Louisiana Hiking Club

Si Louisiana Trail Blazer 2011 Third Quarter

page 1 - 2 President’s Message

page 3 - 4 Mountains to Sea

Trail

page 5 “Wanted”

page 6 Book Review

page 7 - 8 Culinary Corner

page 9 - 11 Gear Guide

Page 12 Bogue Chitto Day Hike

The President’s Message When my granddaughter was two and three years old, I took her to a program called Trail Time for Toddlers at Bluebonnet Swamp. I like to believe she became a “nature child” as a result of these early lessons. To supplement her learning, her parents took her on her first real hike to Cat Island where she was able to see firsthand the majesty of the champion bald cypress tree. Over the years, her hiking resume has grown, and she has developed a deep appreciation for the outdoors. Recently, I was able to witness her passing along the same lessons she learned to her two year old brother. She stopped and pointed out to him moss growing on the ground. She let him feel the texture of it and he smiled at this discovery. In his eyes I saw a spark light and knew he too was hooked. We are very fortunate to have in Louisiana many natural resources for our children and grandchildren to discover. There are many opportunities for outdoor education if we just look for them. Brass Pro Shop offered a free Family Summer Camp this summer from June 4th – July 10th. Workshops included Animal Identification, Bird Watching, Camping Basics, Hiking Basics, Outdoor Pets, and Plants and Insects. Each child received a workbook and pin (think merit badge) for their efforts. And, as I mentioned before, Trail Time for Toddlers is a great program that will be starting back up in the Fall. At Christmas time, there is a children’s campout held at Mary Ann Brown Nature Preserve where children can hike on trails, roast marshmallows on a fire, and explore a pond. Like the Bass Pro Camp, there is no charge for this event. For adults who want to introduce a child to the outdoors, there are resources available as well. The hiking club had a seminar at CampFest two years ago on “How to Raise a Wild Child: Getting children to love the outdoors!” I passed along ideas from the class to help in the planning of my granddaughter’s birthday this past September. My daughter made copies of a scavenger hunt from the book Sharing Nature with Children, by Joseph Cornell, for one of the activities. The parents loved the idea of children exploring their environment.

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In his book, Last Child in the Woods, Richard Louv lobbies for

saving our children from nature deficit disorder. I believe it is

the least we can do for our future generations. Don’t you?

See you (and hopefully a little one) on the Trail,

Katherine Gividen, President

Laura Gordon, the Denim Springs Bass Pro

Event Coordinator, teaches children about

scat and reading animal tracks →

←Some of the courses offered (with

their corresponding pins) from the

summer camp

The hiking pin→

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Ups and Downs on the Mountains to Sea Trail

by Nancy Hall

Immediately following the April Roan Mountain trail maintenance trip, four of us, Ann Ingram, Linda Bourgault, Marilyn Garrick and myself, set out on a five day hike on the Mountains to Sea Trail which covers 915 miles of North Carolina from Clingman’s Dome in the Smokies to the Outer Banks past Nags Head. We were attempting to complete a 50 miles stretch, two sections of the trail, near our location at Roan Mountain. I put the trip together, but in defense of myself, this was my first experience on this trail and it turned out that my plan was flawed.

We had placed all vehicles but mine in Blowing Rock, with permission, across the street from the police station. We happily set off from Ripshin Ridge for a 9 mile day with 2 river fords, making great time until we hit our first ford of the day. I had hiked trails with multiple fords before, such as the Eagle Rock Loop in Arkansas. They had not been a problem so I had not allowed for the difficulty of these fords. The first ford had a series of large rocks that might provide a dry rock hop across, but I could quickly see that the spaces between the rocks were too much for me. So I scouted downstream and Marilyn and I waded in mid-thigh water. Linda set out over the rocks and did well until the last break between rocks where she found herself straddling two rocks, unable to go either direction and losing strength quickly. Finally she got the adrenalin pumping and threw herself onto the last rock. Ann was right behind her but when she tried to leap to the last rock, her foot slipped and she found herself chest deep in the river. She was unhurt and dried quickly, but that began Ann’s streak of bad luck.

Nancy, Linda, & Marilyn in The Footslagger store, Blowing Rock, NC

Marilyn fording the creek

She made it

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Of course, we had checked the weather repeatedly before setting out. But rule number one for the mountains is weather is unpredictable. We had finished our second difficult ford and were completing our last assigned miles for the day when the sky began to turn dark. We found our campsite just as the sky opened, disgorging quantities of rain and hail. We grabbed rain jackets and pack covers and hunkered under the rhododendrons with hail bouncing off our heads. Ouch! Ouch!

The river was rising and it seemed unlikely we could make 11 miles and 12 river crossings the next day, so we decided to turn back, relocate the car at the beginning of our second section, and try to complete it. With permission, we left the car on the Blue Ridge Parkway and hiked from Beacon Heights toward Blowing Rock. What a spectacular day of hiking! Vistas everywhere! The trail was rocky with bridges taking you around sheer rock cliffs. How did they build those things? The trail runs close to the Parkway and camping is not allowed, so the plan was to stealth camp in a spot near water. The trail was rugged and not very conducive to happy camping, but we found a ravine filled with dead falls in which we could each find an almost flat spot. We got our tents pitched before the rain set in for the night. We all spent the night shifting ourselves uphill and Marilyn’s tent leaked so it was not a restful night.

