spring/summer goals

I'm not sure anybody is still reading this blog, but it really doesn't matter. It's kind-of like peaking into my diary.

A few people I know used too. And they mostly already know this. I have gained 30+ pounds over the last year. I am exercising less and my blood pressure is back to being uncontrolled. Every bad habit I've changed over the last decade has returned bolder and stronger than before. When times get tough, sit on your ass and party with sugar and carbs.

I had heard this happens with alcoholics. You stop drinking and if you pick it up again 15 years later, you pick up like you hadn't stopped. So you go from 0-300%.

Anyway, recent events have put me on high alert. Change must happen.

My online school closed in the middle of a term, so now I'm underemployed. Then a recent medical issue forced me to go to the doctor. It was a wake up call. Get up off your fat lazy ass and get moving again. And eat better. So I will try. Especially if the ultrasound on Wednesday gives me bad news. Then I won't have a choice. And if it is bad news I have no health insurance. That scares the bejeezus out of me.

Anyhow, when we drove to Georgia last summer, the teen gave me this note book. She gave one to everyone to journal our adventure. I of course, have this blog, so I didn't do that. Instead I've been listing places to walk that I've never been before. Hopefully I will get to go to a few this summer. Depends on what kind of job I get and what the hours are. So far I applied to the University of Maryland, online division and Dorney Park. I just need to bring money in. Applying for a job in 2019 is a PIA.

This weekend I'll be driving to Morgantown, WV. I need to pick at least two volkssport walks to do.  One going, and at least one, maybe two, coming home. The greater York area has many of them. I just don't want to add too much time to my 5 hour drive.

bethlehem township park

Today I walked on the track at Bethlehem Township Park off Farmersville Road. It's a one-mile loop that weaves thru the perimeter of the property. If you go one direction is mostly a subtle downhill. If you go the other, it's a subtle uphill.

I first started going here in 2009. The 3-Day website had a training walk listed for this park. I only went once or twice. This is the place they did all there training. So if you had to walk 20 miles, they went around 20 times. I'd rather shoot myself than walk in circles. I know it was tough when I did the Relay For Life in P'burg in 2011. Mind-numbing boredom.

One reason I decided to go there is that I noticed the exercise equipment was upgraded. It's all metal and plastic and nice. But looking back in this blog I realized that I also noticed it in 2016. So who knows when it was replaced. The old stuff was a splinter waiting to happen. Too bad they went with the wood chips and not the recycled rubber. You need to wear long pants to work out, otherwise the chips hurt!

As I walked the loop I noticed that the drainage area wasn't working correctly and they have some serious erosion issues. Plantings would help. One reason I don't go here often is it's all sun. There are a few trees at the edges, but it's mostly fields.  Additional trees and plants would help keep the soil from eroding away. Leaving a few fields go wild would help the local wildlife, and bonus, no mowing. It's a win-win. But then I'm not a landscaper.

There was a lot of people out today. I can imagine what the D&L was like. At the nearby golf course it looked like rush-hour. Everyone wanted to get out.

Miles/Steps:        2 
Weather:              Near 60, sunny, 10 MPH wind 
Wildlife:               4 geese, 1 crow 
Bathrooms:          Still closed for the winter. Spring was three days ago!
Extra:                   Since I first came here in 2009, the barn above has been returning to the earth. At what point does ruins become a hazard? I'm not advocating tearing it down. It's beautiful. First erosion. Then crumbling ruins. These are the things I think about when walking. There is no zen.

new blog feature

I need to be kept accountable. I don't really post "routine" walks because they are boring. So Thursday when I went walking, I was thinking about it. So my weekend posts will have a new feature. At the end, I will right the days between the last post, and where I walked. For example:

Thursday: Wyandotte Street loop (Found a penny!)
Friday:  Fountain Hill with Angel

We will see how it goes. If it gets my ass moving, it's so worth it.

golv | trexler nature preserve

On my calendar I wrote today's Get Out Lehigh Valley walk as "Trexler". I looked at it this morning and said to myself, which one? You can't throw a stick in the Allentown area without running into something General Trexler impacted. (Kind-of like Moravians and Asa Packer in Bethlehem!)

I looked up the walk on the Wildland's website and it was the game preserve. Strike that. It was the nature Preserve. They changed the name in 2006. It will probably be 2106 before I actually put it in my brain.

Anyway, we met at the Environmental Education Center. I always get lost going there, but not today! It was a March Miracle.  The hike, however, was just as strenuous as always.

We did 1.5 miles (out and back) of the eight mile perimeter hike. Thru the woods on muddy paths, we went down and up and down and up until we reached the lookout. I am so happy I keep my walking stick in the car. The upside of this hike, was we got to be up close and personal with the bison. So I guess it was worth it. But to end a hike with a long uphill is just plain mean.

Miles/Steps:         4 (well, I forgot to look at the tracker until after I came out of the supermarket!) 
Weather:              38, sunny, 25-30 MPH wind 
Wildlife:               A herd of bison including two, year-old calves; a boil (that's flock for hawks) of juvenile red tails. We didn't see mama, so they must just be gaining independence.

drink your tree

I receive an email blast from the Wildlands Conservancy at the beginning of the month. And this walk — Drink My Tree— caught my attention. It was held at the Lehigh Parkway

This was the blurb:

"Most of us are probably quite familiar with healing teas like mint, but many people don’t realize that certain trees can also be used to make beneficial drinks, especially over winter. This edible tree identification hike culminates in tree tea tasting upon return."

