Snowshoeing Iowa: Wabash Trace South Of Coin

Wednesday I drove almost two hours to the small town of Coin, IA. Coin is the next to last town on the Wabash Trace. I had originally intended to head north towards Bingham. The deciding factor as to which direction I would head in was the condition of the trail - Snow Free I would consider going north towards Bingham; Snow Covered I would head south towards Blanchard, the southern most end of the trace.

What brought this choice on was a preference I have when hiking - I like to have a destination. A waterfall, a scenic view, a peak. On the Wabash Trace towns are the obvious turn around destinations. If the trace was relatively snow free then a fifteen mile hike to and from Bingham was doable. If the trace was snow covered then it would be better to save the longer hike for a snow free day in the spring. Since I'd never snowshoed before, the southerly route had two things going for it. The first is it's only 5.4 miles to Blanchard. Snowshoeing was supposed to be more rigorous than hiking and a shorter target distance was more realistic. Second, in case it was even more rigorous (which I expected), there was a geocache a mile south from the town that could serve as an alternate turn around point.

As I drove into town I passed by the trace. I couldn't see it for all the snow. I parked on main street a couple blocks from the trail and suited up. I walked down to the trail and turned south. I decided to walk the block to where the trace crossed an asphalt road. The depth of the snow, eight to ten inches, proved difficult in just my boots. I crossed the asphalt and put on my snowshoes and got my trekking poles ready.

The trace ahead of me was unmarred and pristine. I started down the trail. Initially it didn't feel that hard. The snow was soft except for the thin eighth inch crust of ice, the result of the freezing drizzle we had Sunday night.

After a short distance the undisturbed nature of the trail changed as signs of wildlife started to appear. Deer Tracks. Rabbit tracks. What I assume were goose tracks. Small dog tracks. Three-legged dog tracks ... what?!? As I approached Coin I'd passed a three legged dog. He was gone by the time I got to the trace but I found some tracks that had to be his. You could see the dog print at the bottom of the holes in the snow. There was a pattern - first a pair of tracks then a single track. One of the pair was shallow so I would guess the dog was balancing on it's right front and rear legs and using it's left front leg mostly for balance. The three-legged dog tracks (I named him Tripod in my head) accompanied me my entire way.

At the one mile point I reached a bridge (one of four in the 1.5 miles of the trace I snowshoed). I expected to find a bridge here since this was the location of the geocache I was looking for. Geocaches on the trace seem to like bridges. Makes sense since there are a lot of good, sheltered hiding places under bridges. Searching under the bridge with snowshoes on was awkward but I suspect they helped me get up and down the snow covered banks easier with the metal spikes on the bottom of the snowshoes digging in the hillside. I found "Bears On The Bridge" safely tucked up under the bridge.

I climbed up from under the bridge and considered my options. I decided to try for another mile (making the whole thing four miles) and continued down the trace. I pulled out a snack bar ... a frozen snack bar ... and ate it while I walked on. At the 1.45 mile point I reached a long bridge stretching over the Tarkio River.

I walked across the bridge and decide that I'd had enough. I turned around and started back. The way back was draining. I must have been tired as I was getting a little careless with my foot placement. I pulled out a second frozen snack bar. I took a bite or two when, SMACK, I face planted in the snow. I found out a trekking pole can't do it's job when you are holding it up off the ground with a snack bar in your hand. My left snowshoe caught on something (probably my right snowshoe) and down I went. I got back on my feet, took inventory (no damage), looked around (no one saw me), brushed the snow off my snack bar, and took another bite before I continued down the trail.

The rest of the way was uneventful. By the time I got back to my car I was tired and sweating. I'd dressed 15° warmer than I should have. I stopped for some food and drove home. I was tired ... no, exhausted when I got home. It's been a long time since I felt that weary. I guess snowshoeing was tougher than, and me not as tough as, I thought.

My total distance was about 2.9 miles with 100 ft elevation. My speed was about a third of my normal hiking speed. I guess that says it all. I added some pictures to my 2009-2013 Wabash Trace Nature Trail Hike Google Photos album.

Hiking Iowa: Wabash Trace Nature Trail - Coin to Blanchard

This week, Tuesday, with little fanfare and somewhat anticlimactically, I completed the Wabash Trace Nature Trail.  The last segment I hiked was the southernmost between the town of Coin and the Iowa-Missouri state line in Blanchard.

The section is about 11.32 miles round trip and follows the main road between Coin and Blanchard.  As I approached the end I was expecting at least a kiosk indicating that you'd reached the end.  What I found was a rusty iron ranger.  There wasn't even a sign marking the state border.  The trail continued south but I decided to stop at the state line.  I'd arrived at the end of the Wabash Trace.

I walked into town.  Blanchard is a pretty small place.  They do have a post office and a few commercial buildings but not much else.  On the way out of town I was chased by a fierce looking dog who I suspect was more bark than bite.  I was also howled at by a bloodhound - funny looking dogs them bloodhounds.

I managed to take a picture of an owl on this hike.  It was far away, resting on an electric pole.  I also saw an Oriole, a first for me.  These pictures, and all pictures I've take on the Wabash Trace, can be found in my 2009-2013 Wabash Trace Nature Trail Hike Google Photos album.

