Crazy Ideas

 

Visit #1578, Saturday 17 January 26, 8:50-10:50AM, 4.2 miles, 0.0 lbs. of litter.

Temps in the 30s, light snow with accumulation of a couple inches.

Visit #1579, Sunday 18 January 26, 10:30AM-12:30PM, 5.5 miles, 0.0 lbs. of litter.

Last week I was e-mailed by a park regular. Those pesky stickers which keep appearing, some of which disparage me specifically well, they found one on the iron bench at Castle Craig. They tried picking it off but were unsuccessful due to the cold. In our e-mail exchange when I mentioned using heat, they said "use a hair dryer; there's even an electrical outlet nearby!"

Not being one to do something halfway, I brought my Arnold Schwarzenegger of hair dryers AND an extension cord.

Do NOT even THINK of using this on your hair!

Well, I arrived only to discover that electrical outlet was inside Castle Craig and out of reach. That crazy idea wasn't going to work.

Fortunately, I brought Plan B, a thermos of hot water. Mission accomplished.

While at Castle Craig I also removed some graffiti.

All the other stickers I found on Saturday were easier to remove, even those that called me nasty names.

Saturday was a good day to follow this vandal's illegally built trail and see what else I would find.

And their threats addressed to me continue unabated. It feels good to be recognized. 😉

Don't worry; I removed everything.

This bug had a crazy idea, out in the cold and snow without a hat on.

But hey; my weekend didn't end there.

Sunday was the 56th Tradition Run. Because light snow was forecast to add to Saturday's accumulation, I thought it would be a fun event considering the adverse conditions. I was not alone.

Kudos to the Meriden Parks Department; the event was free but they asked for donations of winter wear and food for the Meriden Soup Kitchen. I hope many ponied up for this free event.

But I had another crazy idea; rather than follow the road up to Castle Craig, I deviated and picked up a trail which paralleled the road.

After finishing at Castle Craig, I followed the Blue Trail down, stopping to use my new tool on a fallen tree. I didn't finish.

Returning to the parks maintenance building/event registration, I received the last patch available.

There's still a whole winter of trail adventure ahead in Hubbard Park. Get crazy and get some!