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Kevin Bae: Well this is the
inaugural episode of the casual

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hike. So it's really rough and
crude but it's sort of I think

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what I want to do and it's it's
long so it's an hour long this

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hike the next episodes should be
shorter hopefully as I hone my

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process of recording the hikes
anyway. I won't keep you too

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long because the other stuff is
an hour long. So here it comes.

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Enjoy Hello testing

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all right. On the backpack let's
go Godfrey.

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So I'm here on the bull Mountain
Trail bull mountain loop the

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purple trail rather me here with
my dog Godfrey. And we just

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finished like the straight
connector trail that goes from

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the Forest Service road to the
trail I guess, I guess that

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connector trails technically
part of the loop. But we just

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made it to the actual loop
itself. And I just gave my dog a

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water break. It's a little bit
humid out here

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all right. So

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do I want to go clockwise or
counterclockwise? Let's go

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counterclockwise. So this trail
is for biking, horseback riding

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and hiking. You can bring your
dog he's supposed to be on the

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leash I'm the only one here
right now. So I'm breaking the

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rules a little bit but he's a
good dog comes when called and I

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will put them on the leash
should we run across anybody so

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I think from the parking the
parking area too to to the

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actual loop took us about 40
minutes, I think and it's like a

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gentle incline you're pretty
much going uphill

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all the way so far.

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But it's it's a gentle incline.
And from my heavy breathing you

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could tie it on walking for 4045
minutes I try tried to keep pace

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for me the act of hiking I don't
really care of about the

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destination. Although it's it's
good to have nice destinations.

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More like I like the process, I
guess they call it a process of

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just kind of picking a trail and
walking through the woods now

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I'm from Chicago and you had to
drive quite a ways. Couple hours

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at least to get to anything even
remotely like this. And then

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when you did it was packed
because there's nothing else

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around so since I moved to
Georgia in 2020 I think this is

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my 10th hike. The first one I've
decided to try to record

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it's been it's been nice. I mean
there's just like there's no end

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to different places to go hiking
in the north Georgia mountains.

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Now haven't been to the Apple
Appalachian Trail Although we

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were on the small segment of it
before when we went to

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preachers rock

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Oh, here we go a little bit of a
downhill. I'm surprised. No, you

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know what I forgot to do. i for
i forgot to resume my trail map.

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So I lost a little bit of data
on there. I'm not good at

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stopping and starting those
things. I stopped it because I

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was giving my dog some water he
comes running up the trail. No

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shortage of mosquitoes here this
is early June, it's June 2. All

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right, let's get going. And it's
warm today. It's humid also

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here. But it's, it's really nice
for us to drill. So you won't

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need any sunblock, at least for
this portion. But you will need

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bug spray because I got bugs
buzzing around me all over the

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place. Nothing's biting me, but

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they're buzzing

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I was saying before you gotta
bring a lot of water, you're

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bringing your dog, I think you
got to bring a lot of water. I'm

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not sure I brought quite enough
I have enough. I don't really

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drink that much. So if he needs
to have some of mine, he can

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have it. I've got two liters in
a bladder. And I have a couple

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of liters for him in separate
collapsible bottles. And

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normally, he doesn't drink this
early, but it was kind of humid

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out here was a horseshoe.
Perhaps this is best left on the

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side of the trail. Because there
are nails sticking out of it.

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Yeah. There aren't any at least
so far up until this point, I'm

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going counterclockwise around
the around the loop. There's

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been no water at all, no
streams.

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No nothing.

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Because normally what my dog
does is heads for the first

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stream. If not to drink water to
splash around and cool himself

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off.

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So what I'm going to try to do
is I've got this little tiny

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zoom F to field recorder with a
lav mic. And it's kind of hooked

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on to my backpack with the Leve
on my shoulder strap. And to try

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to minimize these long pauses
because I'm not exactly sure

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what I'm going to be doing with
this little chat I'm having with

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myself out in the middle of
nowhere. But I'm going to try to

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start and stop it. So I don't
have so many pauses, in case I

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use it for a podcast or
something. I'm not exactly sure

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what I'm doing.

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All right, I'm on the early part
of this loop. Again, I'm going

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counterclockwise. We're starting
to head downhill. Now this is a

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second downhill stretch that
I've encountered, because I've

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gone all uphill pretty much from
the beginning. So maybe this

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loops back around because I
think the the peak of this is

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actually on the other side of
this loop. But we'll see. I'm

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going down. I'm assuming I'm
gonna have to go back up.

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I think one thing I'm going to
try to do if I, if I choose to

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try to make a podcast out of
this. I'm going to take a

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picture at least one picture at
any time that I started talking.

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And that way I can match it up
with the podcast. And if you're

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listening on a podcasting 2.0
compatible app that supports

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chapters and chapter images,
you'll be able to see these

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images as They talk. So the one
the picture that I just took

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right now is again, you know the
trail going forward, it's

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heading downhill my dogs out in
front of me. And that's it. If

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there's something more exciting,
they see, I'll take another

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picture. I'm not sure if I'm
recording or not recording what

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the hell maybe I need to hook up
some headphones so I can

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monitor. By the way home, I
don't know if you could hear any

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of the mosquitoes that were
buzzing around me when I

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stopped. But that's just goes to
show you that they are out here

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and they're buzzing around. And
the mosquito repellent I use is

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full of deet. I don't mess
around with the natural,

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holistic other stuff. I don't
use bug spray that often. So I'm

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not all that concerned about it
is the most effective thing and

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I really don't want to get
bitten too much. Because that's

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a pain in the ass

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so far the trail, the trail was
rated hard on all trails. So

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far, I don't find it very hard.
It seems to me fairly moderate.

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If you're able bodied, and can
can walk, there's been nothing

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to climb over, get a nice fallen
tree over the trail here.

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So, so far, I would not read
this as hard. I'm a city kid.

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So, kid, 55 year old city kid.
Anyway, I'm from the city. So I

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wouldn't read this hard. And I'm
somebody who doesn't have a

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whole lot of hiking experience.
I've really only been doing this

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in any meaningful fashion. For I
don't know, five years maybe.

