Catch Up & Review: 2012 Part 1 – Ocala National Forest

Enough time had passed since we moved to Florida and we really needed to do a good camping and hiking excursion down here.  It’s quite different here, in that summer is not the ideal time for these activities.  It’s really, really hot, and the insects are relentless – a perfect combination for misery!  Winter, on the other hand, is a lovely time to be outdoors for the most part.  Temperatures are moderate and the bugs are greatly reduced. 

So at the end of January we grabbed our backpacking gear and headed up to Juniper Prairie Wilderness Area, in Ocala National Forest.  The trailhead is next to the Juniper Springs Recreation Area Campground where we paid to park our car.  We wanted to avoid any vandalism that might occur at the trailhead, which we read reports of online.  We hiked to Hidden Pond, stayed overnight, and hiked back.  During the daytime it was about 80 degrees, and we were in the sun most of the time.  We wore pants as usual, and worked up a pretty good sweat.

Catch Up & Review: 2011 Moose River ; Wanakena/Five Ponds

In the summer of 2011, our vacation was spent mostly in the Adirondacks, after visiting some family. First leg of the camping trip was at Moose River Plains Wild Forest; we spent three nights there. It was awesome as always. One of the campsites we’ve always wanted to stay at but is always occupied was finally vacant, so we grabbed it. It’s a really pretty spot by the water.

Catch Up & Review: 2010 Part 3 Moose River

For our final camping trip of the year we spent one last weekend at Moose River at the end of August. The campsite we chose had been oddly decorated off to the side. Someone put a lot of effort into this rock arrangement, and they arranged some long grasses on the ground and in the trees. It was very strange, and I have no idea what it means, if anything.

Catch Up & Review: 2010 Part 2 Forked Lake; Lewey Lake

Our next trip was at the end of May to Forked Lake in the Adirondacks.  It is a primitive campground, and all the sites are walk-in or canoe-in.

Catch Up & Review: 2010 Part 1 Central New York; Moose River

We did a couple of day hikes near Syracuse in April, one at Highland Forest and one at Morgan Hill.  After a long winter spent indoors we get a bit stir crazy, so even seeing the little common things gives us a thrill.  We did find a clump of frog eggs in a mud puddle, and also saw a flock of turkeys in the woods.

Catch Up & Review: (the rest of) 2009 Moose River; Lewey Lake

I thought I’d re-start this whole thing with a couple of brief recaps from the last few years.  We’ve had a few really cool trips, totally worth sharing!

It's Been Too Long...

Well, it’s high time for me to get back with the program, here!  I can’t believe it’s been about 4 years since my last post, and that until now I had only made 7 posts.  It seems like I had put a lot more work than that into this blog thing, and frankly, it just doesn’t seem like that long ago.  The reality is that we’ve done a bit of camping and hiking that I just haven’t shared here.  However, in the spirit of revamping, I changed the name and look of the blog, and I’m very excited about that!

Long Scenic Hike: Highland Forest

Highland Forest County Park, Fabius, NY 5/31/09
Main Trail 9.2 miles

Pictures-only version: click here

So, we’ve been wanting to try a longer hike and see how we do with greater distances. We couldn’t have picked a nicer day for it; the weather was perfect. Highland Forest is becoming a main attraction for us. There are so many trails to follow, and it is beautiful. I doubt it will ever get old on us. Along the way, we crossed several streams, and encountered a fair share of hills, as well as some mud here and there. We didn’t run into a lot of people, which, of course, is fine with us. We did meet a group of three mountain bikers, who had started their journey several miles away and were pretty muddy themselves.

A Little More Primitive: Forked Lake Campground

Forked Lake Primitive Campground (DEC), Adirondacks 5/23 & 5/24/09

Highlights: fishing; our new screen house; canoeing; freeze-dried food; bear lockers; loons singing after dark; coyotes in the distance

Not-exactly-highlights: black flies; the outhouse; rain; packing up wet camping gear; leaving early

Pictures-only version: click here

We’d heard about Forked Lake from a couple different people, so the first weekend in May we drove up to scope it out, and chose the perfect site to reserve, # 75. While planning this trip, we developed grandiose ideas of how we were gonna “really rough-it” this time. Oh yes! We were going to hike in about ½ mile to our site, with all our gear on our backs, and not much gear at that… just the bare essentials. We wouldn’t need our stove or the propane, as we would cook on the campfire. This campfire would not be lit with a modern lighter, or even matches. No, no, only a magnesium fire starter would be used. We wouldn’t need a cooler, either, as we’d be bringing only freeze-dried meals and other dry food items. What about something to drink? Well we’d be camping right next to a lake, for God’s sake! We can gather water from it and boil it over the campfire, rendering it perfect for drinking and cooking. We even bought a mess kit to cook with, thereby eliminating the need for our usual pots, pans, and tableware. This would be a lot less stuff to hike in with. We were also planning a hike along a snowmobile trail, possibly 15 miles round trip, depending on how quickly we tired. It was to be the mother of all camping trips!

First Camping Trip of the Season: Piseco Lake; T Lake Trail

Little Sand Point State Campground, Piseco Lake, Adirondacks 5/15 & 5/16/09
Hike: T Lake Trail 3.5 miles (7 mi. round trip)

Highlights: fishing; Common Mergansers (ducks); hike to T Lake lean-to; red-spotted newts; toads; Purple Trillium (a.k.a. “Stinking Benjamin”)

Not-exactly-highlights: black flies; rain; packing up wet camping gear; leaving early

Pictures-only version: click here

In spite of what we’ve heard about the black flies in the Adirondacks from May through mid-July, we decided to go camp there anyway. We prefer to camp away from the crowds. See, we’re not drinkers like most campers seem to be, and as a result their drunken antics and loud behavior tend to be annoying. The whole reason we enjoy camping is because it’s relaxing, and if you’re quiet enough, you’ll see some pretty cool wildlife. Loud drunks tend to interfere with all of that. So we thought we’d enjoy some solitude and take our chances with the black flies. We did our homework, bought 100% Deet, and got bug nets for our heads. I was hoping we wouldn’t really need the nets; they do look silly.

We arrived at the site and it wasn’t two minutes before we were putting on the bug spray… and the bug nets in five, after spraying them as well. Those flies were all over us, and they concentrate around your head – go figure. We set up camp, ate lunch, and took off in the car to tour the area. We located the trailhead for the next day’s hike, and scoped out another campground at Lake Durant, which was beautiful.