Kevin Bae: All right, we're at the weather leather wood trail
leather wood Loop Trail at the where the heck are we Friday
branch Trailhead that's what it's called. But then on my
alltrails app it's called the leather loop trail or
Leatherwood Loop Trail
lock up my car
hit the start button
me see where I'm going
Somehow I don't think this thing's going in the right
direction Why is the map upside down
All right, so I guess the first part of this is down a Forest
Service road is blocked. blocked for cars
it's a brisk morning by 40 degrees starting out. Today is
Leap Day, February 29 2024. This is not a super long trail. I
forgot how long it is a couple miles maybe. So it's not gonna
take that long to do the trip. But it's been a while since
we've gotten out
so I just wanted to get back out on the trail
and Godfrey is already eating things he shouldn't be eating
Friday branch trail
we are not up to the loop yet. I wonder how long it takes to get
there
we're just going to do some pretty brisk walking so I can
get my body temperature up. This is just a flat road right now.
So it's not even not that difficult to walk
I think I mentioned at the top this is part of the
Chattahoochee National Forest. There's a small parking area at
the front probably fit about, I don't know. Six or seven cars.
Plus, apparently, either people do off roading or maybe they're
ride horses here. I don't know there's a large parking area
looks like for trailers.
I usually post pictures in the podcast. Oh, using chapter
images. And there'll be links on my website, the casual hype.com.
And in the show notes for podcast apps that you can use to
see the chapter images also be transcripts as well. I have a
transcription service I use that creates a transcript of of the
audio And then I make generally I usually make a YouTube video
of the pictures in the video I take while I'm out hiking. And
you may notice this time around my dog Godfrey has like this
bear spot on his rear left side because I took a trip to Paris a
few weeks ago. And this dog gets separation anxiety after about
three or four days when he's at the kennel, he starts to look
himself in the hind end something I hadn't been able to
solve
so if you see that bear spot, that's what that is. Doesn't
maybe it doesn't show too much on pictures. And he didn't do
too bad of a job on himself this time because I took some
precautions of having a cone and the vet actually gave him some
anti anxiety medication which apparently didn't work all that
well. It's kind of a high energy dog. So when he gets started on
something and he gets started, it's hard to stop this like I
guess that's I'm still getting used to the weather in Georgia.
This is only my starting my fourth year living here. So the
the winter is a funny thing. So they have you know in the
Atlanta area, they definitely have four seasons so it doesn't
get cold in the winter, it doesn't get super cold and you
really don't have too many days or whatever where you're below
freezing you know you will have the occasional full day where
it's below freezing and it will drop down I've since I've been
here it's been as low as five or six degrees. And certain days
definitely people horseback ride here because there's horse shit
in the middle of their horse poop in the middle of the road
so they do get seasons here but it's not like in Chicago where
we'll go through a couple of weeks every winter where the
temperature will not get above freezing. You know it'll be in
the in the teens or single digits at night sometimes during
the day. But
doesn't really doesn't really get doesn't really stay below
freezing here. So you get I think if you average that out,
at least just from my experience not looking at any temperature
statistics I would say their lows in the wintertime are light
from the 30s and 40s. And the highs in the 50s and 60s. So
given those averages when you when you look at the way some of
the days go like yesterday, it was in the 70s and the day
before that it was in the 70s and at night it was like in the
60s. The storm came through yesterday and a front came
through and the temperature dropped overnight to where it
was like in the upper 30s this morning. So right now it's
probably about 40 degrees where I'm at. I think now that I'm
deeper in the woods, it's probably dropped a couple
degrees now we're starting to hit up a little bit of a hill on
this road but
it makes for mild winters for the most part with a couple
drops in temperature. But then you get you know you got these
weird days where it'll be 70 And then the next day it'll be 40 or
50.