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Okay, so I'm at the point now
where the Red Trail meets up

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with the purple trail. And so
now, we're going to be doing

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both I

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think I'm making good progress.
We're not even to the mean not

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even close to the total end. So
I'm hoping I didn't bite off

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more than I can chew with this,
like my normal hikes had been

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around. I think the longest I've
done is like a five, six mile

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out and back. And this is only
supposed to be like a 12 mile

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loop. So I figured what's the
difference? It's a loop instead

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about and back.

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Plus, it's a totally different
area that I've been an ice Well,

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I guess not totally. But I've
been up in these mountains

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around the area of the Monica,
Georgia a few times now of

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around Helen. I think the
favorite one of my favorite ones

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so far has been Panther Creek,
even though you're not supposed

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to walk on that one because the
trails washed out. But when you

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get to Panther creek falls, it's
beautiful. I'm going to do that

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one again. That was a hard one.
I would read that one. It's

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hard, especially because the
Tris sections of the trail are

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washed out. And you have to kind
of go around and traverse the

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creeks. It's not it's not tear
wasn't terrible. That was last

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year. But it's definitely not a
moderate trail until they fix

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it.

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So the reason I decided to take
this long loop, and I picked

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this trail in particular, just
because it's supposed to be very

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lightly trafficked. The
description and all Trails is

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that you will be unlikely to run
into somebody while you're out

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here and I'm coming I'm on a
Thursday you know, so I'm

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picking Thursday, super early in
the morning. I left my house

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what time did I leave?

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I left a little before six I
think probably quarter to six or

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something I got out here about
seven o'clock. started hiking

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maybe around 7057 10 Maybe. But
my purposes is I'm on this

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particular trail because it's
supposed to be relatively empty.

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And so far it's been great.
There's been nobody here I was

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the only car in the parking
area. And I haven't seen hide

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your hair of anybody on the
trail. So my purpose is to I've

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got a very high energy dog and
he likes to go hiking He likes

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to stay on the move. Much like
me i like i like the act of

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moving on the trails and not
necessarily stopping. Like even

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all the pictures that I take
most of them is while I'm on the

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move I just snap photos while
I'm moving I really stop so I

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guess partly his habits are are
my fault but when I get to a

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place and I want to take a
break, he hates taking a break.

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He just starts barking and going
nuts and if I'm in an area where

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there's water he's like trying
to dig up boulders and grabbing

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tree limbs. There were one area
one place when I went to Panther

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creek falls he started digging
away this dead tree trying to

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take it down. I really don't
know and so I can't get him to

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calm down I don't didn't really
have time because Panther creek

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falls even though the trails
washed out. There are other

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hikers on that trail so I'm
hoping to get on this trail to

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get somewhere around that
halfway point and take a break

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and try to get him to calm down
and I won't be disturbing

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anybody other than maybe wild
animals with his shenanigans

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that's at least the goal we'll
see what happens when we when we

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get to a midpoint All right, so
we've hit an area of the trail

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that's temperature wise dropped
probably five degrees or more My

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guess would be it's
significantly cooler here

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and I can hear some water
Godfrey this way so I have to

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keep my dog with me because now
here's some water which would be

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a welcome thing where he can
maybe cool off Hey Godfrey come

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here just because I'm not sure
what's up there Mr. Godfrey seen

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know on the trail he listens
just fine when we stop now he's

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at least and I am using a custom
made 15 foot leash that my wife

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made just for these hikes I
don't know if you can hear the

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water starting to come up or the
sound of the water oh there's a

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nice stream where Godfrey this
is something heating going so we

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will be pausing at least I'll be
pausing the trail map so he can

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kind of take in this stream
where he goes right for it

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okay

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stream is coming around the bend
and then you've got these rock

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features over here

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which create a little waterfall
which I would get a picture of

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my dog get out of the way as
well as the waterfall

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This is what happens when so we
normally don't stop for very

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long plus I'm on the trail
anyway. But at least you had a

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place where you could cool off
for a bit let's go Godfrey.

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People definitely use this for a
campsite. Which would be nice, I

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suppose. I haven't done any
camping. I've toyed around with

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the idea of it. I just haven't
decided to do it yet. I think

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it's a bit more than I want to
do at this point

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but I am toying around with the
idea at least for an overnight

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to do something like this right
hike up to here camp out and

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then you know hike early in the
morning

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Unknown: campsite camp Playa
here's the rest of this river I

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think we'll be leaving it I
think this might be the only

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place where this and this pops
up on the trail I don't know

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Kevin Bae: when when I'm looking
at it it's going off in a

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different direction and we're
going to be walking

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so my dog right now well he
stopped maybe because he knows

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I'm recording but he was trying
to pick up a giant piece of

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driftwood for no apparent reason
other than he's just doesn't

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like to stop at least again
that's my theory. He doesn't

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like to stop moving he's just
moving let's go Godfrey All

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right, back on the trail

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waiting for GPs to resume my
hike

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and we're off Okay, so if you
want to continue this trail you

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will have to cross this water so
this is something you're gonna

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have to walk across there's no
no bridge no log no not nothing.

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So I have waterproof shoes but
they're not waterproof up to my

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ankle.

219
00:22:35,340 --> 00:22:45,090
Unknown: I can go across with my
really wants me to get across

220
00:22:45,090 --> 00:22:51,480
now. Got to get out. Get out of
the way. Go go go. Go. Come on.

221
00:22:52,830 --> 00:23:00,000
Kevin Bae: He's in my way.
Walking my path. Okay, we only

222
00:23:00,000 --> 00:23:01,230
got a little wet. Not that bad.

