Ultimate Hiking on the Lone Star Trail
Many years ago I hiked Mt. Kilimanjaro. The company I worked for sent out an email, which most people promptly deleted, to get a group of people to each raise $5000 and hike Kili. The donations we raised would benefit a community outreach organization that provided home care to those infected with HIV/AIDS. This had my name written all over it. The only downside for trips like this is that you are on the hook for any funds you don’t raise, and that probably scares some people. Well, I didn’t raise all the money, but I can say I summited the highest mountain in Africa.
So, when I read a tiny blurb imbedded in a work email about a hiking coach needed for 
Cure Search I was intrigued. Next thing I know I’m on the phone with the organizer offering my services. While I’m describing my qualifications to Michelle, the organizer, about the hikes I’m completed, the run club I coach and my love of endurance events (that may have been a slight fudge of the truth), I realized how thankful I was that I saw the opportunity and just said yes before I had time to doubt myself.
In that moment, I was the person I wanted to be. But could I coach the hikers to success? Would I be able to encourage them, and would I even be able to hike 25 miles in one day? I was unsure.
The Ultimate Hike for Cure Search in Texas goes like this: a one day hike of 22.7 miles on the Lone Star trail in the Sam Houston National Forest while participants raise $2500 for pediatric cancer research. The Austin area group consisted of seven hikers and their coach – me. We would meet other hikers from around Texas at the actual event.
Every couple of weeks we’d meet at a central Texas trail to hike for 3-6 hours. We had about ten weeks to train, starting in August – the hottest time to be outdoors. But we did it anyway, which is the best part of having a team. We explored Austin’s River Place Nature Trail, Lake Georgetown’s Goodwater Trail, Dripping Spring’s Reimer’s Ranch Park, and Pedernales Falls State Park.
Pedernales Falls training hike.
During training we encountered high humidity, never-ending heat, no shade, cactus, spider webs (let the tallest person go first), snakes – including a coral snake, tree branches that jump out of nowhere and smack you in the head, and all the beauty the hill country could offer. I just needed a reason to finally explore the local trails with new friends.
My new friends!
I was confident we’d all survive the Ultimate Hike, even though the most we hiked as a team was 14 miles. Our Austin hikes were hilly, rocky and un-shaded, but the shady Lone Star Trail had small undulations and soft piney needle terrain. It was a moderate October day that started out chilly, ideal conditions for our 11 hour hike.
We arrived at the trailhead at a very dark, cold and early 4:30am. While I have hiked in the early morning hours before, we started summiting Kili about midnight, it is wearing on the soul. You have to be extra aware of tree roots in those dark hours and a few people fell. You have to be extra aware of your map directions, as the signage is easy to miss. And miss it we did. After only a mile, we found ourselves unclear of which direction to go. We stumbled around a campsite for about 30 minutes until someone realized we missed our turn. After we were back on track, and especially after sunrise when it started to warm up a bit, we were able to appreciate the journey. We had two aid stations about eight miles apart where we re-fueled and rested our feet. By 3:30pm, all of the hikers had completed the trek. My GPS watched died somewhere after 20 miles. I guess after I logged 50,000 steps it was too tired to go on, but not us!
We showed up in Cleveland, TX on a Friday night, and shared our stories for why we were here. Some hikers had kids that survived cancer, and many had friends, nieces or brothers that had been affected. Others, just understood the importance of the mission and wanted to help prevent more families going through that hell. For me – my dear friend Erin (see New York) survived leukemia as a child, not only is she a doctor today, she is my hero. These amazing hikers raised about $35,000. Something amazing happened that day. The hikers experienced a physical success, but the lasting impact of their donations will be felt by families they may never know.
Why we do this.
Tips:
- Just say yes. Get involved, volunteer or donate to any cause that moves you.
- Cycling jerseys are great for hiking and those extra pockets are perfect for snacks!
- Training is the time to test out your equipment and clothing. Buy the fancy socks and boots – your feet with thank you or at least not hate you.
- Explore! Enjoy the beauty and quiet of the outdoors as often as you can.
Wineries, waterfalls and a wedding in New York
After being in only a bathing suit for a week, it was weird putting on pants. But when a dear friend calls and says “I’ll know you’ll be on vacation, but I’d like you to come to my wedding.”, you change your flight. It was that simple for me to be able to surprise Carin on her special day.
