January 2021 – WELCOME to Creeping along the Blue Blazes!

January 27, 2021January 27, 2021

Medina, section 4 – Norwalk, section 23 (1/24/21)

Well, we planned a long hike today (11 mi) so we could end in the town of Rochester, where parking seemed readily available, just not sure how our feet would hold up. Started off at the friendly farmer’s house from last weekend with his cute little girls to greet us from the porch all bundled up in blankets- what a joy! After some hellos we started out and quickly realized that it was colder than we expected, but luckily the wind was at our back, which we thought would save us…guess again. We were mostly in the middle of fields, so there was no protection from the wind, which although light, made it feel much colder (real feel 18⁰C- YIPPI !!!). By about the middle of the hike both Wendy and my fingertips were feeling frozen, so we each borrowed April’s mittens for short intervals to warm them up- another trail lesson I guess to double glove next time. First time this has happened, and we all agreed that this was probably the coldest day we had ever hiked- of course it was a long hike to boot to extend the suffering. So that was the theme of the day, trying to stay warm and out of the wind. The cold WAS helpful when we hiked through Findlay State park, however, as a lot of it was low lying and very wet, and would be be total mudder except that now it was frozen 🙂 ! It was also nice to be back in the woods, and the park was a beehive of activity with many people there to cut/collect fallen trees for free wood. Lots of interesting farms along the way, although one owner was suspicious of us taking pictures…if only he knew how harmless we are! At the end we were dragging, no lie, and as we came to a railroad crossing we were saying to ourselves that all we needed now was for a train to come and hold us up when we were so close to finishing… and of COURSE a train came just about as we reached the tracks! Luckily it was a short one and we were not delayed from getting to the car and sitting down. When we went back to the friendly farmer to collect our other car he came out again and wished us well- gonna miss them for sure.

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January 18, 2021January 18, 2021

Medina, sections 4-8 (1/16/21)

It is getting harder out here to find places to park along our planned hiking routes, so today we decided to ask permission from two home owners who seemed to have potentially available space to share. April, being the least shy, volunteered for the job. Turns out this was not a problem, one home owner actually knew of the BT, and both were very friendly! Wish these folks could appreciate how much this simple act of generosity gives us peace of mind knowing our cars will be there at the end of a long hike. Thank you! We started off our hike, as usual, with Wendy slowly gathering here gear, so April and I decided to begin the hike ahead of Robin and Wendy since we are slower anyway. Turns out we got 1.7 miles down the road before they caught up to us- surprising everyone! To be fair, April and I are always late arriving at the start, so we really hold back each other, just in different ways. Even though it was a grey day, we had snow flurries all day and the roads were again mostly back roads, so it was quite enjoyable. The BT did use a cool path through Spencer Lake Wildlife area that seemed to split the lake in half and was frozen on both sides. This seemed to be another good place to kayak in warmer weather as it had a nice put-in area. Interesting sights- one guy used rocks to keep his mail from falling out the back of his mailbox, saw a motorcycle hanging from a tree, and a bird’s nest by the lake was filled with seeds and nuts, not sure who filled it up? We also remarked as we passed a barn with two ponies how whatever they are doing, farm animals always stop and look us over as we pass by- often coming over if we call out to them. Nice to know we can brighten up their routine for a moment. At the end of our hike our spirits were lifted by two little girls coming out of the house where we parked and eagerly cheered us- such a heartwarming surprise.

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January 14, 2021January 14, 2021

Medina, sections 8 – 10 (1/10/21)

First, great to have Robin back! We had a lot to talk about today after a monumental week in politics- the Capitol insurrection and all the goings on afterwards! Really still in shock. Well, this is the nice thing about hiking- it distracts you from any current troubles; has a calming effect even if you are still talking about it. I guess it helps to compartmentalize it. Anyway, not much to report today except a beautiful sunny day! Mostly all back roads and flat ground. Lunch was the most eventful- between a persistent rooster crowing and the sound of gunshots down the street, probably some local target practice going on, our enjoyment of a free church bench to sit on was interrupted. Pretty rural out here, which is why it was surprising to see a train station- really seemed middle of nowhere, not even by a town center?

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January 4, 2021January 4, 2021

Medina, sections 16 – 10 (1/2/21)

A HAPPY NEW YEAR of hiking the BT! Actually amazed we have done it for two years now with some degree of regularity and accomplishment…HIGH FIVE! Since we were on holiday break this past week we managed to hike three days in between the rain without too much damage to our feet. As our travels take us farther from home, we have to be prepared to make camp somewhere and hike multiple days in a row…but that will wait for warmer weather. Today we hiked through downtown Medina, which actually was a nice little town that seemed to have an over abundance of bakeries which I could not take advantage of- in pre-COVID times we would definitely have stopped in one of them for lunch. BIG SHOUT OUT to SPOKES, the coffee house which is associated with Planet Joy, where our friend Debbie is art director- give it a try! We finished on a Rails & Trails path that was a nice break from the noise of walking on the road. A nice mix of off and on road hiking today, again, just nice to get out and be outside.

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January 1, 2021January 1, 2021

Akron, section 20+ (12/31/20)

THIS IS IT! Todays hike finished the Little Loop for April and I! Wendy has already done it, but came along to support our largely unobserved event, except for a few ducks and geese… We walked from Wilbeth Rd trailhead to Barberton trailhead to achieve this milestone- it gave us ALL something positive we could look back on with satisfaction during this COVID shrouded year. The fact that it was a cold, gloomy day along a stretch of the towpath that nobody would call scenic did not dampen our spirits. We spent most of our hike debating the skills/stupidity of contestants on our latest TV binge series- ALONE- which Wendy got us hooked on, and we all agreed our own survival skills would not even get us to the first night before we’d ‘tap out’. It was interesting to look at the houses along the canal to see how some people embraced their location and took advantage of their backyard waterway, while others completely ignored it. In the end, we ate our lunch as usual after this brief hike and decided our next milestone would be crossing 400 miles hiked, leaving about 1000 left to go…that should be achievable sometime this year… dare I say easily? HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

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January 1, 2021January 1, 2021

Medina, sections 18+ – 16 (12/29/20)

A little leery of doing this all road hike after all the snow, then rain, that just dumped on us, but we hoped todays adventure was mostly back roads, which it largely was…at least we had a WHITE Xmas this year! Robin is taking a sabbatical because she is busy with things, so it is back to the three of us for a while…will miss her spirited songs. Sunny day, which of course means it was cold, but I’ll take sun over warmth any day. Interesting wander through farmlands, and surprisingly along sections of Rocky River- which has eaten into the rock beds to expose beautiful geometric patterns along riversides and many step down rapids on the river bottom. Would be fun to walk in the hot summer months, so just unlucky timing on our part. Hike ended at Lake Media trailhead, which was next to a fantastic, over-the-top Xmas decoration display on a neighboring yard- ALWAYS lifts my spirits!

YEAR	Days Hiked	Miles Hiked	Total MILES!	% Done
23	7	53.9	532.7	36.8
22	4	23.9	478.8	33.2
21	11	140.3	454.9	31.5
20	33	237.5	314.6	21.8
19	18	77.1	77.1	5.3