Another first, someone actually asked me how far I'd walked.  Most people just ignored me as I walked through their towns and by their farms.  A man in Coin took the time to ask.  I took the time to answer.

So I completed the entire Wabash Trace Nature Trail.  All 62.3 ± miles (124.6 miles since I walked there and back).  I managed to do it in 10 segments.  I hope to do some segments on bike this summer with the Wife.  

My next endeavor will be the Steamboat Trace.  I'll post about that hike sometime in the next week.  It will be the longest and hardest hike I've ever attempted.

Hiking Iowa: Wabash Trace Nature Trail - Malvern To Strahan

On Friday I returned to the Wabash Trace Nature Trail and walked between Malvern, IA and Strahan, IA.  I picked Strahan as a turnaround point as it was about half way between Malvern and Imogene, the usual endpoint of this segment of the trace.  The segment to too long for me to hike so I cut it in two.

In preparation for my Spain pilgrimage next year, and the Steamboat and Cowboy Trails this year, I decided to hike with a backpack.  Now, this is a first for me.  I've always been a day hiker and I've never needed anything more than a large fanny pack or small day pack.  For these longer hikes I'll have to carry changes of clothes and stuff so a larger backpack will be required.  The Wife bought me one a few Christmases ago and I finally managed to use it.  I started easy with, essentially, an empty backpack.  I carried my camera (and bag), GPS, and a two liter water bladder (full of water ... of course).  All told, the pack weighed about 9.6 lbs.  I think I may have actually hiked with more before.  I carried a smaller day pack with a three liter water bladder, camera, and GPS back on my Jalama beach hike.  I remember my back aching on that hike but on this hike, with a proper backpack that carries most of the weight on you hips, my back felt fine.

I started walking the Wabash Trace back in November.  Until Friday, I'd never seen the trail with leaves on the trees.  While only about half of the trees have leafed out, the added green really improved the scenery on this hike.  Adding to the green was the color and the fragrance of blooming trees and flowers.  I'm not sure what type of trees they are (I suspect they are dogwood) but they have just a hint of fragrance that carries on the wind.

The trail alternates between low wooded hills and flat farmland.  I passed several farmsteads along this section of the Trace.  The trace crosses several screams (oops ... silly type-o) streams, creeks, washes, and drainage ditches along its route.  There are few I would call a river.  On this section of the trace, you do cross a rather impressive river spanned by an impressive bridge.  The river is the West Nishnabotna River (Native American for Canoe-Making River).  There is something about bridges that fascinate me.

My first milestone which I approached after crossing the river was the town of White Cloud.  When I looked it up on my GPS the town was labeled "historical".  Historical is Garmin GPS lingo for "there ain't no town here anymore."  Sure enough, when I arrived to the coordinates of the town I found myself on a dirt road, near a creek, surrounded by empty farm fields.  Not even a marker.  It looks like White Cloud didn't survive the shutdown of the railroad.

I continued on to my turnaround point, another historical town called Strahan.  Strahan is still around.  There are four or five farm houses and associated barns, sheds, and equipment buildings.  The town is also home of the Strahan United Methodist Church but that's about it.

At this point I turned around and headed back where I'd come from.  The wind picked up and it turned a little burly on the way back.  The total hike was 13.9 miles.  The backpack felt fine as did my back.  I think I tend to lean forward as I walk which stresses my back on long hikes.  Maybe the weight of a backpack will help straighten my posture.  Pictures of this section have been added to my 2009-2013 Wabash Trace Nature Trail Hike Google Photos album.

Hiking Iowa: Wabash Trace Nature Trail - Council Bluffs to Mineola ...Almost

Thursday was another first for me as far as I can remember.  I set out to walk the Wabash Trace between Council Bluffs to Mineola, a 20 mile hike.  Since I managed to do over 20 miles on my last walk, I figured a 20 mile hike on the relatively flat Wabash Trace would be eminently doable.  Unfortunately I overestimated myself and for the first time that I can remember I did not meet a hiking goal.

The hike started off well.  I left from the same point where I had snowshoed a while back.  A mile or so up the trail I started to suspect that I'd missed something.  The trail seemed a lot tougher than I remembered or expected.  Out of curiosity I looked at the GPS elevation plot and, sure enough, the trace was going up in elevation.  The change was relatively small and I figured that it shouldn't be slowing me down so much.

The next thing I wondered about was the fact that I was hiking on snow.  I'd dismissed this as a problem as the snow was hard packed and, thanks to the thawing and freezing we've had lately, hard as ... well, ice.  I was sinking in no more than a half inch and, in most cases, not sinking in at all.  Walking on this hard snow surface couldn't be slowing me down, could it?

To psych myself I set some short term goals, namely, geocaches along the trace.  The first was about three or four miles from the trailhead, a good first goal.  I reached it and, after a brief search, found it (Wabash Autocache).  After the successful find I got a second wind so I headed for the next geocache that was another two or three miles farther ahead.  I reached it and, once again, found it (Farmerrick's Wabash #1).

