They had planned on taking a leisurely drive up in the mountains and then to take a hike through some of the most beautiful countryside in the world. Coming back, they were going to stop at The Mountain Inn well-known for its fabulous food and wanted to know if I wanted to join them. With nothing better to do, I agreed and they followed me back to my apartment as I dropped off my car and asked them up while I changed into something more suitable for a hike. They sat on the couch chattering as I changed and put on my hiking boots. I picked up my backpack that I had when I went hiking. It contained some essentials like a hunting knife, matches, a couple of blankets, a jacket and a first aid kit plus some health bars just in case.

“What do you want to bring that for” said Evelyn “We will be on a marked trail and we are not planning on staying overnight”

I looked at her and said “In my experience, when you get off the beaten track and go anywhere in the woods, you need to be prepared. Besides, the only discomfort may be in carrying the thing and I will do that”.

Before long with Evelyn driving, we were buzzing along on our way to the mountains. It was still early spring and things were just starting to bud out all over the place. It was a really pretty drive and as I had the entire back seat to myself was kinda sprawled out in a most comfortable way.

Angela turned around to see how comfortable I was and remarked, “Don’t go to sleep. You look like you are about to”. “Yeah” I responded “Would be real easy to do but I’ll stay awake”. I had brought both of my cameras with me and was busy taking shots as we drove along. Evelyn stopped as this big twelve point buck walked slowly across the road, pausing at one point and looking at the car as if to say, “take my picture” which I did, several in fact.

We reached the Park and got out of the car. The Ranger wandered over to chat with us and to fill us in on the latest news regarding the trail we were going to walk that day. Apparently, there was a minor rock fall we had to climb over and still some flooding close to the lake but other than that, there were no significant problems. With his parting “Take care” ringing in our ears, we set off along the well-marked trail which would swing around for about eight miles and return us back to where we started. At least, that was the plan.

Hiking these sorts of trails is relatively easy. All are well-marked and most have been cleared so it was really like taking a long walk in the country. The only thing to watch out for  dangers of the human kind riding off-road vehicles or the very occasional bear. Not a bit like walking unmarked country trails or through the woods with nothing to guide you. There, you need a compass and an idea of where you are heading while here, all you do is follow the signs.

We reached a lookout point with a wonderful view of the valley and river below. To get to the point itself, we had to climb over one hundred steps carved out of the rock or man-made where needed. It was well worth the climb. It must have been several hundred feet to the valley bottom and we could see a couple of canoes on the river riding the rough water. From up here, it didn’t look very turbulent but I imagine it took some considerable dexterity to operate a canoe through that rock strewn water.

Link to Page 4