5 Days of Granola, Protein Bars, and Dehydrated Food

Kevin and the guys just got back from their annual Hiking trip. This year they went to Georgia. Here's his mini novel on the trip. :)

Jason, Bill, Eric and I went hiking in Georgia on the Bartram Trail last week. This is the fourth multi-day hike I've been on. The others were in Colorado and New Mexico. This time the altitude was alot less. The elevation ranged from about 1600 feet to 4700 feet above sea level.

It was a 14 hour drive from Houston to the trail (near Clayton, GA). We left Houston at the crazy hour of 4:30 am. We arrived at the trail head at about 9 pm. The last 5 miles or so to the trailhead was memorable. Jason's Tom Tom GPS decided to take us down something less than a road. It was little more than a trail. Barely wide enough for the truck. It was two ruts with weeds in the middle. I would have never turned down that "road" no matter what the GPS said. However, I think Jason was looking forward to using his truck offroad. Although this clearly wasn't the proper route to the trailhead, we did eventually make it.

It started raining just after we arrived at the trailhead. Eric and I slept in the cars. Jason and Bill pitched their tents just in time to avoid hard rain. The next morning, we parked at car at each end of the 37 mile trail and headed out on our adventure.

Day 1 - 7 miles

The weather wasn't great for Day 1. It never rained hard, but it misted much of the day. There were also low clouds/fog all day long. The first day was one of large elevation changes. We started at 3200 feet, hiked to the top of Rabun Bald mountain (at 4700 feet), and then hiked back down. Rabun Bald is the second highest point in Georgia. The view should have been amazing. Unfortunately, the view was nothing but white. White as in clouds. We should have been able to see for miles from the observation deck built on the top of mountain (it has been there since 1933). However, the clouds were so think that we couldn't see more than 50 feet. While this day had alot of elevation change, I felt pretty good when we arrived at the campsite. The campsite wasn't great. Everything was pretty wet, but at least it was level. It of course rained overnight to ensure our tent rainflys were nice and wet in the morning.

Day 2 - 9 miles

The weather was better for Day 2. It wasn't exactly nice, but it wasn't raining. Day 2 was almost all downhill. However, that doesn't make it easy. I hate downhill. It isn't as tiring, but it is alot tougher on your feet and your knees. I also had an equipment malfunction on Day 2. About 12 miles into the hike, the sole of my boot came off. It actually didn't completely come off. The front was still attached. However, more than half came loose. There is no way I could continue the hike like that, and I would have never made it in the sandals I wear in camp. Luckily, Jason had gators which he didn't really need. Gators are things that keep stuff like snow out of your boots. The good part is they have a strap that goes under your boot. I used that strap to keep the sole of my boot on. It wasn't perfect, but it kept the sole on for the rest of the hike. By the time we made it into camp my feet were on fire from the downhill. Luckily I didn't get blisters and I felt pretty good after getting out of my boots. The campsite was nicer the second day. Of course, it rained overnight.

Day 3 - 7 miles

The weather was great for Day 3. It was nice and sunny. It was a little hot, but otherwise great. Day 3 was almost all uphill. It was a much tougher day than we expected. However, we all made it and I felt good when we came into camp. The camp was really nice (probably the nicest of the trip). It was at the top of Rainy Mountain. The camp grounds most distinguishing feature was tons of vines. Some of them were huge (thick). The campground even had some vines perfect for swinging on. Bill and I took turns swinging on the vines. Jason even tried it. My tent was surrounded by huge vines growing along the ground. They were perfect for draping my stuff on. Given we were camping on Rainy Mountain, it of course did NOT rain on us overnight. This was actually the only night of the trip in which it didn't rain. For once, we woke up and could pack a completely dry tent.

