Myakka River State ParkFloridaFebruary 2002 Reminds me of the time I was backpacking in the Myakka River State Park on the Gulf coast of Florida. Florida, as you may know, is flat. The swamps where we hiked were nothing like the rolling forests of the northeast or the mountainous hikes we have done in New… Continue reading Waterlogged
Author: asiwentwalking
Bees and Bees
Crowders Mountain State ParkKings MountainNorth CarolinaJuly 2018 they’re in here It comes up in a random discussion as we hike to the top of Kings Mountain in North Carolina. What’s the difference between carpenter bees and bumblebees? It is a warm afternoon and we have our sampling of both. Both carpenter bees and bumblebees are… Continue reading Bees and Bees
Bees
Savage River TrailMarylandJuly 1999 On our hike to camp the first night, we encounter swarming bees. Not too many, but not too many is too many. We are a group of backpackers on the Savage River State Forest in Maryland. Climbing a hill, single file, our lead hiker must’ve stirred a nest of bees because… Continue reading Bees
Those Who Have Dugout Canoes
MissouriJuly 2012 Politicians in Missouri usually alternate between pronouncing the state’s name as Missouree and Missouruh. The Missouruh pronunciation favored in the southern part of the state and by older, conservative residents, is often used when candidates speak to rural audiences. I quote this paragraph from the Week Magazine, 10 26 12, which in turn… Continue reading Those Who Have Dugout Canoes
Notes from the Bigelow Range
MaineAugust 1992 Behold, observations from the Bigelow Range, Maine’s Second Mountain. Six peaks run 12 miles east-west in western Maine. The Bigelow Range. They’re gorgeous. I mean, they’re mountains! Of course they are gorgeous. But they were almost not gorgeous. In the mid 1970s, a proposal was made to turn this area into a massive… Continue reading Notes from the Bigelow Range
Bash Bish
MassachusettsMay 2014 Very close to us when we are on the summit of Mount Frissell, the high point of Connecticut, is Bash Bish Falls, a 60-foot waterfall which is the climax of cascading water as it tumbles through a series of gorges. The original Bash-Bish was a person, a Native of excellent babe-osity. She had… Continue reading Bash Bish
The (Secret) Name
Mount FrissellConnecticutMay 2014 A group of hikers is parked at the nearby pullout. One guy, the loudest one, the one with the New York accent, is holding forth on the terrain, the history and the trails of the area. As there are at least three different trails that go off into the woods here, I… Continue reading The (Secret) Name
The BFI
FreeportMaineAugust 2012 On our way north, we drive past the BFI. The BFI lives by the side of the road on Route 1 in Freeport, Maine. He lives there, but I don’t know if you want to call it a living. He just stands there. All the time. He’s been standing there for more than… Continue reading The BFI
The Head
Mount FrissellConnecticutMay 2014 Isn’t this the way it always happens! Well, no. But it did this time. This Highpointing trip includes the summits of Massachusetts and Connecticut. Most of the time we are hiking on rock. Rock and rocks. Not just picking our way through a rocky footpath, but climbing, hand over hand up steep… Continue reading The Head
Freedom of Information
North CarolinaDecember 2005 North Carolina thoughtfully provides an 800 toll free telephone number that you may call in order to request information about the state. It may not be the information you want, but at least you can get it. On the telephone I inform the information office person that during our upcoming trip, we… Continue reading Freedom of Information