golv: stone soup 2018 (1/52)

Today was the stone soup walk for Get Out Lehigh Valley. It's also prize day. Food and prizes. Can't beat that with a stick.

I arrived on time. Whoo hoo. No need to get lost going to Poole. When I arrived my friends Pam and Ron were there, so we hung together for the morning. This was their first Get Out walk. It was well past 10 when the walk began. This always happens with this group. For the stone soup I took home-frozen bi-color corn.

As always the battery on my phone was fickle, so I took a single picture with a 90% charge. The group pic was taken on Pam's phone. (I've had enough and have made an appointment for a battery replacement.) Once the photos are uploaded to the GOLV FB page, I'll steal them and put them here.

The event started with the prizes for the eighteen walkers who have completed ten hikes. This year the prize was a water bottle with the logo. I was a tad shocked. The first time I have ever received something branded from this group. The Tail on the Trail people brand EVERYTHING. Maybe they are finally understanding marketing?  I'd even buy a t-shirt. It's a good looking logo.

Then there was the grand prize drawing. I won! Two LL Bean totes. No, I don't know why two. Maybe people walk as couples? Honestly, I don't really have a need for either right now. I'll put them in the closet and when I do need them, I'll have them.

After the group pic, we split into two groups and headed out to walk. A third group stayed behind to cook over the open fire. We did three different trails in about an hour. It was a slow hike because it is interperative, we kept stopping. The boardwalks were a bit icy. The ponds were frozen, and the creek was running fast and it was high after yesterdays rain. We finished hiking at the educational bird enclosure. There was a red headed vulture, a black one, three owls, a perigone falcon, and two red tail hawks. I am not including them in the wildlife count, since they are captive.

Finally it was soup time. How such random ingredients can make soup is beyond me. Someone brought pumpkin puree. Who knew?

And I've forgotten how wonderful one smells when they sit in a campfire. My coat, my hair, my clothes, all smell wonderful.

52 week hike challenge:  1/52
Miles/Steps:   2 miles. 
Weather:        27°, sunny, windy
Wildlife:         immature downy woodpecker, 2 red tail hawks, and the carcus of a deer
Extra:             I hate my new Fitbit. I don't think it's even close to accurate. There is a feature where you get a dot for moving 250 steps each hour. One day I had nearly 6000 steps in and two dots. I've even counted and not gotten a dot. Today it says I have 38 active minutes. I hiked for an hour, walked back and forth from the parking lot to environmental ed center, and took the dog on a half mile walk. Clearly that's more than 38 minutes. 
    One day I did a walking tape and realized it wasn't measuring because I wasn't moving forward. I took it off and attached it to my belt loop.And god only knows how it measures sleep. It told me I slept 8 hours and 17 minutes last night. It took three hours to fall asleep and I was up at least twice after that. I don't think so. I think as long as you are laying there -- staring at the ceiling -- it measures it as sleep. 
    Golly I miss my Fitbit One.