, admiring the view of Hot Springs and the French Broad River below. Boo catches up to us for a bit. Now, I'm normally pretty fast on the down hill, but I was hiking with Shrek, and he hikes extremely slow going down hill, so it took us a while to climb down to Hot Springs. We made it back in 3 hours, but I know I could of easily shaved off at least 1/2 hour. When we get back to the campground we run into Darby and he asks if we saw anything interesting on the section of trail along the river. I look at Shrek, he looks at me and we both say "No, why?" Then he shows us the pictures he took of TWO copperhead snakes he came upon. He said it looked like they were in the middle of some snake love when he interuppted them. When snakes do "It", they get all tangled up and wrapped around one another. Thank GOD I didn't happen upon the snake loving session. I hate snakes.

Back at our campsite, I plop down in the camp chair and pull out a vitamin water from the cooler and chit chat with Shrek while I wait for Boo to arrive. Once he gets in, we all decide to walk down to Bluff Mountain Outfitters. NO trip to Hot Springs is complete without a trip into Bluff Mountain Outfitters. hahaha! I walk in, ooohh and ahhhing all the new stuff and realize it's freaking HOT in there. Boo decides he can't handle the stuffiness, so he tells me he'll wait outside, then asks if I noticed that sales guys I always see has cut his hair. I look over and dredlock guy chopped off his locks! how sad :( I finally get what I'm there for. Some Dr. Bonners soap. This stuff is like magic. I can use it to wash my hair, wash my laundry, wash my face, clean my camp dishes, AND brush my teeth with. All this in one little bottle. I picked up the lavender scent for future backpack outings. Shrek and I meet up with Boo and I notice he's limping. He's ankle swelled up a bit, so we decide to take it easy the rest of the night.

We get back in time for the community hot dog dinner to pick our pokers and start grilling up some dogs over an open fire. I love cooking hot dogs this way. They seem to taste better cooked over an open flame. After dinner everyone breaks off into circles of conversations around the fire. Boo and I relax in the camp chairs, watch the fire, and talk for hours. Around 9pm, we decide to take a stroll into town just to keep from falling asleep. If you've ever been to Hot Springs, you know it's an itty bitty little town. So it didn't take us long to walk the entire length. We stopped in front of Rock Bottoms and listened to the live musician strumming his guitar and in true music snobbery, Boo had to let me know how the guy didn't play the song right and left out a bunch of notes and rifts. To the untrained ear, it sounded pretty good. hahaha! We got back to the campground and decided to hang by the fire some more til others start hitting their hammocks. I open up the brownies that Boo made and soon everyone is enjoying them. Around 10:30 pm, we call it a night and crawl into our hammocks just in time. It started to rain. I slept snug as a bug all night and didn't wake up til 7:30am. Around 8am, Boo nudges me out of the hammock. We pack up, say our good byes, and drive home in the rain. It rained all weekend long and regardless, I had a nice time in the woods. Til next time. GET OUTDOORS!!!

Hikng Hot Springs

At 10am Boo dropped me off at the Allen gap (2234 elevation) trial head. It was cloudy, raining, and cold. I was wearing my new waterproof jacket I bought from Campmor and I wanted to test it out. (I had on my hiking skirt, but changed into pants b/c it was just to chilly.) As I left for my 12 mile SOBO hike to Hot Springs, I turned around to wave at Boo one last time. He had the most pitiful look on his face. I knew he hated leaving me on the side of the road in the pouring rain, with no cell connection. I had to put on a brave front for him, cause honestly, I was a bit nervous/excited. I'm a fair weather hiker, so the combination of the cold rain and 12 miles of wilderness had me a bit nervous. But deep down inside I wanted to prove to myself that I could do this. I could solo section hike in the rain on the AT. So off I climbed. And that first climb was a LONG climb up. The rhododendrum's trees/bushes kept me pretty covered so I didn't get hit too hard with the rain and my jacket did its job just fine. (Love the jacket by the way!) I finally get to the top (3200), after several false tops, and it's still raining, I climb down the other side (2800) and over the course of the next three miles, I climbed up and down 2 more mountains. I reached the Sping Mountain shelter (3300) at 12:30pm just as the sun started to peek through the clouds. I stopped for a much needed a water and lunch break. I flipped through the shelter registery to find my my fav 2009 trailjournal thru-hikers (Gangsta and Wags) and read their entries. It was pretty surreal reading it. It was like a, "they DO exist!" moment. I lounged around for a 1/2 hour reading and munching on a banana and granola bar before packing up. I said good bye to a small mouse that was kept his eye on me, waiting for me to leave the shelter. I pushed on. I climbed up and down another mountain to Hurricane Gap (2234) where I crossed two roads (probably a forestry road leading up to the fire tower) then climbed up Rich Mountian(3670). WHAT A CLIMB!!! I felt like it took forever, but as soon as I got to the fire tower side trail I grinned and remembered the last time I was here. (I wanted so bad to continue down the AT, but was just out for a weekend NOBO backpacking up to the Fire Tower from Hot Springs. Well now I know know what's down that AT trail, cause I just SOBO hiked it!) As soon as I got there, that ridiculous LMFAO song "I'm in Miami Trick" started pouring out of my mouth. I had to laugh at myself for even remembering the lyrics. "When I walk on the seen, Ya'll know me, cause I walk with a limp, like an old school pimp, a real O.G."

