#SurveySunday - Not quite too much info.
It's fun to share a few random things with y'all... Here are some things about me you may or may not care about learning.
• Favorite smell(s) - Evergreens, that loamy smell after the rain in a forest
• Last cry - I am not ashamed to cry, but it's actually been a while
• Favorite Pizza- Pepperoni and jalapeño
• Favorite Flower- Lilac or Tulips
• Favorite dog - Mutts
• Favorite foot attire- I’d rather be barefoot, but I really like my Chacos or Flip Flops
• Roller coaster - I used to, haven't been on one in a decade
• Hair color - Mine is a dirty blonde
• Favorite ice cream - chocolate alone or + anything (nuts, mint, caramel, etc)
• Pet Peeve - people who don't pick up after their dogs in highly trafficked areas
• Shorts or jeans - shorts...jeans are the WORST feeling clothing ever
• What are you listening to right now - people talking
• Color of your vehicle - black
• Color of eyes - blue
• Favorite holiday - Christmas (but just the commercial version, I'm not really a religious person...so maybe more just Yuletide?)
• Night owl or day person - morning person...my 21 year old self wouldn't even believe it
• Favorite day of the week - Saturday because it's usually hike day
• Tattoos- Maybe someday, but none yet... haven't found the right design for eternity
• Do you like to cook - I really do
• Beer or wine? Both, but please be dark &/or red
• Can you drive a manual shift - yes and I feel everyone should learn even though it's a dying thing
• Favorite color - Green in various shades
• Do you like vegetables- VEGETABLES ARE LIFE (I could almost be a vegetarian, almost)
• Do you work out - I mean, not really, no...but I should be
• Do you wear glasses - Yuppers, just got some nice new ones too
• Favorite season(s)- Fall & Winter (because summer is HELL in Texas)
#ForestFriday - Cut River Bridge Area
Michigan's Upper Peninsula is one of those places that has it all. Back in 2015, I visited and explored the Cut River Bridge area. There are trails into the woods and to Lake Michigan. Enjoy a few photos and go get lost in the forest soon!
#MondayMotivation - An excuse for everything
The pond in the morning at Cedar Ridge Preserve - Dallas, TX
This weekend, I had an excuse for everything. From dinner plans to household tasks that NEEDED to be done, I avoided my local hiking haunts like the plague. I had apartment tours to take, property tours to take, a friend's birthday dinner, chores, shopping, and uncooperative weather. I truly had an excuse for every hour of daylight. Were the excuses legitimate? Maybe some, but certainly not all of them. Could I have taken a hike at one of my standby locations? Definitely. I'm not opposed to hiking in the rain or even the dark, but I used those two situations to justify staying home and being less active. I reached out to a couple of people to see if they would go with me, they were busy, so I used that as an excuse not to go out. The drive to the place I really wanted to go was 45 minutes, through traffic, so I avoided it.
I wasn't motivated at all this weekend to get outside because the options just weren't that appealing to me. I had this problem last year - when I didn't have an out-of-town trip planned, or couldn't drive a few hours to a nice state park, I would lose motivation or begrudgingly go to a local staple and not even enjoy the outdoors that much. So this post today, is about fighting off the excuses, fighting through the illusion that local green spaces aren't good enough, and getting excited about the local haunts that keep me sane between bigger adventures.
Pros of local spots:
- Easy to access, usually
- User-friendly
- A little green in the concrete jungle
- Always there when I need it
- Cheap or free
Cons of local spots:
- Can seem boring
- Often crowded/overused
- Not wild enough/secluded enough
- Trails not long enough
This is all psychological, for me, and once I actually drive somewhere I get a little more excited and can look past the cons. Getting from my apartment to the car is the hardest part for local hikes so here's what I'm going to do to psych myself up:
- Start earlier to avoid people and traffic
- Know that I'll be better off after a few miles through the woods, always
- Come to terms with the fact that this is enough and plan for a more exciting hike the next time - it's all about balance
This post isn't very motivating, yet....hopefully this helps.
I'm aware that this is a personal problem, and is specific to my city life in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. I'm working on being more grateful for the green space and nearby state parks I do have while also knowing I need to balance out these local spots with more adventurous places. I know life can get busy, but the whole point of the 52 Hike Challenge is to make sure I always set aside time for a hike. It is time to get pumped up again and make up for this missed week. It is time to show gratitude for the places I do have nearby and for the peace and clarity they can bring. I hope, if you're having trouble getting outside or are sick of the same parks you have, that you can try to break through that mindset too. Share with me what motivates you to get outside, bonus points if you have a story about feeling refreshed about your local spots. Happy trails!
Cedar Ridge Preserve - Dallas, TX
#ForestFriday - Cedar Ridge Preserve
I'm going to start a new Friday blog series featuring photos of the forest for everyone to enjoy for a few minutes as the work week ends and the potential adventures begin.
Today's location is Cedar Ridge Preserve near Dallas, TX. This place has become a staple for me because it's so close to my house and it has great trails. For the weekends that I can't get away to somewhere more adventurous, I have Cedar Ridge Preserve as a solid local option and for that, I'm grateful.
This place is lush and green in the summer.
In the fall, it's a little more open so that golden sunlight is especially nice.
Even on rainy days, Cedar Ridge Preserve offers a great escape.
While this may not be a traditional forest to me, growing up with large hardwood trees in Michigan, it's what we have available here in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area. Enjoy the escape into my local forest and stay tuned for a new post every Friday.