Day 4 - 6 miles

Day 4 had the most beautiful views. The weather was very nice. The highlight of the day was a little detour off the Bartram Trail. We dropped out packs and headed on a short hike down Dick's Creek towards the Chattooga River. There is a waterfall where Dick's Creek flows into the Chattooga River. The Chattooga forms the boundary between Georgia and South Carolina. It was beautiful. The water was crystal clear. The rapids and the trees made for incredible views. The trail also paralleled the Chattooga River for awhile. This made for great views. We ended up camping by the river. The campsite was small, but it was nice being near the river. We actually came into camp early and finished hiking at about 2 pm. We used the time to rest and hang out at the river. I actually went into the river. I planned to go swimming, but the water was super cold and the current was stronger than I expected. I did end up wading well past my waist in the river. It was tough but I actually made it all the way across the river at one point. That was alot of fun and allowed me to get some nice pictures. Bill waded into his knees, but no one else decided to really go into the river. The only bad part of the day was for Bill. He started pitching his tent over what was apparently a yellow jacket nest. He got stung three times and the yellow jackets swarmed along the ground for hours. Bill ended up pitching his tent somewhere else and the swelling didn't last long. As we were no longer on Rainy Mountain, it of course did rain (though not too bad) overnight.

Day 5 - 8 miles

Day 5 was the last day of hiking. At this point, we were all ready to get off the trail. Jason's feet were blistered badly. We were all craving Mexican food after days of granola, protein bars, and dehydrated food (and 3 lbs of almonds in Eric's case). The last day of hiking was a little harder at first than expected. It was pretty uphill for alot longer than we thought. However, the second half of the day's hike was pretty level. It was so level that we went quite a bit faster than the other days. Despite the relatively easy hike, I was pretty tired when we reached the trailhead where the car was parked. The hike wasn't as nice as the other days. The last couple of miles was pretty much just through the weeds. There were a few nice views of the river at the very end of the hike.

After the hike, we headed to a Mexican food restaurant in Clayton. After days of hiking food, it was awesome. Overall, it was a good hike. Other than Jason's feet, Bill's yellow jacket stings, and my boot malfunction, everything went well.

Proofs

We got the proofs back for our school pictures today. Similiar to last year, there was a cute picture of Connor, but Ryan didn't look too thrilled either in his individual pictures or the shots of the two of them together.

I think the photograher that comes in to take pictures at the kids' school has some really cute sets. It makes for much nicer pics than most school pictures with just the plain background behind them.

Can you guess where we went today??

Can you guess where we went today?

Sneak Peek

I decided to go ahead and download some of the pics I took tonight to see how they turned out... I haven't even gotten half way through them yet, but this one made me laugh out loud. Here's what Ryan thinks of my picture taking while he is trying to eat.

Connor was a bit more cooperative.

Bad Bad Blogger

Okay, so I have been a bad, bad blogger lately. Mostly because there hasn't been a whole lot going on. Just normal every day stuff. And we have been really bad at taking pictures lately. Other than one or two random occasions we haven't been filling the memory sticks. :) I have also had some sort of cold on and off for the last few weeks. I have had a really rough time kicking the cough. And now thanks to the cold front that blew through Saturday I have been sneezing like crazy, too. I should definately buy stock in Kleenex.

But what you really want to know is that they boys have been up to, right? Can you believe tat they are 19 1/2 months old already?? Seriously, where does all the time go? They are growing up way too fast and they never cease to amaze me with all the little things they have learned. They are both super sweet about giving hugs and kisses lately. They are also really awesome little helpers who love to help with just about anything. They put up their dirty clothes, they pick up toys, and they always put their shoes up. They are getting to be more and more independent, too - they love to brush their teeth, carry their school bags, and feed themselves using silverware. Ryan is actually pretty good with a fork. Connor is... umm, a bit messy, maybe? Spaghetti night is all kinds of fun.

Let's see what else has been going on... We had school pictures last week. Can't wait to see how they turn out. Though I am a little nervous, too. The school had said they would do toddler pictures on Tuesday, and then siblings on Wednesday. So on Tuesday I put the boys in some nice orange shirts to go along with the fall set. Then on Wednesday it was kind of a crazy morning. I had to be at work early, Kevin was gone, and I had to get the boys up, dressed, and out the door - and oh yeah, presentable for pictures. I had washed most of the boys' clothes the night before, but forgot to start the dryer. So I pulled out some new shirts, and their jeans. It hasn't exactly been jean weather so we had never worn them before either. The shirts were a little on the big size, as were the waists of the jeans, but unfortunately due to the dryer mishap that's what they had to wear. I thought at least their individuals should be cute. Little did I know that somewhere the wires got crossed and because they were signed up for sibling pics they didn't take any individuals on Tuesday. So all our pics will be in the slightly big clothes. I think they will still be cute, but if they look like they were drowning in their clothes at least you know why...

