golv: saucon rail trail

 Today was the Get Out Lehigh Valley walk on the Saucon Rail trail. It was my 10th walk, so now I have enough stamps to get whatever the prize is. People also know my name. It's a little weird. I don't know theirs. Though I talked to more people today than normal.

The walk started at the Water Street Park in Hellertown. They have a lot of wildflower beds and these little tiny monarch-like butterflies were all over them like a cheap suit. There is two small monarchs —a viceroy and a queen— this one looks like a queen but it's no three inches. It's maybe two inches. My best guess is a painted lady.

The new thing on this trail was new mile markers. The 52 miles is to Philadelphia.

News over heard on the trail: Everything apparently is in place to extent the trail from Coopersburg to Richlandtown. Eventually it will link with the Philadelphia Circuit Trail. The link to the S. Bethlehem Greenway will be awhile. It's an issue with rights.

Normally, after the walk I would have gone home. But my new crop of international students (2 official, 1 not official) were working at the Celtic Classic. When Isha (above) said she was pouring beer, I was a bit shocked. Muslims don't drink. But she assured me she went to training and everything.

So I parked the car and walked to the festival. I new she was at one of the beer booths in the Grand Pavilion. So I'm peering into beer tents looking for a hijab. And I found her. Then I bought enough tickets for a beer, and got in line. The people behind me were probably wondering why I kept telling them to go. Finally it was her turn. She was so surprised to see me. Her shift was nearly over and she had a 2 hour break until the next one in the children's tent. When I found her after her shift she was eating her lunch. There is no halal food at an Irish festival.

She apparently did a great job. She told me that when her relief came, the site supervisor told her she was a good worker and he wanted her back next year. She thanked him, and told him next year she'd be back in Pakistan.

Miles/Steps: 6 for both events
Bathrooms:   none used
Wildlife:        a kaleidoscope of painted lady butterflies.
Weather:      high 80s, breezy, not humid. Yes, it's autumn.

this week

Not too much out of the ordinary this week. Just neighborhood walks. On one of them I found this sweet Buick. Imported from Canada.

How do I know this? From the car dealer's name plate, of course. They don't make nameplates like this anymore. Cars either.

Wednesday was the firstt Fall Fitness camp. I noticed that these signs appeared during the break. Another one appeared that says you have to reserve the pavilion.

You won't be surprised when I tell you that I was the only one to show up. Three coaches, one daughter and me. Coach Sweat (that is his real last name. Pronouced sweet.) is still in training so they threw him to the wolves and made him run a 1-on-1 class. Actually two. The 12-year-old-joined in. She complained more than I did!

Coach Tiffany went home. There was a bit of overstaffing. I overheard her telling Coach Suki that she decided to do the certification course for personal training. Of the three, she is excellent at it. A nice combo of good cop/bad cop.  And she isn't a skinny b!tch. She looks like a real person. It's much more inspiring than perfection. Of the three coaches, only Coach Sweat is perfection. He's proabablythe youngest as well.

Shortly I'll be leaving for the Get Out Lehigh Valley Event at the Hellertown Rail Trail. Then I'm walking over to the Celtic Classic. One of my international students is tapping beer. Not too unusual until you see she wears a hijab.

wait ... 13 times?

Today was the 9-11 Memorial Stair Climb at Saucon Valley High School stadium.  My neice Eryn, her son, and I did this climb last year. My nephew is 15 and hates school. But he does have a passion for a career that will give him an adrenaline rush—police/fire/military. That's why I alway invite him to this event.

We signed up and paid early, so we could go later in the morning. After checking in, we waited. It was 16 minutes before opening ceremonies. Then we had to wait for the 9:06 start.

During the opening ceremonies, the firefighter/organizer said that this year the first responders would be doing THIRTEEN rounds. Civilians ELEVEN.

Wait. WTF? Last year it was TEN and I thought I would die. My knees are another year weaker, even after the fitness and yoga in the park. I guess training would help.

Like last year, the first responders went first. They were wearing full gear and carrying axes, flags and crow bars.  As we went they shed gear and civilians picked it up and carried it.

A round was two ups, two downs and a across. Doesn't sound like much but it's brutal.

My nephew did one round and picked up this tank. He carried it for 13 rounds.  I saw his mom around round 7 and she was sitting. "I can't keep up with him." I told her it was easy to keep up with me. She got up and finished.  I'm not keeping up with a 15-year-old.

You should have seen him at the end. He looked like he just got out of a pool. He sat on the ground, and when he went to get up, it was wet. He probably burned 2xs the calories we did. Effortlessly.

