One of the nice things about being an entrepreneur is that it takes care of pesky problems such as large quantities of free time. Entrepreneurship is also good for getting rid of good habits such as exercise while helping to pick up bad habits like eating low-quality food very quickly. All of this to say, in the past few years I've put on a few pounds. I told Julia that there is just more of me to love, but that didn't seem to go over so well.
Jacob Fork River, South Mountain State Park
With this in mind, I've decided to start doing some hiking this year. Just breaking up the soap making monotony, being more active and spending more time in nature. I've always enjoyed being outside as I find nature quite inspirational. There is so much life there if you can slow down enough to really see what is right in front of you.
In the few hikes I've done so far this year, I've learned quite a bit. First of all, you need a good trail buddy. Here is mine, her name is Wilma:
Wilma, Trail Buddy
Wilma is the newest member of our pack. She was found in late Fall a couple years ago, quite malnourished, wandering the countryside looking for food. She is three years old and is either snoring so loud the windows rattle or is going 100 mph in any and sometimes all directions. She is about 65 pounds and is incredibly strong which is handy when she needs to pull her trail buddy, who is a little out of shape, up a long steep trail. This year is the first time I've done any proper hiking with her and she is adapting nicely. When I pull her harness out of the dog closet, yes we have an entire closet dedicated to dog stuff, she goes and sits by the door and shakes with excitement.
The second thing you need for a hiking hobby is access to some great trails and Lincolnton is a great place to be in this respect. It's actually in the town's motto, "Near the City, Near the Mountains, Near Perfect". Kind of catchy, huh?
Anyway, I use the All Trails app (no kickbacks or paid promotions here, it's just the app I like) and have discovered that there are hundreds of miles of trails within a couple hours drive of our fair city. I already knew of one or two good hikes but wowza, I was blown away.
So far we've visited South Mountains State Park and Crowders Mountain State Park. Here are a few pics of our adventures.
Lower falls at South Mountains State Park
Upper Falls, South Mountains State Park
View of The Pinnacle, Crowders Mountain State Park
View From the Pinnacle, Crowders Mountain State Park
I will keep you posted as Wilma and I continue to explore our beautiful countryside. If you enjoy hiking and have any trail suggestions, please leave them in the comments below.
See you on the trail!
W