Drizzle, Wild Turkeys, Mush, Toilet Paper, Gun Shot and Donkeys

What a great day for a hike! I never thought I would say that when heading out the door to hike on a cloudy day with the temperature in the forties! All weather forecasts said the day would be dry, but as my friend Cheryl and I approached Boone County Cliffs State Nature Preserve there was a light drizzle on the windshield. As we approached the turnoff for the trail we saw a couple of wild turkeys crossing the road, a sure sign that we were in the country! This made me hopeful that we might see some wildlife in the barren woods along the hike. The drizzle ended and we were neither hot nor cold. As Cheryl said, "It was perfect!"

The directions for the entrance to the hike were most helpful. This was a really out-of-the-way place! When we pulled into the gravel area for parking, there was a sign: "Trail Closed". I immediately started laughing and got out of the car to take a picture, wondering where we would head next to get a hike in on this day. It seemed ironic that on the very first hike the trail would be closed! Then we looked to the other end of the parking lot and there was another trail. Thank goodness! The forty-five minute drive was going to result in a hike after all!

Hiking boots were a definite must as the terrain was so muddy and rocky.  Gym shoes would likely have gotten sucked off of our feet in certain areas that were like mush.  The best part about this 1.7 mile hike were the hills we had to climb. They allowed us to see some beautiful views in this heavily wooded area.  Although it is the middle of winter, one of the beautiful sites we saw were rocky surfaces covered with very bright green moss.  It was amazing to see such color amongst the drab surroundings.

It was so unbelievably quiet out there! A small creek winds around the area and no matter how far away we got, you could hear it in the distance. One of the benefits of hiking with a friend is the stimulating conversation you can have. One that hops into my mind was about eating donuts and whether eating them can be considered "fun". I will leave you alone to ponder about that one!  Cheryl is kind of a worry wart and stated that she was concerned that "Earl" might come out of the woods with his shot gun. Not 5 minutes later, the silence of the woods was broken by gun shot in the distance which caused me to laugh hysterically and Cheryl to worry about our wild turkey friends we saw earlier.

I thought for sure that we would see some kind of wildlife as we hiked seeing as the trees are so barren and there is no ground brush this time of year.  The only other animals we saw were a couple of donkeys in someone's yard along the road to the trail. I was wondering why they were both standing side-by-side with their back ends pushed up against the fence. Hilarious! Wild turkeys and donkeys were not exactly what I was hoping for from these experiences.

The hike took us about one hour. The book said it would take about 1.5 hours and that it was a moderate hike. Since it was only the first hike and I don't have much to compare it to, I would agree that it was moderate due to the hills involved. I would love to go back in another season. It was truly a beautiful trail. Cheryl and I were both sad that it seemed to be over so fast.

I am so grateful for all of the messages of encouragement from so many people via email, blog comments and facebook messages. A shout out to Steve for recommending "New Skin" to help with blisters.  Although we didn't need it on this hike, I feel more prepared having it on me. A blister can ruin any hike. Another shout out to my friend Gina for her suggestion of toilet paper. I never would have thought of packing it! Whew! Thanks to Cheryl for joining me on the first hike of this journey.

One hike down and only fifty-nine to go! Next week's hike will be to Hueston Woods State Park. It's about an hour from where I live and the hike itself is between 4 and 6 miles. It's a moderate to difficult hike so I'm sure there will be plenty to share. I will post a comment to this blog after I look at the weather forecast and decide which day I will be hiking in case you want to join.