Driving him home he was talking about joining the local volunteer fire company.

Miles/Steps: 1.75. Really. That's it. And we were exhausted. I actually took Aleve when I returned home.
Bathrooms:   none used
Wildlife:        none
Weather:      low-70s, very humid, drizzle at start.
Extras:          I turned the AC on #3 driving home. We were cooler, but the car smelled awful.

sand island

Wasn't sure where I was going to walk today. I sent a text to Lydia and asked her if she wanted to walk. She said yes. I gave her a list of choices and she chose the D&L on Sand Island. She hadn't seen the new bridge yet.

We parked by the ice house and checked out the bridge construction. I ran up the steps, because I could. Those steps are wonderful. I don't even need a banister on them. We worked our way behind the restrooms to walk creek side. At first we took the wrong path and had to double back and redo it. The creek side tail is no longer an "official" trail because it is eroding away. But it's the prettiest part of the park. I wish they'd fix it.

We came out onto the great lawn and picked up the path to the D&L. But before crossing the bridge, we took the unofficial path down to the river. This little sand bar had developed so we were able to walk into the river. Low water levels. But it's surprising with all the rain we had.

Then it was on the D&L toward the lock. Cross the lock bridge and went out to Lehigh Street. Then we walked over to Festplatz so Lydia could see the new pedestrian bridge.


Miles/Steps: 4-ish
Bathrooms:   none used
Wildlife:        ground hog, and at least 15 mallards
Weather:      low-70s, very humid.
Extras:          We were almost back to the bridge when we saw this sign in English and Spanish. "Warning: Bridge Construction. Use Extreme Caution When Boating In This Area." Boating? WTF? Nobody boats in the three inches of water in the canal. Not to mention all the fallen trees in the canal. Apparently the majority of the users—runners, walkers, bikes—can use the trail and go under the bridge with reckless abandonment.

chihuly nights

Yesterday, my brother, his wife and I went to the Bronx for the Chihuly Nights at the New York Botanical Gardens. It began at 6:30. We left at one. And it only takes two hours to get there. But if we left at 4:30 it would have taken four. So we left early.

The plan was to go to Arthur Avenue, the Little Italy of the Bronx. My S-I-L immediately finds a parking space and it's quite the bargain. $1 an hour. We get out of the corner and Calandra Cheese was across the street. For those who know me, you know that Calandra makes their cheese in Nazareth, Pa., and they have a retail store there. It sells there cheese and a couple popular imports. Nothing like this place. They have something like 168 cheese. There was maybe 16 out to taste. This is the reason I now know I like sheep milk cheese. I think I tasted them all. Who would have thunk it.

 

Every food store had cheese and meat hanging from the ceiling. This particular place sold pork. Some was hot. Some sweet. Some really hot. Then some with stuff added to them.

 

There is also a Arthur Avenue Market which reminds me of a farmers market. As you entered about 4 older men were rolling cigars. There were meat and cheese places. Some had dried pastas. But David bought his pasta at the pasta shop, of course. It was only another block.

This shop sold Italian cooking equipment and dishes. There was a white cat lying out front. They had the biggest tomato processors I've ever seen. Mama could have processed a half of basket at one time. And I should have taken a picture of the pots. One would have fit my 3 year old nephew standing up.

In all, we only walked maybe 5 blocks. It took an hour and a half. We even ate dinner right where we parked the car.

At six o'clock we headed to the gardens.  We were 8 minutes away. Probably could have walked. When we arrived it wasn't quite night. So the early photos are in the light. The rest are in the dark. These are in a small portion of the botanical gardens, with the bulk being in the conservatory.

My photos aren't very good. If you want to see good photos, look at the interactive map and click the black markers.

Miles/Steps: 4-ish but my tracker gave me zero active minutes
Bathrooms:   I-3.5 at the garden. It was the end of the day. I-3.5 at the farmer's market. The stairs were tiny, and the bathroom stalls even tinier.
Wildlife:        none
Weather:       high-70s, breezy, overcast, humid.
Extras:          My S-I-L is an excellent driver. I would have been swearing like a truck driver the whole time. She only got upset once ... barely. My brother was watching the GPS and he kept saying "honey, just follow the idiot". And we did.

we are gonna walk our asses off

Tonight my brother, his wife, and I are going to the New York Botanical Gardens in the Bronx to see the Chihuly Nights exhibit. We were hoping to go early afternoon and walk around in the light, and then see it at night when the sculptures were illuminated. Sadly, that's not possible ... unless you buy two tickets. Needless to say we are just doing the night one.