The walk began at Bogart's Bridge. We walked toward the iron bridge, crossed, and came back. Then we crossed the street, and went under the road, turned around and came back. The pace was brisk when we were walking, but as you could assume, we stopped frequently to look at trees. Many varieties of pine, oaks, beech, hickory and birch work. As well as the pine nuts and acorns. Many have health properties, and the pines are loaded with vitamin C.

The naturalist talked about the flavors of each like one would talk about fine wine or beers. Personally I would never forage, I don't trust my skills. For example a hickory and a yew look similar. But the yew would make you very sick.

Regardless, if they have a foraging one in the summer, I'll do that one as well.

The tea was okay. I am not a hot beverage fan. It mostly tasted like hot water. In the photo the one on the left is pine needle. The clear one is hickory. He said the pine needle would taste like citrus. I didn't get that. The hickory just tasted like hot water. I only took a little and didn't finish either.

Miles/Steps:         3 
Weather:              38, sunny, breezy 
Wildlife:                No ducks or geese -- shocking. But I did see 5 robins. Usually a non-event, but these are the first of the season.

lbw - South Bethlehem walk

Today was the south Bethlehem volkssport walk. It was not cold, but it was very windy.  There were 11 walkers, including me. Which is an excellent turnout for a Bethlehem walk. Just like I hate driving to Philly, not everyone likes driving here. And we had a new walker!

For about two weeks I had been emailing back and forth with someone I thought was "LeAnn". She found us on Facebook. She said she'd be there today. I'm glad I went down early, because she had already arrived. And her name was Debbie. She says she gets LeAnn a lot.

The whole group did the 6K. The trestle has been reopened (no more ice) and Carol (bobodancer) tried out my new directions which takes us past the Museum of Industrial Heritage, NCC Southside, The oldest part of the Steel, and the Steel's front gate.

It's also got this great wavy sidewalk.

All in all a good walk. It felt to get out and move. I've spent way too much time on my ass lately. And it shows.

Miles/Steps:        5 
Weather:              47, sunny, 20 MPH wind 
Bathrooms:          I-4.5 at Outlet Mall.
Extra:                   The new Pa. walk books arrived. They are in the box.

historic bethlehem

The weather has been wacky this winter. It was fairly mild for most of the winter—there was one polar vortex, but little snow and ice. The last two or three weeks have been relentless. Little storms and mostly wintery mix. I don't care for wintery mix. I'm not a fan of ice. I fall enough.

Tuesday night we had a storm that dropped about 4-5 inches of snow, then some sleet, then some ice, then finally rain. I got most of my shoveling done before it became too soggy and heavy to lift. Classes started late Wednesday, but no snow day. It was funny because it was by far the worse storm we had. It's all about timing, I guess.

Today Lydia was off and I was trying to think of a place that was dog friendly to walk. Most of my regular places have "no winter maintenance" signs up. The IRT is the exception, but it's in a densely populated area. Running into other dogs is a distinct possibility.

We decided on the historic area, figuring the city had to clear it for tourists. We were right.

We parked under the Hill-To-Hill Bridge and walked over the pedestrian bridge, and thru the Industrial Quarter. The path was cleared, but soggy. Some parts were snow covered. We actually walked in the snow. Then it was thru Johnston Park, across the bridge and back up Conestoga Street to the parking lot.

Miles/Steps:        1 mile is probably generous. 
Weather:              39, sunny 
Wildlife:               2 geese

golv: peace valley park. mud like quicksand.

Last night it we had a wintery mix. It was sleeting when I got home at 11:15, and by morning there was about 2 inches of snow on the ground.  Not the best day to drive to Peace Valley Park, but the temps were rising and the snow was slushy so why not? Besides, consider the alternative. See what I mean?

Lydia opted not to go.

After shoveling snow and eating breakfast, I ended up not leaving until 9:15 am, and it started at 10. And it took 45 minutes to get there. I knew I might be late, but GOLV always takes a half hour to get moving so I knew it would be okay. Besides, I would know exactly where they went -- there would be a lot of tracks in the snow covered trails.

I arrived in plenty of time. There was less snow there, but it was wetter. I should have worn different shoes. When you stepped, it turned to mush. I had on my muck-lucs. I needed to have on my Wellies.

First we went over to the bridge to look at the partially frozen lake. Then we doubled back, past the Nature Center, and near the side of the lake. Under the snow was six inches of mud. It suctioned onto your shoes like icy cold quick sand. I lost my shoes twice. I couldn't lift my foot without pulling off my shoe. After the second time I started looking at the footprints and walking in the not super deep ones. I finished the hike with cold, wet socks. Because of my shoe issues, I was well behind the others, and Chef Deng stayed in the way-back with me. Hours later my feet are still cold.

We headed away from the lake and the trail wasn't quite as muddy. This area was paved, but it was slushy. By the time we returned to the parking lot, the lot was a muddy mess also.

Because of the snow there were a lot of tracks to look at. I didn't take any pics. The lake was noisy with all the birds returning for spring and setting up housekeeping. There were also lots of signs of spring like the items above, but I don't know what it is. If it was my yard, I'd say daffodils. But this is the woods so I'm clueless.

Miles/Steps:         4 miles, includes shoveling 
Weather:              34, overcast and snow covered
Wildlife:                There was a lot. Everybody in the forest is getting ready for spring. Fowl: Gull, red wing blackbirds, blue heron, kingfishers, crows, maybe mockingbirds, wood duck boxes (nobody was home) and one super-sized brown bird that was fishing. Most thought it was a hawk. I thought it was a golden eagle, but Christine (the naturalist) said that they aren't local. She thought it was an immature bald eagle. (They don't get their white heads till about 4.)
     We also saw a lot of tracks in the fresh snow—squirrel, bunny, fox, and possible coyote.