Eleven Days and Counting

It's getting down to crunch time here.  There are only 11 days until we head out on the trail.

This weekend, my mom and I decided to test our tents and sleeping stuff.

WE don't have to worry about bears in the backyard, but the chickens were interested in what was going on.

Both tents were easy to set up.

I'd like to set mine up again to show my husband the ins and outs of it

so he can help with it on the trail.

My mom isn't as comfortable with all the camping stuff, 

but she far surpasses us with the physical fitness.

So she can haul our asses up the hills, 

and we'll make sure her tent isn't going to leak or blow away.

Packing up "camp" was a cinch as well.

And so far my pack is only about 15 lbs.

That includes the tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, 

some clothes and the camera.

I'm certain I will be well below 25 lbs which will be awesome

(plus my husband can carry some stuff too).

I did learn that I need a new sleeping pad.

Mine has a leak and I was on the ground by very early morning.

(you know, the morning where the sun isn't up but the neighbor's rooster thinks it is and starts crowing)

All in all, I'm certain I'm nearly prepared for the trip.

Food plans are coming along, and I've chosen my clothing.

All that is left is assembling the first aid kit and some other odds and ends.

State of the Butt Address

So this is what I did this weekend:

 

I was camping with my son's scout pack for their annual Spring Camporee.  It involves a lot of walking the whole weekend along with camping things like setting up tents, sleeping on air mattresses and walking around with a backpack.  Basically everything that normally makes my hip/butt injury hurt pretty bad.  I was concerned about how it would hold up over the weekend.  I was pleasantly surprised that it barely even ached.  Granted I only had a first aid kit, a bottle of water and a clip board in the back pack, but it was still more than I had in a month.  I made sure I stretched when I could and sat down when I could.  I even felt good enough to try my hand at the rope bridge the boys had to do (not too shabby in my opinion).  So some of my anxiety over this injury is gone and I'm thinking I might be okay after all. In the meantime, I'm continuing all the stretches and exercises from PT and this week I'll try some light hiking but without a pack.  I don't want to over do things and end up worse than before.  

I can do this!

Weekend Hike With the Scouts

 This past week I wasn't able to make it to the gym, and with a weekend camping trip planned with the Cub Scouts, I wasn't sure I would get a decent hike in either.  Luckily, the weather cooperated, and we were able to get out on the trail.  Our Scout District's local camp actually has part of the Appalachian Trail running through it.  I had plans to try to hike to it, but the boys were cold and the snow got deeper and harder to walk through the higher in elevation we got. 

I love taking the Scouts on hikes.  Most of them are so eager to learn and see hikes as a mini adventure.  Because of the snow on the ground, I was able to point out deer, rabbit and racoon tracks.  We also worked on identifying different tree species. But mostly the kids were interested in finding "hiking sticks".

 We hiked for a while until the majority of the group pleaded to head back to camp (there were some who wore sneakers instead of boots), so we decided to turn back.  Though my son, in a rare adventurous moment, asked to hike to the next bend in the road because he saw something interesting he wanted to check out.  We hiked until the snow became a little too deep to walk through comfortably (especially for a smallish person), but we were able to see that the area of interest was the Boy Scout Shotgun Range. 

 All in all, it was a great hike 

and it felt good to be outdoors.