Anyways.... why that song at that moment? Who know's, it's catchy though. I felt AWESOME that I got up that mountain and I just started singing, jumping, and dancing. Oh, you know I was dancing hard too! hahaha! Thank goodness know one was around. I didn't climb the fire tower side trail this time, cause I've done it before. So I continued on the AT to the Roundtop Ridge Mountain Trail intersection. I took a quick 15 minute water/snack break before hiking the last four miles into Hot Springs. The Roundtop Ridge Mountain trail is actually the old AT trail before it was moved. So I was hiking, as I like to call it, the AT Classic :) I decided to go this way b/c I was doing the Tanyard Gap to Lovers Leap section tomorrow. Anways, I think that LMFAO song got me pumped (or it could of been a hiking high) cause I flew down the rest of the trail, I even ran in some areas. I finally got to River Road, turned left, and walked 1/4 mile to the bridge in Hot Springs. I rolled into the campground at 4pm and spent the rest of the afternoon catching up with fellow hammock hangers. Since Boo and I were there for the South Eastern Hammock Hangers Association (SEHHA) hang out. It was nice to sit around the campfire (in the rain, cause it didn't let up) and hang out. Boo was relieved to see me and had told everyone that if I wasn't back by 8pm, there would be a search party in route to come find me. hahhaa! You can bet I slept good in my hammock that night too. Til next time. GET OUTDOORS!!!

Diva gear

I finally found it!

I found the cutest little hiking skirt (with some shorty shorts underneath) and I am now the owner of an "Official Diva" piece of gear. I love it! It's cute, comfy, and girlie. I found it on the Campmor site. It's made out of the same material as my hiking pants, that's probably b/c my hiking pants came from campmor too. :) I need a reason to test it out! This weekend I think I'm going hiking....
(review to come later)

Ridgeline Trail

Last night Boo tells me he thinks he's ready for a hike. (He's had a bum ankle and it's finally on the mend.) So I invite him to hike with me on the Ridgeline trail, I was planning on doing 10 miles, but told him to just hike what he could and when I flipped it at the 5 mile mark, I would run into him and we would finish up together.

We got up with the alarm at 6:30am, slipped on our hiking clothes, made some PB&J's for the trail, and loaded our trek poles and backpacks in my car. On the way to Boulder Access trail head of Crowders Mountain, we listened to some Sunday morning radio talk show that talked about living life to the fullest in a healthy way. Like, when you're feeling down and out. The next time someone invites you do something, you should just say yes and not think of a millions reason why you shouldn't. Ex: a friend invites the talk show host to a spin class at the YMCA. Her immediate thoughts are; I haven't worked out in forever; I've never taken a spin class; I'm going to look stupid and embarrass myself; etc... Well, she decides to go and as she walks into the YMCA, she reads a sign that says something to the effect of, " this is the place to become healthy physically, mentally, and spiritually, " and she felt like the sign intended for her to see it, read it, and GET it. After taking the spin class, she realized she really enjoyed it and she felt physically better that she worked out, which in turn made her feel mentally better about her situation. Anyways, the radio show segment really made me think about how much all this hiking on weekends has really improved my health, physically, mentally, and spiritually. I hope it spoke to Boo and inspired him to say yes to the next opportunity that presents itself, so he too, can grow healthier. Ok... enough of the Sunday Sermon.