For more information on Cedar Ridge Preserve, check out this link.
#MondayMotivation - 2017 Was a Damn Good Year
Today is my aunt’s birthday, and I was looking back at photos to share in a Facebook post to celebrate her life. I went scrolling through the 2017 photos to rediscover that we had some fun nights, plenty of summer boat days, spirited holiday gatherings, and a nice hike at one of my favorite local spots. While scrolling through I got distracted, as I often do, by all of the hikes and all of the beautiful places I visited throughout the year and it led me to one conclusion: 2017 was a damn good year.
I embarked on the 52 Hike Challenge, not knowing what to expect. Looking back the results were all I could have hoped for.
I got out more, every week to be precise
I reconnected with nature
I met a ton of virtual support
I saw new things, beautiful things, some that were right in my own state
I started to get a better mental clarity
I didn’t really get in “better” shape, but I maintained a weight for most of the year and strengthened my legs
I spent valuable time with friends on the trail
It let me to find my passion - getting people outdoors - and I’m finally branching into that area of helping people get outdoors and finding that equality balance
It didn’t cost me a lot of money, well to actually get outside anyway
It kept me sane, grounded, and on schedule with other things in my life
It’s helped me get even more fired up for our public lands and all that we need to do to protect and fund them
I visited a few National Park units, plenty of local state parks, and some new local trails. I spent more time outdoors in 2017 than I had in the six years prior. I haven’t been this excited for life in a LONG time. I grew up with hundreds of acres at my disposal and I was always outside. As I aged into those teenage years, I found myself outside less but still not opposed to spending time in the woods or at the lake. In college, I camped and road tripped so the outdoors was back in play, a little. I eventually took a job a city park ranger and did some unrelated trail work for my major - wildlife management. A few trips here and there through the years had me camping in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, Arches National Park, and along the Loneliest Road in the USA. When I moved to Texas in 2011, the outdoors seemed to be on the back burner. I did a lot of boating and I did a few road trips between 2012 and 2017, but it wasn’t until the hiking challenge that my fire for the outdoors was reignited.
I can’t picture myself just sitting around all weekend ever again. Sure, I have moments when I’m just feeling lazy, but the desire to be camping or hiking always wins. Road trips west to the Oregon Coast, Redwood National & State Parks, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and western Texas over the past six years were the kindling and wood but the 52 Hike Challenge was the flame that set me on fire again. If you find yourself feeling a bit unsure, find something that will challenge you to be a better version of yourself. I’m not implying that everyone responds to challenges the same way, I’m just saying they work for a lot of people and maybe they’ll work for you. Set attainable goals, focus on things you love, and find your happy place(s). Surround yourself, in person or virtually, with people that support you and your goals. My year of motivation is something I’m looking back at and I can’t wait to push harder, explore further, and try a bunch of new things in 2018. Find your passion and own it. Happy trails!
Here are some of my highlights from 2017:
I'll always be a sunrise guy
“There’s nothing like being on a road trip, driving through the night, and seeing that first sliver of light ahead. As you travel further along, the sky opens up and you’re rejuvenated like the cycle of light you’re chasing.”
For years, I'd stay up all night and sleep through the sunrises not waking until the sun was at a high noon. It wasn't until back in college when we started doing road trips through the night that I started to appreciate the sunrise. I've always had trouble sleeping, so staying up all night was never a problem; I always went to bed as the moon began to set. Driving all night - be it around Lake Michigan for no reason at all, from Michigan to Seattle (a few nights), or anywhere else we went - allowed me to be awake for the sunrise.
I can remember back to sometime my sophomore year of college, or so, that we did a winter road trip circumnavigating Lake Michigan. We left Grand Rapids, MI and headed south towards Chicago and up through Milwaukee. The best part, on each occasion this trip happened, was Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Up there, I remember seeing the best sunrises. We did the trip three different years, but the first trip was when I realized I'd forever be a sunrise guy. Below are three photos of the frigid winter sunrise from Michigan's Upper Peninsula from the early 2000s.
In 2007 my buddies and I started doing these spring break road trips that allowed us to see as much as possible in the least amount of time. Between the three of us, no one had crossed the Mississippi as an adult nor had we experienced the Rocky Mountains (or any mountains) in person. This road trip involved many stops but I can still remember that moment when the sun would barely peek over the horizon. That sliver of a sunrise signaled a new day and regenerated me every time. I tried to find some photos from the various road trips, but most are blurry or through a dirty windshield. Take a road trip, drive through the night, and let me know how that first sliver of light makes you feel.
As the years went by, road trip sunrises quickly became one of my favorite things. If you catch a desert sunrise, road trip or not, it's probably going to be one of the best things you see. Another favorite sunrise of mine was in 2011 at the Grand Canyon North Rim in October, right before they closed for the season. This was not only my first Grand Canyon sunrise, it was my first time seeing the Grand Canyon in person. What a way to be introduced to the place - as it wakes up.
On my most recent trip, to Minnesota, I woke up just in time to see the sun rising over Lake Superior. Everyone was asleep, even the dog, so I quickly got dressed and crept outside to watch the sun come up. I walked from the house, through the pines, and ended on the beach. I could hear the ice moving, see the fog over the city behind me, and see a couple of dogs being walked down the way. It was an amazing moment in time, to stop and take it all in.
Sunrises may be my favorite, but don't think I wont whip out a camera or phone to capture the sunset just as often. Every beginning has an end and both are beautiful.
