MILLENNIUM TRAIL COMPLETE & WHAT'S WITH THE COWBOY HAT?
Saturday October 22, 2011 7:20 pm
First things first. The Millennium Trail at Burnheim Forest is now complete... and for the second time. The first time I hiked the trail was seven months ago today (March 22) and it was a debacle. I'll not rehash old stories other than to say that I did finish the trail but it was in a terrible time. So, for today before starting our hike I told Bob that my goal was to complete the hike in under seven hours. Honestly... six hours and fifty nine minutes and I would have been happy. However, we did better than that!
The last time I only survived the hike. I think I just completed it in March because I was too bull-headed to quit. Yet, today I feel like I actually “conquered” it and now I have something to shoot for the next time I hike the trail. The day I decide to hike the Millennium again I will let you all know the outcome. Before then though I have a 58 mile hike planned with two guys from work the first part of the new year.
According to WikipediA the Knobstone Trail in southern Indiana (the one I am planning for January) is considered a “difficult” hike and many people use that trail to get ready to hike the Appalachian Trail. That, of course, is still my goal and sooner rather than later. On today's hike I was running an idea by Bob that (if it works) would allow me to start the Appalachian in March of 2012. Neither of us know for certain if what I proposed to him would work or not? But, he will mull it over and hopefully come up with a few more ideas and I will try and put them to work and we will see what happens? If things do look like they are working I will give all of you more details as the day approaches. Now, about that hat.
I don't smoke cigars like some men do. I mean, certain men if they have an occasion to celebrate they will light up a stogie. (Red Auerbach of Boston Celtics fame comes to mind.) Anyway I was trying to think of some way to commemorate if I finished in under the time I had set of seven hours. Now, for a teaser. If you want to know why I set as my goal under seven hours... you will just have to look at the archives on my blog and pull up the one I wrote in March of this year (:
So, I told Bob as we were hiking that I had a cowboy hat and if we finished in under seven hours I was going to get my picture wearing that hat (: The picture is taken at a restaurant in Burnheim and we are preparing to eat “veggie wraps.”
Alright... drum roll please: We completed the trail in six hours and fourteen minutes! Yay!!! Also I would like to thank Bob for hiking with me today as he certainly had nothing to prove. In April of this year he actually RAN the trail in four hours... show off!!! (LOL)
One more thing. We passed a total of 13 other people on the trail today... all coming from the opposite way of how we started. There were a total of seven girls and six men in different configurations and groups. The first group we passed were all Asians. We were meeting them at about the 9.5 mile mark for Bob and me: which of course for them would mean that they were only about four miles into their hike with a lot of rugged terrain ahead ): Now, here is the odd thing. There were three men and three girls in that group and as we passed them we noticed how they were all separated on the trail by the space of less than a quarter of a mile. The three men were in the lead and the three girls were behind. I suppose it is just a cultural thing but it appeared as if the men were waiting on no one... apparently, wives and girlfriends be-damned (:
In case it might appear as if the girls might always lag behind the men on this trail I will tell you of one more couple. Ahead of us and approaching quickly were two young people and they were running hard while carrying backpacks. As they passed Bob asked if they were trying to run the whole way? The man... who in this case was several steps behind the girl said, “We are trying to.”
All-in-all other than two achy knees I am no worse for the wear and I just popped another Vicodin (third for the day) and in a little while I will not feel those pains either... ah, the wonders of modern medicine (:
Unbeknown to me until just a few seconds ago Bob took some pictures today and posted it on YouTube (:
posted by Robin Johnson @ 7:13 PM
<< Home