Ok, did you read my Virgin Islands post? Because the beaches were spectacular, but I couldn’t miss this special day. Plus I’d never been to upstate New York, and always wanted to see Niagara Falls. We arrived at midnight in Rochester, and were a little worried when we got to our hotel. The Inn on Broadway looked terribly haunted, but luckily I was too excited to sleep much. The next morning we had a few hours to kill, so we took a walk. We walked toward some music and stumbled onto the CariFest parade – a Caribbean heritage festival with superb music, dancing and costumes.
As we walked on, we stopped to talk to some race organizers. I was quite curious, being a cyclist myself, and found out there’d be a cycling event later that day. This became more important to us later, as we rushed to the wedding and all the streets were closed! Like I said, being a cyclist I should have known better.
But why were we rushing to the wedding at the last minute? Well, my husband noticed the Strong National Museum of Play on our walk. After convincing me it was for all ages, we spent the next couple of hours in childlike wonder. This place was amazing! Nostalgic games and toys filled the rooms (my husband pointing at a display case, “I had that G.I. Joe, and that one and oh! That one!”). Space Computer, the first arcade video game was on display near a giant Space Invaders, and there was a whole room of pinball machines. After we ran out of quarters and walked through Sesame Street, we found many new interactive games.
Space Computer
How are we inside this box?
We headed back to the hotel in a downpour (we were still walking and it was getting late). We then had to navigate a city where all the streets are closed, desperate to be on time. Carin still didn’t know I was here and I wanted to surprise her before the wedding.
We made it just in time for me to pop in on the bride, and the look of confusion on Carin’s face was perfect. I’m pretty sure she was happy to see me, and it wasn’t just that she was about to walk down the aisle. After the ceremony, we celebrated and danced and laughed as the maitre d’ changed suits as least 8 times – we lost count. It was a night that perfectly ended with fireworks and the bride’s brother peeling out of the parking lot with the new couple in the backseat.
Erin and I. Life is better with friends and sparklers.
After the wedding, we got to spend the next couple days with our friends Erin and Ben. I met Erin and Carin 15 years ago in Spain. And although we live in different states, we’ve spent those 15 years vacationing around the world together. I can’t say enough for my study abroad program (future post coming from my own foreign exchange student), and the lasting friendships it gave me, even though I’m still not fluent in Spanish.
We left Rochester and headed for Niagara-on-the-Lake – we had a wine trolley tour to catch. Fields and fields of vineyards greeted us after crossing the border. When I’d envision Canada, it included Jon Snow at the wall and furry down coats, but it was lovely and even warm. Niagara-on-the-Lake is a charming little town about 30 minutes from Niagara Falls. Vineyards, bike paths and Lake Ontario surround the town, with views of Toronto and New York. The fact that the city was almost completely burned to the ground in the War of 1812 was mentioned to us at least five times.
A firework spectacle, live band and what seemed like a million people surprised us when we drove over to the Falls that night. If you are looking for family fun, check out Clifton Hill and its tourist attraction mecca. Parking will run you at least $20 CAD anywhere near the falls.
Did you know that Niagara Falls is actually three distinct waterfalls? I did not, nor was I prepared for the extreme force with which the gallons of water flow. Now that was the true spectacle. We came back during the daytime, but weren’t able to ride the Hornblower (Maiden of the Mist on the US side) because there were approximately 500 people in line even on a Monday. We were catching our flight out of Buffalo later that afternoon, so we crossed the border to check out the US side. The Niagara Falls State Park, the oldest in the US, was packed with people, but it also had lots of hiking trails, so it was possible to get away from the masses. Although the view of the falls is better from the Canadian side, it was a little more peaceful in the State Park. A PSA – Please be mindful of the signs and don’t get into the river! We saw a few people doing it and of course so were their children. Please set a good example for your kids and don’t turn your vacation into a search and rescue operation.
Although we were sad to be leaving Erin and Ben so soon, we were eager to sleep in our own bed again. After going through the little airport in Buffalo, we realized we hadn’t had Buffalo wings yet! One tiny detour, and then, for real, we were headed home.
Tips:
- Catch the fireworks over Niagara on Sunday, Wednesday or Friday nights.
- Do NOT try to go over the falls in a wine barrel.
- Visit a winery or five.
- Check out the Cave of the Winds and let me know, the line was too long for us! They give you sandals with your ticket entry. Quite the marketing technique!
