The Great Outdoors
I posted a few days ago about getting a tent and preparing for a hiking/camping trip, but then the weather reports got worse and worse for Friday, so I wasn't sure what I'd end up doing.
The weather did start out very rainy yesterday, but ended up great. I took a wonderful hike through the fall leaves and had the whole trail to myself. And yes, I slept outside in my new tent.
My original plan was to drive down to Delaney Creek Park in southern Indiana, at the northern end of the 58-mile Knobstone Trail. I've never been there and have wanted to hike part of the Knobstone ever since I found out it existed. The weather on Friday morning was completely grey and rainy, expected to continue most of the day, but with a chance of clearing up later. I dawdled a bit to give me a chance at having better weather, and left the house around 10:00 a.m. The drive pretty much sucked--lots of rain, low visibility.
I decided to stop at Dimitri's restaurant in Columbus for a late breakfast/early lunch to make sure I at least started with a full stomach instead of only having trail food and possibly not being able to get a fire going for dinner. Dimitri's is a great place -- one of these breakfast-all-day restaurants that serves Greek and regular diner food. I filled up on eggs, ham, and pancakes.
At this point I figured, at least I'll go down to the park and check it out, maybe walk around a little, but doing a 6-mile loop trail completely in the pouring rain would not be my first choice. I've got a decent rain jacket and hat, and a poncho that can double as a tarp to spread over tree branches during eating breaks or "rest stops." I don't have any rain pants, but I did have a spare to change into if I got soaked.
I got to Delaney Creek Park about 1:00. No one was at the gatehouse, but a drop box was available to pay the $3 fee. I didn't have anything smaller than a $20, so I figured I'd pay on the way out when I left, or if I stayed, I would include this with my campsite fee. By this point rain still fell, but not as hard as before.
I spent much of the next hour checking out the campsites and walking through a steady drizzle on what I thought was the start of the 6-mile Delaney loop, but I lost the trail when it went into a dry stream bed. I backtracked and walked down a wide, grassy path hoping to pick it up again, then decided I might be better off walking the trail counterclockwise instead. Upon returning to the trailhead, I had a bit of confusion misinterpreting a sign and ended up off-trail in a marshy area next to the lake, but then had the bright idea to go back to my car and consult the map I had printed. Duh! The Delaney Loop and Spurgeon Loop start at the same point so I was actually supposed to take the trail that said "To Spurgeon Loop."
About 2:00, I started the trail. After that, I had no problem following the white blazes on trees that marked the Delaney Loop. I had been warned on a trail forum that some trees were down from a recent storm, but I didn't encounter any for about the first third of the trail, which was relatively flat until it climbed onto a ridge. From there on, things got more interesting! The rain lessened into an occasional drop and then the sun actually came out at some point between 2:00 and 3:00. The trail is pretty rugged for Indiana, with lots of ups and downs, hills and ravines, and beautiful trees. I had to leave the trail probably at least 10 times to go around a fallen tree, but in none of these cases did I have to make a very long detour or struggle through a thicket.
Because I had gotten a late start and wasn't sure how long the trail would take, I didn't do a lot of stopping to admire the scenery or take pictures, but kept a steady pace, eating a pack of nuts as I walked rather than stopping for a snack break. I typically allow for 3 miles per hour at a leisurely pace on relatively flat ground. Because this trail was described as "rugged" and had downed trees, I figured I better count on 3 hours for this 6-mile trail. It actually took me 2 1/2. Mileposts helped me keep track of my progress, but I really knew I was reaching the end when I ended up in a dry stream bed and recognized it as the place I had gotten lost trying to come from the other direction. I had followed the stream bed and not noticed the white blaze on the other side -- the trail did not follow it, but crossed it.
I like hiking by myself, because there's a point at which I achieve a Zen-like balance between my internal thoughts and my surroundings. Though I can speak only for myself, I think that I'm probably not the only creative type that has such a rich imagination and inner life that sometimes I don't notice what's around me, or take time to appreciate it. Being out in the woods for a few minutes or with a companion, it's possible to only later realize you forgot to pay attention. But being by yourself in the woods for a couple of solid hours, having to watch your step in places and look for trail blazes, you can't possibly come out thinking, "oh, I forgot to enjoy the beauty of nature." Even if you're not paying attention to every detail, you're immersed in the world in a way that forces you to notice.
I didn't see another person on the trail, though when I got back to my car, two guys were parking and asked me how the trail was. I think they were planning to camp and hike in the morning. By this point, the weather was fabulous -- high probably in the mid-50s and partly sunny. I drove back to the gatehouse and paid my entry fee and for a primitive campsite and got some wood to take back for a fire.