And poor Connor - on Monday he got bitten on the cheek by another kid in his class. He was apparently being really nice and trying to help someone with their chair, and they thought he was trying to take it and they bit him. On his cheek. The day before picutures (or what was supposed to be picture day). Then on Tuesday he and Ryan were wrestling and Ryan scratched him on both of his cheeks. Poor kid. Then to top that off he is cutting his bottom eye teeth, and unlike the rest of the teeth these seem to really be bothering him. He has been chewing on his hands non stop for at least the last week until his hands look like raisins. His poor little gums are so swollen I really hope they pop through soon.

Well, it is past my bedtime so I am going to call it a night tonight, but I promise I will try to dump the pictures off my camera in the next few days and post some pictures when I get a chance.

How many engineers...

It will just take a few minutes. Most things that go wrong start with just such thinking just so you know... Last nights brain storm was to install a lever lock on the powder bath door. It's the one room that the boys just won't stay out of. Connor loves to unroll the toilet paper, and Ryan, well Ryan likes to shut the door - generally shutting both of them in the bathroom in the dark.

So, a few weeks ago while shopping for a shower gift for some friends I picked up a couple of locks. And last night I decided to install one. So I pulled it out of the box, read the directions and proceeded to install it. I peeled the tape backing off the sticky stuff carefully maneuvered the lock around the lever handle and positioned it just so then pressed it firmly in place.

After about a minute I decided to try it out. Pull the door shut, set the lock, and open it. Only, the door wouldn't actually shut with the lock installed. Apparently our handles are too close to the edge of the door and the lock hits the door frame and does not allow the door to close. Oops. Kevin and I then spent the next 30 minutes trying to get the thing off the door before it had time to really stick. Only once the sticky stuff makes contact, despite the advised 24hour curing period, it sticks. Really, really well.

After sawing at it with fishing line we did finally manage to get it off. The door still in once piece. Though while looking at the lock while Kevin tried in vain to get it off I realized that it was probably a good thing that the door wouldn't close. Turns out the lock is pretty much a one-way lock. You can get in, but you couldn't have gotten back out. Why would anyone design a lock like that?? That's just asking to be locked in somewhere.

Bye bye surfer boy

Ryan's hair has just been so stinking cute. Grown adults would pay a fortune to have those soft perfectly behaved blonde locks, gorgeous highlights, and cute little curls. I have been calling him my little surfer dude for a while now. Especially in his swim gear. He was adorable.

Alas, the locks were to a length where they were starting to get into his eyes, and the curls in the back were past his collar. It was time. Time for a haircut. Time to say goodbye to those cute little curls, again. But hopefully not for the last time. So Friday night, I finally did what I had been threatening for the last few weeks - I took him to get a haircut. Before she was even done cutting I already missed the curls. As usual he looked like a totally different kid. Oddly enough, unlike Connor who suddenly looked all grown up Ryan actually looked a little younger, a little more his age.

West of the Nile

Oh my poor babies... they are COVERED in mosquito bites. Ryan has 4 or 5 on his head alone. He has them on his fingers, his arms, and his legs, too. Poor kiddo. With all the rain we have been having lately they are really starting to come out. Thankfully the spraying trucks have been out in force in our neighborhood and we may all keel over from toxic mosquito spray, but at least the West Nile should be at bay. :)

I wish I could say the same for school. The kiddos play outside several times a day and the mosquitoes are just rampant out there. I feel so bad for them. They have giant red welts all over them from the bites. Ryan has been scratching up a storm the last day or two. Poor kiddos we will have to start spraying them before school or teach them to look out for the mosquitoes and swat them. Thought that could be dangerous, too.... I can just see it down - Thawk! Waaa.... But he had a mosquito! Sure he did... :)

Run, Ryan, run!

