Breathtaking and terrifying!

I was able to eek out a few hours in the early morning to head to Kickapoo Valley Reserve.

My hiking pal, Bill has been busy since he became the sitter for his grandkids. In June he had them every day. This month they are in summer school and get out at noon. Then he has to get them to baseball games and whatever else their social calendar requires of him.

I do have to say, that makes him an extraordinary grandfather! I've decided not to wait to continue my Trail Challenge. I am charging ahead in case Bill's time is still tied up and we can't make all the trails together.

KVR does make a pretty good effort to designate the trails, however in some places they are rather vague. Carrying a map and a compass is a great thing to do.

This marker reminds equines to stay on the trail. In the 1990's we used to ride up and over this rock formation and skinny down the other side. We loved it, however it was deemed dangerous and it created issues with sensitive soil and plants.

Charlie and I marched on like we were on a mission for the first two miles. Most of this part of the trail is uphill. We started at Pott's Corners and headed up the West Ridge Trail past Ma & Pa's Trail to the Hanson Rock trail. 

The Hanson Rock trail traverses a mature oak and maple forest and goes along the top of a rock ridge. You can't really see it in the summer, but fall, spring, and winter, it is more obvious. The trail is serpentine and heavily shaded which was perfect for us.

This is from the first leg from Pott's Corners or Weister Creek parking area in Infrared. The green is almost overwhelming so I thought it would be fun to see it this way.

This is from the Hanson Rock Trail through the oak/maple tree forest.

As Charlie and I ventured into nearly the second mile, we came to an area where numerous trees had been blown down. There was a huge oak leaning into another tree and we could hear creaking. I couldn't tell where it was coming from but I suspected it was the huge oak. There was no wind to speak of. 

I decided to go around.

Just as we got to the other side we heard -- snap, crackle, pop and watched as the huge oak came slamming down with a thunderous boom. 

Charlie was unnerved. I got my answer to the age old question. If a tree falls in the woods and no one is there to hear it? You bet, it makes noise!

Fallen Oak

We went on.

After many twists and turns we finally came to the marker that designated Hanson Rock Loop. The loop on the ridge is .67 miles long and ends at a pretty neat lookout of sorts.

Charlie and I had a well deserved break at that time and enjoyed sharing a PB&J sandwich along with an apple. He had his water in a peanut butter jar lid and I had mine from my bottle.

I took some time to photograph the lookout in Infrared. Where the sky doesn't appear very interesting in normal color, it sure looked neat with the IR. The shot below is a 3 shot panoramic hand held.

These oaks are rooted to the edge of the bluff.

We headed back a bit more swiftly than our hike out. I was amazed that Charlie was doing so well. His pace was slow at times. The closer we got to getting back to the car, the faster he went.

We ran into a woman and her dog at the head of the trail that said she was headed for Hanson's Rock to see the Petroglyphs she heard were there. 

I heard that they existed but I couldn't say where they were in that 5 mile loop. Exploring around the bluffs would mean going off trail and she'd never been to the area before. The bluffs and areas around the rocks are choked with weeds and wonderful plants like poison ivy. 

I wished her luck. She asked how far it was to the Lookout. I told her that it would be a 5 mile out and back. Her face was priceless. 

I told her to enjoy her hike.

We headed towards the car....

Charlie in the lead

Our trip had been exhilarating and peaceful. 

Time to head home.