By about 5:00, I had my tent pitched near the lake and was sitting in my camp chair enjoying a roaring fire. I heated a can of seasoned beans in the coals and roasted a knockwurst on a stick. For dessert, I had toasted marshmallows. I had brought along one Liberty Ale to have with dinner. Not sure if alcohol was permitted in the park, I drank it discreetly.
The bathhouse was just uphill from my little campsite, and I had a headlamp to make the trek easier after dark. Watching the sun set over the lake while enjoying my dinner was fabulous. Around 8:00, I got into my tent, having taken a couple of Tylenol p.m. to help me go to sleep early. After writing in my journal for a while, I turned out my light and went to sleep.
My sleeping bag and ground pad are comfortable, however, the slickness of the ground pad meant that for some reason I kept sliding down it and had to hunch back up like an inchworm. It was nice to hear bugs singing to put me to sleep. I feel like I slept pretty well and was relatively comfortable, until around 4:00 in the morning when I awoke feeling distinctly cold and with a sore throat. I was wearing a full set of underarmor and a fleece sweatshirt. I put the hood up and made sure the hood of my mummy-style sleeping bag was around my head. But I still had to breathe, and breathing in cold air all night generally gives me a short-term sore throat. Then, it began to rain off and on. Great. Fortunately, the rain fly of my tent doesn't leak, but the added humidity in the air surely made me colder.
Shortly after 6:00, I looked at my cell phone to check the time and decided I'd been in the tent long enough and wasn't likely to get any more sleep. By the light of my headlamp, I packed everything into the back of my Prius, spreading out the rain fly since it was quite wet. I didn't even change clothes, just put my corduroy pants and crocs on over what I'd been sleeping in and hit the road, desperate for a warm drink. But first, I made sure to switch off my lamp and spend a couple minutes stargazing. I love being able to see stars away from major sources of light on the ground. The sky was clear enough that Orion was quite bright, as well as lots of other stars and constellations. The thermostat in the car said it was 39 degrees out. McDonalds' decaf coffee never tasted so good.
The Delaney Loop trail more than lived up to my hopes for a slightly longer, more remote trail through some beautifully scenic areas. I will definitely be back and would like to take some more of the Knobstone trail. I'll even sleep in a tent again, though maybe not when it's 39 degrees and humid. The park also has cabins available which might be a fun option to do with a group.
I suppose I'm a little like Bilbo Baggins at the beginning of The Hobbit. I love a good long walk, but when it comes to adventures, I mostly agree with his assessment: "Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things! Make you late for dinner!" But who knows where this little adventure may lead? I may even do some backpacking and backcountry camping next year.
ETA: Pictures now uploaded!
The weather did start out very rainy yesterday, but ended up great. I took a wonderful hike through the fall leaves and had the whole trail to myself. And yes, I slept outside in my new tent.
My original plan was to drive down to Delaney Creek Park in southern Indiana, at the northern end of the 58-mile Knobstone Trail. I've never been there and have wanted to hike part of the Knobstone ever since I found out it existed. The weather on Friday morning was completely grey and rainy, expected to continue most of the day, but with a chance of clearing up later. I dawdled a bit to give me a chance at having better weather, and left the house around 10:00 a.m. The drive pretty much sucked--lots of rain, low visibility.
I decided to stop at Dimitri's restaurant in Columbus for a late breakfast/early lunch to make sure I at least started with a full stomach instead of only having trail food and possibly not being able to get a fire going for dinner. Dimitri's is a great place -- one of these breakfast-all-day restaurants that serves Greek and regular diner food. I filled up on eggs, ham, and pancakes.
At this point I figured, at least I'll go down to the park and check it out, maybe walk around a little, but doing a 6-mile loop trail completely in the pouring rain would not be my first choice. I've got a decent rain jacket and hat, and a poncho that can double as a tarp to spread over tree branches during eating breaks or "rest stops." I don't have any rain pants, but I did have a spare to change into if I got soaked.
I got to Delaney Creek Park about 1:00. No one was at the gatehouse, but a drop box was available to pay the $3 fee. I didn't have anything smaller than a $20, so I figured I'd pay on the way out when I left, or if I stayed, I would include this with my campsite fee. By this point rain still fell, but not as hard as before.
I spent much of the next hour checking out the campsites and walking through a steady drizzle on what I thought was the start of the 6-mile Delaney loop, but I lost the trail when it went into a dry stream bed. I backtracked and walked down a wide, grassy path hoping to pick it up again, then decided I might be better off walking the trail counterclockwise instead. Upon returning to the trailhead, I had a bit of confusion misinterpreting a sign and ended up off-trail in a marshy area next to the lake, but then had the bright idea to go back to my car and consult the map I had printed. Duh! The Delaney Loop and Spurgeon Loop start at the same point so I was actually supposed to take the trail that said "To Spurgeon Loop."
