Starting on January 12, 2011 I began a “one park a day” adventure. I didnt premeditate it. It just sort of happened. It happened because of two things. I like to go birding and I love cross country skiing. Skiing has been one of my favorite things to do in Winter for almost 20 years. I’m not the kind of person who sits home and complains about boredom. When I was a kid, me and my brothers went outside to play…no matter how cold it was. I dont think Winter keeps people from going outside. Like the Pennsylvania Governor said about the cancellation of a recent NFL game, “I think were becoming a nation of wussies”. You dont have to be a tough guy to make that statement. Nah, you just have to know a thing or two about Winter. Most importantly…respect it. Dont go outside with a t-shirt and sandals and then tell me winter sucks. That’s just stupid. Here’s how I have fun in Winter…
January 12th, 2011: Got off work, got home, changed into my ski clothes, and headed out to Heritage Park. Here’s what I wear. Wool or Synthetic socks, biking tights under REI ski pants or jeans, leg gators if I’m wearing jeans (it keeps the snow out of your boots), polyproplyene undershirt (synethetic material to wick away the sweat), fleece mid layer, windbreaker, fleece hat, fleece gloves. Avoid cotton clothes in the winter because it does not stay dry and being wet in the cold is bad. I also carry a backpack which contains; bird guide, binoculars, water, fruit.
January 13th, 2011: I planned to attend an Audubon lecture in Jackson at the Dahlem Environmental Center. The DEC has some nice trails so I wanted to hike a few before the meeting. I wore the same gear (washed overnight of course). In my backpack I carried an LED headlight, binoculars, bird guide, and a trail map. Also, I wear gore-tex (waterproof) hiking boots. To make snow hiking more enjoyable I purchased a set of “microspikes” for my boots. It’s like putting chains on your car tires. You can hike without them, but it feels like walking in sludge. The microspikes gives you better traction…less slipping on ice and snow. I like that.
January 14th: I headed out to Ramsdell Park to ski. Ditto on the clothes. When I got there and put my skis on something felt wrong. I had a fatal boot failure. Not a problem because I brought my hiking boots and microspikes just in case. My point is that it’s always good to have a plan B. I did some birding instead.
January 15th: I planned to go to Hidden Lake Gardens. Saturday was very cold and very windy. I had the usual gear on but the wind was wicked. The hike was short because of it. The lesson here is know your limits.
January 16th: I needed to go to REI to get new ski boots. They hooked me up quick. Since I was in Ann Arbor I did some exploring. I visited Gallup Park and Furstenberg Park. I had heard reports that Pine Siskins were in Furstenberg Park. I heard them but never saw them. After that quick birding/photo outing I headed over to Matthaei Botanical Gardens. I knew they had trails but had never hiked them before. I headed inside to grab a trail map and took off. The trails there are super slick and relatively flat…good for beginner skiers…or for people who like to go fast. MBG is a beautiful place and well worth the drive.
Today, January 17th: I wanted to do a super long, all day ski at HLG today. I found some new trails there which are very secluded. The sun was out when I started but as the day progressed it got cloudier and colder. After three hours of skiing I had enough. I explored some new territory on the southeast side, I made it through the hilly Hiker Trail without colliding with any trees and I skied the new unnamed trail on the west side. The new trail has more ups and downs than the hiker trail. There are no scary downhills through the trees. BUT there are two or three hairpin turns that are impossible to take on xcc skis. Side stepping was needed to get down the hill in those locations.
Tomorrow I’m taking a break. It’s fly tying night at a friend’s house. I had a great six days, but I’m looking forward to the rest tomorrow.
The Heron 