Silly Bear...
Yesterday I made what was probably not the smartest decision in awhile. I decided to head out to Cedar Ridge Nature Preserve to do a long hike. CRP has over 10 miles of trails and I wanted to try half of them. This time, I wanted to take my camera along to get some shots of thee bounty of nature there, grabbed a bottle of water and set out.
I did this after the temps had already risen above 90 degrees F.
Not smart.
I was fine the first mile on what they call the Bluebonnet Trail (though no evidence there had ever been a Bluebonnet anywhere along the way). This one is labeled "moderate". Evidently that is a term for "washed out on steep inclines" here in Texas...
This is more what I call moderate...
This time I did slather up with insect repellent. Last week when I hiked I wound up with chigger welts on me. So far today, I do not have any new welts, so here is hoping it worked!
Anyway, I walked the mile long Bluebonnet Trail then decided to hike down the Escarpment Trail to the Cattail Pond, where I would turn and come back up the Cattail Pond Trail. This is a loop that would wind up being a total of 2.2 miles for a grand total of 3.2 miles. Cattail Pond is also a "moderate" trail that has a VERY steep portion that is about 1/5 of the distance, but I figured I was good to go.
Unfortunately, I realized pretty quick that it was WAY hotter then I figured and my water started to disappear. I took it easy, taking some photos on the way down, but realized as I started back, I was getting a little light-headed. I also realized I had already drunk nearly all my water. This was before I would start up the side of the ridge on the Cattail Pond Trail.
Uh-oh...
So, I started up, taking my time and taking frequent stops, at least at every bench I came too. At one point, I felt my pulse in my neck, and I could swear my heart was "skipping" beats. This was about to scare the shit out of me, but I did not have much choice but to catch my breath as best as possible and keep hiking.
I am stupider than dirt and KNOW better than to pull this kind of shit. Yep, I DEFINITELY am not in my 20's anymore...
As evidenced by this post however, you all know I made it through just fine. I am hiking much earlier today and going on a shorter hike as well. I would much rather be doing this than working out on an elliptical since (1) real-world hiking can not be duplicated on the machine - variances in the ground level, etc work the muscle groups in the lower body much better and (2) the elliptical bores the shit out of me. I pretty much have to work out on it on my work days and at least I have the music of cuboz to keep me on beat and not lose my mind while exercising.
So, here are more photos of the day. The complete set of my summer photos thus far can be seen here...
I did this after the temps had already risen above 90 degrees F.
Not smart.
I was fine the first mile on what they call the Bluebonnet Trail (though no evidence there had ever been a Bluebonnet anywhere along the way). This one is labeled "moderate". Evidently that is a term for "washed out on steep inclines" here in Texas...
This is more what I call moderate...
This time I did slather up with insect repellent. Last week when I hiked I wound up with chigger welts on me. So far today, I do not have any new welts, so here is hoping it worked!
Anyway, I walked the mile long Bluebonnet Trail then decided to hike down the Escarpment Trail to the Cattail Pond, where I would turn and come back up the Cattail Pond Trail. This is a loop that would wind up being a total of 2.2 miles for a grand total of 3.2 miles. Cattail Pond is also a "moderate" trail that has a VERY steep portion that is about 1/5 of the distance, but I figured I was good to go.
Unfortunately, I realized pretty quick that it was WAY hotter then I figured and my water started to disappear. I took it easy, taking some photos on the way down, but realized as I started back, I was getting a little light-headed. I also realized I had already drunk nearly all my water. This was before I would start up the side of the ridge on the Cattail Pond Trail.
Uh-oh...
So, I started up, taking my time and taking frequent stops, at least at every bench I came too. At one point, I felt my pulse in my neck, and I could swear my heart was "skipping" beats. This was about to scare the shit out of me, but I did not have much choice but to catch my breath as best as possible and keep hiking.
I am stupider than dirt and KNOW better than to pull this kind of shit. Yep, I DEFINITELY am not in my 20's anymore...
As evidenced by this post however, you all know I made it through just fine. I am hiking much earlier today and going on a shorter hike as well. I would much rather be doing this than working out on an elliptical since (1) real-world hiking can not be duplicated on the machine - variances in the ground level, etc work the muscle groups in the lower body much better and (2) the elliptical bores the shit out of me. I pretty much have to work out on it on my work days and at least I have the music of cuboz to keep me on beat and not lose my mind while exercising.
So, here are more photos of the day. The complete set of my summer photos thus far can be seen here...