223
00:23:02,610 --> 00:23:06,480
Okay, purple goes off to the
left. Oh my God for you this

224
00:23:06,480 --> 00:23:14,580
way. Missy, I should probably.
So it's the Forest Service road

225
00:23:14,580 --> 00:23:18,870
that goes off to the right after
you cross that stream. And then

226
00:23:18,870 --> 00:23:26,640
the purple trail continues off
to the left. To the very top of

227
00:23:26,640 --> 00:23:37,500
my foot got wet crossing that
stream. Not too bad. There's an

228
00:23:37,500 --> 00:23:44,880
area that veers off. But that's
not part of the trail. I'm not

229
00:23:44,880 --> 00:23:47,790
sure where it goes. There's like
a sign up at the top of that

230
00:23:47,790 --> 00:23:53,040
thing. Or a signpost there's no
more sign. So don't veer off to

231
00:23:53,040 --> 00:23:59,220
the right. Stay to the left.
Maybe it's private property. I

232
00:23:59,220 --> 00:24:04,290
think there was some private
property around here. All right,

233
00:24:04,290 --> 00:24:07,500
we've come across a muddy
portion of the trail. I'm

234
00:24:07,500 --> 00:24:18,570
assuming this area feeds the
creek so just be aware that I

235
00:24:18,570 --> 00:24:22,560
got some pretty good spots here
full of mud tough to get across

236
00:24:22,560 --> 00:24:31,980
without coming away with a giant
mud boot. But you can find Joe

237
00:24:31,980 --> 00:24:40,500
just enough of an area to walk
through. You know, I think that

238
00:24:40,500 --> 00:24:43,350
other trail is actually the
trail the one where I said don't

239
00:24:43,350 --> 00:24:46,740
go because it veers off to the
left and there's no marking

240
00:24:47,910 --> 00:24:52,620
because when I check where I'm
at on my map, or my GPS, it

241
00:24:52,620 --> 00:24:55,560
shows me going in a different
direction than the trail I want

242
00:24:55,560 --> 00:25:03,840
to be on. So I'm gonna go back
To that fork take a good look at

243
00:25:03,840 --> 00:25:13,590
that because I think I was
misled I hate when that happens

244
00:25:13,590 --> 00:25:19,350
especially when you get like who
quarter mile or so down the

245
00:25:19,350 --> 00:25:26,250
trail. And suddenly you're like,
This doesn't look right. You

246
00:25:26,250 --> 00:25:29,970
need to go in a different
direction then you got to double

247
00:25:29,970 --> 00:25:37,440
back okay, it's probably
something I misunderstood

248
00:25:37,740 --> 00:25:42,120
because the marker is not in the
right place the marker should be

249
00:25:43,140 --> 00:25:49,650
on the trail that you're
supposed to walk on not right

250
00:25:49,650 --> 00:25:55,890
now the film markers here if
you're looking at a picture it's

251
00:25:55,890 --> 00:25:58,890
like I'm talking to somebody
here and it should be over here.

252
00:26:00,750 --> 00:26:03,510
So they don't really it doesn't
really point to the right place.

253
00:26:04,650 --> 00:26:08,550
Okay, we're on the purple trail
and according to the map it goes

254
00:26:08,550 --> 00:26:13,980
off to the right and they put
the marker over on the left you

255
00:26:13,980 --> 00:26:15,930
only reason I noticed that is
because we kept kind of

256
00:26:15,930 --> 00:26:16,590
mirroring

257
00:26:18,060 --> 00:26:18,780
the creek

258
00:26:20,070 --> 00:26:24,780
and when I looked at the map
earlier I didn't see the creek

259
00:26:24,780 --> 00:26:31,050
coming in this direction so and
this is to make more sense

260
00:26:31,050 --> 00:26:33,120
anyway it's a smaller trail the
other one was obviously part of

261
00:26:33,120 --> 00:26:36,450
the service road so now

262
00:26:37,740 --> 00:26:50,820
we are back on track all right,
this part of the trail like I

263
00:26:50,820 --> 00:26:51,270
thought

264
00:26:53,460 --> 00:27:03,180
is back going back uphill again
it's another gentle slope I

265
00:27:03,180 --> 00:27:06,060
don't know maybe

266
00:27:08,250 --> 00:27:09,060
30 degree

267
00:27:10,320 --> 00:27:16,440
great I don't know it's not that
bad to me maybe 20 I don't know

268
00:27:20,160 --> 00:27:29,610
but it's just dirt and rocks
nothing nothing special to to

269
00:27:29,610 --> 00:27:36,090
worry about just backup Hill
sucking up air not only because

270
00:27:36,090 --> 00:27:42,810
I'm heading uphill continuously
here still Austin how to get

271
00:27:42,810 --> 00:27:50,490
your your body heat up but also
the temperature is rising the

272
00:27:50,490 --> 00:27:51,240
higher I get

273
00:27:57,780 --> 00:28:02,490
and you know, I just like to
keep trying to keep sort of a

274
00:28:02,490 --> 00:28:08,940
constant pace I don't care from
breathing heavy I just like to

275
00:28:11,100 --> 00:28:20,430
continue is my workout for the
day. So but also I don't I don't

276
00:28:20,430 --> 00:28:28,470
drink a lot. I carry more than
enough water for me and I'm

277
00:28:28,470 --> 00:28:34,320
aware of the any signs of
dehydration and stuff. So I'm

278
00:28:34,320 --> 00:28:40,620
not about to let that happen.
But like for instance, the only

279
00:28:40,620 --> 00:28:44,250
amount of water I've had other
than what I had this morning at

280
00:28:44,250 --> 00:28:51,960
home was a tiny SIP to get the
water down the tube of my

281
00:28:53,400 --> 00:29:00,420
bladder the water bladder in my
backpack poses in that I haven't

282
00:29:00,420 --> 00:29:06,360
had anything your mileage
however may vary

283
00:29:12,030 --> 00:29:18,690
so after a pretty good incline,
am I recording after a pretty

284
00:29:18,690 --> 00:29:25,140
good incline? We've got sort of
our first glimpse at a more open

285
00:29:25,140 --> 00:29:25,740
sky

286
00:29:41,190 --> 00:29:42,840
I'm about four miles in

287
00:29:48,090 --> 00:29:55,800
I have trouble believing this is
only 12 Miles only four miles

288
00:29:55,800 --> 00:30:01,830
when I look at this loop and it
doesn't feel doesn't look to me

289
00:30:01,830 --> 00:30:07,920
like we're a quarter of the way
through let alone a third

290
00:30:13,500 --> 00:30:14,280
we'll see what happens

291
00:30:15,929 --> 00:30:21,719
can always turn back around. It
looks like it's going to be too