The next day’s hiking was different but equally stunning, with gorgeous winding creeks and a river with crashing waterfalls and cascades. We had one ford to do at the end of the day, and as we hiked along with the river thundering beside us, we were all cringing at the thought of having to cross it. Of course, when we reached the crossing, it was starting to rain again. Marilyn had been able to reach her husband on the phone earlier in the day, and he reported we were to have winds up to 100 miles per hour that night. We made our crossing with care and began to set up camp on the other side. The main camping area was on a wide beach. Ann decided to camp there. Linda chose a smaller section of beach. I found a small clearing in some rhododendrons. Marilyn and I decided to share my little tent since hers had leaked, so we used our two tarps to block the wind. The temperature dropped into the mid-30’s and the wind crashed all night, but we were comfy.

Unfortunately, Linda and Ann didn’t fare as well. Linda was blasted by the cold wind all night, but Ann had the worst problems. She was also blasted by the wind on the open beach. She woke to find a mouse had chewed through her tent and was inside with her. After she chased him away, he came back and chewed another hole. As if that weren’t enough, she was attacked by a violent case of the GI tract blues. By morning she was weak and miserable. We needed to get her out of there as quickly as possible. We slowly made it up the mountain to the nearest road and flagged down a couple from Michigan in a truck who drove us into Blowing Rock. Go Michiganders!

So we tried to hike two sections of the Mountains to Sea Trail and didn’t complete either. However, I can’t wait to get back on it. It is challenging and absolutely gorgeous. Next time we are going to try the Linville Gorge area.

Ann

Bleeding Heart

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WWWaaannnttteeeddd 222000111222 CCCaaammmpppFFFeeesssttt

GGGeeennneeerrraaalll CCCoooooorrrdddiiinnnaaatttooorrr

Duties include: Delegates or does brochure,

buffet meal coordination, vendor tables, purchases, and general logistics. Oversees all

things CampFest.

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A Book Review by Nancy Hall The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire that Saved America

by Timothy Egan

This book is a must-read for all Americans who love the outdoors. It is the story of our National Forests centered around the dramatic event of the huge fire that consumed a large portion of our northwestern states in

1910. At that time the National Forest Service was only five years old. The forests had been wrested from the control of the powerful wealthy of the Gilded Age through the vision and magnetic personalities of Teddy Roosevelt and Gifford Pinchot. But the successes gained during Roosevelt’s presidency were quickly turning to losses. Though a work of non-fiction, the book’s dramatic events and eccentric personalities make it a page-turner. The vision of few and the sacrifices of many, including Ed Pulaski who invented our beloved trail tool that bears his name, saved the natural beauty we

enjoy today. Thanks to Linda Bourgault and Marilyn Garrick for encouraging me to read this book.

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Culinary Corner by Katherine Gividen

Orange You Glad I Didn’t Say Banana… I was reviewing old newsletters when I came across my first President’s Message. In it I stated that I was going to start writing the Culinary Corner “about my experimentation in such topics as smoking meats and dehydrating fruit”. Well, I did cover smoking meats, but I guess dehydrating fruit kind of slipped through the cracks. I thought about writing a broad article on the subject, but as I was researching dried fruit recipes I came across candied orange peel. Immediately I was taken back to my childhood. My grandmother would make candied orange and grapefruit peels at Christmas. She and my grandfather would eat grapefruit every morning and save the peels – I think she put them in the freezer – so nothing was wasted. When I lived in Florida, I had citrus trees in my backyard and continued the tradition. First, wash the oranges (or grapefruit) and cut the orange peel in strips. For this recipe I use about 6 large oranges. You can remove the pith to make the candy less bitter, but I just put the peels in cold water and bring it to a boil, repeating this process three times. That usually does the trick. Then put 4 cups of sugar in a saucepan with a cup of water, and heat it until the sugar dissolves, making a syrup. Add the peels to the mixture and bring it to a boil. Turn down the heat and let this simmer until the peels turn translucent. Lightly spray a dehydrator tray with Pam and dry the peels to the point where they are a little tacky. Toss the peels in half a cup of sugar and Voila! Oh, and by the way, don’t throw away the syrup you used to boil the peels. You can put it in ice cube trays and save it to add to iced tea to give it a hint of orange flavoring. If you are not fortunate enough to have an orange tree in your backyard as I did, the next best thing is your local farmers market. Here in Baton Rouge we have the Red Stick Farmer’s Market where you can purchase fresh oranges from such growers as M.J. Barrois Citrus and L’Hoste Citrus. I usually juice the fruit before I use the peel, but being that this is pertaining to backpacking, I decided to make fruit leather with the fruit. I couldn’t really find that many orange leather recipes online, but my dehydrator manual stated, “Some fruits, such as citrus, should be used in combination with other fruits because they have so much liquid and very little pulp. If you find that a fruit is too runny, combine it with apple, applesauce or a similar fruit which will give it more substance.” Since I was under a newsletter deadline, I didn’t have time to go to the store – I did find some “GoGo squeeZe applecinnamon applesauce on the go” I had purchased for hiking snacks. Hmmmm, apple cinnamon and orange? Has a mulled cider kind of ring to it. Why not? I even added a tad of orange blossom honey to it. I used my granddaughter as a guinea pig for my first endeavor (she is a fruit roll-up connoisseur) and she gave me two thumbs up! (Although it really didn’t taste so much like mulled cider as it did orange applesauce!) Another use for oranges? Add a dried slice to a cup of hot tea to flavor it. I put some in my Earl Grey tea to relax after a day of backpacking. I love how it complements the citrusy flavor of the bergamot in the tea. And after I drink it, the orange has rehydrated, leaving a nice little treat at the end. I also remember my brother squeezing an orange peel in the grand canyon to release the oil – then he used it as a fire starter. I took the ends of the orange and cut it into strips to see if I could dry them and make my own fire starter, but found that the scraps really were not good at igniting. Sparks of orange oil flickered as I tried to set it on fire. The most I got was a glowing ember that would set paper and dry leaves to a smolder, but not a flame. Lastly, I read that if you eat an orange on the trail, run the peel all over your skin and it is a natural mosquito repellent. Though I haven’t tried this, when I shared this advice with a friend they said, “Yeah, but then the bees are gonna be after you…” She may have a point!

