Head to the Hills

I know a missed a day of posting this week. I am very sorry. Did you miss me?  I have a good excuse. To shush the whining of Philo Action Figure (PAF) we had to go on an adventure. A real adventure. The kind that includes tents and backpacks and such. He's been not-so-patiently waiting for some time now.

After seeing a whole day of post oak in Oklahoma, I was ready for some vivid fall colors in the mountains. Philoboy and I loaded up the car, set PAF on the dash and headed southeast.

By the time we arrived at the Talimena State Park, it was laaaate. And dark. Setting up camp in the middle of the night can be a challenge, but it's happened to us so often now that we have it down to a science.

When we awoke the next morning, it was to see... oak trees overhead. And all around.  I drove down here to get away from oak trees. I've been robbed!!!

OAK-a, at least that's not the only trees around here. Time to set off and see what there is to see. Hey!  That's my water bottle!

Tough.  Get walkin', woman.

"You, know, one of these days something bad's gonna happen to you, Philo Action Figure, and you're gonna need me...."


We needed some trail maps so we stopped at a Visitor Center, and decided to walk the interpretive trail around the Center, look at the tree markers and learn to identify some of the leaves.

PAF thought he knew them all already. To me, a lot of them looked just alike. I finally settled on categories of skinny leaves, serrated leaves, maple, oak, and everything else. About a quarter of a mile later, I noticed it was very quiet. No muttering from my backpack. Uh-oh. I ran back to the last place I remembered seeing my little hiking buddy, and found him marching along, saying words that were causing the grass to wither.

Sorry, PAF. 

Unh, huh, I'll remember this, woman.

From the Visitor's Center we moved on to Earthquake Ridge on the Arkansas side and the network of trails there. I couldn't stop singing "Walking in the Woods One Day," because I kept seeing vistas like this.

Heh  heh, this trail has a transportation infrastructure.

PAF!  Get off there!  Leave the wildlife alone!!  Dang it, boy.

The section of trail we did this day was very well marked, used but not overused, and devoid of any water sources. That seems to be our lot when we hike any Arkansas trail, no water. But otherwise, it was a perfect hiking day, weatherwise, companion wise, trailwise.

Hey woman, I'm tired. Let me know when dinner's ready.

You know PAF, it's a good thing I like you.

I have warm soup, a magazine, and a view from my hammock that looks like this. Not even a bossy action figure can bother me now.

          Happy Trails, and may you never lose your hiking buddies!