But it's okay for me. It's mine Like I ditched my heavy winter
jacket when I left Chicago to move down here and I've never
needed it
you know, I used to use a heavy ski jacket and big gloves I kept
the gloves but they're just in the car for when I travel and
now I just use a if it gets cold like like you know really cool
down in the 20s or whatever I have a travel jacket that I use
one of those travel jackets that fold up into a pocket let's
that's basically my cold weather winter gear now it's it's kind
of funny. I think the reason I bought that is because we
traveled to Europe at least once a year now. And sometimes we go
you know when it's cold, we traveled in the offseason so
generally it's in the fall or the spring and it can get cold a
little bit chilly in the 40s when we're over there and so
this jacket is perfect for traveling because it doesn't
take up space but even when it gets down into the 30s and stuff
I've tested it here in the 20s keeps me perfectly warm I
probably could have live with that in Chicago and just stayed
away from the giant ski jacket because you know honestly when
when it's five degrees outside in Chicago you're not really
hanging around outside for very long today shaping up to be nice
though it's a little chilly right now and there's like some
high high clouds but the sky still looks really nice and blue
section really high thin clouds so it's a beautiful morning
perfect for a late winter hike for I suppose in the February's
kind of mid mid winter still What are you crying for? See a
sign must be caught up to the trail actual trail yep we'll be
on the orange trail. So you got three here you got the path to
the fruity branch loop you got the Leatherwood Creek loop which
I guess that's what we're supposed to be on and then the
perimeter trail well we'll find out because in the alltrails app
it's listed as a what is it listed as the leather wood it is
leather wood true
got 5g connection here and it's not bad
weather would loop trail. So I'm guessing it's a Leatherwood
Creek loop. It should actually use the correct name. names
these things. Yeah. Alright, so we will go counterclockwise.
Because it's the way I like to walk
it's really just just looks like Forest Service roads to me. It's
wide. Definitely for cars, but it's blocked off the cars at the
front. You could see some of the runoff on this trail from the
rain yesterday. Some pretty good rain that came through that's
also something still good Getting used to living here is
that when it rains it'll come down in sheets moving around for
maybe an hour or two then it was just done but you know within
that hour or two you might get an inch of rain which back in
Chicago that would have been a lot my backyard would have been
flooded but now I live on a hill and it just kind of goes goes
away no more flooding don't think this trail is going to be
secluded as I want you try to look things up ahead of time to
get a feel for stuff but it doesn't always work out I can
hear like dogs off in the background might be too close to
people's homes on this road because of the rains yesterday
all the wash out you can see all the pine needles that were
washed on the side of the road
Godfrey don't eat that Godfrey
that's the main problem I have with bringing Godfrey on these
hikes. She just eats the wrong things and the nature of a
Labrador Retriever and sometimes if he eats too much of it when I
get home a bar barfs off the giant ball of vegetation why he
eats it I don't know
so I use I use the all trails app for my trails for my mapping
and they recently changed this app to where the what last time
I hiked was over a month ago before I went to Europe on a
vacation and they change the navigation part of it or I don't
like it it just keeps popping up this shade to show stats Okay,
now we're actually finally hitting the actual trail we're
getting off the Forest Service road and onto an actual trail
and it's muddy because of the rains from yesterday
somebody found the water in a stick
but at least it's actual trail I was worried that this was going
to end up being just all Forest Service road
Godfrey career good boy good boy. Good boy. I like it when he
has good recall especially because he saw a squirrel
crossed the trail and wanted to go after it all right. So here's
where the trails diverge there's also a pear orchard loop
all right, finally some actual trail here. And we can warm up
again
yes, so this all trails app, it pops open this shade and covers
half the navigation map. So I always have to lower the shade.