There are two glass installations through the park, so we'll be covering a lot of ground.  The web site says "On CHIHULY Nights, the exhibition is infused with a magical energy as the artworks are spectacularly illuminated amid NYBG’s sweeping vistas and magnificent Conservatory. After sunset, the atmosphere is thrilling: experience the heightened drama and luminous quality of Dale Chihuly’s colors and forms when lit under the evening sky."

I'm not sure if this is the garden I was to previously. I thought there was only one in the Bronx. Elaborate gardens are not what one thinks of when they think of the Bronx.

We are still leaving here at about 1 and going to Little Italy in the Bronx—Arthur Avenue. My brother is quite the foodie. Actually I could be too, but my roomie is stuck in the bad food 1963 rut. We will have a cooler in the car.

Hopefully I get one decent picture.

south bethlehem greenway extended

Yesterday on Facebook I noticed they dedicated a new section of the South Bethlehem Greenway. It's been quite a while since I walked down to what was the end, so I decided to check it out.

The article said the entrance was on 6th, after the Lynn Street bridge (which is close at least 3 years for repairs).  Here it is right before the entrance to Lynfield Terrace (aka South Terrace), the rebuilt federal housing project on the south side.

I parked on the street and took the path to the trail. As stated in the article, you could not go toward the bridge. It was fenced off. Twice. It looks like the bridge should finally be done by the end of the year.

The railroad tracks are also fenced off. Lydia will hate that. She has a death wish and stands on live tracks and takes selfies.

I like this graffiti play on the B&O Chessie System cat. (All those years of railroads with my brothers and dad have finally paid off. I did remember something!)

 There's cool old stuff from the railroad left behind.

It's a bit creepy walking in this section. it's industrial, and not many people have found it yet. I only saw one other biker.  As I headed toward Hellertown I could see glimpses of what I thought was Saucon Park. When the trail ended, I exited the access point and went straight for the green lawn. It was indeed the park. The pool to be exact.

Maybe my dream will come true. it doesn't need to be extended much further to meet up with the Saucon Rail Trail. Then I could walk from my house to Coopersburg!

This "new" section of the trail has benches at the beginning and end, but no lights or other amenities. Yet. It ends with a big pile of gravel.

 

I returned to the car, and drove to the skate park. I couldn't remember how far it was to the Lynn Street Bridge. Not far. I also wanted to see if it was fenced off.

This section of the trail was getting no love. If I remember correctly it just sort-of stopped. With the bridge construction, it really stopped. It's really evident under the 4th street bridge. Graffiti central.

But there was fencing up. And piles of wood and other construction materials. There was hope. Hopefully they don't tear down the ruins of the former railroad.

This is the Lynn Street Bridge. From this side I can walk right under it and keep going on the trail. You can see the fencing off in the distance, past the black pole on the right.

As I got close to the skate park, I noticed a trial going up towards fourth street. So, of course, I took it. This building is at 4th and Williams. I've seen this mural a dozen times before but never stopped. It is not a great intersection to be taking pictures. The building is a full city block. It was hard to get it in the picture. The mural is on the side ...

and on the back ...

and on the front. It's been there longer than I remember. The artist signed it in 2013.

After finding my way back to the car, I headed to Hellertown for some errands. What the heck. I was almost there.

Miles/Steps: 3+. Better than I thought
Bathrooms:   none used
Wildlife:        Since squirrels and feral cats don't count, none
Weather:       high-60s, breezy, overcast. It poured later in the day
Extras:          While in Hellertown, I went to the Little Free Library at the Water Street park. The wildflowers that for months looked like crap, were ab-fab beautiful.

take it to make it

After walking this morning, I went to Hellertown to the butcher. As I pulled in the parking space I saw this bucket of orange flags. And went investigating.

These are Pedestrian Flags, also known as Pedflags. The basic concept of the PedFlag is to assist the pedestrian in gaining the attention of the approaching motorist. With the aid of the brightly colored flag that can be held out in front of the pedestrian and/or waved, the pedestrian is better able to attract the attention of the driver sooner by becoming more visible. This is a device that is low in cost and can be installed for pedestrian use in a timely manner."

These flags were in Hellertown. I thought I remembered reading something in the Morning Call, but all I could find was this story in a free weekly.

I have my doubts. This morning it wasn't too bad on 412, but somedays I basically going around the block to make a left hand turn. In a car. Not sure if a Slurpee is worth crossing that street. (The Falfal place next door to the butcher, yes. A Slurpee, no.)  Who wants to look like a fool crossing the street with their orange flag in front of them?