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One of the easiest ways to distinguish a navel orange from a Valencia orange is its “belly button”.

Oranges sliced to be dried, orange puree for fruit leather, and orange strips for candied orange peel.

Spread orange puree on fruit roll sheet approximately ¼ inch thick and dry.

Dried orange slices, orange fire starter, orange sugar cubes, orange cinnamon apple fruit leather, and candied orange peel.

Candied orange peel.

Orange peels boiling in sugar syrup.

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Gear Guide by Katherine Gividen

I recently celebrated my birthday and was lucky enough to receive two packs as gifts. I

was not familiar with either one, so it was a pleasant surprise. One, the Packable Pack, is

made by Eastern Mountain Sports. EMS has been around since 1967 and has 65 stores

from Maine to Virginia. I recently shopped at one in New York state. It can best be

described as an east coast REI, but on a smaller scale (at least the one I visited).

Photo taken from their website www.ems.com

The Packable Pack is an ultra-light daypack that stuffs into its zippered top

compartment. It has a hydration divider sleeve and two oversized mesh water bottle

holders on the outside. One reviewer compared this pack to the REI Flash 18 (they

liked the EMS pack better), so I thought I would put the technical specs side by side for

comparison.

EMS Packable Pack REI Flash 18

Dimensions 19 x 10 x 7.5 in. 18 x 9.5 x 8 inches

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Pack Fabric (Primary) 70D ripstop nylon* 140D ripstop nylon*

Torso Length Fits most 17 – 19 inches

Primary Use Hiking Hiking

Weight 9 oz. 10 ounces

Volume 1500 cu. in 1100 cubic inches

*“Ripstop” nylon has a special weave that helps prevent small rips from spreading. The D designation

stands for denier. Denier measures nylon fiber density. A higher denier indicates the fabric is more

durable and water resistant.

RIBZ Frontpack (210d ripstop nylon)

Last fall I saw a front pack camera bag demonstrated at a

backpacking seminar I attended. I loved the idea of carrying the

equipment on my chest, instead of hanging by the strap (which

irritated my neck) or stored in my backpack (which ruined any

spontaneous photo opportunities). Although the Ribz pack is not

a camera bag, I find it serves this function just fine in conjunction

with a protective camera case. I stuffed the camera case and a

few hiking essentials in the pack and found at 800+ cubic inches,

that there was

still plenty of

space. I had a little bit of difficulty adjusting the

straps, and would have preferred the ease of quick

release straps, but maybe this is a comfort (it has

wide straps) or weight issue (the pack weighs 9

ounces). When I put it on and zipped it up, the

zipper unzipped itself, but after I adjusted the load,

it worked just fine. I did realize that the pack is a

little big for me, and was worried about chafing my

Loaded pack

Hiking essentials

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arms as I walked, but I think I can address this problem by reducing the load.

I plan on taking it out for a test run this weekend, but in the meantime, I thought I would share with

you the information that I gathered from their website www.ribzwear.com.

“For the serious backpacker certain tools and equipment are essential for the trip. These items often

need to be readily accessible or placed in a location that does not disrupt the contents of the

backpackers load. A front pack allows consistent access to these items without the removal of [the

backpack]. Placing a small amount of equipment forward on the torso, drastically improves overall

balance, comfort and mobility.”

“The front pack helps to counter-balance the larger load on your back. This reduces stress on the

spine and enhances your comfort and posture.”

I will write a follow up on this piece in the next newsletter after I am able to field test the gear. In the

meantime I am looking forward to getting out on the trail and playing with my new “toys”.

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Second Saturday Hike – May 2011

Bogue Chitto State Park - Franklinton, LA

Photos by Janie Doucet