It’s been raining on and off throughout the week, which so far combined with my injuries has prevented me from commuting by bicycle. I thought about going for a bike ride last night, since my ride on Sunday went well, but instead opted to go for a hike with Sarah. I think I made the right choice — we had a great time, and hiking puts less strain on my finger.

We did the Rock Shelter Trail at Morgan-Monroe State Forest, which we’ve hiked a few times before. Sometimes I feel reluctant to go back and hike the same trails again, but I tend to forget that each time is different — especially since the last time we hiked there was during the winter. The time before that was a sunny spring day. Yesterday was somewhat overcast, warm, and extremely humid.

Starting to hike

Sarah

The trail was a bit muddier than we expected; usually during the summer trails dry out pretty quickly around here. For the most part the trail was pretty solid, though. As we made the long descent into the valley, the humidity increased. By the time we reached the bottom, my glasses were foggy and they mostly stayed that way. It felt almost like hiking through a rainforest or jungle — or at least how I imagine that’d feel. The air was heavy and hazy with humidity, foliage still dripping, and the sky barely visible, most of the sunlight blocked by the thick canopy. It was a highly atmospheric experience.

Once we reached the bottom, we were at a creek. Rob was thirsty and took a couple of good drinks of water — and then, being the dork that he is, laid down in the water. It wasn’t very deep, but he sure seemed to enjoy it.

Rob, cooling off

The trail followed the creek for a while, and the creek was mostly dry. I was a bit surprised that given the rain we’ve had and how wet the ground was, the creek didn’t have more water in it. In some places the trail had suffered some erosion.

Looking off to one side of the creek

Erosion, Rob, and … a UFO?

Rob enjoying a small pool in the creek, again

Before long we reached the rock shelter for which the trail is named. It can provide some respite from the heat on hot, sunny days, but it really wasn’t any cooler yesterday than the surrounding area. I had to be extra careful climbing up since my right hand is not too useful right now.

Rock Shelter

Looking down from the rock shelter

We started climbing out of the valley. I tried to take some photos of the switchbacks on the way up, but it was too dark. My camera wasn’t working too well. After a while, we came to a pond.

Pond

We kept going and reached the point where the Low Gap trail shoots off. The two trails are together for a while, but if you take the Low Gap trail instead of staying on this one, you end up going 10 miles instead of 3 or 4. Someday, we’ll do that, but 3-4 miles was perfect for a post-work hike.

We followed a logging road for some time. We didn’t see any logging going on here this time (last time, we did). We could see where some logging had taken place, but we were glad that at least the machinery was gone.

Walking up the logging road

Soon we were back at the car. We really enjoyed this hike, and we are very lucky that we can do things like this after work. We took the scenic route there, and the “scenic scenic route” home — meaning, a very meandering, beautiful drive that took about three times as long as the most direct route. And we relished every moment. We saw deer, some pigs, and rabbits — not to mention a couple of pony-drawn carriages. Those were odd, but interesting. As we arrived back at home, it was starting to rain. Good timing.

We’re talking about possibly trying a short backpacking trip soon. Neither of us has ever done that, and it sounds like a lot of fun. We’ll see!

Things are looking up, I think. I have fresh, pink skin mostly covering where my scrapes were, and a good portion of the scabs have come off. There are still some scabs where the scrapes were deeper, and both my knee and my elbow are still pretty tender, but I feel like I’m making good progress. I’m a little less sure about my finger. There’s still some swelling and pain, but at the same time my range of movement continues to improve. I did a brief (4 mile) test ride on Saturday and everything felt pretty good. I was on my road bike, which has shifters built into the brakes, and I have to shift with my index and ring fingers, because my middle finger isn’t up to the task yet. I don’t quite have the same grip I did before but I can still hold on to the hoods and brake fairly well.

After my test ride, Sarah and I went for a hike. More on that in a minute.

On Sunday, I rode the Water Works route, and it went really well. I wasn’t sure if my finger could handle 20+ miles of riding, but it really didn’t bother me too much. It’s funny, I still can’t open a bottle of soda, but now I can ride 20 miles without too much trouble. Then again, if given the choice, I’d rather ride. I did feel some pain when I went over big bumps, but otherwise I was fine. Riding in the hoods or drops works better for me than sitting more upright and using the flat, middle part of the bars.

