Notice: I've taken a part-time job, and it's definitely affecting my blogging time. I'll continue to add content here as often as possible. Pertinent guest posts are always welcome.

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Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Misadventures in the Woods

Ryan Arney
Ryan and son
from Misadventures in the Woods, by Ryan D. Arney, used with permission

A brief explanation about my backpacking experience. My plans for backpacking began in high school but didn't materialize until the end of my freshman year in college about 13 years ago, it think. I continued to backpack for a few more years until I took my girlfriend (now wife) on her first and only backpacking experience. She swears she will never go again.

I managed two short hikes this year. The first was to Nordhouse Dunes where I learned that 7-year olds don't make for good guides in the woods! The second trip was a long Labor Day weekend to hike a section of the North Country Trail in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It was supposed to be a 3 night out and back which also turned into one disaster after another.

Two of my favorite Michigan hikes are on the North Country Trail. Manistee River Trail / NCT Loop - I rank this loop rather high because it was a nice relaxing trail, supprisingly not very crowded, a great fly fishing river and a supposed waterfall, which if what I saw was the waterfall my definition of a waterfall is way off. all I saw was a trickle coming out of the side of the river bank, but I guess in the L.P. that qualifies as a waterfall.

NCT U.P. - Parts of this trail was not very well maintained, really had the feeling of being out in the wilderness. At times the trail disappeared underneath the thick underbrush, Lots of wild blueberries along trail Labor day weekend. Hiked North to South from where trial leaves Lake Superior headed toward St. Ignace but didn't make it that far.

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