292
00:30:21,719 --> 00:30:22,109
long

293
00:30:27,870 --> 00:30:32,490
so the forest canopy kind of
closed in on us a little bit

294
00:30:32,490 --> 00:30:36,840
again. And there's this nice,
cool breeze, it's coming down,

295
00:30:36,840 --> 00:30:46,320
but we're still going uphill. So
that same gradual slope but it's

296
00:30:46,320 --> 00:30:50,070
much cooler, with a little bit
of a breeze. Because otherwise

297
00:30:50,070 --> 00:30:53,550
with this humidity, there is
nothing that's evaporating off

298
00:30:53,550 --> 00:30:54,120
of my skin

299
00:31:03,120 --> 00:31:10,590
breeze feels great. This is
different. It's still forested,

300
00:31:10,590 --> 00:31:14,370
but now it's a little bit
thinner and open. You can kind

301
00:31:14,370 --> 00:31:14,970
of see

302
00:31:17,550 --> 00:31:18,750
through the forest a bit

303
00:31:22,560 --> 00:31:30,600
there's my dog, Godfrey got a
biting fly on his nose. Hold on.

304
00:31:30,600 --> 00:31:39,300
Wait, wait. Okay, got it. Let's
go. I don't know if that was the

305
00:31:39,300 --> 00:31:42,300
top the elevation of we're gonna
go up again. But we're heading

306
00:31:42,300 --> 00:31:49,830
down again a little bit which is
welcome. I was huffing and

307
00:31:49,830 --> 00:31:52,350
puffing for a little bit,
actually had to take my first

308
00:31:52,350 --> 00:31:59,160
drink. Right around half a mile
back just before the five mile

309
00:31:59,160 --> 00:32:06,630
mark. And I'm guessing now
looking at this loop and how far

310
00:32:06,630 --> 00:32:11,790
I've gone. That the loop itself
is like 12 miles and I don't

311
00:32:11,790 --> 00:32:16,770
think it's including that
connector branch from the

312
00:32:16,770 --> 00:32:21,510
parking area. I think that was
close to a mile and a half or so

313
00:32:21,570 --> 00:32:27,660
two miles maybe. I don't know.
Find out when I get back. But

314
00:32:27,660 --> 00:32:32,220
now we're chugging along making
some progress. I've been going

315
00:32:32,220 --> 00:32:36,090
for a while plus I took like a
quarter mile. Wrong Turn. So I

316
00:32:36,090 --> 00:32:39,360
guess that has to factor in so
I'm about five miles in right

317
00:32:39,360 --> 00:32:52,560
now. Not too bad. been hiking
for almost two hours Oh,

318
00:32:52,680 --> 00:32:59,730
definitely heading back up hill.
I didn't check what elevation

319
00:32:59,730 --> 00:33:04,890
we're at. But still not this was
a steeper grade. I'm just past

320
00:33:07,740 --> 00:33:13,110
five and a half miles, maybe six
miles. Well, after that brief,

321
00:33:14,370 --> 00:33:20,970
uphill slog back to some more
level ground. Kinda like doing

322
00:33:21,000 --> 00:33:28,770
intervals on a Stairmaster take
a break and press on. And the

323
00:33:28,770 --> 00:33:38,160
brakes are Flatland. That's all.
So I'm pretty high up here now a

324
00:33:38,160 --> 00:33:44,100
couple 1000 feet elevation. I
can see him on the trail I'm

325
00:33:44,100 --> 00:33:53,700
looking down sort of a ravine
off to my left. Remember, it's

326
00:33:53,700 --> 00:34:00,390
because I am going
counterclockwise. And I think

327
00:34:00,390 --> 00:34:04,320
this would be a spectacular
view. If this was in the fall

328
00:34:05,520 --> 00:34:11,580
with early spring before the
leaves fill in because you

329
00:34:11,580 --> 00:34:13,410
really can't see anything
through the trees.

330
00:34:14,280 --> 00:34:16,320
Unfortunately, but we're pretty
high up

331
00:34:21,900 --> 00:34:25,650
apparently a lot of mountain
bikers use this trail. I haven't

332
00:34:25,650 --> 00:34:29,340
seen these tracks further down,
but I see a lot of them up here.

333
00:34:30,660 --> 00:34:37,470
I'm almost halfway through the
loop is locked by tracks. So if

334
00:34:37,470 --> 00:34:43,590
you have your dog beware. Keep
them close by so you can make

335
00:34:43,590 --> 00:34:44,880
sure there are no accidents.

336
00:34:49,979 --> 00:34:53,459
I think I'm at the point where I
know why they call this hard.

337
00:34:54,749 --> 00:34:58,559
You turn some of these corners
and you're met with an incline

338
00:34:59,999 --> 00:35:03,629
Are you looking at and just like
oh crap, another one when you

339
00:35:03,629 --> 00:35:07,709
thought you're at the highest
point. But

340
00:35:08,970 --> 00:35:12,780
the plus side is you always feel
better once you get to the top.

341
00:35:13,740 --> 00:35:17,010
Regardless of what that top is.
At least that's what I keep

342
00:35:17,010 --> 00:35:17,790
telling myself.

343
00:35:19,590 --> 00:35:25,800
Still going uphill I'm hoping
this is the final ascent. I'm at

344
00:35:25,800 --> 00:35:32,040
about six and a half miles more
I started, roundabouts keep

345
00:35:32,040 --> 00:35:32,490
pushing

346
00:35:38,400 --> 00:35:43,050
I've reached what I think is the
top map it looks close to the

347
00:35:43,050 --> 00:35:50,310
halfway point. But there's like
a clearing here. That looks like

348
00:35:50,310 --> 00:35:55,830
the perfect place to kind of
take a break. Take a drink. Good

349
00:35:55,830 --> 00:36:11,160
to come control of my dog.
Here's the clearing. is usually

350
00:36:11,160 --> 00:36:15,690
starts crying because you'd want
to stop. But we will take a

351
00:36:15,690 --> 00:36:26,340
break so we are back on the move
after maybe a five or 10 minute

352
00:36:26,340 --> 00:36:33,780
rest. Got some water for both me
and the dog. And now we're going

353
00:36:33,780 --> 00:36:44,430
to continue on and finish this
trail. refreshed. Maybe I can

354
00:36:44,430 --> 00:36:45,510
hear more water

355
00:36:46,950 --> 00:36:48,630
as we start to

356
00:36:49,889 --> 00:36:54,689
head downhill now. Hopefully
there's another water feature.

