Goodbye Spring, Hello Summer

Even though the calendar says it's still spring, the weather has quickly turned summer-like and that has presented some challenges this week. It's only been eight days since my last blog post, but I have completed 5 more hikes! Here are the locations and stats:

Hike #	Location	Distance	Temp	Time	Date
24	Mary Gray Bird Sanctuary	3.44 mi	77°	1 hr 45 min	5/19/12
25	Shrader-Weaver Nature Preserve	2.2 mi	86°	50 min	5/19/12
26	Curtis Gates Lloyd Wildlife Management Area	1.58 mi	87°	50 min	5/25/12
27	Mullins Wildlife Management Area	3.36 mi	87°	1 hr 36 min	5/25/12
28	Ceasar Creek Lake State Park	5.72 mi	87°	3 hr 26 min	5/27/87

This is a glimpse of the way that I keep track of my hikes so far and how I plan for future hikes. It's been really useful to make sure that I am staying on track to reassure myself that I will be able to get all 60 hikes in by the end of the year. I have all of the hikes mapped out on the table and make adjustments as needed according to my schedule or the weather. It's been very helpful. I'll use this blog post to share a little bit about each of these hikes and then summarize what I've learned this month.

Last weekend Morgan, Lorrie and I headed to Indiana to hike two hikes in one day. The first hike was to the Mary Gray Bird Bug Sanctuary. I had to change the name due to the multitude of bug bites that I got during this hike (no wonder the birds love it here!) This is an example of where my inexperience reveals itself. Every hike I carry a small pack on my back with hiking necessities, but I don't have any bug spray. Duh! The trail here was really pretty, however, I'm not sure the lengthy drive was worth it.  You know you're out in the boonies when every road you turn on for miles doesn't have a name, but is labeled with a number. After the hike we got some lunch in Connersville and then headed to Shrader-Weaver Nature Preserve. This hike was very beautiful as well. There were some really huge old trees, a variety of holes in the ground (we wondered if there is a field guide for this, like animal tracks?) and more bugs! The trip was complete with a pit stop at Shirl's Swirls for some much deserved ice cream to enjoy on the ride home.

On Friday, Joe and I headed out in the afternoon (our first mistake) to hike two hikes in Crittendon, Kentucky. These hikes were hard to follow and the temperature was very hot and muggy. I found myself missing the winter hiking months. We landed first at Curtis Gates Lloyd Wildlife Management Area. There was a shooting range on site so we listened to gunshots as we got started. We hadn't gone far when we took our first wrong turn of the day. We got completely off trail and hiked through a field of weeds and flowers. This mistake in combination of the stinging nettles along the hiking trail contributed to the bleeding cuts on our legs (Note to self: get some summer hiking pants.) Once we figured out where we were, we enjoyed the hike, but it was pretty overgrown in spots and not very well cleared. We both said it was not a place we would like to go back to hike. Next we headed to Mullins Wildlife Management Area. When we pulled up to the small gravel parking lot, it was apparent that this was not going to be like any hike we have done before. The property had a mixed identity - farmland meets hiking area - very confusing, but interesting at the same time. We headed along the mowed trail in the direct sunshine for quite some time before we got to the wooded trail for some shady relief. The hike through the woods was much more enjoyable, however, the trail has changed considerably since Tammy York wrote the book and we took 3 wrong turns which seemed to be the theme of the day. The heat made these mistakes a little unbearable. Joe was leading as we were finally on the home stretch. Because we were hot, sweaty and tired, we were really quiet when suddenly about five feet in front of Joe, a turkey came flying out of the weeds and into the trees! YIKES! It scared us as much as we scared it! We picked up the pace a little and headed our tired selves out of there. Joe and I got in the car and headed straight to the Whippy Dip around the corner. They served 27 different flavors of soft serve ice cream. Genius!

Having learned from the overheated experience from Friday, we headed out early in the morning on Sunday to Caesar Creek State Park. It was still hot, but much more bearable than trying to hike in the afternoon. I was joined on this hike by Cheryl, Lorrie, and Lorries' daughter, Jenna, who was given the nickname "Miss Goody New Shoes" because she had brand new shoes on for the hike. A risky decision considering we were going to hike around 5 miles, but Jenna's new shoes held up well and we were impressed that she got up so early in the morning to join us when she could have stayed in bed.  Thanks for joining us, Jenna! We hiked the Perimeter Trail that weaves its way through a fossil hunting area, into the woods, around Ceasar Creek lake, through several creek beds, and through a historic pioneer village. It was beautiful and we all agreed that it is a place that we would like to hike again.

May has turned out to be a busy hiking month! I hiked 18.9 miles this month for a total so far this year of 89.51 miles. Some things I learned this month:

• How quickly determining the hiking day can change. I used to look for the warmest day, now I am looking for the coolest!
• Morning hiking is preferable to afternoon hiking this time of year.
• Pack bug spray.
• Trail confusion is a normal part of the hiking experience and adds to the sense of accomplishment when you're finished.
• When you do get confused on the trail, stop, assess, and talk it through out loud. You're less likely to go the wrong way.
• Just when I think I'm becoming "experienced," something happens to remind me that I am still a work in progress.

28 hikes down and 32 hikes to go!!!!!