Old Friend...New Friend

Last week I wrote about visiting an old friend....my hiking boots.  At the end of the weekend I was taking off my boots and noticed that the tread/sole was coming loose on the one shoe.  We made plans to fix it ourselves....until I realized that I was still within the year exchange policy that REI has for any purchase.  So we headed down toward the city...and an REI mid week.  I exchanged my boots for a new pair.   Of course I got my original ones at a reduced price....when I originally bought them they had just come out with the 2016 model and gave me the 2015 model at a nice discount.  SO I had to pay the difference for the new pair....since they were not discounted.  And well...they didn't even have the 2016 model...which would have been 50 bucks or so more......I had to get the 2017 model......$100 more.    Money I didn't have......and just added to my stress.  But I now have a new pair of boots that are not compromised!  In the long run it was a wise move.

So we went out hiking this weekend in my new shoes.  (They are the same brand and style as the old ones!) Time to break in a new pair!  Knowing that I had new shoes AND that my knee was messed up we tried to find an 'easy' hike.   (During last weekends hike I fell and bungled up my knee.....a week later and it is still black and blue and swollen...joy joy).    We didn't quite succeed with the 'easy' part.  Well...unless you call a path that goes UP on a narrow trail on the side of the mountain 'easy'.   It will be easier each week as we hike more and more....for sure!

The first hike we did was down a fire road (it was down....as we went down I made the comment that "we are going to hate life on the way back up"....I was right!)

We didn't climb down the falls...but it was pretty what we did see!  I loved the ice on the edges of the water!

Next we hiked part of the Dickey Ridge Trail.....and saw the Fort WindhamRocks 

 And we hiked down to the Indian Run Spring (my phone went crazy at the rocks and shut down....it wouldn't restart and I kept getting the picture to plug my phone in that it was totally dead.......I left it alone until I got to the car and looked at it and it started right up and I had 69%...so who knows...but I didn't get a picture of the spring!)

We drove down the Skyline drive for a ways....I thought it would be interesting to get a picture of the same tree as I did last week.....

I was actually closer to the tree last week...but had so much less visibility!!!!

 We did get some flurries while we hiked...and had some flurries (and it started to lay while we were driving).  Love the ice on the tunnel and along the whole edge of the roads on the rocks!

 So I feel a bit better after my weekend with Jason....more peaceful and settled about everything happening in my life with work and my finances.  Hopefully it holds!!!!

Meanwhile...I am more determined to lose weight.  I want cool clothes and neat hiking gear. (I'm so motivated by weird things!)  And I plan on starting working on my upper body strength.  Yeah, I need upper body strength because Jason LOVES to tickle my arches....and it usually sparks a wrestling match.  I put up a good fight...but I need more strength!!!!  (I hate to lose!)  

 Meanwhile...this picture highlights Ethel and her nighttime practices!!!!  Grrrrrr