357
00:36:56,519 --> 00:37:01,379
So Godfrey can cool off because
he was resting pretty good up

358
00:37:01,379 --> 00:37:03,959
there at the top of the hill.
For once, I think he was tired

359
00:37:03,959 --> 00:37:11,159
enough where he wasn't acting
like a crazy dog. But a little

360
00:37:11,159 --> 00:37:16,109
bit of water would be nice. See
we're heading downhill

361
00:37:21,869 --> 00:37:24,179
you can see it if you're looking
at the pictures

362
00:37:29,520 --> 00:37:32,880
he hears the water and he wants
to go down there. But I don't

363
00:37:32,880 --> 00:37:43,380
see it yet, so I can't let him
go I gotta pay attention. There

364
00:37:43,380 --> 00:38:05,100
is a tiny stream. Little tiny
waterfall very relaxing This

365
00:38:05,100 --> 00:38:12,570
one's much easier to cross. It's
very trickling stream here.

366
00:38:40,770 --> 00:38:45,570
So the true midway point of this
trail is where you have to cross

367
00:38:45,570 --> 00:38:50,970
that stream, there's a sharp
turn in the trail, you cross the

368
00:38:50,970 --> 00:38:53,520
stream a sharp turn, then you
cross that same stream again.

369
00:38:54,210 --> 00:38:57,450
That's the true midpoint. That's
a pretty good place to rest to

370
00:38:57,450 --> 00:39:03,240
but I wasn't sure exactly where
it was going to be. And my dog

371
00:39:03,240 --> 00:39:05,520
looked like he really needed a
rest and so did I because that

372
00:39:05,520 --> 00:39:11,370
last hill was pretty was pretty
intense. So I didn't see any

373
00:39:11,370 --> 00:39:15,060
harm if I didn't reach the
midpoint. Or if I had to go a

374
00:39:15,090 --> 00:39:18,030
little bit up further a hill to
reach that midpoint. It wouldn't

375
00:39:18,030 --> 00:39:23,220
have been a big deal. But that's
the actual midpoint there and I

376
00:39:23,220 --> 00:39:25,530
think if I do this trail again,
that's where I'll stop because

377
00:39:25,530 --> 00:39:29,820
it's really peaceful there with
the stream. Plus the dog can get

378
00:39:29,820 --> 00:39:33,570
a drink and go wait in the water
and cool off

379
00:39:39,810 --> 00:39:43,170
but now we're back on the way
down

380
00:39:48,780 --> 00:39:53,100
it looks at least this section
looks much easier than the other

381
00:39:53,100 --> 00:40:00,630
side. Since I'm going
counterclockwise I'm not sure

382
00:40:00,630 --> 00:40:03,690
how most people do it but I like
I prefer to go counterclockwise

383
00:40:03,690 --> 00:40:07,620
for some reason this side is way
more muddy and there's way more

384
00:40:07,620 --> 00:40:12,180
water on it and the other side
at least just leaving the

385
00:40:12,180 --> 00:40:12,750
midpoint

386
00:40:23,190 --> 00:40:33,990
don't mind water don't like mud
so much walking through a grove

387
00:40:33,990 --> 00:40:38,520
of I don't know what kind of
trees these are what kind of

388
00:40:38,520 --> 00:40:45,150
tree these are but they they
have these long skinny leaves I

389
00:40:45,150 --> 00:40:47,880
see them all the time walking
these trails in Georgia they

390
00:40:47,880 --> 00:40:51,210
don't have these trees in
Chicago or anywhere in Northern

391
00:40:51,210 --> 00:40:56,010
Illinois that I know of. I gotta
try to look this up when you to

392
00:40:56,010 --> 00:41:04,530
get back crossing another tiny
stream none of these at least on

393
00:41:04,530 --> 00:41:06,960
this side are deep at all
they're just really little

394
00:41:06,960 --> 00:41:07,980
babbling brooks

395
00:41:14,159 --> 00:41:19,829
if you like walking through some
heavy woods I mean this is a

396
00:41:19,979 --> 00:41:26,969
perfect trail because it's empty
you don't see anybody it's quiet

397
00:41:29,999 --> 00:41:33,599
there aren't a whole lot of like
if you're looking for views you

398
00:41:33,599 --> 00:41:38,129
know down the mountain at least
there's nothing here in URL and

399
00:41:38,129 --> 00:41:42,959
late spring with all this all
the leaves on the trees you

400
00:41:42,959 --> 00:41:50,459
can't see anything down the hill
but the the actual trail path

401
00:41:50,879 --> 00:41:52,979
and the forest itself is
fantastic

402
00:41:59,610 --> 00:42:01,950
I'm just gonna pause and see if
you can hear that bird

403
00:42:15,630 --> 00:42:17,100
and that my dog but that bird

404
00:42:26,550 --> 00:42:30,030
there's an owl flying through
the forest, I can't get a video

405
00:42:30,030 --> 00:42:35,610
or pictures he took off too
fast. I've never seen an owl

406
00:42:35,610 --> 00:42:48,120
that up close before. They're,
they're huge now the one danger

407
00:42:48,120 --> 00:42:55,350
I've always found when hiking 10
Miles 10 Miles plus in the

408
00:42:55,350 --> 00:43:00,870
woods. You know I do
occasionally you know, five, six

409
00:43:00,870 --> 00:43:05,280
miles. But when you're when you
get up above that and you're

410
00:43:05,280 --> 00:43:07,350
doing 10 miles depending on the
trail to

411
00:43:12,510 --> 00:43:16,800
on the way down, you're tired.
So you need to concentrate on

412
00:43:16,800 --> 00:43:23,490
picking up your feet. Because if
you don't you end up tripping

413
00:43:23,490 --> 00:43:26,910
over rocks and roots and, and
stuff. So you just kind of have

