A couple weeks ago, I was able to spend a week building and working on trails in Arkansas through the American Hiking Society. I have spent quite a few of my weekends outside in Arkansas over the last year, and thought it would be really great to spend some time volunteering there. I grew up in a family that valued the outdoors, but did not know anything about the process of building or working on a trail. Let me tell you, there is A LOT of hard work that goes into it. I will never take a well maintained trail for granted again! The group of us met and camped for the week right off the Buffalo River. I came by myself on this trip, but was surrounded by some really great people the whole week. Most of them were retired, but it seemed like they did more work in retirement than when they "worked"! I met two incredible ladies, both in their 70's, that each owned large farms and worked year round on a bike trail near their homes. They also did multiple AHS trips around the country during the year. I can only hope I have the amount of energy they have when I am that age! We worked on furthering a new trail the first day and then maintained existing ones the rest of the week. There is quite a process of building a trail, from marking it out, to raking a path, and making sure everything slopes and has proper angles for water to run off it. The days we maintained existing ones consisted mostly of removing trees and rocks, weed cutting and lopping hardwood and Rambling Rose vine (sounds pleasant, right? it's not...not really AT ALL.) out of the path. Only once did we lose our way off of a grown over trail, and had to lopp our way up the side of a bluff. I don't suggest doing it, but it was a good time (though I might have involuntarily sang the Doxology when finding the path again).
It was such a great week of learning about trails, Parks and Recreation, and life from a bunch of people who have lived a little bit more than I (I was 20-40 years younger than most of the participants). I am so thankful to be able to work for a company that is community centered and really values volunteer work. This wouldn't have happened without them! I am definitely a people person, and like doing things with friends and family, but sometimes it's worth taking opportunities to go do something on your own. You might learn new things and make new friends with some kind, hard working, "fall" vest and turtleneck wearing 70 year olds who were ballin in retirement.
I didn't want to be THAT person who brings their camera during the work days, so I only have a couple from the trip. When our week was over though, the weather let me enjoy a short, few mile, tool free hike. It was great to take my time and shoot some crazy vibrant Fall leaves. When I started my way back home, a super thick fog rolled in while I was driving on deserted backroads. Maybe it was the fact I had been reading Dracula all week, that Halloween was approaching, the somber Agnes Obel music playing in my vehicle, or the high density of uninhabited homes in the backwoods of Arkansas, but it was eerie...eerie to the max. I had the sole company of only cows for an couple hours, but it made for some awesome photo opportunities, and I took advantage of a solo road trip. Enjoy.
