Date: 2018-11-30
From: Fernside Road 

To: Mass Rt 23
Miles today: 8.9
Weather: overcast clouds

I was awakened a few times last night with leg cramps. They began shortly after I finished my hike yesterday. That snow is making me use muscles I forgot I had!  Needless to say I woke up this morning very sore! Getting out of bed and walking to the bathroom was quite the adventure! I took 2 Aleve, and eventually I was able to do some stretches and get moving.  My hike started out going UP. It was a fun challenge finding the switchbacks in the snow. I had Seylor Jo with me and she seems to sniff out the trail pretty good.  There was only about 5 inches of snow, but it still makes the climbs difficult. My back foot always does a little slip before I can bring it forward. It¢s like doing a forward lunge with every step.  Going UP in elevation the snow got much deeper. Lots of little trees and pine limbs were weighted down across the trail again today. I giggled a little as I used my trekking poles to knock the snow off and watched them rise up tall again. I thought to myself, this gives a whole new meaning to the word bushwhack!  I came to a semi frozen bog. There was a single snow covered 2X4 boardwalk going over it. I said my prayers as I did my best to get across without falling into the bog. Prayer worked! All of these things were a part of my journey up a big 2000ft hill. It was definitely a mountain of a hill! I did get off trail a few times up there. It¢s so much easier to do with snow covering the trail. I didn¢t panic, I just took my time to figure out exactly where I was. That¢s a lesson from my dad. I¢ll always remember my last hunting excursion with him. I was a grown adult in my 30¢s. Dad was at least 60 years old. He had bought a hunting dog after several years without one. I decided one night to go hunting with him. Making our way through the woods we came to a stream with very steep banks. We climbed down the bank to the water. Dad jumped across and climbed up the other side. I jumped across and landed waist deep in the middle of the creek. I was panicking in the dark grabbing for tree roots on the bank. At that moment dad very calmly said ¢don¢t panic sis¢. I stopped right then and just stood in the water assessing my situation. He laid on his belly shining his headlight on me and reached his arm down. He grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the water then up the bank. Lesson learned...keep calm during chaos. I miss my dad so much.(forgive me if I¢ve already told that story) There were several water crossings today. Eventually I crossed a stream on a bridge and ended up hiking beside it for a good distance. Rushing water was my music for the day. At 1:30pm light snow flurries started. I really enjoy the silence of snowfall. I¢m always impressed that so much activity can be so quiet. It lasted about an hour. I hiked around a partially frozen pond fearing Seylor might try to chase a bird out there. She didn¢t. She stuck to the trail like a good girl.  With about 3 miles to go I stopped at a creek for water. I haven¢t had to use my sawyer for a while. The water was so fresh and ice cold. I loved it!  My last 3 miles were eventful. I hiked on some ledges that gave me an amazing view. It¢s these moments when I feel closest to God. I thanked him right then. I hiked over another bog. This time the boardwalk was pretty dilapidated. You know it...I got a boot full of bog! The good news is(thanks to a reader) I¢ve been wearing roasting bags over my socks, so my socks and feet were spared the muddy mess! I hiked down past a cow pasture. Some of these cows had horns! You know I don¢t do cows with horns. There was only one little thin wire of electric fence and about 10 feet between us. Thank goodness the cow closest to me only had little nubs for horns or I would have been an extra 30 minutes bushwhacking my way around! Shortly after the cows I could hear traffic buzzing not far away. I put Seylor on her leash and we popped out into a parking area. We had beat Papa Big Swig to the extraction location again!  Until Next Time Blue Raccoon (2018) Where¢s your faith?