At this point I looked at my watch (it was noon) and took inventory of my body (I was in major needed of damage control).  I decided the three miles to Mineola, and the six miles it would add to the round trip, were not realistic. I ate a snack bar and head back the way I came.

Though I didn't reach my intended target, I did see some interesting landscape along the way.  The trace passes through the loess hills and parts of the trail are flanked by tall, tree covered embankments twenty to forty foot tall.  It must be magnificent in the summer when the trees are leafed out.  I passed through the location of the town of Dumfries, a town that came into existence because of the railroad and faded away once the train had left, leaving only a plaque on a marker.  Near Dumfries is a small park where bikers gather.  The park is decked out with bike racks, picnic tables, and cheesy plastic tiki torches.  Judging from some of the team stickers, most of the bikers are adolescent boys (I'm especially impressed by Team Horny and Team Pound-It).

The sad thing was, I didn't notice some of the sights until after I was on the way back.  I guess I was plodding along looking at my feet and I was forgetting to look up at the beauty around me.

The six plus miles back to the trailhead and the car were shear hell.  I have rarely felt so whipped.  My legs were like noodles, my back was aching (something that happens when I'm on long hikes - even without a backpack), and more telling, my knees were aching.  I began to realize that the snow was not as stable a surface as I'd thought and the muscles and joint in my knees were working overtime to keep myself steady.  I decided that it was like walking on the beach.  Walking on the beach always seems harder than it should be and the snow covered trail felt similar.  I think it was the snow, and not the elevation change, that was kicking my butt.  The total hike was around 13.69 miles.  The elevation change was not really that impressive, 200 to 300 feet. There were times I asked myself why I was putting myself through this pain and torture.  All I can say is that I see the  beauty in the world around us when I'm hiking (and remember to look up) and the sense of achievement when I do reach my goal always lifts my spirits.  You can't win them all but there will always be next time.

I added a few more pictures to my 2009-2013 Wabash Trace Nature Trail Hike Google Photos album.

Hiking Iowa: Wabash Trace Nature Trail - Strahan To Imogene

On this year's Earth Day I celebrated on another segment of the Wabash Trace Nature Trail.  Like last week I hiked with a backpack.  This time I carried my new camera, lens, and bag (4.4 lb vs 1.9 lb of my old camera).  I also added five pounds of weight in the bag (I used weights from my adjustable ankle weights).  My load was about about 17.4 lbs total which is about what I was hoping to carry on my Spain pilgrimage.

I started in the town of Imogene, a small town of 66 described as 'Historic' by my Garmin GPS.  It turns out the town is rather substantial for a small town.  They only have a couple businesses including the obligatory bar-lounge and a fairly large catholic church.  The town appears to have an Irish heritage as there were shamrocks all over the place and the bar was named the Emerald Isle.

I put on my backpack and, initially, was concerned how heavy it felt (I can be a wimp at times) but after starting to walk the sensation of weight faded away and didn't bother me at all.

I was amazed how everything had greened up since last week.  Spring is arriving at full speed.  I took pictures along the walk with my new camera and really liked how it felt.  Unfortunately the Wabash Trace looks fairly identical from beginning to end - at least on the segments I've completed so far.  I've found I have been taking pictures that I've already taken before.  Photographically I feel I've been in a slump lately and the rather monotonous but beautiful spring scenery along the trace has not been that inspiring.  After reading GeekHiker's post about wildflowers, I was reminded about hiking trails lined with poppies in California.  Here in Nebraska it's more likely that the trails are lined with dandelions. 

There was one bright spot on this hike, lots of wildlife including a couple firsts.  Most of the wildlife was trying, and succeeding, in scaring the bejeezus out of me as they jumped out of the underbrush or trees.  Lots of birds including wild turkey, pheasant, red wing blackbirds, and a first for me, an owl.  I didn't get a picture as I was a little startled when the thing flew past me.  I saw a few deer and, another first, a coyote on the trail.  I've heard coyote before and I saw one from the car in Yellowstone back in '95 but this was my first on a trail I was hiking.  While I got his picture he didn't bother to pose so it's a little blurry.

At my turn around spot, the town of Straham, I decided to see if there was anything along the main road.  Last week I stayed on the trace and didn't actually enter the town.  I didn't really miss much.  There is a small United Methodist church and a closed business that may have been a mechanics shop way back when.  I stopped at the church and sat down on a short block wall (The church was too small to have steps to sit on).  I rested there for a bit and admired the gravestone-like markers showing the location of two time capsules buried in 1984 to mark the centennial of the town (or possibly of the church).  One capsule is to be opened in 50 years, the other in 100 years.

I started on the way back and I watched for two things I'd missed on the way out.  The first is the town of Solomon.  Solomon is similar to last week's White Cloud - there ain't anything there.  The only thing marking the location was an overpass where the road went over the trace.  The second thing was a geocache ("Wabash Geocache #1") which I found about a mile north of Imogene.

I got back to the car and dumped my gear in the trunk.  I drove up the hill and took a couple pictures of Saint Patrick's Catholic Church before heading home.  My hike was 13.8 miles.  Pictures taken with my new camera have been added to my 2009-2013 Wabash Trace Nature Trail Hike Google Photos album.

