My Eight Mile - 8/1/2015

 Yesterday I got out for an eight mile hike. It's a route I know well in the neighborhood. I have mapped out several routes of varying lengths that begin and end at my front door. I'm fortunate to live in an interesting area with a beach close by and a park only a mile and a half away, so the walks are not just a bland sidewalk stomp through suburbia. I've been thinking about the passage of time lately; how quickly time moves through me or am I moving through time? How my walks and runs and hikes are small journeys that slip away before I can focus them to a point in my life. I wanted to do something to document what an average walk like this is like because one day, I may not live here anymore or I may not be able walk eight miles. I do know I am getting older and the old body will waste away sooner then I expect and the eight mile walk will be something I'll miss. So, "Hello there elder Hal Weaver in the future! Remember when you would tie on the old hike boots, plug-in the ear buds and stride on strong and springy legs down the lane? If not, then here's a little reminder of this time in the summer of 2015. Enjoy old boy!"

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The link to the route. You can match the photos to the mile markers.

Mile One - The Happy Mailbox - Those colorful reflectors always catch my eye.

Mile Two - Bayville Park - I love the tall pine trees in this park.

Mile Three - Pleasure House Point - Great nature area that I did not hike through on this route. Note- mind the low hanging fingers.

Mile Four - The Lesner Bridge - Here's the construction gantry lurking through the trees. The new bridge will be ready June 2017.

Mile Five - Live Oak Trees - Also in the Pleasure House Point  Nature Area.

Mile Six - I Got Fat Hands! - I must have had a lot of salt in my system as my hands ballooned up.

Mile Seven - Random Crepe Myrtle - My neighborhood is full of these beautiful trees and the bloom is on!

Mile Eight - The End of the Line - This is not my house, just a little cottage behind our house.

Dreamtime - The Japan Trip - 7-25-2015

It has been a lifelong dream of mine to visit Japan and hike Mt. Fuji. With my fiftieth birthday falling this year, it seemed appropriate to finally get this dream trip done. Besides, who knows how much longer I'll be in good enough shape to hike a mountain. I diligently saved (and hacked) as many frequent flyer miles as I could and managed to score a business class pod; Washington DC direct to Tokyo. The trip last two weeks and I did indeed hike to the Top of Mt. Fuji, spent time in Lake Kawaguchiko, Numazu and Tokyo. In the following weeks, I'll be posting about different parts of the trip, but for now, I want to share some photos from the trip. Here's the link.
Photos from the Japan trip on Flickr.

Enjoy!

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Monster Hail! - 7/19/2015

Yesterday evening, we had a surprise storm whip up. There had only been a 20% chance of rain, but that quickly went to 100% when a late afternoon thunderstorm ripped through our neighborhood with little notice. It started with some light rain, but quickly intensified with high winds and a torrential downpour. Then the hail started. We heard it before we saw it. There was a drumming on the roof that made us look outside and we were shocked to see quarter-size bits of ice coming down. A few pieces were more then two inches in diameter! That's the biggest hail I've ever seen. Here is a little unedited clip of the stuff coming down.

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A Meager Harvest - 7/14/15

Back in May I planted some radishes. Here's the post when they first started to pop up. Fast forward to now and a few of them have survived, so I have started to pull'em for salads. This was the first one. Although it is misshapen, it taste delicious and I may put in more and see if I can get a second round in before the days get too short.

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