On labor day we decided we needed a little change of scenery so we ventured to Kingwood to visit with Kevin's parents. While we were there we hit the Kingwood trails just down the street from their house and walked (or in Ryan's case -RAN) to the park. The boys LOVED it. We pointed them in the right direction and just let them go. No having to hold hands, no being told they had gone too far and had to come back. Other than stopping to check on Connor once or twice I don't think Ryan's little legs ever stopped moving. They moved a mile a minute. And he was in heaven!

Both the boys giggled like crazy and just took off. Often times venturing down different forks of the trail (around a little patch of trees or open grass) and racing to see who could make it back to next fork first. Then chasing after one another. Laughing all the way. There were a few falls, and a few scrapes, but even those didn't dampen their spirits.

Kevin had to keep a close eye on Connor though. He had a great time checking out little paths off into the brush and woods instead of staying on the main trail. It's probably a miracle that he didn't come home itching from poison ivy or poison oak from his exploring.

When we got to the playground it seemed like the boys remembered it from our last visit. They both went to the play ground and right up the stairs and down their favorite slides. Ryan's was of course the "big kid" slide - the tallest one on the playground. Up the stairs, across, the bridge, and up some more stairs before going down the long winding slide. Connor on the other hand did the smaller of the slides - a straight double shoot off the main platform. They slid right down, hopped off and ran back over to the stairs to do it again, and again.

After a while we headed to the pool at the park and changed into our swimsuits. The kids pool was a large round about a foot and a half deep. The boys had a good time in it throwing and chasing balls. They are starting to learn how to use their lifejackets to keep them afloat and frequently layed down in the water with their floats keeping them up and using their hands and toes to propel themselves around.

As we made the walk back the mosquitoes had come out in force. I swatted poor Connor's head a time or two trying to keep them off of him. We were just walking along and all of a sudden I gently swatted the side of his head. He looked at me like "what did I do??" Poor kid. I carried him most of the way home madly swatting the mosquitoes that had decided I would make a tasty treat. Ryan on the other hand lead the pack and ran all the way back down the trail, again.

The boys definitely like the freedom to just run and explore on the trails. We will definitely have to go back and do it again someday soon. Though this time, in addition to the sunscreen I will have to remember to take some mosquito repellent as well! I wonder... is Off water proof?

Only ducks eat popcorn.

We fed the ducks today. In the rain. They were really hungry. We fed them popcorn. The boys even helped. Ryan loved to snatch fistfuls of popcorn and toss it to the ducks. Connor got in on the tossing action, too, though not with the same enthusiasm as Ryan.

But ducks apparently don't eat nilla wafers. Little boys do.

Some people feed ducks stale bread, or other things gone bad. Not us. We only feed the ducks fresh food. We even popped a bag of popcorn just for the ducks this afternoon. I would say it was because we don't want to feed the ducks penicillin. But the truth of the matter is that the boys tend to eat what we hand them for them to feed the ducks. No matter that they just ate themselves. It must be like dessert right?

So this afternoon we popped fresh popcorn for the ducks. When we got out of the car and headed toward the pond we didn't see a single duck in sight. As we turned the bend on the walking path we saw 3 or 4. As we headed down towards the ducks and the waters edge and pulled out the bag of popcorn ducks came out of the wood works. I started tossing the popcorn here and there. After a couple of tosses I offered a piece to Ryan fully expecting him to eat it, but much to my surprise he tossed it to the ducks. Connor did the same. So the boys and I emptied the whole bag in no time. The boys were thrilled watching all the ducks and being encouraged to toss food like it was a food fight.

I had naively planned to have a little snack at the picnic table after feeding the ducks, only the ducks were still hungry and eyeing my bag greedily. I pulled the only other thing out that I thought the ducks might eat - the last of our nilla wafers. I broke them in smaller pieces and tossed a few to the baby ducks. I even played catch with a couple of the bigger ducks. They catch snacks on the fly far better than my dog! Then I handed the boys pieces to toss. It had no sooner landed in their hands than it went straight into their mouths. They never even thought to try to the popcorn, but they scarfed the nilla wafers down.