The hike was a bit easier this time around. Maybe b/c I wasn't suffering from heat exhaustion. We started on the trail at 8:06 am, and I hiked 5 miles by 10 am to Pinnacle Road and turned around. I called Boo and let him know I was on my way back. He decided to turn around and head back too. His ankle was starting to swell. We think he hiked around 5 miles total today. I pushed through and finished strong up the climbs and the next thing I knew I was rounding the top of the last climb where the ranger station was at 11:35am. WHOO HOO!

When I got there, Boo had all the windows down and was relaxing in the back with his ankle propped up. I pulled down the tailgate and decided to relax too. Thank goodness we remembered to pack a small cooler with with some drinks. I ate my PB&J with an icy cherry berry vitamin water :)
Til next time. GET OUTDOORS!!!

Disc Golf Sunday

We woke up at a lazy 8am Sunday. It's been a while since I've seen Boo on the weekends, b/c I've been off training/backpacking. So we decided to spend some quality time together. We ate breakfast, then got dressed, and loaded little dog in the car with us. She was feeling under the weather the past week and just started getting a little spring in her step, so we thought we would take her to the local disc golf course with us for some exercise. She was such a little puppy, jumping around all excited and it made my heart feel good seeing her act like her normal silly self again.

It was actually pretty nice out. Not too hot yet. We decided to walk the par-3 golf course and we powered through the 18 holes in about an hour. I know I got a good workout, b/c I was drenched in sweat. Little dog seemed like she got in good workout too b/c by the 18th hole, she was ready to quit! hahaha! Boo's ankle seems to be on the mend too. He was able to get thru with minimal pain. He hurt his ankle a few weeks back and has been MIA on the most recent adventures.

Afterwords, we race home to shower, change, and head up to my parents for a BBQ. I made a nice salad, Boo made a fresh strawberry shortcake dessert, and mom made everything else. The burgers of course were my fav's. YUM! We spent a wonderful afternoon hanging out with my parents and their neighbors. Boo even brought his hammock to lounge in. It was a nice way to spend labor day weekend.

Sweet 16

Since I was so pumped about my 12 miler, I decided to upped the ante and go for a 16 miler. I threw out a challenge (to myself that is. Hey, I got to keep it interesting,) and stressed about it all week long. hahaha! I know I did a 12 miler a couple of weeks ago, but it was still tough and I was a bit concerned about hydration, and even if I could do the miles. The trail I chose was the Kings Mountain trail 16 mile loop.

Well, Saturday morning my alarm goes off at the usual (during the week) 6:30am. For the first time in a LOOONG time, I didn't hit snooze. I jumped up, threw on my hiking clothes, grabbed my boots, tip toed downstairs and let the dogs out, picked up my packed-the-night-before day pack and trek poles and I was out the door. The whole drive to Kings Mountain I was worried, but I new I had everything I needed in my day pack. I packed the water filter, so I can load up on water at the stream crossings, I packed alot of food, just in case I needed it, I packed my first aid and toiletry kits, AND I even packed my head lamp, in case I had to do some night hiking. I mean I was prepared! With a full day pack I pulled into Kings Mountain State Park at 7:30am, paid my $2 entry fee for my parking pass, and drove out to the trail head. I parked at Lake Crawford campground, laced up my hiking boots, locked the car and made a quick last stop at the bathrooms.

