Hikes 16 and 17 of the #52hikechallenge: Family time

A recent visit to see my new nephew, followed by a parental invasion, led to adding two more hikes to my list. Though they were far from my most challenging, of course I included them, because I got to share love of being outside with the people that matter most to me.

For those who haven’t been following along with my #52hikechallenge – it’s basically a hiking challenge where I try to hike 52 times in a year. So far, I am quite behind, but pressing doggedly forward. I skipped a blog post about #hike15 – it was just a romp through the Blue Hills with nothing terribly exciting to report.

#HIKE16: Lake Lawson, Virginia

This toddler-friendly hike was suggested by my sister-in-law. On a rainy weekend, we managed to find a clear window, and loaded mom, dad, aunt, pre-schooler, 3-month-old, and a giant-ass stroller into the family minivan (which, it’s worth pointing out, had room to spare). It was probably 100% humid out, and it looked like the skies could open at any time, but we were determined.

As we began the route, we strolled along a widely paved path on the way to a playground. Everyone seemed quite comfortable with this level of challenge. 🙂

I was worried the playground would be the end of the adventure, but luckily we had our explorers hats on, and we continued into the park.

“Claire,” I said to my niece. “Did you know this is one of my favorite things to do? Walk in the woods?”

I wish I could have captured her face that at moment. She shook her head, answering my question, but also gave me this look as if to say “You are crazy, Auntie.” It was clear this wasn’t her comfort zone, so I began a bit of a campaign to get her to look around and open up her imagination a little bit. As we rounded a corner to an isthmus that speared between two parts of the lake, I heard her say “Whoa!” and knew we were making some progress. As I stopped to snap a couple of pictures, she asked “why are you taking those pictures?” Because the trees are cool, I answered. We agreed that this one was creepy like a spider.

The bridge to the “island” portion of the park held great fascination, and as we cleared, I pointed out where we were on the map and asked Claire if she wanted to keep going around the loop. She nodded yes, and her parents shrugged as if to say “Whatever. You’ll have to carry her if she gets tired.” So off we went to tromp through the woods and make a loop of the island.

The loop was full of mountain laurel and the occasional platform with a view of the lake. Claire and I led the way, with my nephew Elliott in his stroller following behind, and she started to enjoy herself a bit more. We invented songs for the various up, down, and flat portions of the trail (really, it was all pretty flat, but when you’re 4.5, hills are bigger in proportion), and Claire pointed out that the smaller trails leading off the main trails, which had branches growing over, blocking the path, were the “Ouchie Trails”. I got great joy out of imagining using that phrase when I inadvertently led my hiking partners off trail in the future.

After about 1.5 miles, we emerged back onto the paved path as thunder boomed in the distance; our timing was excellent. Claire made it the whole way; auntie was very proud of her. Elliott was unimpressed and slept the whole time.

Hike 16: Lake Lawson
Location: Virginia Beach, Virginia
Date: May 19, 2018
Distance: 1.57 miles
Wildlife: chipmunks, birds
Notes: The first of many hikes with my niece/nephew, I hope.

#Hike17: Great Blue Hill

It’s become a tradition of sorts when my parents visit; I take them on a hike to some of my favorite trails around Boston. On Memorial Day, instead of heading into the city to play tourist, we headed out of it to play in the woods.

I’ve hiked the Blue Hills many times, but never with my parents in tow. This hike was probably the most challenging one I’ve taken them on, and they rocked it. We started at the Trailside museum parking lot, and took the easy green dot trail for about a mile and a half, maybe. Because my folks are flatlanders, and not habitual hikers, I choose routes that start easy, but generally trust them to get up some of the steeper parts, depending on how things are going.

“Are there any views on this trail?” asked my dad.

“Yes,” I replied, instantly deciding that I would, in fact, lead them up to the top of the hill. So we started up, and my mom’s eyes widened a bit. But slowly, steadily, we made our way up. I love hiking with my parents, because all pressure goes off of me to set a fast pace or minimize how much I’m sucking wind; it’s all about paying attention to them and being sure they know it is totally ok to stop whenever needed. We next hooked up with the red dot trail, which climbed up at a decent slope to the top of Great Blue Hill, which boasts a tower and one of the oldest operating weather stations in the country. It was foggy and cloudy, so the beautiful view of Boston wasn’t visible, but it was still pretty. We snacked while sitting on a rock near the weather tower and agreed this was a pretty great way to spend an afternoon.

The path down was where I wondered if I’d pushed my folks too far. Clamoring down big boulders can actually be harder than going up them (see previous hikes in the Whites and Mt. Monadnock), and it’s easy to roll an ankle or twist a knee.

But as I said, they rocked it. My mom even got that little jaunt her step at one point – you know, where you could just tell that she was feeling badass. I of course, had to warn her that such moments are usually when I roll my ankle, but lo and behold, they made it down in grand form.