Will there be a 2010 trip???

Stayed tuned...

Betsy's list of things to pack NEXT TIME...

1. Kelly Laakso

2. an air mattress

3. lots of firewood

4. a shower facility with a working toilet

5. allergy meds

6. BEER

I might think of more, but this is a good start. If you think I forgot some things, please comment.

A note to readers...

Sheralynn may post to tell you about details of the trip, for example she MIGHT make up some story about how I complained the whole first night and then demanded a trip into town for an air mattress and allergy meds. And she MIGHT even come up with some crazy story about how I had to drive into town for Taco Johns instead of warming a hot dog with a lighter. And knowing her, she'll go as far as to say that I dropped a piece of firewood on my toe and spent the rest of the trip hobbling around and crying about my toe, but folks keep in mind this is Sheralynn and when she fell over that fire pit, I'm pretty sure she took a pretty good bump to the head. We can't get mad at her or call her a liar, we can just hope that next time she brings her helmet camping.

time flies when your hiking...or camping.

the road home...

Girls and their Boys

Happy girls and happy doggies!

What was this place called?

I don't remember, some mill, but it was pretty cool to walk around and check it out.

Camp neighbors...

Here's our neighbor...Alex, former Boy Scout. He enjoys camping while all his friends leave him behind, gathering huge amounts of firewood and then mockingly starting a huge fire across from us.
Here's a documented violation of campsite rule: 1 car per site...which Sheralynn and I got caught on the first night by our friendly camp ranger. This is also the site of the people who saw Sheralynn fall ass backwards over the fire pit (calm down David, there was no fire in it). We also reminded this woman of Janet and Pat, her Mom and her Mom's friend that used to go camping together. Janet is the clumsy one...Sheralynn.

HIKING!

That looks like a trail...let's investigate...Shit, if I can't go rock climbing rappelling what am I doing here?

Sheralynn however looks very determined to hike this trail!

Look at them...Petey and Jack, Best Friends Forever---If Best Friends mean Jack whoops on Petey and Petey then hides in shame for hours, then YES. (Sounds kinda similar to the friendship Sheralynn and I have...oh, go hide Sheralynn, go hide)

Scenes from Campsite 8

Oops, sorry Sheralynn, didn't mean to catch you at an intimate moment with Jack. Don't worry I won't tell your husband.Hey Petey, sorry you had to witness that.

We didn't start the fire....

Well, actually the first night...we did start the fire.

The second night, not so much. But it doesn't stop Sheralynn from heating a hot dog and making smores with a lighter!

Betsy camping

if you don't see me in a lot pictures, don't let Sheralynn tell you I was sleeping in the tent the whole time

Sheralynn camping....

or doing whatever it is Sheralynn does

Jack camping

Look at that Jack, just waiting to take a bite out of Petey

Petey camping

Petey, properly attired for camping in his sporty bandana

Tent...check!

Well at least we've got the tent set up...Thanks Dominick for letting us use your tent!!!

IOWA!

I love it when I see that sign.

driving down the road

ahhh, what a view from the highway

On my way to Iowa!

Yup...corn fields aplenty I must be heading in the direction of Iowa.

here we gooooo....

So, in just two short days the Trail Trash Hiking Team will be meeting at Wildcat Den State Park in beautiful Muscatine, IA. Campsite 8 has been reserved for two awesome chicks and two cute dogs. Here's a copy of our MAP. Time to get those hats out again and get on the trail. Anyone want to place bets on how soon into the hike Sheralynn requests I go get the car and pick her up? How soon will our first break pop up? And the most pondered questioned...can Betsy and Sheralynn manage to not get lost, hike through a bean field, and have to flag down a complete stranger for a ride back to the campsite?

All these questions to be answered after this weekend...

Oh and we will have 2 new hikers this time, Petey and Jack will be joining the fun! Petey's already got his backpack! And Jack has his life jacket for swimming!

BIG NEWS!!!

Sheralynn and I are hitting the trails again, sure we planned on doing this every year, but my god with all the breaks Sheralynn needed on the first trip I figured we should take a year or 3 off. But we're making a hiking comeback this September. September 18th we shall meet up at Wildcat Den State Park. "One of the major features of Wildcat Den State Park is its trail system. Trails wind through a variety of terrain and lead to such fascinating sites as "Steamboat Rock," "Devil's Punch Bowl," and " Fat Man's Squeeze." The beautiful bluffs and rock outcroppings provide spectacular views to hikers." Look for more posts leading up to the big hiking weekend!

