Hiking

Yesterday, I went hiking with my dad, brother, sister and dog in Fayston, on Burnt Rock mountain. It was the first time in over a decade that we've hiked as a family - I have many fond memories of us hiking in New York during the summer. When I saw dad earlier this week and said that he and Dan were planning on hiking the mountain, I decided it would be a good time to go. Hiking is something that I've absolutely loved doing, and one of a couple things that I never seem to find the time to do (others being skiing and reading more).

I've hiked this peak before, as a scout over fifteen years ago now. Hiking it again brought back some memories, as I recognized some of the stops along the trail, and the top of the mountain. It was a relatively short hike - 4 miles all told, but it illustrated just how out of shape that I've become in the past year. When I was walking to school all the time (not to mention up and down the Norwich University campus, which is all hills), it kept me in fantastic shape. Since I've been driving to and from work and not really moving around as much as I usually do, I was out of breath a lot quicker than I should have been. Despite that, hiking again was fun, and getting to the top was breathtaking - it was pretty clear yesterday, and we had a fantastic view of the Mad River Valley.

It was the first time that I've gone hiking with Fionna - she really had fun, running ahead of us, taking in the new sights and smells. We only had to help her at two points, both rock ledges that she just couldn't figure out a way around.

I need to get into better shape - I'm paying for the hike today, as my legs are really sore from the walk. I suspect that even walking around town every day would be helpful. I should do that...

Walk On

I need to go hiking again. It's been on my mind for a while now. I just need to get out and go up the Long Trail sometime, to get some air and to just relax. Maybe this weekend... I've been to a couple of the main peaks in Vermont, Mt. Mansfield, which was an awesome hike, Camel's Hump, also outstanding. Mt. Hunger was a tough one, but rewarding once we reached the top. It's been ages since I've actually gone on the Long Trail for any great distance.

VT Long Trail (Click to Enlarge)

Walk On

Happy Labor Day everyone- hope everyone's enjoying their day off if they got one.
I took a walk today, a loop that was about eight miles. It was pretty relaxing, something that I've wanted to do for a while now. Where I live, it's pretty rural, and anyone who's lived in New England knows that there are a ton of dirt roads all over the place, and are travelled fairly lightly depending on where you go. I walked up about a half mile to one class four road, known as the Devil's Washbowl, then hiked down that for about two miles. I ran across two men who were fishing. They asked me if I had any pot. I was a little surprised, but given that I was wearing a bandana, have a beard and long hair, I guess I shouldn't have. I told them I didn't and suggested going up to the University of Vermont. From Devil's Washbowl, I hit a slightly more travelled dirt road, stopped for lunch, then hit a paved road, Union Brook. Here, I wasn't sure which road to take. I ended up guessing which road would take me north to Cox Brook Road, which runs by my house. I guessed correctly and finished the loop. Looking back at a map after I completed my walk, I'm guessing that I went about eight miles, in about three hours, not a bad pace at all. It was a beautiful walk, especially on the dirt roads. There was little traffic until Union Brook, and it was nice to not see anyone for a while. The light in the trees was very relaxing. All in all, I found the paved roads to be more annoying than the dirt ones. They had less character, more traffic and more people. Plus, they tended to be a little warmer. Now, to rest.

Current Music: Best of You, The Foo Fighters