They should just have the map open and if I want the shade
open that I drag it open
and the navigation no longer
you know it's like it always points north
instead of pointing in the direction you're going maybe
they maybe there's a setting and I can change for that I don't
know right now you know I didn't even think about it I didn't
really open the app and do anything with it until I got out
here. I download the trail map you know to prepare for the hike
but I'm not really using the app until they get on the trail
and now it's like not working as it did before. So something I'll
have to investigate
obviously this hike is not sponsored by alltrails Has
nobody knows I even exist but I talk about it because I use it
their horse or dog poop on the trail with too small real horse
so you're supposed to pick up your poop and pack it out in
case you're wondering it's what I do I prepare for it. I have
stink proof Ziploc bags I keep in my pack and
I have you know poop bags in my pocket. I carry those with me
anyway. Because I normally I regularly walk my dog
maybe it doesn't matter so much here if there's so much horse
poop
I like to find the trails where the horses don't go
there's way too much horse poop to make this enjoyable you gotta
really walk around it
what's it like to stay away from horse trails? Or heavily
trafficked horse trails because Godfreys only seen a horse twice
once out here once in Salt Lake City and while he hasn't done
anything he didn't even really bark at them. Maybe because
there's so much bigger than he is but he doesn't have a whole
lot of experience with them. So you know I would be a little
uncertain as to how he's going to handle it. Especially on a
smaller trail like this. And that wide Forest Service road
wouldn't matter but this is a small regular trail
you got free Godfrey.
Good boy. Good boy. Good job.
Really cool rock outcropping. Coming up I
go off trail a little bit
can't really see it in camera though
so we're gonna check it up here through the leaves hopefully not
falling break my neck
you're anything that makes it slippery or leaves
if you've been following along with me at all you know that
that's my dog and pony show here to watch out because it will
lead us right through slippery
few hands on coming my
way right don't kill myself
right let's head back up to the trail
so after doing some some of the real hiking on the trail and
trying to traverse all the leaves to get to that rock
outcropping. Things are finally warming up for me that's a
positive you can tell when you get to the huffing and puffing
stage that you're exerting a little bit of effort
I believe what they call this is the zone two or I forget what
they call like a zone two or something like that when you're
talking about weight loss and fitness you want a heart rate
and an exercise exertion level where you can carry out a
conversation but just not super comfortably you know you're
winded a little bit this RAM on these hikes
this wet
extra deep breath is because I try to not breathe so Hi
everyone I think video the microphone on the phone just
makes it so loud. So I try to regulate my Rest better I'll
take some video doesn't sound so bad and then I get a deep breath
when I turn it off
got free good boy good boy got it out of the park somebody's
dog poop and I'm thinking people are just leaving it behind
because there's so much horse poop on the trail which is not
delightful you don't want to step in any of it but the horse
poop is much easier to see the so big All right, come on up to
another side okay, we would take a left or right if we wanted to
take the pear orchard loop, the fruity branch loop or the
Leighton cemetery loop it's also for mountain biking and horses I
should have checked these things before I went on the trail but I
kind of chose this one spur of the moment
just looking for a place to hike this is back to like Forest
Service road
because I haven't been hiking in a while neither was Godfrey he's
getting old now he turned nine so I'm trying to find trails
that aren't that hard and have a little bit of distance because
otherwise if it's too hard right off the bat then he gets sore
like an old man but if I you know if I can go hiking you know
like something like this which is an easier hike
than the next one I want to take it's not so bad which I'd like
to do this one that's almost two hours away from my house called
the Three Forks trail about six and a half miles or so long and
I think it's either in near the North Carolina border this one
here is 5.4 miles it says it's moderate but so far it's been
pretty easy unless something's gonna get more difficult in a
bit
All right, we got another sign telling us to go to the right
but that doesn't look like that's where it goes on on the
app
so I'm guessing it looks like here
that the sign might be wrong because people have handwritten
on the arrows that the Leatherwood Creek Trail actually
go straight not not to the right
so we will follow the advice of other hikers and just keep
heading straight
Alright, so the Forest Service road ends after a bit and we
head back into normal trail
The good news is the trail isn't as muddy as I initially thought
it was going to be because when we first hit the actual real
trail because of the rain yesterday was a little muddy up
here it's not bad a lot of leaves so it's a little
difficult to see the trail but it's well worn enough
I have a feeling if I make a YouTube video for this it's
going to be short not a heck of a lot to see here it's a nice
walk in the woods don't get me wrong there aren't any creek
crossings really at least not yet. No waterfalls just a walk
in the woods in a pine forest the pine needles are thick
he got free
boy good boy
gonna take a pic we just a steal your disaster all right let's go
let's go anybody else have a dad that just never wants to stop
I had to have the ladders before but never they never had this
kind of energy this late in life
he pays for it in the end though. He's like an old athlete
that just doesn't know his limitations
you should see his you can see him when he fetches so crazy
amount of energy sprinting like crazy. Let's go Godfrey. He has
an Instagram or some of the stuff where I post some of this
stuff. It's called how his instagram handle is gluteus
maximus. I also have a website that he never update for him.
