Sunthing Special

My kids really liked the “Owl Prowl” we took last month at O’Neil’s Woods, so we went on a “Full Moon Night Hike” at the Nature Realm on Saturday night. It was a lot colder this time — about 22 degrees — but the naturalists had a big bonfire going to warm us up before and after the hike. Although it wasn’t on the program, the naturalist played owl and coyote calls during our hike to try to get a response. Unlike our “Owl Prowl”, we didn’t have any luck. But after the hike, as we drank hot chocolate and stood by the fire, searching the clear sky for different constellations, we heard a coyote howling, over and over. There is just something so cool about that, and not just because it was 22 degrees.

I decided that this summer the kids and I would go on hikes 5 days each week, mostly to make sure I get exercise. I figured it’d be good for them too: the nature, the bonding, the fresh air, the exercise, and oh the memories of this glorious summer o’ hiking. Of course they pretty much can’t stand it, despite my best efforts to keep it interesting (we have yet to repeat the same exact trail), cool (we usually go before 9 a.m.) and hydrated (I carry lots of iced water). I have to admit that in my quest to hike a different route each time, I’ve chosen some pretty lame hikes (North Fork Trail in Bath Nature Preserve, for example). To make matters worse, I tend to get lost, which prolongs the agony and puts us in odd situations like walking across people’s lawns on busy Miller Road in Fairlawn. If I play my cards right, the kids will be counting the days until they go back to school. Actually, they’d rather just whine and complain about it every day. But really, once we’re doing the hike and see things like a deer cross right in front of us, some frogs in a pond or some super-long snake curled up in rocks by the river, they have to grudgingly admit that it’s actually “kind of cool”. In any case, they won’t soon forget this summer!