Hiking Iowa: Wabash Trace Nature Trail - Mineola to Silver City

After the last few hikes on the Wabash Trace and Oak Creek Trails, I decided to keep this week's hike to a more manageable length. Since I enjoyed the Wabash Trace so much last week, I decided to do another segment - this one stretching 4.3 miles between Mineola, IA (Pop: ~200) and Silver City, IA (Pop: 259).

The trailhead is located on the north side of town. There is a small parking lot, a picnic area, a couple of benches, and a trailhead marker. It was chilly this morning and the wind was blowing so I bundled up and headed east on the trail. Eight tenths of a mile later, near the outskirts of the town, the trail crosses Barrus Road and heads south-east.

This segment is similar to the one from Silver City to Malvern. There are fewer trees and fewer bridges but the trail is flat and straight. There are only three bridges on this segment - two in Mineola and one as you enter Silver City. I seem to have become a fan of bridges. There are more benches along this short segment than on the longer one. All benches and bridges that I've seen so far are either sponsored or dedicated to someone. Bridges have the sponsor's name carved on railing planks. Some are sponsors by the boy scouts. Others by local bike clubs, bike shops, or businesses. Some are dedicated to anniversaries or untimely passings. It adds interest to the hike.

Along the way I found a couple geocaches. One, "NFL Cache", was about a third of a mile off the trail on 275th street. The other, "Quicksilver City", was not far from Silver city.

In Silver City I explored the 1911 jail some more before sitting on a bench in front of the small library and sucking down a soda.

The way back went pretty quick. I stopped and explored some box cars in Mineola, similar to the ones in the Silver Creek, keeping erosion at bay.

The total distance for this hike was 9.14 miles round trip. Elevation was about 360 feet. I didn't take too many pictures along the trail - they all looked like the ones I took last week - but I did add some more pictures to my 2009-2013 Wabash Trace Nature Trail Hike Google Photos album.

I think I have a new goal - walk each segment of the Wabash Trace. Some of the segments may have to be biked as they are a little too long to walk.
Note: Earmuffs are good.

Weekly Ephemera #122

A fairly slow week for me this week.

• The leaves dropped from our oak tree so I put up the Christmas ornaments.  The Wife decorated the inside of the house including putting the ornaments on the Christmas tree.
• I walked three times this week.  It's been a bit since I did more than two walks in a week.  I walked for a total of 32.0 miles (51.6 km).
  
  

  

  A giant chair if a giant happens to be walking the Wabash Trace.

  The third hike on Friday was a return to the Wabash Trace.  It was nice to get back out in nature away from the sidewalks and city streets.  Back in 2009-2010 I stage hiked the whole sixty-three miles of the trace.  Maybe I'll have to revisit those hikes to see how things have changed.  The trace has several different styles of benches along the way.  I found one old conventional bench in an odd location.  Instead of facing the main trail it was twenty feet off facing away.  The bench was old, had "The AᐧBᐧC Bench" carved into it, was damaged a bit, and probably had been there for a while.  At one time it faced a green valley lined with trees and would have been a nice view.  Over the years some trees have grown to obscure the view a bit.   I think there probably is a story attached to that bench.

  

  The AᐧBᐧC Bench.

  If you want to see pictures I've taken along the Wabash Trace check out my 2009-2024 Wabash Trace Nature Trail Hike Google Photos album.
• I finished "Arcane" this week.  I really, really, really enjoyed it.  I was hoping for a third season but two seems to be it.  Worth the watch.
• Also really liking Bluesky.  Wish it was truly federated but it is active and fairly civil so far.

Snowshoeing Iowa: Wabash Trace South Of Council Bluffs

The Wabash Trace Nature Trail, in the north, starts in Council Bluffs, a short 25 minutes from my home. The first segment from Council Bluffs to Mineola is paved and has a parallel horse trail. At least I think it's paved - it's hard to tell with everything under inches of snow. On Christmas eve and Christmas Day we received 14 inches of blowing snow. I figured this would mean I would have another chance to use my snowshoes before the year ran out and I was right.
The trace starts in Iowa West Foundation Trailhead Park not far from the Iowa School for the Deaf (They have some impressive buildings that I'll have to come back and photograph sometime). I was concerned that the parking lot would be unusable because of all the snow but a good Samaritan must have come in a cleared most of the parking lot.

The snow conditions on this part of the trace were quite different from those near Coin. Near Coin the snow was pristine, fluffy, and soft. My snowshoes sank in some two to three inches. On the trace near Council Bluffs there was widespread evidence of snowmobile (despite the no motorized vehicles signs) and cross-country ski tracks. This activity packed the snow down so that my snowshoes only sank an inch or so. It's a lot easier to walk on packed snow and I managed to double my speed to about 2 mph.

The part of the trace I walked on today was not that exciting. The trail parallels busy roads and farmland that detracts from nature. There are a lot of trees that provide some shelter and separation but this section is accompanied by a lot of street noise. I was hoping that I would be shoeing in snow but the light snow I drove in to get to the trailhead stopped when I started down the trace and restarted again when I got back to the car - bad timing I guess. I took a few pictures which I've added to my 2009-2013 Wabash Trace Nature Trail Hike Google Photos album.