Gluteus maximus.com. You can find there's a link to his
Instagram. On my website, my personal website I should put a
link on the casual hate.com my personal website which you may
or may not want to read because God just my snide remarks.
Godfrey here. Here. I don't know what he saw. Good boy. Good job.
Good job. Whatever it is, you saw you can go after it. So um,
my personal website is Kevin bay.com. My last name is spelled
B as in boy E and there's a link to Godfreys website under my
about menu or Godfreys Instagram. You want to check
that out. Don't bother reading the rest of the blog. It's where
I just post thoughts snide comments, sarcastic stuff,
political crap. Stuff that nobody wants to hear but me. But
I'm gonna put a I shouldn't even mention it. I just put a link up
on the casual hate.com Well, you can skip all over all the
garbage
while I'm mentioning other websites, other projects. I have
a what's called the value for value music podcast. It's called
satin sounds.com. It's called sets and sounds. There is a
sense in sounds.com where you can get to all the posts I'm
going to be doing episode number 30. Next Monday, I tried to do I
try to stream it live every Monday 2pm Eastern And then it
gets posted. About half an hour hour after I'm done recording
and what it is. It's music from independent artists that aren't
on a label, a recording label, or at least the songs are
available off the recording label if they have one. And if
using a modern podcast app, not Apple podcasts and that YouTube
music, not Spotify. But podcast app like pod friend, pod verse,
fountain, true fans. And then you there's each each of those
apps have a wallet that you loaded with Bitcoin. And as you
listen, you are streaming payments directly to the
musicians to the artist. As you listen to the song, and then
whenever the song changes, the wallet changes. So let's say
you're sending, I don't know, 50 sets a minute to listen to
music, which isn't much, it's just pennies. And then the song
switches, while those 50 sets per minute now go to the next
artist. And what's cool is I talked about earlier on this on
this episode of this hike is that if you're using a modern
podcast app, there's something called chapter images. So when
the songs change, the album art changes. So you can see that in
your car if you're using CarPlay or Android Auto. It's really
pretty cool. So that same feature that works for this
podcast where you'll see images from the hike instead of images
from the IQ c album art from for the music
make that long promo short. Go to SAS and sales.com. Click on
an episode, download a modern podcast app, give it a listen
load up the wallet. Let me know what you think this is also
where you're listening to right now is a value for value
podcast. If you enjoyed anything that you heard, found a trail
that maybe you haven't visited that you'd like to go on. You
can send you can stream SATs while you listen to this. You
can send what's called a booster gram with a message that's just
an extra boost of more of more SATs with a note. You can do it
anonymously you can put your name in it doesn't matter. Also,
as I'm finishing up my promo while I remember because I
always forget to do these things. Um, if you go to the
casual hate.com There's a Donate link there should be a donate
link in your podcast that too but maybe not all of them show
it that takes you to a PayPal link where you can send a few
dollars if there's anything that you enjoyed here and nothing
bad. And back to the hike. Godfrey is on leash right now
because he saw something and he wanted to take off but he's
doing very well today with recall and came right back when
I call them but we're pretty far from that area so I'm gonna let
him back out let's go
so we've already walked three miles it really doesn't feel
like it. I was just looking at the map. It really doesn't feel
like three miles is one of the easier trails. I've been
know the temperature is like perfect there's like a little
bit of sun coming through the haze but because they're like
high clouds it's really you know it's like filth
sorry for all the sniffles later I'm gonna try to catch it all to
edit it out but it's not that I have a cold I've mentioned this
before on previous hikes that I have a deviated septum my nose
doesn't quite drain right so there are times when my nose
just runs uncontrollably nothing I can do about it
since we haven't crossed any streams either Godfrey is going
to need water at the end of the hike because he hasn't been able
to get a drink anywhere but it's a cool day I'm not that thirsty
I'm sure he's not that thirsty but I did I bring water for him
that's part of what makes my pack heavy I've got like four
liters of water in there too for him to for me
like some other I wonder if that's the drill we're going on
but there's like a trail down there I'm I'm so at least below
where I'm at I see some kind of side trail maybe
does not appear to be where we're going
God don't eat that let's go let's go
I wish I knew what these plants were that have thorns on them. I
have them just outside my backyard in the wooded area. But
all these plants are new to me still
and I don't know what it's called. But they just have these
long wispy branches that stick out and they got thorns and they
just catch you everywhere Godfrey here Good boy. Good job.
