A Fizzy Drink

Went for a hike up at Hitchcock Nature Center today.  At the start of the hike it began to sleet.  As I listened I realized that the sound of sleet hitting cold, dead leaves sounds just like a Fizzy drink.

A panorama taken from Badger Ridge in Hitchcock Nature Center.

I think this requires a haiku.

If you are drinking a soda ... or champagne your ear to the glass, eyes closed, listen to bubbles popping, hear sleet hitting Winter leaves.

Eaten Alive

I went to Hitchcock Nature Center yesterday to do a short hike.  The short hike turned into an even shorter hike.  Apparently all the rain, heat, and humidity is the ideal environment to breed mosquitoes.

I've been going to Hitchcock a lot lately since it's the only place in the area to add elevation to my hiking.  I am also going back each week in the hope to catch the Monarch butterfly migration that comes through here in August and September.  Last weekend I didn't see nary a mosquito but yesterday - Yowza!

I started my hike and was immediately swarmed.  I would wipe my hand along my arm and kill four to six mosquitoes at once.  All I could see as I walked the trail were mosquitoes swarming around my head.  I don't remember anytime the mosquitos were this bad.  Not even in Churchill or Alaska.  After maybe fifteen minutes of swatting, smacking, and swearing I gave up and headed back to the car.

Today I have too many bites to count on my arms and a few more around my neck.  My elbows, apparently, are a mosquito delicacy.  I got welts everywhere and they are starting to itch.

Next week when I go it will be a long shirt and lots of bug spray before I head out again.

Now I'm wondering how long does it take for West Nile to start showing symptoms?

In Search Of Monarchs ... And A Spark

It's been one hundred and forty days since I walked off the Appalachian Trail (AT).  It has been one hundred and forty days since I last hiked.  This is the longest period without hiking since I started in earnest in 2007.  Today I went for a short hike in search for monarch butterflies and the spark I feel when I hit the trail.

Late summer wildflowers.

I headed to Hitchcock Nature Reserve thinking my re-entry into hiking should not be an urban one but one in nature.  I was out of shape, as I expected I would be, but it was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be.  The hike was a short one with a few steep, but short, hill climbs including the Angel Dead End trail which I'd seen but never climbed until today.

Angel Dead End Trail.

Every year the monarch butterflies migrate through the area.  I have seen dozens of monarchs along the trails in Hitchcock Nature Reserve during this time of year.  I posted about them in 2011.  I've seen the largest numbers along Westridge trail.  I hiked to the spot and found nothing.  Not one Monarch.  I only saw three non-monarch butterflies along the entire hike.  Not sure where they are.  The weird weather and heat we have had this summer may have shifted the migration path/timing.  Very disappointing.

Hmmm ... This reminds me of something.

As for the spark ... there was no spark.  The weather was beautiful, the late summer flowers were blooming, the birds were singing, and the sun was sparkling off the dew but the feeling I used to get when I was out on the trail just wasn't there.  I guess my failed AT attempt did more damage than I thought.  I'm not going to give up.  I want to regain that spark but it may take a few more hikes to relight the fire.

Total Distance: 3.09 Miles (4.97 km) Total Time: 1 hours 24 minutes Total Elevation Up: 504.5 ft (153.7 m) Total Elevation Down: 507.0 ft (154.5 m)

Map of my Hitchcock Nature Reserve hike.

Pictures of Hitchcock Nature Reserve I've taken over the years, including a few from this hike, can be found in my 2008-2017 Hitchcock Nature Reserve Google Photos album.

Commence Peddling!

Not The Bike I Will Ride.

Well, today I pulled the trigger and registered for RAGBRAI (Thank you Mother and Father in-law. Your Christmas money paid for the registration fee).  I could have registered last month but I've been dragging my feet.  Every time I think about riding a bike across Iowa my palms sweat and I get a weird feeling in my stomach.  It dawned on me that I was feeling exactly like I felt before I did my first Camino.  That turned out OK.  I'm sure this will turn out OK as well.