My turn around point was a bridge and bench about 2.2 miles from the trailhead. I took time to sit on the bench to eat a snack bar. I figured that sitting while eating would reduce the chance of face planting like I did last time. I was right.

The packed snow allowed my to extend my snowshoe out to 4.49 miles with a small elevation change of 140 feet. Despite the easier going, and me dressing more appropriately for the weather, I still had a trickle of sweat running down my back when I got to the turn around point and slightly wobbly legs when I got back to the car.

There is more snow in the forecast so I expect more snowshoeing in the new year.

On a side note, my back, that was bothering me since Saturday, is getting a lot better and, wearing a back brace just in case, snowshoeing didn't aggravate it.

Tale Of Two Hikes

This week was dreary, drizzly, and a bit of a downer.  The light snow on Wednesday and Thursday didn't nelp.  Gloomy weather always dampens my mood.  I sometimes wonder how I survived California's June Gloom.  I countered the gloomy cloudscape with a couple of hikes.  The first was an urban/urban park walk through Council Bluffs, IA.  The second was a nature hike along the Wabash Trace Nature Trail.  Would you like to guess which walk had more wildlife?  If you guesses the Nature Trail you would be ... wrong.

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The first hike was on Tuesday.  I expected this to be a rainy and wet hike.  It turned out to be a drizzly wet one but, fortunately for me, it never got above a heavy mist.  The umbrella I carried hardly was used but my rain jacket was and, surprisingly, I did not overheat like I usually do when I wear it.

The urban hike took me across the John Kerrey pedestrian bridge into Council Bluffs and up into the Loess Hills.  My original route would have taken be through a cemetery on top of the hill and would have been about two miles longer than what I eventually did.  Google maps let me down when an intersection turned out not to exist ... or once again I missed it.  When I hike my mind tends to be a million miles away and missing a turn would not be a surprise.

I'd never really walking up into the hills in Council Bluffs before.  One thing I discovered was, as you get closer to the hills and start climbing, the property values and the size of the homes climb as well.  On the top of the ridge the houses appeared to be a bit out of my price range.  Along with the expensive homes I saw wild turkeys - the first wildlife of the hike.

I went down the other side of the hill (and watched the home values decline as well) and went to the nearby Big Lake Park passing a curious deer along the way.  Big Lake Park actually has four lakes or, more correctly in my opinion, ponds.  One of the smaller ponds is open to fishermen though this cold, drizzly day kept the fishermen away.  The others serve as habitat for all sorts of birds and animals.  This time through the park I saw two types of birds that I usually don't associate with land-locked Iowa: Pelicans and seagulls.  At first I thought I was seeing snow geese, more common in these parts this time of year,  but the long bills gave the pelicans away.

Pelicans ... in Iowa.

From the park I walked back to the car. The wildlife filled urban hike turned out to be 11.32 miles (18.2 km), two miles shorter than what I'd planned.  Despite this It was a satisfying hike and my spirits were lifted.

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The second hike was a bit more substantial.  While the urban hike was just a simple walk, the walk I did on Friday was a full blown training hike.  I had my poles and, more importantly, I carried a full pack on my back.  This was the first time I'd carried a pack since my last walking day of my Camino (23 June 2011).

My backpack was packed with essentially the same gear I'll be taking in September.  I ended up over packing.  Instead of using a water bladder I used a one liter bottle and, thinking it would unbalance the pack, I put extra weight on the other side of the pack to balance out the bottle.  I thought the extra weight would be roughly the same as some of the stuff I had not yet purchased.  The final pack weight was 17.6 lb (8 kg).  I think this weight was about one or two pounds heavier than my pack will actually be.  I overcompensated for things I hadn't bought yet.

The hike was along the Wabash Trace Nature Trail (The three pictures in the slide show on their home page are mine - others can be seen here).  I started from the Council Bluffs end and headed in a roughly southern direction down the flat, straight trail.  I started out pretty good.  The pack did feel heavier than I expected and I will have to rethink how I pack things in the backpack.  The smaller pack size carries a bit differently from how my older pack did.  The older pack seemed a bit more forgiving.  The new one will require some thought.  I ended up shifting a few things around in the pack part way through the hike which made the pack ride more comfortably.  Carrying water in a hydration bladder will also shift some weight closer to my body and show help it ride better.  Next time I wear the pack I will use a bladder.

View from a bench along the a Wabash Trace.

Despite being overcast and gloomy, Friday was probably the best day of the week.  At least it wasn't raining.  The trees were leafless and, frankly, the Wabash Trace can be boring in spots - too straight and flat.  Having said this, there were still nice views from the trail and the new bench they added on the trail looked very welcoming.  I'd seen a similar bench in another part of the Wabash back in 2010.  I didn't try it out because I was afraid I would never want to get up.

A welcoming bench along the Wabash Trace.

When I planned this hike I didn't take the pack weight into account.  I planned for a 14 mile hike which would have been fine without a load but with a pack, especially when you take into account that it had been a couple years since I walked with a pack, I should have shortened the hike.  Around the six mile mark my legs started feel a little achy.  I turned around at mile seven.  My legs complained quite a bit the seven miles back to the car.  They're still complaining today.  It's been awhile since I've had aches and pains the day after walking.  In the end I hiked 14.09 miles (22.7 km).