How far DID we go?

I've had a lot of people email me to ask how far we actually hiked. We hiked for 10 hours and 14 miles!

The TRAIL MAP!

Thanks for the memories Brushy Creek State Park!

There's always something to agree on...

MARGARITAS!

The next day...

Well, it looks like we survived it after all. It also looks like someone showered, guess who? Actually, Sheralynn's eyes aren't even open, is she awake?

Shotgun Shells!

I collected these as evidence that anyone wearing a hat as big as a sombrero would be shot at, she's just lucky she survived!

Our dirty hiking boots...

Our tent...and someone lazy sleeping in it.

Here's where we hitched a ride...and reunited with our Wilsons!

Yup, here is where we ended up, see those trees WAY in the back, that's where we came from. Oh, and here are the Wilsons, which we picked up and brought home with us. YAY!

It's getting late...

You might not have noticed, but it's getting darker in the pictures and we were getting more and more lost, which is surprising with those great signs and trail markers. Well folks, we did get lost and when we came to a bean field clearing I was actually thankful for bean fields! I asked Sheralynn what we should do, head toward the lights we could see up at the road (about 1-2 miles away) or head back into the forrest trails and hope we come out somewhere with people there. She was apparently "done making decisions" so I decided that we soldier on through the bean fields and get out to the road.

We made it out to the road, despite Sheralynn falling further and further back and me suggesting that she stay and I go flag down a car. Apparenly me approaching strangers motivated her to keep moving with me. I think she knows what Penny would've done to her if I dissappeared out there.

I flagged down the first car that came by and luckily it was this nice old man who informed us that we were "pretty far from the park" and it would be faster to drive us there then to tell us how to get back. At which point we threw our bags in and cheered! He was really nice and we thanked him to no end for saving our lives.

We had to leave our walking sticks, which we named Wilson (like the soccer ball on Castaway) It was a sad parting, those Wilsons were with us all day and helped us up hills and across streams. However, we assumed approaching a stranger with a couple big sticks wouldn't help our chance of getting a ride.

Our BIGGEST challenge!

We had to cross this raging river! No kidding, it wasn't really that bad, but it was a tough one. The water came up to our thighs and Sheralynn almost fell in. But, when we got to the water, Sheralynn simply said "I'm going across and I'm going now!" Well, okay then, lead the way!

Another frog (I didn't step on him)

We're tired

I should've mentioned this earlier, but we were pretty wore about by the time we found the garden hose. We had hiked around the lake, Sheralynn had to pull ticks off me. The fun and excitement of the adventure had wore off and we just wanted to get back to our campsite. Sheralynn had again asked me to go get the car. The upside was seeing that cute baby deer. It was just an awesome experience to stand a foot away from such a tiny, scared deer. At the point when we saw the deer I was already hoping we'd come across someone who wanted to give us a ride back to the campground. We talked about what we'd do different...definitely bring more WATER!

We made it to the 3rd and final bridge we have to cross. We've gone about 8 miles so far today. Sheralynn told me at this point she hates me and hopes I die of lyme disease. She is also not speaking to me when this trip is over. I requested she start that one sooner. She is laughing like a lunatic and reminds me of the creature Gollum in Lord of the Rings. I think she wants my waterbottle as much as he wanted that Ring. I'm not completely convinced she's not plotting my demise.

I did see a frog, I might have actually stepped on him, but it was an accident!

When we found the water hose we felt pretty good about things. Sheralynn also flicked another tick off me (or she might be putting them on me at this point). I brought up my idea of hitching a ride back to camp and she said Penny wouldn't like that very much.

And from here...it all gets worse!!!

Signs and Trail Markers

The signage in parts of the park is just fantastic...examples here are some of the best ones. I love the "horses" or "no horses" signs myself. Thank goodness I wasn't riding a horse, I wouldn't have known what to do.

The garden hose that saved our lives...

Someone sure took a lot of breaks...SHERALYNN!