About 2:00, I started the trail. After that, I had no problem following the white blazes on trees that marked the Delaney Loop. I had been warned on a trail forum that some trees were down from a recent storm, but I didn't encounter any for about the first third of the trail, which was relatively flat until it climbed onto a ridge. From there on, things got more interesting! The rain lessened into an occasional drop and then the sun actually came out at some point between 2:00 and 3:00. The trail is pretty rugged for Indiana, with lots of ups and downs, hills and ravines, and beautiful trees. I had to leave the trail probably at least 10 times to go around a fallen tree, but in none of these cases did I have to make a very long detour or struggle through a thicket.
Because I had gotten a late start and wasn't sure how long the trail would take, I didn't do a lot of stopping to admire the scenery or take pictures, but kept a steady pace, eating a pack of nuts as I walked rather than stopping for a snack break. I typically allow for 3 miles per hour at a leisurely pace on relatively flat ground. Because this trail was described as "rugged" and had downed trees, I figured I better count on 3 hours for this 6-mile trail. It actually took me 2 1/2. Mileposts helped me keep track of my progress, but I really knew I was reaching the end when I ended up in a dry stream bed and recognized it as the place I had gotten lost trying to come from the other direction. I had followed the stream bed and not noticed the white blaze on the other side -- the trail did not follow it, but crossed it.
I like hiking by myself, because there's a point at which I achieve a Zen-like balance between my internal thoughts and my surroundings. Though I can speak only for myself, I think that I'm probably not the only creative type that has such a rich imagination and inner life that sometimes I don't notice what's around me, or take time to appreciate it. Being out in the woods for a few minutes or with a companion, it's possible to only later realize you forgot to pay attention. But being by yourself in the woods for a couple of solid hours, having to watch your step in places and look for trail blazes, you can't possibly come out thinking, "oh, I forgot to enjoy the beauty of nature." Even if you're not paying attention to every detail, you're immersed in the world in a way that forces you to notice.
I didn't see another person on the trail, though when I got back to my car, two guys were parking and asked me how the trail was. I think they were planning to camp and hike in the morning. By this point, the weather was fabulous -- high probably in the mid-50s and partly sunny. I drove back to the gatehouse and paid my entry fee and for a primitive campsite and got some wood to take back for a fire.
By about 5:00, I had my tent pitched near the lake and was sitting in my camp chair enjoying a roaring fire. I heated a can of seasoned beans in the coals and roasted a knockwurst on a stick. For dessert, I had toasted marshmallows. I had brought along one Liberty Ale to have with dinner. Not sure if alcohol was permitted in the park, I drank it discreetly.
The bathhouse was just uphill from my little campsite, and I had a headlamp to make the trek easier after dark. Watching the sun set over the lake while enjoying my dinner was fabulous. Around 8:00, I got into my tent, having taken a couple of Tylenol p.m. to help me go to sleep early. After writing in my journal for a while, I turned out my light and went to sleep.
My sleeping bag and ground pad are comfortable, however, the slickness of the ground pad meant that for some reason I kept sliding down it and had to hunch back up like an inchworm. It was nice to hear bugs singing to put me to sleep. I feel like I slept pretty well and was relatively comfortable, until around 4:00 in the morning when I awoke feeling distinctly cold and with a sore throat. I was wearing a full set of underarmor and a fleece sweatshirt. I put the hood up and made sure the hood of my mummy-style sleeping bag was around my head. But I still had to breathe, and breathing in cold air all night generally gives me a short-term sore throat. Then, it began to rain off and on. Great. Fortunately, the rain fly of my tent doesn't leak, but the added humidity in the air surely made me colder.
Shortly after 6:00, I looked at my cell phone to check the time and decided I'd been in the tent long enough and wasn't likely to get any more sleep. By the light of my headlamp, I packed everything into the back of my Prius, spreading out the rain fly since it was quite wet. I didn't even change clothes, just put my corduroy pants and crocs on over what I'd been sleeping in and hit the road, desperate for a warm drink. But first, I made sure to switch off my lamp and spend a couple minutes stargazing. I love being able to see stars away from major sources of light on the ground. The sky was clear enough that Orion was quite bright, as well as lots of other stars and constellations. The thermostat in the car said it was 39 degrees out. McDonalds' decaf coffee never tasted so good.
The Delaney Loop trail more than lived up to my hopes for a slightly longer, more remote trail through some beautifully scenic areas. I will definitely be back and would like to take some more of the Knobstone trail. I'll even sleep in a tent again, though maybe not when it's 39 degrees and humid. The park also has cabins available which might be a fun option to do with a group.
I suppose I'm a little like Bilbo Baggins at the beginning of The Hobbit. I love a good long walk, but when it comes to adventures, I mostly agree with his assessment: "Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things! Make you late for dinner!" But who knows where this little adventure may lead? I may even do some backpacking and backcountry camping next year.
ETA: Pictures now uploaded!