The trigger for me registering was the announcement of this year's route.  Each year it changes.  This year goes 462 miles (743.5 km) starting at the banks of the Missouri River in Sioux City and ending at the banks of the Mississippi River in Davenport.  Along the way you travel through Storm Lake, Fort Dodge, Eldora, Cedar Falls, Hiawatha, and Coralville.  The longest segment, the first, is 74.3 miles while the shortest is 56 miles (66 miles per day average).  There are two optional loops: one adds fifteen miles of gravel road to the second stage and the other extends the third stage an extra 28.2 miles making it a tough one hundred miles.

Many people believe Iowa is a flat state but the truth is Iowa is covered in rolling hills resulting in the actual route climbing 15,948 feet (4,871.9 m).  This will be one of my biggest challenges as I have done very little hill riding.  If you would like to get more information on the route, check out the RAGBRAI site here.  This link gives even more details.

The Wife thinks my biggest challenge will be riding in a pack.  My first reaction to this is to say I will probably be behind the pack most of the time.  As I've thought about it more, I have come around to agreeing with her - riding in a pack will be a challenge for me.

The next step in the RAGBRAI process, beside continued training, is to wait for the lottery.  The race provides services such as luggage transport, repair services, and medical services.  They also provide campsite spots along the route.  They also have a limited number of slots.  I will find out on May 1st if I've got a slot.

Damn it!  Now I have to go wipe the sweat off my palms and calm my stomach down again.

Hiking Iowa: Hitchcock Nature Center 2011 Revisit

Last Thursday I decide to try to start walking again.  My last hike, an ordeal up Topa Topa will be documented when I write about our Route 66 vacation.  This hike would be quite a bit shorter and easier:  A loop around Hitchcock Nature Center.

Hitchcock has changed since I last was there.  I've hiked there twice before (the last time in 2009) and visited it with the Wife during one of her school field trips.  Since then they have added more trails, updated their maps (the old one wasn't that accurate - this one is much better), and they have added "you are here" signs at all intersections.  This is a big improvement as the trails are many and they cross many times.  I got lost the first time.

There were two highlights of the hike for me this day.  The first was the monarch butterflies.  As I walked along the westridge trail (it runs along the west ridge naturally) dozens of monarchs flitted about.  it was pretty cool.  Monarchs are harder to take pictures of as they tend to close their wings when they are feeding and they are skittish.  They are also fast fliers.

The monarch butterflies were incredible.  There were dozens flitting about along the Westridge trail.

The second highlight was the view of the flood waters from the Missouri River.  The river has been flooding since June and, even though levels have come down, large swaths of farm land along the river are still under water.  I feel sorry for all those affected by the floods.

Panorama of the Missouri River flood water as seen from the

Westridge trail in Hitchcock Nature Reserve.

Water as far as the eye can see.

A sad little island formed as the water receded.

After taking in the sights of the flood I headed for the Badger Ridge trail. There I discovered a new trail, the Blazing Star trail.  I followed it as it looped down along the neighboring corn field and meadows before rejoining the Badger Ridge trail.

Along the Blazing Star trail.  A new trail along the meadow.

The trail starts at the notch on the left.

The Badger Ridge trail took me back to the nature center where I'd parked my car.  The hike did me good. I needed to get out in the fresh air again.  I think I've been holed up in the den drafting posts a little too long. I've lost my Camino tan.  My right leg did bother me in the car to and from Hitchcock but felt great on the trail.  I had a great time and I will probably do it again this week.

Pictures have been added to my 2008-2017 Hitchcock Nature Reserve Google Photos album.

Total Distance: 4.81 Miles (7.74 km) Total Time: 2 hours 19 minutes Total Elevation Up: 1,263 ft (384.96 m) Total Elevation Down: 1,283 ft (391.06 m)

[Click on map for a larger version]