I’ll Need a Crane for That

I spent the winter hiking carrying my fanny^* pack. It has mainly water, a little medical kit, a spare windbreaker, and my camera tripod. The extra weight totals about 20 pounds.

Yesterday I took a shot at my full-on backpack.

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A Visit to Cantwell Cliffs

Last Friday was a rare warmer day sandwiched between continuing winter. I took advantage of it to head to Cantwell Cliffs for a bit of exploring.

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On the Rhodagain

It’s a 70° in central Ohio at the end of January. So, what are you going to do? Well, you’re going to take down your Christmas lights. But before you do that, you’re heading out for a hike.

For me, that meant that yesterday I checked out a new place for me: Rhododendron Cove.

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A Barefoot Mid-Winter Hike

The Hocking Hills Mid-Winter Hike was held on Saturday.

Of course I had to hike it barefoot.

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An Old Favorite

It’s always fun to hike at an old favorite. And this time of year, being barefoot can sometimes provoke a bit of comment.

I hadn’t been to Old Man’s Cave and Parrish Rocks for a while, so that’s where I went yesterday.

What a great hike.

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Clear Creek Indian Trails

This entry is a bit of a follow-up on yesterday’s A Snortin’ Good O’Meara O’Vencha Hike.

It turns out that the place we started our hike was at the intersection of two major Indian Trails.

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Natur-Alley

Here’s a bit of a composite of two barefoot hikes I took recently at Alley Park, just a bit south of Lancaster.

While it is on the edge of the Hocking Hills region, it still has some nice Blackhand Sandstone features.

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Return to Christmas Rocks

I first went to Christmas Rocks last February. This is one of Ohio’s Nature Preserve that was recently opened the the public.

I returned that on Tuesday, with the temperature hovering at around 40°.

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Jaded

Fellow barefooter Lee Parker, the Chatauqua Barefooter, is in town this weekend for the Flint Ridge Knap-In. I met him last year at the same event, and we had time to take a short stroll along the Flint Ridge trail.

This time he came a day early, so we had the chance yesterday to head on down to Hocking Hills for something serious.

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Recant Well

Or maybe I got that punctuation wrong, and it should be Re-Cantwell.

For yesterday I did a barefoot hike with another barefoot friend, and I got to show him some of the wonders of Cantwell Cliffs.

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On (and In) the Mesa

So now it was time to “do” Mesa Verde National Park.

Obviously, I had survived the night.

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Crane Hollow

On Saturday, I got a chance to go into Crane Hollow in Hocking Hills. For those of you unaware of it, it lies between Conkle’s Hollow and Long Hollow to the north of Big Pine Creek.

When I bushwhack between Vulture Point and Airplane Rock, I’m down in Crane Hollow.

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Spring is Busting Out All Over

I made a point of heading over to Alley Park yesterday morning. I’m slowing increasing the weight of my backpack, so this time it had about 40 pounds in it.

I found it a bit more challenging for my bare feet, only because I felt the stones more than usual (and my knees complained).

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Busting Out All Over

Every hike I do cannot be a major exploration of places I’ve never been to before. Sometimes it’s just nice to wander along familiar pathways.

And with spring busting out all over, there is plenty of discovery in that.

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The Sirens Called . . .

Yesterday I planned on doing a simple hike up Spruce Hollow. But as Robbie Burns put it:

The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men
Gang aft agley.

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