Hiking Iowa: Wabash Trace Nature Trail - Imogene To Shenandoah

On Tuesday I completed one more segment of the Wabash Trace Nature Trail. This segment, from Imogene to Shenandoah, was the longest one that I've done. At 8.7 miles one way, plus another 1.42 miles in the town of Shenandoah, I turned this hike into my personal best of 20.24 miles.

The hike takes you through wooded areas and across several bridges. I'd mentioned in some of my previous posts that I thought part of the trail would look like a tunnel once the trees had leafed out.  It turns out I was right.  The sun was out for the first time in a while and the shade from the trees kept me from sweating too much.

Since I knew this hike would be over twenty miles I instituted a 30 minutes on - 5 minutes off walking schedule.  I would walk for thirty minutes before sitting down, usually on a log as there were no benches, and rest for five minutes.  I'd used this method with some success during my 1995 vacation.  While it felt nice to get off my feet, it really didn't do much for my feet and legs.  As soon as I started walking again I felt the soreness and weakness return.  Maybe I need more than five minutes rest per stop.  Or maybe I need to shave fifteen years off my age.

When you enter Shenandoah, after crossing the second large river on the trace - the East Nishnabotna River, you pass a mural depicting the Wabash Trace along with a few facts about the trail.  I knew there were a lot of bridges but I didn't realize there were 73!

After arriving to the town I walked along a train track to Subway to stop for some lunch and rest.  I walked in with my backpack, camera bag, walking stick, and tilley hat and nobody even batted an eye.  Not even a "Walking the Wabash, huh?"

I searched for a couple geocaches along the way but only found one ("The Lutt Family Cache").  It was not far from the Walnut Creek Bridge.  I would have called it Walnut River as it seemed a little large for a creek.

I made it back to Imogene in just under eight hours (that includes the rest stops, geocache hunting, and lunch).  I managed to average 3.4 MPH while I was moving.  I am always surprised when I get back to the car and look at my average speed.  I'm always expecting it to drop on the longer hikes but it hasn't yet.  Maybe if I slowed down my feet and legs wouldn't ache so much but if I did slow down it wouldn't feel right - I've always had a fast walking pace.

I added some pictures to my 2009-2013 Wabash Trace Nature Trail Hike Google Photos album.

Only two more segments to go before I finish the whole thing.

Hiking Iowa: Wabash Trace Nature Trail - Silver City To Malvern

The Wabash Trace Nature Trail is another local rails-to-trails biking/hiking trail that stretches 62.3 miles from Council Bluffs, IA to Blanchard, IA, passing through six towns in between. I decided to pick a segment that would be close by and would offer me a challenge. The segment between the small town of Silver City (pop: 259) and Malvern (pop: 1,256), stretching eight miles, seemed to fit the bill.

Silver City is about an hour from Omaha. It is if you don't take a wrong turn on the way. Google Maps missed a whole segment in its directions which got me headed in the wrong direction. When I passed the Council Bluffs' Wabash Trace trailhead I knew I was on the wrong path. I stopped and pulled out a map and figured out my error and I made it to Silver City some 20 minutes later than I'd planned.

I parked near the labeled trailhead and, before starting, went cache hunting at the nearby restored 1911 Silver City Jail where I found "The Big House". The jail is just a simple white box but the sign is kind of cool.

I fed the metal ranger and headed south-east. The trail crosses main street Silver City, passes behind a farm supply business (the smell on anhydrous ammonia was wafting in the morning air - nasty stuff), before leaving town. The trail parallels the gravel road for the first 1 and 1/3 miles before veering off through the farm fields. The trail is a one lane wide, crushed limestone path. A lot of the stone has washed away in some sections revealing the packed dirt underneath. I imagine it can't be easy to maintain a 62.3 mile trail on donations. Despite this, the trail is in excellent condition. Trees line the trail on both sides for most of the trail, branches from both sides arch inward to meet overhead. When the trees are leafed out parts of the trail would be like a long tunnel - a reason to revisit during the spring.

The trail was pretty quiet in the middle of the week - one guy letting his dog relieve itself and a solitary biker. This doesn't mean there wasn't any sounds of civilization along the trail. The farmers were out in force harvesting and preparing their fields for winter.

I found three geocaches along the trace including "Flat Tire", "Queen Anne's Corner", and "Train Wreck?".

The high point of this section in my opinion is the Silver Creek Bridge. It is the largest bridge (and there are many) on this section, crosses Silver Creek, Silver City's namesake, and is about half way between the two towns. On the east bank of the creek are at least eight, probably more, old, rusty, half buried box cars. It looks like the aftermath of some decades old train wreck. In fact, according to one geocache description (Train Wreck?), the cars were dumped there to control erosion. Not as exciting as where my imagination took me. I will return to explore sometime - the little kid in me won't have it any other way.

