Trail Challenge Segment #53

What a totally boring title. It should be two dogs, two men, and a wild woman guide.

I'm not really a guide, but it felt like it. 

Or perhaps it should be Two Dogs, a Geologist, and a retired IT guy with the Skunk Hat Lady.

I thought I'd get going on our Trail Challenge 2022. Bill said he wanted to be a part of it and was a willing partner. I meet Jason while hiking on New Year's Eve and he happened to be free on Saturday too. I coordinated the hike and times for all of us.

The trail challenge encompasses 59 miles of trails that are to BE hiked. They say there are 50 trail segments. But I count 54. I've done all but 9 miles of these trails so I could familiarize myself with the KVR since it has been many years since I rode it with my husband on mules.

Bill wanted to avoid the Kickapoo Valley Reserve Winter Festival . I did too so I picked a trail that had bluffs, rocks, and a decent distance for us to do. 

The Trail is called the Cut Off Trail and runs from Cut Off road just south of County P. The distance of the segment is only 1.87 miles. 

Bill in front 
Jason bringing up the
rear

Jason's shot from inside a small

cave at me taking a 

photo of 

him.

Piper is his dog.

The first leg of the trail winds around a rock formation. Jason probably has a good technical term for it, but I don't.

Charlie and Piper took about a half mile to sort things out between them. They became the trail leaders.

The first part of this trail will make you pause and just keep saying things like.

Wow.

And...Wow....

Photos were shot with my infrared camera

which really brings out the 

details of the rocks.

While hiking, the dogs entertained us by playing. Charlie did great and Piper was an excellent pal for him. I think Jason and I were very pleased with how they got along ~~ I know I was. [At the end of the hike Charlie thought he should jump in the car with Piper and Jason. Sigh....Traitor!]

Jason explained rocks and geology. Both Bill and I enjoyed the learning experience. We learned more about the development of ice caves and rock shelters [new term for me that makes a lot of sense]. I learned why bluffs are on one side of the river and why the other side didn't have bluffs.

The guys actually chatted more than I did. I was there for the hike ~ and you guessed it ~~ the photo opportunities.

I don't always go for documentation. Sometimes I go for the odd and the different.

On our walk back along Cty P, I did just that. I used my Infrared Camera with a 665nm filter. 

My New Year's Resolution? Well I don't make them often. However I am trying to attain a goal this year. 

I want to actually complete the Trail Challenge. That is a goal and not a resolution per se.

And of course. Explore with photography.

Only 52 more segments to go....

Our hike map:

Sunday Stills #36

Morning?

"Hey I want to go with you on one of your morning hikes." Says my friend Bill.

I get up very early.

"How early?"

Old people early.

"Hah, I'm elderly, I get up to pee at 3:30. But I go back to bed and get up at 5 and 6 but go back to bed until CrossFit."

So what is Bill Early?

"What do you mean?"

I mean what time could you go realistically?

"I'll pick you up at 5?"

Text me when you start your pickup.

Truthfully, I would have gone earlier to 'catch' the predawn sky in my plans. But I thought I'd best not push it at all. Bill was an afternoon hiker but had recently discovered that mornings were best to beat the heat for doing outdoor stuff.

In the summer, I can't sleep past the first breath of predawn. I can't help it. I use that time to go check the fences, or walk on the ridge to watch the deer grazing in the cropland.

There is something pretty special about feeling like you have the world to yourself at that time of day.

It is almost an intrusion to have the rest of the world wake up too.

Bill is a neighbor and friend through CrossFit. He likes to complain that he is very old. He isn't. He is only 4 years older than I am. He is in his second year of retirement and true to form, he is busier now than pre retirement. He likes hiking as a form of relaxing exercise, but also has decided that he needs to get to know the area he has lived in for so many years but never had the time for.

I wanted to show him the beauty of early morning. The slanted light, the magic between dawn and day.

And... my husband feels more comfortable if I have someone going with me on my crazy excursions.

Of course I was awake at 3:30. I pondered which place I should take my friend.

So I decided to 'shoot' the Milkway since it was presenting itself right outside my porch.

That way I could be useful and ponder at the same time.

The lights in the lower half of the photo above mark my neighbor's solar lights on the dog fence and the streaks belong to the fireflies. 

The whole purpose of the morning hike was to get Bill excited enough to go with me to shoot the Milkyway or the stars above the ponds at KVR. Or to just watch a full moon set/sunrise down by the water.

That thought was two fold. While at the ponds, we could hopefully catch a glimpse of the Trumpeter Swans or other cool birds in the early morning.

Text: 4 minutes.

Text: Okay, I'll be here.

At 5, Bill picked me up. [First time in a vehicle with anyone outside my family.]

We parked as the sun was just coming over the horizon. It filtered through the wooded trail as we hiked up towards the rock outcropping. This short trail is all uphill and I can usually march up it quickly. No way was I going to make this uncomfortable for him. I matched his pace and listened to him breath.

"This is beautiful!" He kept exclaiming. The morning light was indeed enchanting as we walked right the light filtered through the heavy canopied woods.

I led him through the narrow trail up to the rock. To my horror I saw that the poison ivy had really done very well in the drought.

I asked Bill if he knew what poison ivy looked like. He didn't. So I helped negotiate the trail the rest of the way to keep his bare legs from rubbing the leaves of Three.

We'd missed the brilliant colors of dawn over the valley ....but....

The first view was enough for Bill to softly exclaim.

Wow.

wow...wow....

We spent about 20 minutes on top looking at the light, the forest, the mist, and the view.

And as promised, I had us back on the road in time for him to get home, take a short snooze and make his 9 am CrossFit class.

He was animated on the drive and asked if we could do this again. 

I let my idea of a full moon set and sunrise combo percolate with him a bit.

Next time I get smarter and bring coffee with me. I missed having coffee on the rock.