Tiny Adventures, Pt. 1 - A Walk in the Woods

Since the Outer Banks, I haven't had the opportunity to really get out and go anywhere (tomorrow, Sunday, May 17, I'll be headed down to Tampa, FL with the senior class though!). However, I think I've said this before, adventure can be had anywhere. A couple of weeks ago, I decided to follow Robby down to the pond where he normally fishes so I could use my other lens and see what sorts of things I could come up with. This included enjoying nature a little more and photographing some of my favorite wildflowers along the way. I also experimented with being his "fish photographer." He doesn't keep the fish . . . he just likes to make them late for something. Mitch Hedberg, anyone?

Anyway, did you know there's an app that's similar to Instagram, except for fishermen?? It's a free app called FishBrain. You post the fish that you catch on it, where you caught it, etc. and you create a network of anglers. It's kind of neat, but of course, I call him a nerd for having it. Check it out, though, if it's something you think you'll like!

The following pictures are from our tiny adventure a couple of weeks ago in the rain. Tadpoles and Osprey also made an appearance. Unfortunately, my skills still aren't stealth enough to catch an Osprey. One day, though!

 

 

 

Appalachian Trail and Beyond

Something that I love about my location on the East Coast is how close we are to the Appalachian Trail. Pretty much anywhere you go along the coast, you can pick up some part of it. It's perfect for an afternoon hike, or an all-day adventure.

For those that don't know, the Appalachian Trail is about 2,200 miles long, beginning in Maine and ending in Georgia. My uncle and I have talked about hiking the whole thing for years, but we're both too out of shape (myself more than him - he used to be a Marine . . . no big) for something like that.

Anyway, on Sunday, Robby and I decided to get out of the house and do hike part of it. We're both a little tight on money, and nature is always free. It was such a beautiful walk. I love summers on the East Coast - everything is green. Thunderstorms roll in and out in the span of 15 minutes. Lightning bugs. The list goes on and on and on. We didn't walk for very long, but we came across a ton of wild red and black raspberries and blackberries. We saw fern groves, a stream, and didn't come across people the whole time. We jumped on the trail at Pen Mar State Park, which apparently used to be a hopping mountain resort in the late 1800s into the mid-1900s. Who knew! People from Washington, DC would come for the weekend to get away from the bustle of city life. Now the resorts are torn down and High Rock is nothing more than an art show in spray paint. But walking along the AT takes you away from all of that and drops you back into a place where human contact is something left far in the future.

Maybe one day I'll hike the whole thing, but for now, it's just fun to make an afternoon of exploring the nature in my backyard. An adventure doesn't have to be an extravagant affair. Rather, an adventure can take place every day if you're doing something you've never experienced before.

Happy adventuring!