Blog friends Kimberly and Ed recently posted about their adventures in the great outdoors. Kimberly took a hike at a beautiful spot near her home, while Ed loaded up and went from Iowa to Northwest Arkansas, where he hiked around and floated the beautiful Buffalo River and camped with his family.
Both posts made me a bit envious. I love day hikes, and I floated that same Buffalo River a number of times in my young adult life when I lived only a couple of hours away from it. It really is a gorgeous place, with breathtaking views of bluffs towering above the river. Floating along in a canoe is quite enjoyable, and usually pretty tranquil.
Anyway, both of their posts made me long for some extended outdoor time myself, and I'm going to pull out my copy of 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles of Nashville and see where I might go in the near future.
I would love to work in a fishing trip as well. I haven't been fishing since last May when I went to Dallas, where Older Son was living at the time, and went to a spot about 1.5 hours from him.
I try to exercise in the mornings, and when the weather is nice I try to do that outside, but that is something I am trying to start and finish in an hour or less. Although I enjoy it more when I can be outside, I am not spending a lot of time enjoying the scenery.
"So what are you doing with your time?" you might be asking, and why can't I just get myself off to the woods, or to the lake to fish?
That's a fair question. And well, I'm still, thankfully, gainfully employed, and plan to be for many years to come. That takes up the bulk of my time.
On weekends ,Wife and I have found ourselves traveling a fair amount since the first of the year. We spent Easter weekend at a lake near Auburn, AL with Younger Son, Daughter and SIL. It was cool and rainy, but we had a great time and attended a wonderful outdoor church service Easter morning.
We have also made a few trips to Arkansas since the first of the year. Wife's parents have moved into a retirement community. She went over a couple of times to help them get their house cleaned out and ready to sell, and also help get them settled in their new place. And she and I have been over together a couple of times. One of those trips included time with old friends in Hot Springs.
Wife spent a few days at the beach with DIL, and I met her in Atlanta and brought her home.
There have been trips to Huntsville to see Daughter and SIL.
I detest hearing people saying how busy they are, so I'll not say that. I'll just say life has been full, and I'm not complaining. Almost all the travel involves people I love.
But I'm headed out on a hike before long, and hopefully there is also a fishing trip in my future.
I think either or both would be good for my soul.
3 comments:
My parents own a cabin and land in Arkansas near a major trailhead for the Buffalo River National Park. I've often thought that if I lived there full time, there would never be a day when I didn't go on a hike. Back up here in civilian life, it is like you said, life is fuller and although I have several routes, I quickly see all the territory around my house to the point where I know it like the back of my hand.
I enjoy being outdoors, even just walking around my yard and interacting with dogs. It tends to make me sneeze, drip, and itch, but that's something I'm willing to put up with. :)
We're ready to fish again and might give it a shot later this week. It's still getting cool at night and I'm not sure how warm the water is - plus there's an awful lot of that water from the March rains, so it may not be very good yet.
Yes, It doesn't sound like you're hurting for things to do, as it seems you are on the go quite a bit! :) But it is nice to to get outside, especially when the weather is decent. I find that when we are most busy is when we could benefit from an outdoor activity to "get away from it all". But that's easier said than done. I hope you can get a fishing trip in soon!
Post a Comment