Saturday Stroll!

Today was a beautiful day, warm sun and cool breeze, perfect for a hike in the woods. We went back to the pond that we hiked at, last week, but on the opposite side. There are tons of trails so we took the main trail and hiked into Connecticut.

The trail follows the pond, most of the way and winds around as you head towards Connecticut.

Gorgeous views, as we walked along. We walked along the path until we reached Connecticut and came back along another wooded trail. Lots of rocks and ups and downs, so I got my exercise today.

If you have an iphone or android phone, you can use the All Trails app, free version.  For free you can find trails or mark you own trails, take photos along the route and share with friends. With the pro  you can plan trips or print out maps. What I like is the fact that I can see where we are going, and how far I hiked. And, if I take a wrong trail, I can find my way back. All of the information is stored on their website, so you can go over the information on your home computer, as well.

Another great reason to have a camera phone..... sometimes we forget to put the battery back in our camera;) Luckily I also had my pocket camera in the pack, so I used that for these photos. The hike was a lot of hills and easy climbs and a few brook crossings, tempted to go back and try another trail tomorrow.

My Happy Place!

Do you have a happy place? On days like today, having a place to go that centers you, is the only way to cope with this crazy world we live in. This is one of my happy places, Stepping Stone Falls. It is a place that brings memories of my sisters and brothers, of picnics and hikes along the paths.

I am not in great shape and hasn't been my best week, so I found a new parking spot that is closer to the falls so it was about a 2 mile hike.

We had a good rain storm that bought a lot of rain in a short amount of time, so I knew it was a good time to see the falls.

Even Bill relaxes when we go here. It is something that we enjoy together and energizes us for the week.

And, at home I do my part to help where I can. This poor old guy likes my porch, it is quiet and there aren't a bunch of dogs trying to bite his ears, so he spends most of his time here. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that he gets cans of food every day;)

A walk through the woods!

Today was another beautiful day, so we went for another walk.
This one was a good hike, through Arcadia State Forest, The trail we took was really beautiful, rolling hills, giant rocks and stone walls, in an area that was once inhabited by the early settlers.

We took a trail that led us to a fishing pond. The pond was so beautiful with the fall colors coming in.



We took the trail around the pond, which was a nice easy trail and then we crossed a little bridge where the river runs in.



On the way back we took the trail that ran along the river coming out of the pond. It was wet and rocky and hilly, so I got my workout on that path.



On the way to the pond, we passed an old graveyard. I didn't think to take a picture, so I got one on the way back. It was late afternoon and the woods were a bit darker, perfect time to catch visitors;)

Sunday's Stroll

I decided I wanted to go for a hike, in Arcadia park area.
The park used to have a picnic area near the falls, that my family would go to when we were young, so it is a special place, full of memories for me. But, I wanted to do a little hike too, so we parked at the other end, so we could walk along the trails to the falls. Of course I didn't realized the distances on my little map, lol. The walk turned into a 7 mile hike down old dirt roads, rocky trails and wooded hills. All this on my broken toe and did I mention, I dropped a cutting board on the same foot, lol.

But, it was worth the sweat and a bit of pain. I got a good workout today and with rain coming this week, I can rest and sit on my butt for a few days;)

The sad thing is, the falls are down in the fall. We should have gone after the floods, I am sure it was cascading over the rocks in full force, then. It was still nice though and a great place to rest after the trek through the woods.



This is looking up at the main falls, I wonder where the fairies are hiding?



Bill wanted to get back on the main trail to head back, but I made him walk along the falls till I found the bridge. We have photos of my sisters and I at this bridge, so just had to get a picture of me on it. I may be walking funny and stiff as a board, but it was so worth it:)