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Took a walk today

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    • We went out for a short, quick walk today to help offset a giant lunch we had.
      We did 4.6 miles round trip, out and back, on a local suburban trail, in a little less than 2 hours.
      The GPS said we had an elevation gain of 164 feet but I just don't see that as this part of the Nassau/Suffolk Trail seems dead flat.
      The weather was OK but nothing great. It was about 50% overcast, the temperature was 42 at the start and 38 at the finish but the blustery wind made it feel like it was colder. All in all an enjoyable couple of hours as we didn't see many people, just 1 guy with his dog. We did hear more people walking and cycling on a parallel paved path but didn't have to deal with them at all. :)
    • This walk was actually from the end of December, but I think I will count this next year as part of my 2020 miles. It was actually more of a driving tour, but I got about 2 miles of trail walking in.

      Red Rock Canyon, Las Vegas, NV


      I slept in my car outside the park so I could get in to see the morning light on the canyon. I was not disappointed. I was also not the only one with that idea. When I got to the gate in the dark, there was already a line of two dozen cars queued up.








      If you ever have a trip to Las Vegas, rent a car and take the quick trip outside the city to Red Rock Canyon. It is just a half hour drive from the strip. Lots of pretty scenery and hiking trails for day hikes.
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • odd man out wrote:

      U wife and I are going to Vegas at the beginning of March . Will check it out. We are visiting our daughter who moved to Henderson in October. After a weekend with them we will have a couple of days on own. We will paint the town beige.
      OMO, my daughter also moved to Vegas in October. She lives in North Vegas and is assigned to the Nellis AFB.
      Red Rock Canyon is great, with several short day-hiking trails. Even better than that was The Valley of Fire which is a little over an hour from Vegas. I will post some pictures of there next week.
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • My sister got married in Las Vegas Oct 2005. Next morning she hosted everyone at the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay for brunch-memorable. The rest of the day was spent with my husband and daughter checking out places along the strip. I placed a bet on MSU to win the National Championship at one of the sports books. This was the team that was pre-season top 5 with Paul Davis, Mo Ager, Shannon Brown. Should have just flushed that 20 down the toilet or being a bit of a pyro-set it on fire, as they flamed out in the first round against George Mason.

      Anyway, my husband and daughter flew home on the red eye and my other sister and I stayed an additional day. We rented a car which we were able to pick up at one of the hotels on the strip (the one next to Paris, seems like it starts with an A), then drove to Hoover Dam and afterwards to Red Rock Canyon. Hoover Dam is ok but the Red Rock Canyon was GREAT. We saw some rock etchings and enjoyed the trails!
    • Drybones wrote:

      First hike in a while, 10.5 miles on the Pinhoti from Adams Gap to Cheaha trailhead...plus another .5 mile or so on the "Lost Trail"...we've all been on that trail...but I've hiked this more times than I have toes or fingers so no excuse
      Once on the AT in PA I was thinking wow the trail sure is nice and flat here. Started seeing bike riders, and sure enough AT had branched off a ways back after a bridge. At least it was an easy walk back. :)
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • I few times on my PCT section hikes I have hiked 'The Lost Trail' due to missed turns and such. This is the price I pay for not using any of those smart phone apps. The thing is these side excursions have usually led me to someplace beautiful. A few extra miles I have to backtrack, but often with no regrets.
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • IMScotty wrote:

      I few times on my PCT section hikes I have hiked 'The Lost Trail' due to missed turns and such. This is the price I pay for not using any of those smart phone apps. The thing is these side excursions have usually led me to someplace beautiful. A few extra miles I have to backtrack, but often with no regrets.
      Yeah my PA mishap was back in 2015 before I had Guthook. Personally recommend it now.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • The problem with gps is that you have to use for it to work, only pull mine out after I'm in deep doo doo. I was on the CT one day and wanted to pitch the hammock early and get some rest, got set up about 3:30, lying there bored, tried to call home but no signal, thought I'd look at my phone gps just to have something to do...need I tell the rest of the story?
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.
    • Astro wrote:

      Drybones wrote:

      First hike in a while, 10.5 miles on the Pinhoti from Adams Gap to Cheaha trailhead...plus another .5 mile or so on the "Lost Trail"...we've all been on that trail...but I've hiked this more times than I have toes or fingers so no excuse
      Once on the AT in PA I was thinking wow the trail sure is nice and flat here. Started seeing bike riders, and sure enough AT had branched off a ways back after a bridge. At least it was an easy walk back. :)
      My walks back are never easy, the wrong direction is always down hill and I make great time.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.
    • Kathy, me, and our dog spent yesterday and today in Harriman State Park.
      We arrived about 10AM Sunday morning, saddled up and hit the trail by 1030 with about 3 inches of snow on the ground.
      We purposely walked slowly, so as to not work up too much of a sweat, as the temps were in the 30s.
      About 12:30 we were at the Bald Rocks shelter for lunch and relaxed longer than we expected too. After all, the idea of this trip was to relax, and get away from home and the routine of daily life. After lunch we continued on with no particular destination in mind, weaving our way through the woods on several different trails. We wound up near Island Pond and decided to camp in this area, despite the "No Camping" sign. We got the tent set up and our stuff ready to spend the night just as it was getting dark. Kathy asked me what was it hanging from my shoe. I looked down and to my surprise the sole was falling off my old Vasque Clarion boots! Next was to make some hot water to mix in with the dog's food and to make our dinner. After admiring the star filled sky we got ourselves ready and climbed into the tent and our sleeping bags. The forecast was calling for the low overnight temp to be in the mid teens so I was using my winter bag, rated for -25. It was so warm and comfortable that getting out to answer natures call during the night was a real pain. The 4:20 nature call was an eye opener as the temperature was a lot colder than earlier :/ . Wake-up call came from Kathy at around 7AM, more than 12 hours after turning in. Woooo Buddy it was cold! Besides the low temperature it was pretty breezy, making it feel even colder than it was. We put on extra layers to stay warm but had cold hands and feet anyway. We packed up our stuff and had hot drinks and breakfast. We had each slept with a bottle of water to keep it liquid and had filled our pot with water the night before which had turned to ice. Our MSR white gas stove melted the ice and heated our water for hot chocolate and oatmeal. It was time to duct tape the sole to my shoe and then don our packs and start walking. We started out feeling a little cold but eventually warmed up and had to shed some clothes and adjust other pieces to keep from overheating and working up too much of a sweat. Today the trails , all of which had been used since the snow fell, where frozen sold and very slippery in some places. We didn't retrace yesterday's route, but instead, followed different trails back to our car which was parked at the Lake Skanatati parking area. Then on the way home we stopped and had a nice meal at a restaurant we'd passed many times. Good food and nice atmosphere was a great way to end this trip. But we weren't quite done, we decided to go out of our way and make a stop at Campmor. The store as it is today is just a shell of what it used to be, kind of sad. The employees were still wanting to be very helpful so that's a good thing. We bought a few items and then made the drive home in pretty good time. Well that's it for our first winter trip of 2020.
    • These photos are from the Valley Of Fire State Park, NV



      This is the most popular feature there, 'The Wave.' Unfortunately it was crawling with people and I could not get a good photo.


      There are tons of petroglyphs here. I think this one represents Shaman leading members of the tribe. I loved looking at them all and imagining the people who lived here a millennium ago.


      For scale, find the hiker in this photo.


      This is beehive rock. Stands about 12 feet tall. If you ever saw a old straw beehive skep you would know how it got its name.

      I highly recommend the Valley of Fire State Park. It is about 1 1/4 hour drive out of Las Vegas. Even more beautiful than Red Rock Canyon. I was sick this day so this was more of a car tour for me. Added another 2 miles of actual hiking to my 2020 total.
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • Hello LIHikers,

      I use a Sony RX100 as my trail camera. It is small enough to keep in a jacket pocket. The problem with a larger camera that gets packed away (besides the weight) is that it is never handy when you need it.
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • odd man out wrote:

      Can you hike here on easy trails? Due to arthritis, my wife can't walk on uneven (eg Rocky or steep) trails.
      Hello OMO,
      First there is plenty to see by car. There are a range of short hikes you can pick from. There is a 'Welcome Center' where I sure the rangers could make some recommendations. That 1.5 walk to 'The wave' had a bit of change in elevation, so it might not be a good choice. The 'Petroglyph Trail' was shorter, and pretty flat and I think that would be a good choice. That one is an in-and-out, so your wife could hike in as little or as much as she wants. There were lots of other stops I did not get to.