Good job. Good job. Let's go
Ouch. Almost twisted an ankle. They're almost there was a root
sticking out and I just hit it wrong
you can tell Spring is coming. You can hear the birds now. I
think the last time I recorded a hike. It was dead silent. There
was nothing. Everybody was out to hibernating for the winter.
Now that I'm paying for fifth then with this hike in hindsight
while it's not the most entertaining hike for me because
this really is an easy level to me that moderate even though the
current was rated moderate if I did that breathing heavy and
almost the entire time it doesn't feel mattered to me but
so it's good for Godfrey because the distance is long you know, a
little less than six miles 5.7 I think I think it said it won't
be super strenuous for him. So that way when I want to go on
the other hike, he's better prepared to spend a little while
that one I think has some better elevations. This one we did some
early on and then kind of up to the top and then you're just
kind of flatland or sort of going down now so it's not all
that not that strenuous. It's a nice walk in the woods I can see
in the summertime where this is good for horseback riding and
stuff because this will be covered with the canopy of trees
with all the leaves
wish I was better prepared for this photo. It's like I'm in the
middle of the pine forest. And the dog was just in the right
place at the right time
is there a reason you're crying? Oh, Godfrey let's go
Godfrey Wait let's even get a picture of stage photo. Godfrey
Godfrey. Stop Stop. Stop. Over this way. Come over over here.
This way this way. This way, Godfrey here. Okay, wait, sit
Okay, wait, stay right there don't move just stay stay put
Nope No Nope, nope. Nope nope. Sit stay wait
know he's impatient and I can't get the shot right you guys sit?
Nope. Sit sit good boy. Wait want you to wait
no, I staging photos with dogs is horrible. Godfrey comer. We
can't wait. Stay right there don't move Wait wait
wait wait, wait. Okay. Okay, sit wait don't scratch yourself.
You're gonna get mud everywhere. Wait nope nope. Godfrey sit I
come on here. Okay, sit wait. I promise I'll get it this time. I
promise stay there wait
I didn't work anyway. Had enough. Move on with my life
pretty big clearing here. Maybe we're getting back to the Forest
Service road looks like it looks like people camp here as well.
Let's go. temperature dropped, got out of the woods and the
temperature dropped me by five degrees. It
makes it refreshing if you ever get out hiking, if you're
watching or listening to this and yeah, I yammer on a lot
while doing this but there's a lot of the hike where it's just
the sound of my feet just sounded my feet sound some birds
the wind the dog you know you're really just taking that next
step you're not thinking about anything you're just taking that
next step
and that's what I find kind of cathartic therapeutic it's a
little tiny bit of a stream down there but not much of anything
road off to the right road closed not Black Gate
we're not going that way anyway. When it was up that way
the Forest Service road is going up it's the first incline we've
seen in a while
these are no more difficult than the inclines in my subdivision
like I'm coming back to where to where almost where we started
maybe not there's another sign there but that's not where our
trail goes
I think
there's a trail that goes off to the left but that's not ours.
Ours continues straight I don't know what that other one is.
It's not marked anywhere
to mark number six
oh, it's a cemetery where we go check that out. Let's go check
it out to see what we find.
