golv | stone soup stroll

Today was the first event Get Out Lehigh Valley event, the annual Stone Soup Stroll. As always our resident walking chef, Dang, tended the pot.

This is the day when the give the prize for doing 10 walks, and have the drawing for the overall prize winner. I won last year. This years winner received a pair of hiking sticks. Our walking prize was one of those tubes they wear on survivor. They can be worn multiple ways, including as a swim top if you are skinny enough. I took a pic but they are icky. Maybe I'll just wait for the group shot to be posted. I'm holding just the tube.

It was cold standing around. I had Lydia take a photo of me dressed as the Michelin man. She said I was more Stay Puff Marshmallow man. I had on long undies, a long sleeve tee shirt, a fleece jacket, another fleece jacket and a hoodie. I was toasty. Actually I was too toasty.

At 10:30 we finally started to walk. We arrived at 9:55. We were in the second group and headed up the trail, past the resident raptors and owls and around the deer enclosure. Christine, the group leader, knows every square inch of the property so we stopped frequently for birds, invasive plants, and other ecology leassons. This made going up the hill much easier.

 Coming down the hill we walked past the remnants of shelters made by both children and animals.

When we arrived at the boardwalks, the puddles of water created these really cool sculptures.

Finally we arrived back at the environmental ed center for Stone Soup. This one had a lot of carrots, okra, cabbage, celery and beans. It was good, but I could tell no one brought veggie stock or tomato paste. It was clearly made with water. I took quinoa, so it must have been in the other pot.

Before we left I measured my arms. My wing span is the same as a vulture.

Miles/Steps:          2
Weather:               28, mostly sunny 
Wildlife:                 Flickers, Nut Thatches, a gaggle of geese,and three varieties of wood peckers —red belly, downy, and  pileated
Extra:                    There was a lot of children along. One discovered wild onion and wanted everyone to sample it. "No, I don't want to sample the onion" is words I never thought I'd say. I think the picked all the wild onion out of the forest. Their ever-prepare parent had plastic bags in her pocket. Clearly, bring home the forest is a typical activity.
Extra 2:                  It was 28 degrees and many of the children had bare ankles? WHY?

The 10+ hikers for 2018.