We set out on a mini-adventure to Jennings State Forest to hike two new trails – The Dunn’s Farm Trail and The Pioneer Trail – and help get them online for more people to explore.
We have hiked several sections of the 1,280-mile long Florida Trail, which we love. But while we were staying at a campground in the Lake Okeechobee area in the early spring of 2019, we decided to hike a connected spur trail, the 61-mile Ocean-to-Lake Trail.
It was a brisk winter morning when my beau, Rusty, and I headed to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge for a 2-day guided paddling trip with Okefenokee Adventures in Folkston, Georgia. Less than an hour from Amelia Island, the Okefenokee swamp is a great place to visit this time of year, when the weather is cool and insects are at a minimum…
I’ve visited Cumberland Island so many times I feel I could hike the backcountry blindfolded. But Troy had only taken a day trip there, and was eager to explore the trails with me…
The first half of our 1.5 mile ascent back up Big Frog Mountain was straight up as we knew it would be, stopping every few hundred feet to catch our breath. We’d gone less than a quarter mile before the rain started to pour again and the trail slowly became more muddy and slippery…
The rain ended overnight. But it was so dark on this slope under the trees we woke up late. Still, we made time for coffee, love and breakfast before we packed up and started back the way we came…
Once, when the trail dipped down below the ridge, we spooked a bear that was on the ridge only a few feet above us. We didn’t see it through the brush but it sounded big…
As the path turned upwards again to climb Big Frog Mountain there was no rest from the ascent. Our hearts started pounding and we started to sweat pretty good..
When my husband Troy told me he wanted to hike Vermont’s 272-mile Long Trail with his friend Brock, I was surprised…