They weren't on every corner. I'm guessing this one was chosen because there is a senior living facility in the old high school. I think I saw three sets. Maybe there was more. there is none near the park.

southside stroll

It's a school day. I have to prep for classes, plus do other "life" things. Not too much time for a walk. But I got it in walking down to Taylor Street and back look for new planters and bike racks. Thankfully I walk a lot in school. it should make up any deficits.

Miles/Steps: 2.75. Better than I thought (almost 14000 steps after classes!)
Bathrooms:   none used
Wildlife:        Since squirrels and feral cats don't count, none
Weather:       high-60s, breezy
Extras:          I was devastated when I walked past Full of Crepe and the "For Rent" sign is up. Clearly, restaurants struggle when there are three month breaks and no students or parents that appreciate good food.

who let the dogs out?

Today I had a meeting at Lafayette at 9. I decided to wear my sneakers (too cold for sockless Birks!)  and walk the Art Trail after the meeting. I already had a parking place.

I left campus and walk along the Bushkill Creek until I arrived at Bushkill Drive. I turned left and picked up the trail.  It was a beautiful day. Cool when standing still. Perfect when moving.

The first new "art" I came upon is above. I saw the "sawhorse" first and thought there was an issue. Then I saw the other items. I'm not sure what any of them are, and the execution is not fantastic. Actually, they look like they'll crumble in the next wind storm.

The second one isn't really new. I think this was here when I was on a Volkssport walk. I just didn't look at it carefully. It's the utility box for the trail. If you look carefully it's painted, then doodled! Can doodling really be fine art?

When I reached the end of the path I turned around and came back.

What I noticed today, more than any other time on the trail is the sheer number of dogs. And none liked each other. Park of it might be that there is a dog park on the trail. But if you don't get along with other caine's you can't use it. So much barking!

When I returned to campus I took the road to Rt 611. There was a camper I wanted to take a picture of, and a ghost sign.

Then I headed to Jersey for gas. It's 15¢ cheaper this week. Not much, but at least it wasn't $2.89.

Miles/Steps: I forgot my tracker. More than 3, less than 4
Bathrooms:   none used
Wildlife:        3 mallards, 1 male
Weather:       mid-70s, breezy

false starts

Today I planned on walking the D&L from Bethlehem to Freemansburg. I pulled into Sand Island and saw a group of girls in bright orange tees. I thought it was a walking group. It wasn't. They were volunteers for the VIA Marathon. Shit. I can't walk her today. I don't want to be mowed over by marathoners.

Where to go? I decided on the Monocacy Trail. I parked at the corner of Monocacy and Union and walked to the trail. As I went down the trail I realized that the Apple Festival was at Burnside. Shit. Another false start? I fully expected to be turned away. But I wasn't. I just walked right in. Apparently admission is charged by the CARfull. I wasn't in a car.

I even could have done the house tour.—something I've always wanted to do—but the next group wouldn't leave for another half hour. I didn't want to wait. I wouldn't want to walk back.

I looked at the crafts, and the exhibits, and thru the gardens. Then got back on the trail and headed back to the car.

Miles/Steps: 3
Bathrooms:   none used
Wildlife:        none
$ Found:       10¢
Weather:      mid-70s, breezy

run fast, there's less than 10 minutes left!

Yesterday was the first race in the Girl Scout Trefoil Fitness Challenge—The Tough Cookie Adventurer race. I was expecting it to be like a tough mudder. I was so wrong.

We arrived early, about 8 am. The race was supposed to start at 9. The lines were already long, and we got in the wrong one. (Missing signage was one of the few bumps in the road.) We received several emails that said the gates would close at 8:45, and there was a pre-race meeting at 8:30. Because of the long lines, the meeting wasn't until 9. The race didn't start until 9:30.

We were one team but were registered as two. There was five of us—Angel and her teen, and me and my 15-year-old niece and nephew. Each team needed a registered Girl Scout, so my nephew was on Angels team, my niece on mine.

They gave us a packet with clues. Clues? The map had minimal information. What the heck? Even things like the huge pool were not on it. It was bare bones. I should have taken a picture. After the meeting, they ask if anyone has questions. My hand goes up. "Are the trails marked?" First he didn't answer the question. But finally he got around to it. "No", the trails are not marked in any way. Apparently an adventure race teaches you navigation. Part of the challenge was to figure it out.

Shit. I could do that at Mosey Wood. I might even be able to do it at Wood Haven. But I have never step foot into Camp Laughing Waters. We are screwed.