Two miles from Malvern you begin seeing half mile markers, something the rest of this section lacked. At Malvern I decide to walk up to main street and look around. Malvern has a typical small town main street with a couple cafes, a grocery, a library (impressive size for the small town), a volunteer fire department, and a few little storefronts. Next to the library is an old log cabin built by one of the pioneers of the area. A plaque talked about Malvern being a stop on the underground railroad for slaves escaping from Missouri.

I decided not to stop for lunch. This probably wasn't the smartest thing. Instead I went into the grocery and bought a diet Code Red (caffeine) and a Milky Way Bar (sugar, carbs, and fat) and sat on a bench on the street corner and watched the traffic go by while I rested and consumed junk food.

On the way back I spooked some pheasant, chased some cardinals, and ran across a group of deer grazing along the trail.

The return was a little bit tough on the legs and feet. This trail, unlike last week's Oak Creek Trail has several benches along it but they were spaced out at weird intervals and the last four miles don't have any. Along the way back I downed two bottle of water and two snack bars.

At about the eleven mile mark my left knee started hurting. I've had surgery on both my knees and lately I've found my left knee to be a little cranky when I get past the eight mile point or so. I hope this will go away with more use and not get worse. The pain, while quite sharp and wince-inducing, comes and goes and rarely lasts very long.

The hike turned out to be a little longer than I expected: 17.4 miles. This is a personal best, a full 2.1 miles longer than my last record on the way to Topa Topa Ridge. That hike had over 4,500 ft of vertical, this one only 331 ft. I liked this section of the Wabash Trace. Can't wait for my next, shorter, section.
Photographs are here.

Hiking Iowa: Wabash Trace Nature Trail - Final Thoughts

I was reluctant to start the Wabash Trace.  I thought it would be long, straight, and monotonous.  It turns out that trails made from railroad traces are long, straight, and monotonous.  You can't really blame the trails.  Railroad planners don't take interestingness into account when they lay out traces and they want nice straight and flat runs.  It doesn't help when most of the countryside off of the trace are expanses of unchanging farmland.

Initially I enjoyed the Wabash.  It had new stuff.  Towns I'd never been to.  Bridges over varying sized of creeks, streams, and rivers.  Wildlife.  Flowers once spring arrived.  On the last couple of segments I marveled as I walked through twirling clouds of helicopter-like sycamore maple seeds.

But as I did more of the Wabash I realized that things were not changing (not including the changing of the seasons, of course).  I noticed this first with the pictures I was taking.  I was taking pictures of the same things, over and over again. Pictures of long straight trails.  Pictures of bridges.  (I also took a lot of pictures of flowers and old buildings but ... I like to take pictures of flowers and old buildings.)  I knew I'd reached a low when I took pictures of benches, though I have to say they were interesting benches.

After awhile the reason that I was hiking the Wabash changed.  It changed from the enjoyment of hiking new trails, seeing new things, and photographing nature's beauty to ... distance.  I needed distance to train for the Way of Saint James.  Once this became the reason I was completing the Wabash, it went from a pleasure to a chore.  A training routine.  A sad transformation.

My next two major hikes, the Steamboat Trace and the Cowboy Trail, will be similar in scenery to the Wabash though I'm hoping the part of the sand hills the Cowboy Trail runs through will be interesting.  I will also be doing both of the trails in one go instead of in segments like I did the Wabash.  I hope this will help.

I am worried the sense of wonder I experience while on the trail will be smothered by the monotony.  If this were to happen I think a part of me would die.

Weekly Ephemera #16

• It was a good walking week with a return to the Wabash Trace.  Back in 2009 - 2010 I section hiked the sixty-two mile Wabash Trace over 10 stages.  I returned there once again in 2013 for a Camino training hike.  I was surprised it took nine years for me to return to the repurposed railroad trace.  The Wabash hike was an attempt to get out of the urban walks I've been doing and it felt good to be out among the trees (even if the trees only lined the trail one or two rows deep on each side).  The trace is very flat. so, on the way back to the car, I switched over to the horse/mountain bike trail that parallels the walking/biking trail.  This narrower trail reminded me of the Appalachian Trail (AT) and there was some up and down on the horse trail but they were very little hills.  I guess that is an exact match for my AT trail name ... Little Hill.

A return to the Wabash Trace.

For the week I hiked three times - twice in the city and once in nature - totalling 33.8 miles (54.4 km).  The rain this coming week will make walking a challenge.

Seen on a city walk:  A hearse with a "Never Give Up" sign in the window.

• On Saturday we drove up to Sioux City to attend the Wife's Niece's son's second birthday.  The Wife's brother took the opportunity to give her an awesome retirement gift - nun stuff from the Late Nite Catechism Sisters (including a crucifix whistle!), letters of congratulation from schools she taught at, and a framed mounting of the school varsity letters from each of her schools including one earned by her father in high school.  Not sure I've ever seen the Wife so moved.
  
  We both ate too much at the party.  It will take a few days to get my blood sugar back down to where I want it.
• I fertilized the lawn this week just in time for the rain to soak it into the ground.  Today I overseeded the lawn just before the rain returns tomorrow.  The Wife is taking over mowing the whole lawn - we used to split the work, me doing the backyard and the Wife doing the front.  Now that she is retiring she will be in charge of the lawns and gardens.  This is fine with me.