414
00:43:26,910 --> 00:43:30,480
to make a conscious effort no
matter how tired you are. Just

415
00:43:30,480 --> 00:43:35,250
to keep that pace and the
cadence in your walk. At least

416
00:43:35,250 --> 00:43:37,350
that's what I tell myself
because I start to get tired I

417
00:43:37,350 --> 00:43:41,670
noticed sometimes I just hit the
top of a rock and say okay,

418
00:43:41,670 --> 00:43:44,580
that's a perfect way to trip
over yourself and land right on

419
00:43:44,580 --> 00:43:50,550
your face. And you don't want to
do that because that hurts. So

420
00:43:50,550 --> 00:44:00,090
just keep picking your knees up.
Don't drag your feet coming up

421
00:44:00,090 --> 00:44:11,220
to small water so apparently
that's where all the water is on

422
00:44:11,220 --> 00:44:15,840
this hike on the second half if
you're going counterclockwise if

423
00:44:15,840 --> 00:44:17,700
you're going clockwise you'll
get all the water in the front

424
00:44:17,700 --> 00:44:24,480
but there won't be much on the
way back was really quite nice

425
00:44:31,170 --> 00:44:35,760
This stretches a bit muddy
because apparently this entire

426
00:44:35,790 --> 00:44:39,060
part drains towards that creek

427
00:44:43,260 --> 00:44:45,000
and it's pretty crappy.

428
00:44:47,670 --> 00:44:52,290
I'm walking through another
grove of these trees that I

429
00:44:52,290 --> 00:44:57,600
tried to describe earlier but
really can't. Yeah, if you're

430
00:44:58,170 --> 00:45:02,070
listening to this and I put it
in I made a podcasted this image

431
00:45:02,070 --> 00:45:08,370
of the leaves and other Grove
will show up in a compatible

432
00:45:08,370 --> 00:45:17,520
app, but it feels for me because
of where I'm from you don't

433
00:45:17,520 --> 00:45:21,060
really see this and they kind of
crowd the the trail It feels

434
00:45:21,060 --> 00:45:28,830
very What do you call it? Like
prehistoric. We just feel like

435
00:45:28,830 --> 00:45:34,650
you've walked into like a
Jurassic Park kind of place I'm

436
00:45:34,650 --> 00:45:38,640
sure it's some common stupid
tree out here that everybody

437
00:45:38,640 --> 00:45:44,940
knows it's really kind of a
beautiful part of the forest

438
00:45:44,940 --> 00:45:52,020
here where the undergrowth isn't
that thick so you can kind of

439
00:45:52,020 --> 00:45:57,840
see through into the canyon
little stream running down

440
00:45:57,840 --> 00:45:58,620
through there

441
00:46:12,030 --> 00:46:17,610
and this is kind of a open part
as well of the trail where it's

442
00:46:17,610 --> 00:46:22,860
a little bit wider a little bit
more light coming through but

443
00:46:22,890 --> 00:46:27,780
still not an open sky so it's
not sunny and hot at all.

444
00:46:28,860 --> 00:46:34,920
Although still a little muddy
some spots been another tiny

445
00:46:34,920 --> 00:46:39,780
little stream babbling brook Hey
Godfrey

446
00:46:46,560 --> 00:46:57,480
if you take a little break in
the stream the water is nice and

447
00:46:57,480 --> 00:47:13,500
cold sometimes I'm taking these
pictures and they don't seem

448
00:47:13,500 --> 00:47:18,570
like the same picture. But I
don't know. They're obviously

449
00:47:18,570 --> 00:47:22,110
have different scenes but maybe
I'm just attracted to the same

450
00:47:22,110 --> 00:47:30,810
scene sometimes abandon the
trail and a slight opening of

451
00:47:30,810 --> 00:47:37,710
the canopy provides just that
kind of I don't know. Looks cool

452
00:47:37,710 --> 00:47:41,280
kind of moment. Nothing
spectacular really we just I

453
00:47:41,280 --> 00:47:47,850
don't know cool part of the
trail. Here's a weird clearing I

454
00:47:47,850 --> 00:47:49,050
saw this picture online

455
00:47:50,400 --> 00:47:51,420
there's this old truck

456
00:47:52,889 --> 00:48:08,549
just buried in the dirt here
wonder where this truck came

457
00:48:08,549 --> 00:48:08,909
from

458
00:48:38,909 --> 00:49:03,329
what kind of truck it is any
labels or anything? Cool. You

459
00:49:03,329 --> 00:49:06,989
know, I know I have a good bug
spray when I can hear the

460
00:49:06,989 --> 00:49:09,809
mosquitoes buzzing around my
head but they never touch me.

461
00:49:10,769 --> 00:49:14,399
It's like the old commercial fur
off where the guy is sitting in

462
00:49:14,399 --> 00:49:17,309
a tent full of mosquitoes. And
they're all buzzing everywhere

463
00:49:17,309 --> 00:49:25,169
but none of them touch them. So
on the second half of the trail

464
00:49:25,169 --> 00:49:29,909
going in the direction I'm going
again counterclockwise. It's not

465
00:49:29,909 --> 00:49:32,909
all downhill there are some
young you will head downhill and

466
00:49:32,909 --> 00:49:38,429
then there are some stretches
where you go back up. But it's

467
00:49:38,429 --> 00:49:45,749
not as steep. It seems to me as
the other side. So it's still

468
00:49:45,929 --> 00:49:47,579
you know, it's a little tiring
when you look at it and you're

469
00:49:47,579 --> 00:49:51,269
like, crap, I thought I was
almost done. And then you see a

470
00:49:51,269 --> 00:50:00,959
hill but they're not as steep as
the other side and I If you've

471
00:50:00,959 --> 00:50:07,139
already taken a break, you
should be okay. One mistake I

472
00:50:07,139 --> 00:50:14,249
made in this hike is not using a
second phone for my hiking

473
00:50:14,249 --> 00:50:20,999
tracker. It's the first long
hike, I've taken like this with

474
00:50:20,999 --> 00:50:25,109
my phone and used it as an act
of tracker to track the route