      I regret not finding something called the "Pink Canyon." Google that, it looks stunning. It is not marked on the park map, I think they try to keep it on the down-low. When I go back I plan on seeking that out.
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • Drybones wrote:

      got in 18 mile loop hike this weekend, left my truck with small grill, ribeyes, wine, cognac at halfway, best steak I've ever had, had to carry stuff about 1/4 mile to camp site but every bit worth it
      Never had cognac on the trail. For a couple of unusual reasons my cognac has come from unusual places. My last bottle was from the pseudo-contry of Transneistria (really part of Moldova) and the current bottle is from Kazakhstan.
    • Finally got a Monday/Tuesday where it wasn't below freezing or pouring down rain. After my class in Ft Smith I drove to Mt Magazine State Park. Got there after 10pm, and rain was just misting, but the fog was unbelievable. I drove around the loop where the campsite was, but with the lack of visibility never saw it. Tried again from the other direction and still not visible.

      So I just parked by the Lodge and slept in my car instead of my tent. Got 8 miles in this morning before heading home. Fortunately took pictures last summer, because still foggy some today.
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      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Went for a walk at Red Rock Canyon just outside Las Vegas. Here are some picks of me on a rock, an some of the scenery. It was very crowded. The line at the entrance gate backed up for 20 minutes and all the trail head parking lots parking lots were full or nearly full. We just did a couple of short walks. Also if you go stop at the visitors center. It is vary well done. I think today we will go to Hover Dam and the for dinner and a show at the Mirage.

    • Cool pictures of the Hoover Dam. I will have to visit that on my next trip out there.

      OMO, do you have any info on that weird mottled rock?

      When I went to Red Rock Canyon I got there in darkness before it opened because I wanted to take some sunrise photos. There were already a dozen cars lined up. It is a popular destination.
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • That weirdottled rock was just lying on the petroglyphs trail in the dry Creek bed. Was about 3 by 4 feet and flat but not smooth. It was so odd. I was sure it couldn't be natural, but eventually decided it had to be. Zoom in close to get a good look at the patterns. I am guessing it was sandstone, one of those petrified sand dunes, broken across the grain of an erosion pattern.
    • odd man out wrote:

      That weirdottled rock was just lying on the petroglyphs trail in the dry Creek bed. Was about 3 by 4 feet and flat but not smooth. It was so odd. I was sure it couldn't be natural, but eventually decided it had to be. Zoom in close to get a good look at the patterns. I am guessing it was sandstone, one of those petrified sand dunes, broken across the grain of an erosion pattern.
      I walked the Petroglyph trail, but missed that rock. Cool rock. Wish I had seen it.
      “Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
      the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”


      John Greenleaf Whittier
    • We also took a "hike" on the strip. The distances are deceptively long since the resorts are so huge. We started at the Venetian, did a thru hike of Caesars Palace (that alone can take a few hours), then to the Bellagio to see the art and fountains, then to the Cosmopolitan for cocktails, then through Planet Hollywood en route to Paris for dinner. Then we went to the Flamingo for a show, and back to the Venetian.
    • Nothing exciting, most of my hikes this year have been 3 miles on a flat section of Kennesaw Mountain. There were a couple times when the temp was in the 60's so I decided I'd head to Springer the next day -- although each time the forecast (which ended up being correct) was for rain the next day.

      Certainly nothing to brag about, but I've got 102 miles in at the end of February. Much better than the last 2 years.
      2,000 miler
    • My first hike with my granddaughter (Miss Snotty Nose) at Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area. We had a great time and saw some migratory Snow Geese. They are so vocal and loud! I took a video but can’t post videos.

      Actually, it was my first hike this year. I’ve been sick most of the winter which has sucked! I’ve been running and walking a little bit but that’s all I’ve been able to manage. Hopefully I’m on the mend...
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      Lost in the right direction.