A Homer's Travels Look Back At 2010

Some people are not fond of end of the year lists.  I find comfort in looking back and seeing where I've been and thinking about what is to come.  2010 has been a rough year for me.  I have felt like I've been in a rather continuous slump for most of the year but especially for the last six months.  This is reflected in the drastic reduction in my posting this year - 36% below what I posted last year.  I've been disappointed in both my photography and my writing.

Let's look back at 2010, shall we:

• January was a month of making plans that inevitably changed.  It was a month of new GPS units, photographs winning contests, and wonderful snowshoeing at Boyer Chute.   It was a good start to the year.
• In February, the Minneapolis Winter Carnival, the race up the tower, and the continuation of my hike along the Wabash Trace were totally overshadowed by the passing of this blog's namesake and our dear friend Homer.  Re-reading the post about Homer started me bawling all over again.  Remembering is not always happy.
• After Homer's passing we had to get out of the house.  March was spent distracting ourselves as best we could.  We went to see bridges and ball players.  We took a three day Kansas Roadtrip to see balls of twine, hairballs, and folk art - who would have thought that Kansas could be so interesting.  Spring returned with the birds and warmer temperatures.
• April consisted of Easter with the family, a new toy (a new camera), and several Wabash Trace hikes.  I was looking forward to my Steamboat Trace hike the next month so I asked hiking equipment questions seeking answers from my readers.
• May started with me learning a simple task - blade shaving.  The month continued with a Mother's Day river cruise, the completion of the Wabash Trace, and the completion of my most ambitious hike: The Steamboat Trace.
• The month of June was dominated by our trip to Jordan.  Sadly I lost about half of my pictures as nearly half of the pictures were replaced by my last picture, a picture of a Falcon.  I seem to have had a premonition of this when I posted this.  Overshadowed this month by the approaching vacation were a cool bridge, the World Cup, and a trip to Minneapolis for a wedding shower.
• In July, recovering from Jordan, we went to a free concert and went to the Grotto of the Redemption.  I visited a few places to get stamps in my Nebraska Tourism book while the Wife went to Fort Robinson for a teacher's workshop.  When she returned we went to the Winnebago Pow Wow.  Many of the stamps I got were Native American related as was the Wife's Fort Robinson workshop so July was Native American Themed.
• August was dominated by the GodSon's wedding, new babies, Nebraska roadtrips, and toads on our windows.  The Wife started at a new school.  I built a dragon boat model and finally hiked Preparation Canyon.
• September was a mix of hiking and roadtrips.  We saw Anthony Bourdain talk at the Holland Center.  I decided not to hike the Cowboy Trail, a decision that I'm still not sure was the right one to make.  I started and pretty much failed at a fall colors quest.  The search for the fall colors, though, took me through beautiful countryside.
• October saw the completion of my leaf peeping attempt and the successful completion of my loess hills drive while taking the old Honda Accord past 100K.  I suffered from itchy joints - still somewhat of a mystery.  I started seriously planning for the Camino, establishing the stages, setting the dates, and buying the tickets.  The month ended with us going to see David Sedaris ... and laughing our a$$es off.
• November saw more hiking both in nature and in the city.  A rather calm month saw snow, Thanksgiving in Minneapolis, and the first sight of Santa.
• December saw the publishing of my first picture in a book.
• I did 18 hikes totaling 210.07 miles.  This was up from last year and was my second best year mile-wise.   My last hike was also my longest ever at 20.88 miles.  Along with these hikes, I did 9 city walkabouts adding 120.58 miles to my hiking/walking distance.  My total hiking/walking distance this year is 330.65 miles, 54% more than last year and a definite improvement.
• I biked twice this year, very disappointing, for a pathetic total of 31.95 miles, an 86% drop from the year before.
• Snowshoeing ... well I only did one snowshoe last January.  It was a good one, Boyer Chute, but the snow became uncooperative soon after.  This year, as I predicted, has been rather light in the snow department.
• In the matter of Books, I only managed to read 15 books this year, down three from last year.  I read 6,205 pages, about 5% less than last year - the books I read this year were on average longer that the one I read in 2009.  For reasons I talked about earlier this week, I will probably fall very short in 2011.
• As for Music, we went to several concerts including: Enter The Haggis & The Spring Standards (The best concert of the year), Kansas, Styx, Foreigner, and Al Green & The Mynabirds.  All good concerts.

2010 had a nice ring to it but turned out to be disappointing. The bad economy (the Wife and I survived relatively unscathed), the dirty political election cycle (once again, the Wife and I not directly affected), and the passing of Homer (no way to not be affected by that) contributed to a rather gray year.   A major case of writers block was either a contributor to and/or a cause of my down mood.  The look back list is mighty thin compared to 2009.

But there is hope.  This last week of 2010 has felt more upbeat and my mood is lifting.   There is hope for 2011.  I have two big events to look forward to: the Camino de Santiago and our Route 66 roadtrip back to California to visit with friends.  We have concerts planned and I have hikes to do.  2010 has brought me down but I am not out by any measure.  2011, I can't wait to meet'cha.

Here's to a Happy and Prosperous New Year for all.

May all your dreams come true in 2011.*

*and this time I mean it.