- Take your passport and view the falls from the USA and Canada. Its an easy border crossing by car or foot.
- Don’t worry about changing money, we had no issues paying in USD.
Sea turtles, stingrays, and painkillers in the Virgin Islands
I was a tad concerned about traveling to St. John. The logisics of renting two cars, taking ferries and getting my family from one island to another could have been painful. But it was surprisingly easy, and I think the Cruzan rum samples at the St. Thomas airport helped. Driving on the left-hand side in American-style car is always a little tricky, so it took a day before we were consistently driving on the correct side of the road.
Due to the car ferry schedule, we headed straight to St. John, and didn’t spend any time on the larger island of St. Thomas. Although St. John is only seven miles long with no stoplights, there was plenty to keep us busy for a week. The few roads are steep and windy, but the speed limit is only about 35mph on most of the island. The rental car companies really like to stress renting a Jeep, we did just fine with a standard car at half the price. Someone even has an excellent sense of humor, because we really enjoyed the funny sayings on many of the road signs.
The Cruz Bay town has most of the island’s shops and restaurants. Our first stop on the island was at Joe’s Rum Hut right on the water, which is an excellent bang for your buck. There are many casual restaurants with happy hour specials to check out, but as with most islands most of the food was just okay. Our Westin hotel room had a kitchen and grill, so we ended up buying groceries and cooking our own meals a few nights. But do not miss their popular and delicious island drink: Pain killers.
St. John’s numerous beaches all offer excellent snorkeling. I’d be hard pressed to pick a favorite, because we went to five and they were all slightly different, but they all offered the same clear blue water. Maho was shallow and teaming with sea turtles just off the beach. Cinnamon Bay had less snorkeling but a longer beach with facilities, and we easily ducked under some trees during a passing rain cloud. A lot of cruise ship passengers end up at Trunk Bay, which is also the only beach that charges a fee, so it can be a bit crowded.
Not only are the beaches a bit of paradise, but 60% of the island makes up the Virgin Islands National Park. We forgot our National Park Pass at home, but all of the trails were free. There are only a couple of roads on the island, so it’s easy to find the well marked trailheads. We ventured to Ram’s head, a 2.5 mile trail located at the southeast tip and lined with giant pipe organ cactus and turk’s head cactus with its hot pink fruit. After a hot hike, we jumped into Salt Pond Bay to check out its turtles and reef fish. On the way back to Cruz Bay, we had lunch at Shipwreck Landing, which had the best grouper sandwich on the island.
Don’t miss the trek to Waterlemon Cay. We took the 30 minute shaded hike to snorkel among stingrays, colorful fish and lots of sea urchins. It definitely had one of the better reef areas for snorkeling, but only offered a tiny rocky beach. Oh, and its WaterLEMON. I mistakenly called it “Watermelon” the whole time we were there.
Ignoring the rain clouds and starting the hike to Waterlemon Cay.
On one of my favorite days, we took a day cruise on the Bad Kitty to check out some of the BVIs. After getting our passports stamped and paying our exit fee, we headed to Virgin Gorda. We were whisked through the batholiths, and didn’t have much time to explore or hang out on the amazing beach. I definitely wished we had more time there, and if I ever make it back I will plan a day trip just to Virgin Gorda. We had an unexciting stop on Cooper Island for lunch before heading to the Indians for snorkeling. You can only get here by boat, and it was easily the best snorkeling we did. And we had already had days of amazing reef exploration. We only had about 30 minutes, but my family was the very last ones back on the boat. We were dragging our fins, if you will! Our last stop, was Jost Van Dyke – an island of 250 residents and 29 bars. I’m almost positive Kenny Chesney has written whole albums while sipping pain killers at their tiny Soggy Dollar Bar.
Jost Van Dyke Island – Home to the famous Soggy Dollar Bar.
The six of us had an amazing time, venturing off to different beaches and meeting up again for dinner. Usually after a week on a small island I’ve seen enough, but I can see why my friends return year after year. Our week ended way too quickly, and I don’t think I’d ever tire of that water. But we were off to upstate New York for a wedding.
To be continued in New York…
Tips:
- Someone check out Reef Bay Trail and tell me about it, since we didn’t have time to see the petroglyphs! And if the return hike is too much, schedule a boat with the park service to meet you at the end.
- You can rent stand up paddle boards (SUP) at a few beaches for an above water adventure.
- There are many cays with lobster hunting potential. There is a 2 per day, per person limit.
