Hiking Journal: Abram Falls

On the Saturday after Thanksgiving, we headed up the Cades Cove for a quick hike.  I only needed 5 miles to get my 100 mile pin (!), so we chose Abram Falls.  We had already been once, and last time I thought it was SO HARD.  This time ~15 lbs lighter with a year of consistent weight-lifting and two more LeConte trips under my belt, it was much, much easier!  I will go so far to say that it was EASY – a beginner hike for sure!  If you read the post from the last time, I was griping because I had read on the internet that some one said it was easy and I did not agree.  Ha!  Also, this time there was much less traffic on the trail.

Pictures from the hike:

After the hike, we drove through Cades Cove and back in to Gatlinburg, stopping at the Sugarlands visitor center on the way!  I got it!

  Our next stop was one of our favorites…….

….Best Italian!  We LOVE LOVE LOVE this place!  There is nothing in the WORLD like their garlic knots!

After eating, we did a little bit of shopping before heading back home.  Overall, an awesome hike!

Freaky Friday

On Friday, October 26, we participated in a Freaky Friday 8k run here in Tuscaloosa.  The race started at 9 pm at Wintzells, a restaurant across the river near downtown Tuscaloosa.  Of course we walked due to my back (no more running ever) and walked in a group with a couple of other people. We were actually assured that there would be lots of walkers, and there were some runners who walked intermittently, but I do believe that we were the only ones who walked the entire time. We wanted to participate because it was a costume run & we thought it sounded like a fun & active way to spend a Friday night.  Plus, we LOVE to dress up!!  Why is dressing up so fun?!?

Brent was the star of the evening.  It was out of control.  He ordered the wig & mustache on the internet, cut the sleeves off of a ratty Budweiser shirt and we found the rest of the costume at the thrift store.  It. was. awesome.  He actually became Joe Dirt for the entire night.

When we got to the race, he was such a hit.  All of these girls were taking pictures with him and he was working the crowd just like a politician.  In the picture below he is saying “Yeah, there’s not even enough room in these shorts for me to put my hands all the way in my pockets.”  Seriously.  The funniest part of the night (for me, anyway), was when he sprinted across the finish line, arms raised, mullet flowing behind him, cheering for himself, yelling “woooooo hooooooo!!!!!!!” AS IF everyone else had not already finished and was inside drinking + socializing. Seriously, there were four people at the finish line when we finished and Brent still finished like a champ – just like Joe Dirt would have.

(the bee & the butterfly on the course)

It was no surprise to anyone in attendance when Brent won first place in the costume contest. He won a Nick Saban autographed football, a $50 gift certificate to a Mexican restaurant in Northport, and a Sports Illustrated issue signed by Trent Richardson.  All of the Alabama memorabilia was hilarious. People in Tuscaloosa truly believe that everyone is a Tide fan.

What a fun night!!!

Winding Down

Feels like summer is winding down….we have been having some cool-ish weather lately! 95 degrees & only 60-ish% humidity in mid-August?  I’ll take it! I enjoy walking so much more when my heart is not pounding in my face and I don’t feel like I need to stop & throw up every 10 feet.

I *HATE* this hill!  The pictures do not do it justice, trust me.  About halfway up, I start praying “please help me not to throw up, please help me not to have a heart attack…”  There is no way but up if I want to go back to the house, though!

One hour later, I came back to this:

No one bothered to get up.

Now it is time for some of this before I go to bed:

 

Good night!

Morning Stroll

5 out of 5 days completed for the morning walks.  Yay!

Meet Lulu

Let me to introduce you to the newest member of our family….Lulu.  She is my birthday present this year.  She is yet another attempt to find a bicycle that I actually like to ride.  I am not getting rid of my road bike….Lulu is just another lower-maintenance option.  She is more comfortable & I can ride her around the neighborhood and I don’t have to worry about gears (she has gears but just a dial on one handlebar) and clip-in shoes & pedals, etc.

I have been talking about getting a cruiser for about two years…since I rented one in Orange Beach and LOVED it.  Here I am with that one:

I rode from our condo all the way to the Flora-Bama, which include going over a huge bridge/hill.  But it was so fun!  We rode bicycles so much during that vacation and had a blast.

So, tonight I took Lulu to the VA.  I have been riding her a little bit up & down Fairmont Drive (careful to avoid hills, of course), but this was our first real ride.

It was about 7 o’clock, but still pretty hot.

You can see Brent airing up the tires while I take pictures of myself. It is obviously who is the mature, responsible one.

Red light pictures!

The VA is a great place exercise…it is so peaceful & calm here.

This is me when I got to the top of a hill -- I fully expected to have to get off & push, but I made it!

And then I played on the playground while I waited for Brent to come & get me.

What a perfect summer Sunday evening!