I became a tree hugger on Valentine’s Day. While most people who use that verbiage are not literal about it, I am. I hugged a tree for dear life Saturday.
Let me explain. I went for a hike with a friend that morning. We went to Rock Island State Park and hiked to Twin Falls – I would add “and back” but I think that’s implied given the fact I reported for work on Monday and I’m here writing this column.
It was my first real hike and it was awesome. The cold temperatures created some really nice icycles along the cliffs next to the river. We stopped several times and took pictures – I plan on making a scrapbook because I am hoping to go on many more hikes and I want to document each one.
We came across what I believe is called “Little Falls.” It required us to take a trail up the side of a cliff. There was a really cool cave. Someone was there before us. I could tell, as they ate a hard-boiled egg and left the shells on the ground. We didn’t stop there. We took this winding trail up to the top. Amazing!
About half way to the falls, it started to sleet. I don’t know why. It was rather warm out. I guess my coziness could be contributed to the thermals I was wearing, as it was below freezing when we started. The sleet didn’t last long, but it made the hike even better. It was fun to be out in it.
We got to the end and I found a really comfortable spot on some rocks that were protruding out into the river. It was tricky getting there and it did occur to me that I could fall in, but that didn’t stop me. I sat down and took pictures of the cascading river.
I became a tree hugger on the way back. We heard what sounded like falling water on the cliff. We decided to investigate, which required us to go off trail and scale the cliff. We grabbed trees and pulled ourselves up. We found the falling water. The water was landing on a downed tree and it was covered with ice. Awesome pictures.
Then, came the descent. Our thought process on going up (let’s do this) did not include how much harder it would be to get back down. After a brief discussion, we agreed it would require sliding on our butts to keep from falling. I did start to slide fast so I grabbed hold of a small tree and held on tight. I spun around, but it stopped me.
When I got to the bottom, I joked that these hikes are going to turn me into a tree hugger. Note to self: get some gloves to wear. The tree was not forgiving on my delicate hands – I’m a reporter and not a mountain climber. However, I could be both given enough time.
Standard reporter Lisa Hobbs can be reached at 473-2191.