Anyway, it felt great to ride. I put forth a medium amount of effort, enough to feel I was getting a good workout, but I didn’t go all out. Even though I rode early in the afternoon, I saw two deer and had to slow down to let a wild turkey cross the road in front of me. I’m not sure who was more startled: the turkey crossing the road, or turkey on the bicycle. I was surprised to see so much wildlife, normally I would only expect to see those animals in the early morning or late evening.

Back to Saturday’s hike, Sarah and I took Rob (the dog) to hike the Pate Hollow trail near Lake Monroe.  We’ve hiked there before, but that was back in January. Everything looks so much different now, very green and lush. I forgot how cool this trail is — it has a lot of switchbacks, some fairly long climbs and a few creek crossings. We did a shortened version of the trail again this time; sometime we’ll have to go back and do the full 7+ miles. I’ve heard the other half of the trail is even better. It felt great to be outdoors together and get some exercise without aggravating my finger. Here are some photos from our hike.

Creek

The trail. If you look closely you can see the dog in the distance

One of many switchbacks

Rob

Shadows

Climbing

Wild raspberries

Sarah

I am pretty bummed that I can’t ride right now. It has been beautiful outside, and relatively cool for this time of year. I just know that my luck is such that by the time my finger heals, it’s going to be really hot outside. I also broke my camera in the wreck — the battery door is broken. It is still holding up for now, but I know it’s only a matter of time before it breaks off completely. My accidental-damage-coverage warranty ran out back in April, so I better start shopping for a new camera soon. Maybe I can make a rubber band or piece of tape work for a while.

I did try a test ride on Sunday of about 4 miles and while I was able to ride, I felt a lot of pain in my finger every time I hit a bump. I should probably wait at least a few more days before I try riding again.

The good news is, my finger feels a little bit better every day. If it continues to heal at this rate I’ll be back in the saddle before long.

I figure it’s time to post some good things about our trip to the mountains — and while we had very little opportunity for recreation and my enjoyment of it was tempered by my injuries, we still took in some incredible scenery. First up is Jump Off Rock, in Laurel Park (near Hendersonville), North Carolina. It was a slow, steep, twisty drive to the top of the mountain.

View from Jump Off Rock

Sarah at Jump Off Rock

Mountain layers

Neighboring mountain

There were a couple of hiking trails, but I was in too much pain to hike. As you can see, though, there were some truly incredible views. Later that night we saw some other mountains on the other side of town.

House in the mountains

Sunset

On our way to Roanoke, VA from Hendersonville, we got caught in a couple of intense storms. We stopped at an overlook alongside the incredibly scenic Interstate 81. It was still raining and there was thick fog nestled in the mountains. My photos don’t do justice to the sheer size of some of these mountains or the atmospheric beauty we witnessed.

Fog rises from the mountains during a thunderstorm

One of many climbs on the interstate

Panoramic shot of the mountains and the interstate

In Roanoke, we made a trip up to the top of Mill Mountain, where the Roanoke Star sits. It’s a 100-foot lighted star on the mountain overlooking the city. This spot also offers panoramic views of the Roanoke Valley. Once again there had been strong storms and the whole region was enveloped in a thick fog.

Roanoke Valley

Roanoke Star

Roanoke Valley panorama

I also took a few infrared shots. It’s interesting how well the IR shots cut through the haze

Part of Roanoke Valley, in infrared

Infrared mountains

Steps on the short hiking trail

Trail leading back to the parking lot

We also took in part of the Blue Ridge Parkway near Roanoke. It was absolutely stunning.

Houses and power lines

Hazy mountains as darkness falls

Blue ridge panorama 1

Sky

The Blue Ridge Parkway — maybe someday I’ll get to ride part of this

Mountains

Blue Ridge Panorama 2

Sun setting over the mountains

As you can see, our trip was not exactly a bust in terms of scenery. And while we experienced the mountains from a more passive perspective than I prefer (driving, rather than hiking or biking), I feel lucky we got to go at all.

It’s true what they say. Virginia is for lovers. I sure was glad to be there with mine.

Here are some photos and x-rays of my injuries from my accident in North Carolina. You need to click on the link below to see them, in case anyone is squeamish.

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