Wonder how far the cemetery is off the trail
Okay, he's got a notification from the alltrails app telling
me I'm off the trail. The
Elias Farah bru died nearby while on a visit to the area was
buried in the cemetery with a very prominent stone over his
grave. Since that stone was the only stone in the cemetery with
a name on it. The cemetery was named Fairview Cemetery. We then
have research into local history I might have been able to
identify everyone who's buried here but I like leaving the
history here in the woods with the moss and the dragonflies and
the rain and the deer know it even if we don't. Charles Kuralt
I'm guessing there are rocks or like rock outcroppings I'm
guessing these are headstones and you actually have like a
crypt
inside look like people have tried to remove that
here's another one somebody buried died in 1902 mucholder
brown Brady
and then there's the grave
then there's another grave right next to it
James Dean Brady also died in 1902
and there are wooden markers here and other stone markers for
other grave sites
this guy pre crying because this is a graveyard and he consents
the dead or is his brain kind of dead along with everybody who's
buried here unmarked gravestones
that was not that far off the path
so that that at least was one interesting thing off and
otherwise you know kind of middle of the road trail Godfrey
he's not paying attention to neat little cemetery. If
cemeteries can be neat piece of history
people buried there for over 100 years back out to the Forest
Service road. The fear Abreu cemetery come visit open all
year
Godfrey found the stream but for once, he's not going in it I
take that back. He's
You it wouldn't be much of a hike if he didn't find a stream
to market
I'm sure that water is really good coming out of that drain
pipe let's go glute let's go
I don't know why he barks at streams, streams waterfalls back
in Chicago and we didn't go hiking anywhere there wasn't
anywhere to go but there was a giant dog park really big dog
park like three mile long maybe half a mile wide and it had a
pond so he would go swimming in that pond Yeah, throw a ball in
there he swim after it. Come back we never really barked at
the at the pond or the lake it's only after coming here we go
hiking. We've been to several waterfalls now. And almost every
hike has a stream or creek crossing or whatever. And he
tries to pull rocks out of it grabs big logs barks at it. I
don't know why. It's bizarre behavior that's what makes him a
glute. Okay we're still in the Forest Service road. Going back
uphill. We're not back to where we started just yet. But we're
getting close I think
most of the time, I don't like going uphill at the end of the
hike but in this case the additional workout is welcomed
and when I say up a little bit of a hill it is just a little
bit of a hill
it's not like some of the other inclines where you hear me
complaining and when I complain I just complain doesn't mean I
don't like it
I like the challenges especially getting older as I am as
everybody is everybody does he like to be able to do the things
that you did yesterday. Even if it's a little bit more difficult
than before you still like to be able to accomplish it
I don't know if that slows the aging process. Somehow I doubt
it. But it makes you feel like you did something and you got
that going for you. Okay, now I see a sign. And that sign I'm
sure is where we started the Forest Service road where we
started and that's just a short walk back to the Jeep
So we're coming back up to the sign
and we're heading back to the trailhead where the car is
right Godfrey let's go good boy good boy boy go
gonna give you water at the end of this hike you don't have to
drink this disgusting puddle of water not that far
what is this when you see a big knot on a tree that's like a
hornet's nest or something what is this
I wish I knew
looks like a nest of something something obviously interrupted
the growth of the tree to create that not I should have titled
this podcast guy from the city walks in the woods and knows
nothing
Godfrey here Good boy. Good boy
got free no get out of there always eating dumb things nope,
nope. Godfrey. No not there there's a stream that goes
underneath the road. So he can see it from up here and that's
where he wants to go but we're too close to the end and you're
pretty much dried off
starting to breathe heavy again because we're another gradual
incline that leads back to the car nothing big just something
to get the heart rate up a little bit
I can see the barrier from here at Black scars from coming down
the road which really means we're at the end
you can hear the road because the parking area is right off
the road. Not deep into the mountains like a lot of the
trails that go on here got free. Wait. Here Good boy. You got to
stick close by because of the road. Wait, wait. Good boy.
Wait. Wait. Godfrey Godfrey. Wait, he's not used to walking
slow. Wait. Nope.
Good boy. Good boy. So we made it back. It was a good walk. A
very easy hike. Let's see what the app says on the stats. Oh my
god free stay calm. Two hours. Eight minutes 6.02 Miles average
speed of three miles per hour 653 foot elevation gain
now it's time to close the podcast, water my dog and hit
back to civilization. Thanks for listening. Catch you next time