- Utilize the grocery stores, everyone is super helpful.
- Try to spot a mongoose.
- Did I mention happy hours?
- Check out their local brews, and rum here is cheap (its the mixers that are pricey).
- Why did the chicken cross the road? No, seriously. I stopped to ask one, but she was such a diva. There are chickens all over the island, including these two that wandered around the restaurant we were in.
The Sun Never Sets in Wyoming
Ok, it does but not until after 9pm in June, and it’s up again at 5am. The days are long, but oh were they fun-filled. I’d always wanted to go to the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone National Parks and after hearing about a friend’s trip. I knew I had to go, it just took a few years getting there. When I heard about Vacation Races half marathons by both parks, I immediately signed up. No big deal running two half marathons a week apart, especially if it got me out to the wild west, right? Not to mention this is the centennial year of the national park service – I was being called.
Runners on the race route.
Well, 12 hours after landing in Jackson, WY, I ran my fourth half marathon on the most beautiful race course ever. With the Tetons in view, and a friend at my side I was praising God for his creation! And the week kept getting better. The next day, my motorcycle-riding husband took me on my longest motorcycle ride ever. Previously I’d ridden maybe five miles in the neighborhood, so he was pretty proud of me at mile 175. We rented a sport touring BMW to drive by the Targhee National Forest in Idaho and back through the Teton pass. As we arrived back into GTNP we even spotted a black bear near a stream!
We spent our days, hiking to geysers and waterfalls, kayaking on Colter Bay and mountain biking in Montana. We met a few people around Jackson that may have been tired of tourists, but everyone we encountered after leaving Jackson was wonderful. And I have a new appreciation for the National Park Rangers because the second time we saw a bear, it was a Grizzly! And the second time, like the first, there was a ranger there making sure everyone stayed a safe distance, while reprimanding three people who decided to tromp through the woods to get a better view. I couldn’t believe the stupidity, but shouldn’t be so surprised after the article a few weeks ago about the guy who put a bison calf in his car because he thought it was cold! My husband and I could hike for hours without ever saying a word – which is the worst thing to do in bear country – so I was always looking over my shoulder.
The guy who invented bear spray was a genius, I must say! That stuff sells for $50 a pop, and probably 99% of the tourists who buy it never use it – but I get it, its like insurance.
The National Parks are built around accessibility. They even have a program called Every Kid in a Park which allows all 4th graders and their families free entry. However, it took very little effort – just stepping off the main trail to find lovely solitude. Old Faithful hosts thousands of visitors for its 90 second display. Being from Texas, we walked a flat five mile round trip to the Lone Star Geyer and watched its splendor for 20 minutes with only a dozen other people.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the bison. They cross the roads at their leisure, causing traffic jams on the one lane park roads. The parks are teeming with wildlife. Big horn sheep live at the top of the still snowy and incredibly windy Mt. Washburn, the big antlered moose – that is plural and not to be confused with meese, which is not a thing – and the elk, including the one that ran in front of us while we were on the motorcycle. We also saw lot of chipmunks, marmots, geese, and a mouse that ran across the floor of our cabin.
Be prepared to spend lots of money. Ok, hiking is free and camping is cheaper than cabins and motels. But I camped when I ran the Yosemite half marathon and knew I needed a real bed this time. We also decided to try all the local beers along the way, and didn’t find any happy hours!
We spent the last day in Montana. I completed the Yellowstone half marathon (while we probably walked that every day) and we wrapped it up with a five mile hike to Storm Castle. I called it quits after that, so we headed to Bozeman for our last night. They say you only regret the things you didn’t do – we will have no such regrets. After 3 states, 2 half marathons, 2 bears, many mountains, and 1 motorcycle ride it was time to head home.
Tips:
- Take t
he Aerial Tram in Teton village or hike to the top of Rendezvous Mt. There was still snow, and it’s windy (like Mt. Washburn) but we watched about ten paragliders take off from the top in spectacular form. - Step off the very well beaten sidewalk path if you are physically able – it’s worth it.
- Breath. The air and smell of pine is lovely.
- Get on the water. The area has many lakes. You can take a scenic cruise, kayak, canoe or fishing trip to get a new perspective.
- Eat bison burgers!
- Visit the Grand Prismatic Spring – pictures don’t do it justice.
- See the stars – no, seriously. Someone please do it and report back, I was always too tired!