We did the bike route first. There were orienteering flags with punches for both the bike and the foot trails. (Oh, and we had 2 hours. Period. If we were late there was a one flag penalty for each MINUTE late.) We kept finding foot flags. Angel found the first bike one. Finally we found a few and did two of the challenges for their age group. Somehow the teen got a splinter and required the first aid tent.

We turned in our bike passport and picked up the foot one, and headed out again. We did better this time because we had already found lots of them in the first round. We had about 45 minutes. The kids really wanted to do the creek challenges so we worked out way to the creek.

 Dang the water was cold. My neice fell in going for the third flag. We could tell where the flags were. There was a lifeguard nearby. (One of many ways we could tell this was a GS event.)

Angel got out of the water before they were done finding the flags. She was cold. We're heading back and I hear her yell "15 minutes!". I yelled that we were on our way. About 10 seconds later she yelled "10 Minutes". The kids were getting out of the water. The bank of the crekwas slippery. Angel and I agreed that the kids needed to run like they have never run before to get the passports back to the finish line.

When I got out of the creek they were already gone. We got close to the finish line and they were waiting. They made it with two minutes to spare.

We changed and ate lunch before the afternoon activities started. We had planned on the rock wall, gaga, and archery. We started with Gaga. It's a dodge-ball-like-game played in an octagonal pit. You use you hands, not your feet. If you get hit below the knees you are out. My two had never played before. My nephew was a pro by the end.

We decided not to do archery. They had to walk even farther to do it and they were over walking. We went back to do the rock wall.

My kids had never done a rock wall before—my nephew complained the harness was uncomfortable. With rock climbing uncomfortable is good. It means you probably are wearing it correctly. The teen went up first. She's an old pro because she does it at camp. My niece had never done it. The teen kept yelling instructions up to her. She made it to the top and rang the bell. Then came down and took off her harness. She wasn't doing that again. My nephew raced the teen to the top. He won going up, but she won coming down.

 
Miles/Steps: 6
Bathrooms:   I-3.5 The latrines were no latrines. There was indoor plumbing in the units!
Weather:      mid-70s, breezy
Extras:          My nephew fell asleep in the car coming home. His hand was on his phone screen. The movement of the car made his hand move and play the game. The girls wer hysterical. His players kept rmming into a wall. At one point he was upside down.

wellness warriors

Yesterday was the kick-off for the Wellness Warriors at the College. There was a lot of swag this time. Pictured above is the t-shirts, lanards, hand sanitizer and chap stick. There was also Kind bars. Yummy. I had mine for supper.

Sadly, I would have traded it all in for a new water bottle. I killed mine the other day.

The kick-off event included a 1-mile walk on the College's little path. I think maybe 25 people were there.

 I'm headed out to Fitness in the park in about 2 hours. I didn't walk today. using the rain as an excuse. Actually, I'm in a bit of a slump.

The GS Tough Cookie mud race is Saturday.

water review: iceland lava

I was flipping channel on the television the other day and I saw a water sommelier. He was on a game show, To Tell The Truth. I thought, yes! I am not crazy. All water does not taste alike! You can watch the video above to hear all about it. Now I have a reason to go to California. I want to go to this restaurant.
 

I haven't done one of these reviews since 2014. Either I'm really good at taking water with me, or I've been very lax. Maybe a bit of both.

As a reminder, I try only to buy water when I don't have it. Lucky for me I generally have a water bottle or three in the freezer ready to be filled and to go. However, this year I've killed two. My "Tail on the Trail" bottle, and my "Wellness Warriors" bottle. Nothing is finer than having an empty water bottle that you haven't drunk!

Wednesday I was in a rush to get out the door for class, and forgot my bottle. I stopped at CVS to buy some. This is one class you don't want to go to without water. The teen refills her bottle multiple times at the fountain.

To be clear, I generally don't buy Dasanti and Aquafina because they are tap water. I've already paid the city for that. Sometimes it is the only choice. Sometimes I get one at a race or event so I will drink it. Sommelier guy really hates these purified waters. The two biggest spring waters in this area are Deer Park and Poland Springs. Both are now owned by by Nestle. I have several issues with that, therefore I try not to buy those either. The goal is to and buy waters I've never tasted before even though they are more expensive. Besides, its more fun.

This time I tried Iceland Lava Spring Water. It was a full liter and cheaper than the Deer Park of the same size which is very odd. These waters are usually a buck more. Iceland Spring´s natural source is located in a naturally protected area in a nature reserve called "Heiðmörk" near Reykjavik. There marketing claim is that it's filtered thru lava.

Of all the waters I've tried, this one has the most non-water taste. The taste was distinctive. I'm not sure what lava tastes like, but this water tasted charcoal-ly. It has an 8.8 ph.