Natural Falls State Park was quiet and relaxing. It had been a lot of work to get ready for the trip. We prepared the house and yard for being vacant for a few months. The hardest thing was figuring out what gear was essential and luxury considering the extremely limited space in a camper van. It was in the high nineties when we packed up and a heat wave was to hit the entire west and Midwest the week we were to leave. We had to prepare for extreme hot but keeping in mind that every day we would be getting farther north and everyday getting deeper into fall. We packed a few winter things but reserved room for buying new warm clothes once we were in the colder climate. We knew from experience that clothes from a southern winter is no match for a near northern Fall.
Temperature was not our only concern. We planned to do a lot, I mean, a lot of hiking. This is where the proper gear really pays off. I invested in a pair of Patagonia hiking pants and a pair of pack-out hiking leggings. They were expensive but the best investment ever! They both showed up on time. They both make hiking a breeze.
Next problem was hiking boots or shoes. I had a pair that always gave me blisters or didn’t fit properly. Fining my size which is 4 extra wide is nearly impossible. To get the length right they are always too tight. While we were waiting for the boots to arrive, I did some research into how to deal with wide feet. After 55 years of life, I finally had the revelation that would change my daily living more than any one thing ever has.
The shoe stretcher.
I order two pair from Walmart. The hiking boots arrived. All but one pair were way too tight. We put the stretcher in over night in two pair of them. Presto! The boots fit! I went from having a problem with my feet to having five new pair to choose from. It even fixed some of my old boots that I rarely wore because they hurt my feet. Now I had two pair that were water proof, one pair that worked great in very warm weather, and a pair that was versatile. I did not get 1 blister in 53 straight days of hiking.
While dealing with the boots I discovered that my hiking socks were worn out. I had bought three pairs of Darn Tough hiking socks before our Alaska trip five years ago. The socks barely had any thread left on the heal. I had numerous times tried to buy more at the REI in San Diego but they never had my size again. I wear a large youth size. I ordered some small adult size hiking socks from REI on line. I hoped they would fit. They were supposed to arrive the day before we were set to leave but the shipment got lost. REI contacted me to let me know that my money would be refunded. They did not know what happened to the package.
I saw on line that there was an REI in Tulsa. It would be on our way. With the socks my hiking gear would be solid.
With my pants and feet set I had not given consideration to my diet. The week before we left we made a huge batch of delicious homemade lasagna. It was so good we ate it everyday for a week. The second day of our road trip I woke up tired. My husband new that that was not like me. I was in a new place with hikes to do and I wanted to take a nap as soon as I woke up! Not the normal Kim!
I took my blood pressure and it was way high. Too much delicious cheesy lasagna. All the working out does not compensate for too much sodium. We had to change our game plan. A tired girl does not a happy hiker make.
That day we had spinach for dinner. Yep. Just spinach. I started feeling better right away. We decided to add more vegetables and cut out cheese altogether for a while and eat more fish and less andouille sausages. I have been adding two vegetables to every lunch and dinner now since then and I have lost inches and feel amazingly energetic. No issues with my blood pressure since. However, I do not plan to eat lasagna with lots of cheese and sausage every day for a week ever again. Just once in a while.
Feeling better we did the fox den hike at Natural Falls, took a bike ride and I did some yoga. The problem with doing yoga in the campground is that someone always wants to stop and chat. We met a nice older lady who was riding a non-motorized scooter around the campground. At first, we thought she was transporting it for a grand child but we never saw any kids with her. Plus, she looked like she was having too much fun. She scooted over to us to have a conversation. She seemed lonely. Her husband had gone back to work during the week and she stayed camping by herself.
Over the course of the trip, we saw a surprising number of women camping by themselves. We wondered why it was such a trend and if they chose it or did it out of some kind of necessity.
It certainly made me thankful for my Honey. Being in such close quarters is a challenge and it always helps to appreciate the efforts of each other.
This was only the first stop and it was already spectacular. What other wonders were we to behold?