475
00:50:25,229 --> 00:50:30,269
and how fast I'm going and all
that kind of stuff. And it's, I

476
00:50:30,269 --> 00:50:32,309
brought an extra battery, but
it's kind of a pain in the ass

477
00:50:32,309 --> 00:50:38,459
to take a break and plug it in
its phones down to 28% started

478
00:50:38,459 --> 00:50:43,229
100 You know, so next time I
have an extra phone, I can just

479
00:50:43,229 --> 00:50:48,599
bring that, download the map,
use that for the tracking and

480
00:50:48,599 --> 00:50:54,209
save my phone for the pictures
and all the other stuff, they

481
00:50:54,209 --> 00:51:00,419
probably would never have to
plug it in. You know, some some

482
00:51:00,419 --> 00:51:03,209
people like going downhill
versus going uphill. Because

483
00:51:03,239 --> 00:51:11,849
uphill, obviously is difficult.
But downhill isn't necessarily

484
00:51:12,959 --> 00:51:19,439
any easier to me it takes a
bigger toll on on my feet and my

485
00:51:19,439 --> 00:51:26,999
hips. Maybe I'm just too old, 55
years old, but going down a

486
00:51:26,999 --> 00:51:33,989
steep grade I feel it in my
feet. And then I guess hips to

487
00:51:33,989 --> 00:51:36,509
keep stability as you're walking
down to make sure you're not

488
00:51:36,509 --> 00:51:41,189
going down too fast. Going up,
you know it's in the knees, and

489
00:51:41,189 --> 00:51:45,839
the quads really, for me. But
you know, I don't feel the same

490
00:51:45,839 --> 00:51:51,899
fatigue in my feet. Only notice
I only really notice it when I'm

491
00:51:51,899 --> 00:51:55,379
taking these longer hikes. The
shorter ones, they don't really

492
00:51:55,379 --> 00:52:01,319
bother me at all. If I'm going
maybe five miles or so. None of

493
00:52:01,319 --> 00:52:05,639
it either going up or going down
bothers me. But something you

494
00:52:05,639 --> 00:52:10,229
know along the lines of 10 Miles
plus that's when I can start

495
00:52:10,229 --> 00:52:14,369
feeling the a little bit of
fatigue in in my hips a little

496
00:52:14,369 --> 00:52:22,229
bit. And in particular, my feet
in my toes going down. I used to

497
00:52:22,259 --> 00:52:29,069
have problems with my knees. But
I learned the hard way on that

498
00:52:29,069 --> 00:52:31,769
one. So now I wear like
compression sleeves on my knees.

499
00:52:32,639 --> 00:52:37,769
Because of one hike I took in
Salt Lake City. I was hiking

500
00:52:37,769 --> 00:52:41,759
grand your peak and I had no
problem going up and I didn't

501
00:52:41,759 --> 00:52:44,729
realize what was happening. I
was building up fluid in my

502
00:52:44,729 --> 00:52:47,819
knees. So then when I started
coming back down off the

503
00:52:47,819 --> 00:52:53,279
mountain suddenly my knees
really couldn't support my

504
00:52:53,279 --> 00:52:56,789
weight going down. And I almost
couldn't walk I had to take so

505
00:52:56,789 --> 00:52:59,609
many breaks, it took me twice as
long to get down as it did to go

506
00:52:59,609 --> 00:53:02,939
up. Because just because I had
takes many breaks because my

507
00:53:02,939 --> 00:53:05,489
knees were so painful. And then
the rest of that day I could

508
00:53:05,489 --> 00:53:13,649
barely walk. You know it really
felt felt bad to stand up and

509
00:53:13,649 --> 00:53:17,009
move. So ever since then I wear
these compression sleeves on my

510
00:53:17,009 --> 00:53:21,449
knees and I can walk for you
know 10 Miles 12 Miles sometimes

511
00:53:21,449 --> 00:53:26,639
15 miles and my knees don't
bother me at least you know

512
00:53:26,669 --> 00:53:32,939
going extended miles all in one
trip still fatigues my you know

513
00:53:32,939 --> 00:53:35,489
my hips a little bit and my toe
and my toes my toes in

514
00:53:35,489 --> 00:53:36,029
particular

515
00:53:39,840 --> 00:53:45,210
and just when I finished talking
about going down versus going up

516
00:53:47,580 --> 00:54:05,850
at a massive incline so gives my
toes a break and I guess it's

517
00:54:07,020 --> 00:54:10,230
going up now that I think about
it's more more the glutes, your

518
00:54:10,230 --> 00:54:13,620
ass. And the quads although they
are involved too.

519
00:54:20,969 --> 00:54:26,639
And hikes like this that are
just straight up hikes. You're

520
00:54:26,639 --> 00:54:30,599
just walking through the woods.
You're not really stopping at

521
00:54:30,599 --> 00:54:35,369
any view or site. I mean, you
stop you're in there and look at

522
00:54:35,369 --> 00:54:39,719
stuff but it's not like yeah,
hiking to a destination per se

523
00:54:39,719 --> 00:54:43,229
you're just hiking to hike.
Sometimes if you're trying to do

524
00:54:43,229 --> 00:54:48,629
a loop like this, you know you
you get into it. And you start

525
00:54:48,629 --> 00:54:52,679
wondering if you bit off more
than you can chew. It's too far.

526
00:54:54,389 --> 00:54:58,919
You know, you don't run on want
to run out of water. So you got

527
00:54:58,919 --> 00:55:03,839
to be careful there But then,
you know, you start to get

528
00:55:03,869 --> 00:55:09,689
towards the goal of finishing
it. And you start getting that

529
00:55:11,639 --> 00:55:15,869
feeling of satisfaction like
yeah, if I just push through the

530
00:55:15,869 --> 00:55:23,489
hard parts, then I can finish it
off. So the way I the way I

531
00:55:23,489 --> 00:55:29,129
approach it is, I mean I, if I'm
going to commit to go, I go,

532
00:55:30,749 --> 00:55:37,769
doesn't matter what I feel like.
And as I'm hiking, like you get

533
00:55:37,799 --> 00:55:40,829
into some of these hills where
you turn a corner, and suddenly

534
00:55:40,829 --> 00:55:44,519
there's an incline, like a
normal day, you be like, am I

535
00:55:44,519 --> 00:55:48,209
gonna go up that incline. But
you know, you set out to do this

536
00:55:48,209 --> 00:55:51,989
hike. So what I do is I just
take one step at a time, and I

537
00:55:51,989 --> 00:55:54,959
don't even bother looking all
the way up the hill, I just look

538
00:55:54,959 --> 00:55:57,569
at the steps in front of me, I
can always take the next step.