I was officially on the trail at 7:48am and still wondering if I could do it. Well, I just put one foot in front of the other and the next thing I knew, I was sitting down for a water/snack break at the 8 mile mark and it was 11am! Now, I'm not going to sit here and tell you it was easy, b/c it was not. It had its challenges. Lets start off the the actual trail itself. Now, the trail traverse two parks. The Kings Mountain STATE park, and the Kings Mountain NATIONAL Military Park. So State vs. Fed. and it's roughly split 8 miles per park. The great thing about this trail, is that at each mile, there is a mile marker, so you can tell how far you've gone. I believe the Federal governmentt established this b/c mile marker 1 starts at the National Military Park. I parked in the State side, b/c the hours of the park were 7am til 9pm, the hours on the National park side were 9am to 5pm and I didn' t think I could make it out before the park closed it's gate. Ok... so I officially started at mile marker 3. Not being mathematically inclined, it was frustrating reaching each mile marker and subtracting 3, especially when it got to the double digits, oh the confusion. (Hey, don't make fun, I bet I could out read your ass, I just happen to loathe anything mathematical, and it shows. hahhaa!) Anyways, so I started at mile marker 3. Let's talk about the trail. I'm calling you out South Carolina. What is up with your trail maintenance crew? or should I say lack of trail maintenance crew. What's my $2 fee paying for anyways? The trail was so over grown, I was literally fighting back plants, (thorny sticky plants), just to see the trail in some sections. Oh, and lets talk about down trees. I stopped counting after I had to crawl, yes crawl! under the 5th tree. Some of the down trees were too tall for me to hop over. Which brings me to one specific tree. A HUGE tree, was toppled over the trail and half a bridge around mile marker 7. I had to get off trail, cross a stream, then climb up a steep ravine and find the trail.
Spiders, ok. I'm not afraid of spiders, I know they exist in the woods, but every ten feet I was doing some serious webbing. It was as if this trail hadn't been used all summer. Not true though, because I found evidence. Horse shit. Horse crap on this hikers only trail. The crap looked pretty fresh, like it had been there just a couple of days. I was disappointed that the entire trail was going to be like this.
So after my 8mile water/snack break, two hikers doing the exact same loop came up from behind me. We exchanged hellos and I selfishly let them pass me so I wouldn't have to do anymore webbing. YES! Not more than 15 feet down the trail, one of them turns around, peeling cob web off his face, and says, so you're the reason I didn't run into any webs. I smile and simply say "YUP, your turn." He laughs and continues down the trail. I finally get up, and walk a mile to mile marker 12 (really my 9th mile) and am greeted with a "National Park Border" sign. I have officially stepped into the FED side. OMG, what an immediate difference. The trail was wider and really well maintained. I have no issues with the rest of the trail through out the Federal side. SC State should take a lesson from the Feds. They know how to maintain a trail.

The last 7 miles were tough. I was fatigued and needed more breaks, but I reached my car at 2:54pm. By 3pm I was driving with the windows down, and grinning from ear to ear. I could not believe I had finished 16 miles by 3pm! Thats 7 hours or roughly 2.28 miles per hour. I'm a bad ass :) hahha! at least I think I am. I've never done that mileage before and I'm going to enjoy my little accomplishment for the rest of the day :) Til next time, GET OUTDOORS!

Round 3 GSMNP (Sun)

After a lazy morning, we finally packed up, and SHOE goes to get the food bags from the cables. When she gets back, we discovered that some little critter liked Shemia's bag. It gnawed a hole in her food bag, stole her nuts, and in return, left her some turd pellets. hahaha!

We knew we had a pretty easy 5 miles, so we took our time and left camp at 9am. We back tracked the .6 miles of Cabin Flats trail and at the trail junction we hopped on Bradley Fork trail. The first .5 miles was pretty rocky and had at least 3 water crossings. One crossing was over a little log bridge that had all kinds of moss and plants growing out of it.

We came across an old bridge and SHOE found in her guide book that it had been there since the 1920's. It still looked sturdy and more importantly felt sturdy when we crossed it. For the next 4 miles the trail was nice, wide, very well graded, and followed along a meandering river. No loose rocks, just nice flat trail. We all walked together for a mile or so, chit chatted, and snapped photos of the river. Soon though, we split up and started hiking our own hike. I put it in 5th gear and shot down the trail. I wanted to get in a good cardio workout since it was pretty flat. By 11am I was at the trailhead. It only took 2 hours to hike 5 miles. I was soooo shocked that I was done that quick. WOW. All this hiking on the weekend is finally starting to pay off! When I got to my car, I pulled out my change of clothes and my flip flops and headed to the campground bathroom to change. Shemia showed up and I left the car open for her to put her stuff in. Once I was in dry and in clean clothes, I felt like a new woman. By then, SHOE had showed up and I went to move the car closer. On the way to the car, I heard a cat screeching away. I turned and saw an elderly lady sitting in a lounge chair reading a book and not more than 5 feet in front of her was a black cat tide up to a tree! I have never seen a cat on a leash before, let alone tied to a tree! It was the most hilarious sight. I laughed at that poor cats misery. The owner must of been reading a really good book, b/c she completely tuned out her cat.

We then hopped in my car and I drove up to Newfound Gap to drop off SHOE and Shemia at their car. All in all it was another great trip in the Smoky's. I really enjoyed the views from Charlie's Bunion so much that it made me forget the climb up. It trully is an amazing site to see. Once again, thanks to SHOE for her logistical planning and thanks to Shemia for upping the pace and making me move! I learned alot from both ladies and enjoyed their company. Til next time. GET OUTDOORS!!!