That one time Col went outside...
Aug. 6th, 2012 04:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
colSo it's really no secret that I like to be outside. Being outside is fun! Nature is awesome. Obviously I don't mind getting a little down and dirty or else I wouldn't be studying wildlife biology where I have to spend all day and odd hours working in the field, going off the trail, trekking through bogs, etc... I love hiking. I love camping. But I'd never been backpacking before! So I wanted to give it a shot.
I wasn't really sure where to start. Luckily, I have a dad that when introduced into a topic he finds mildly interesting, he will embrace it with so much enthusiasm and do it in full force. SO needless to say, when I called my dad up to say "Hey, dad, want to go backpacking?" he was at REI within the hour.
And thus my dad and I drained my checking account buying lots of backpacking gear for two trips. Our first, an overnight to Michigan and the second, a multi-day to Banff. We just got back from the overnight and I had a total blast.
When we started, it was a pretty warm, sunny and in the upper 80s. We were with a group of 9, 3 of those being experienced backpackers. The other 6 being new backpackers. While most of the other new backpackers seemed in pretty good shape, I think they lacked actual outdoor experience. Slopes or obstacles were very hard for a lot of them, including my dad (who runs marathons and triathlons!). I think I just had the advantage of having a lot of off-trail field experience that even some of the tougher trails might as well be paved ground to me, haha.
We hiked about 5 miles in the forest and than a little over 1 out on the dunes. Cloud cover had increased significantly. This didn't make for great views or pictures, but made hiking out in the open a bit easier, especially since we were hiking up and down sand dunes, which were hands down the TOUGHEST part of this trip.
Shortly after we trampled down that slope and ruined all the nice sand, haha. Somehow, I didn't fall!
We set up camp for the night. My dad and I went to go get some water from the lake, and then I took a nap. Most everyone else went and swam in Lake Michigan for awhile. I enjoyed my sleep until I rolled over and broke my glasses (and had to wear my sunglasses for the rest of the trip...). Made a fire, cranked up the stoves and cooked dinner. Had a fun-ish night. I didn't quite "click" with anyone else on the trip so I just went to bed early after some small chat for awhile. I knew the next day would be tough.
It was SUNNY today, but very windy. It was honestly only about 70 degrees, I kept my raincoat on for the first mile of the trip to keep warm. The lake was beautiful and we hiked up the beach for about a mile. Then the group split, and four hiked 2 miles up the beach, the rest (myself included) did 3 miles in the forest. It was a tougher hike with lots of hills today, but since it was shorter and we were eager to get out we did it at a faster pace.
Argh it was just so pretty arghhh
Afterwards my dad and I took a couple pictures together and then hit the road. We decided to skip lunch with the group mostly because I had to get back to Indiana after stopping at home and digging out my old pair of glasses. It was a lot of fun! I was surprised at how in shape I was. I did get a crap ton of blisters, and have to kind of hobble around today though... Oh well! The sacrifices of being outdoors.
FAMILY BONDING.
I wasn't really sure where to start. Luckily, I have a dad that when introduced into a topic he finds mildly interesting, he will embrace it with so much enthusiasm and do it in full force. SO needless to say, when I called my dad up to say "Hey, dad, want to go backpacking?" he was at REI within the hour.
And thus my dad and I drained my checking account buying lots of backpacking gear for two trips. Our first, an overnight to Michigan and the second, a multi-day to Banff. We just got back from the overnight and I had a total blast.
When we started, it was a pretty warm, sunny and in the upper 80s. We were with a group of 9, 3 of those being experienced backpackers. The other 6 being new backpackers. While most of the other new backpackers seemed in pretty good shape, I think they lacked actual outdoor experience. Slopes or obstacles were very hard for a lot of them, including my dad (who runs marathons and triathlons!). I think I just had the advantage of having a lot of off-trail field experience that even some of the tougher trails might as well be paved ground to me, haha.
We hiked about 5 miles in the forest and than a little over 1 out on the dunes. Cloud cover had increased significantly. This didn't make for great views or pictures, but made hiking out in the open a bit easier, especially since we were hiking up and down sand dunes, which were hands down the TOUGHEST part of this trip.
Shortly after we trampled down that slope and ruined all the nice sand, haha. Somehow, I didn't fall!
We set up camp for the night. My dad and I went to go get some water from the lake, and then I took a nap. Most everyone else went and swam in Lake Michigan for awhile. I enjoyed my sleep until I rolled over and broke my glasses (and had to wear my sunglasses for the rest of the trip...). Made a fire, cranked up the stoves and cooked dinner. Had a fun-ish night. I didn't quite "click" with anyone else on the trip so I just went to bed early after some small chat for awhile. I knew the next day would be tough.
It was SUNNY today, but very windy. It was honestly only about 70 degrees, I kept my raincoat on for the first mile of the trip to keep warm. The lake was beautiful and we hiked up the beach for about a mile. Then the group split, and four hiked 2 miles up the beach, the rest (myself included) did 3 miles in the forest. It was a tougher hike with lots of hills today, but since it was shorter and we were eager to get out we did it at a faster pace.
Argh it was just so pretty arghhh
Afterwards my dad and I took a couple pictures together and then hit the road. We decided to skip lunch with the group mostly because I had to get back to Indiana after stopping at home and digging out my old pair of glasses. It was a lot of fun! I was surprised at how in shape I was. I did get a crap ton of blisters, and have to kind of hobble around today though... Oh well! The sacrifices of being outdoors.
FAMILY BONDING.