539
00:55:59,579 --> 00:56:03,119
You sometimes you look up at the
top of that hill anyway, I don't

540
00:56:03,119 --> 00:56:05,729
want to, I don't want to, I
don't know walk up that thing.

541
00:56:05,879 --> 00:56:10,049
It's too high, it's too far I'm
tired. Just look at the steps in

542
00:56:10,049 --> 00:56:14,579
front of you. That when you can
do just one more step. That's at

543
00:56:14,579 --> 00:56:20,249
least the way I approach it all
the time. Okay, we've come to

544
00:56:20,249 --> 00:56:26,819
the end of the loop, at least
the loop part of it. So it shows

545
00:56:26,819 --> 00:56:31,919
that I only went 11.3 miles the
tracker

546
00:56:36,989 --> 00:56:42,269
we're following the purple
trails and I'm heading back

547
00:56:42,269 --> 00:56:48,359
towards the trail that leads to
the parking area. Right back

548
00:56:48,359 --> 00:56:53,879
that way. To my right, since I'm
going counterclockwise, and you

549
00:56:53,879 --> 00:56:56,099
can hear my dog crying because
he just wants to keep moving.

550
00:56:58,079 --> 00:57:05,099
He's an endless ball of energy.
Seven year old labs are not

551
00:57:05,099 --> 00:57:13,559
supposed to be this energetic
anymore. So as I'm winding down

552
00:57:14,639 --> 00:57:21,329
this particular trail Wow, that
is a really long caterpillar

553
00:57:23,069 --> 00:57:27,809
that I have never seen before.
And that wasn't the purpose for

554
00:57:27,809 --> 00:57:37,049
me turning this thing back on
and recording. But take a

555
00:57:37,049 --> 00:57:52,349
picture of it as I was saying,
some winding down as part of

556
00:57:52,349 --> 00:57:58,829
this trail. We're finishing up
this last bit before we get to

557
00:57:58,829 --> 00:58:10,649
the car. You know, people wonder
why I go do this. And for me, I

558
00:58:10,649 --> 00:58:19,319
have difficulty shutting off my
mind. Always thinking something

559
00:58:19,319 --> 00:58:25,889
some problem, some stupid issue.
And these days, there's so much

560
00:58:25,889 --> 00:58:34,079
happening in the world. All I
have to do is concentrate on the

561
00:58:34,079 --> 00:58:38,459
next step. So there's just the
sound of my feet, the forest,

562
00:58:38,969 --> 00:58:45,269
birds, the bugs, my dog panting
and really just kind of just

563
00:58:45,269 --> 00:58:48,899
worrying about the next step. I
don't want to think about

564
00:58:48,899 --> 00:58:51,809
anything else, I have to
concentrate on where I'm at. And

565
00:58:51,809 --> 00:58:55,709
it kind of keeps me focused. So
it's sort of like a it's

566
00:58:55,709 --> 00:59:04,319
cathartic in a way. And it
prevents my mind from racing

567
00:59:04,349 --> 00:59:08,279
from one thing to the next. Just
kind of keeps things calm down.

568
00:59:08,279 --> 00:59:13,679
So I try to do this as much as I
can. Especially now that we

569
00:59:13,679 --> 00:59:18,119
moved to Georgia, and I have
access to all these trails that

570
00:59:18,119 --> 00:59:28,139
I never had before. But anyway,
that's that's why I do it. Now

571
00:59:28,139 --> 00:59:34,439
we made it back to the Forest
Service road. And the two of us

572
00:59:34,439 --> 00:59:40,319
are dog tired. He's literally a
dog tired. I am dog tired. But

573
00:59:40,319 --> 00:59:45,539
it was very good hike. I think
we still have maybe half a mile

574
00:59:45,539 --> 00:59:52,859
to go get to the parking area.
It was more strenuous than I

575
00:59:52,859 --> 00:59:57,539
thought it was going to be. So
it definitely earned the hard

576
00:59:57,539 --> 01:00:03,239
rating. If just because of the
length And the inclines did make

577
01:00:03,239 --> 01:00:11,009
it difficult. So I guess trail
wise though it's really not that

578
01:00:11,009 --> 01:00:15,119
bad. It's not that hard of a
trail to walk, you're not

579
01:00:15,119 --> 01:00:19,709
climbing over anything. This
just the sheer length of it and

580
01:00:20,939 --> 01:00:23,879
in the inclines, now if you're
camping and you take like six

581
01:00:23,879 --> 01:00:30,959
miles and you go up, up near the
top halfway point, and then trek

582
01:00:30,959 --> 01:00:34,559
down, that's more strenuous than
I thought I was going to be, but

583
01:00:35,879 --> 01:00:40,319
got free, no get out of there.
Really good hike all the way

584
01:00:40,319 --> 01:00:57,569
around as I get my dog away from
horse poop brings us to the end

585
01:00:57,569 --> 01:01:02,789
of that hike. Like I said, I
hope the next one I post I'm not

586
01:01:02,789 --> 01:01:05,339
sure exactly when it's going to
be except to actually go on the

587
01:01:05,339 --> 01:01:09,029
hike. But I'm going to try to
make it shorter. I've got an

588
01:01:09,029 --> 01:01:15,989
idea for how I want to do it
format wise so get things down

589
01:01:15,989 --> 01:01:22,049
to maybe 30 minutes max. But
hope you like the sites or sites

590
01:01:22,049 --> 01:01:25,139
in the zone sites if you're
watching kind of podcasts and

591
01:01:25,139 --> 01:01:34,769
2.0 compatible app and sounds if
you're listening next time

592
01:01:36,240 --> 01:01:36,600
bye bye