I was at the gas station pouring a stale cup of coffee at 5:00 AM this morning getting on my way to Indiana Shades State Park located about 17 miles southwest of Crawfordsville (off S.R. 47).  It used to be called "Shades of Death" because 600 Indian warriors from two tribes fought a battle there.  The winning tribe was left with 7 out of the 12 survivors.  

I headed south down US 41 until I hit Kentland.   I saw a diner filled with semis and pick up trucks.Trucks Stop   That means that the food is good and cheap.  I stopped at Joe's Fillin Station Diner. Eat at Joes It looks like and old gas station from decades ago that was converted.  Great breakfast, service, price and atmosphere.  The locals couldn't be nicer.

I got to Shades about 9:30 and attacked the "Rugged Trails" for hours.  I was hoping to do every trail in one day but my joints wanted to go home.  It was a great day and I reccomend this trip to anyone who wants to get away from everything and everyone for a day.  It is very quiet.Light Shower   I did not see a single person on any of the "Rugged" trails.  Those are the ones to take if you want to avoid other humans all together.climb

I know it was suppossed to be 87 degrees but it felt like 67 under the umbrella of the trees. trees  When you wind down the ravines, it feels like you are walking into an air conditioned room.  Very cool. cool  You will not need sunscreen.

I have three more trails to conquer before the state of Indiana considers changing the name of the park in my honor.  Fear not Indiana, I will return.green

last sunday, we skipped church and went on a family hike to radnor lake. the two  boys  were ready to go. We took the llake trail and saw a lot of wildlife there. It was surprising because the boys were not very quiet. The last part of the trail is a bridge over a dam and there was a momma goose watching over her newly hatched while papa stood guard.

It was all a nice break from the crazy schedules we had been on the last month.

*The first two shots of the deer are blurry because they were pretty far off to bring into focus, although a tripod would have helped. In the last two deer shots, both deer were only about 15 feet off the trail from us.

As some of you may have been hearing on the news, there was a major incident in Missouri Wednesday when the resevoir broke at Tom Sauk mountain.  Luckily few people were hurt, although up to 17 foot waves were reported as billions of gallons of water from the 50-acre resevoir spilled down the mountian-side.  

Here's my tribute to some of Missouri's more beautiful state parks that were affected:

Johnson Shut-Ins
JSI
JSI Jo
JSI Tinchs

Elephant Rock
ER Chris
 ER Mike

Hopefully when the waters receded and the spring comes, these parks will begin to rejevenate to their original beauty.

Me and my wife took a hike up to Eternal flame fallsit's a pretty cool place. Heres a few pictures  trail 2 trail 3 trail 4 trail 5 trail 6trail 7trail 8          
 trail 9the falls 1 the falls 2 the falls 3 trail 10 the falls4 the falls 5 trail 11 the falls 6 sometimes it looks better when theres more water and it covers the flame.

Had the opportunity to Hike My. Huron (14, 060 ft)earlier this year and got a few decent pics I can share ...

It was already a great view on the drive up to the trailhead.  Looking at our journey from thetrailhead I realized we had a long way to go!  
Along the way we passed an old house which was probably built in the early 1900's.  Just around the corner from here we set up camp and had this Peak View of a neighboring mountain.

Once we got above 13K feet the next day, it started to get extremely steep which meant there were a lot of breaks taken!  It was all worth it though when we got to the top and saw the San Isabel Range from over 14K feet.  (check out the storm that was coming our way!)

Of course, I brought some goodies so we could have Guiness and Golf while we took in the view.

After a fun and hard weekend in the mountains, most of us were pleased to Go Home!

until next time ... the Dancefloor

Some new snapshots of Piper...

001 | 002

Both taken on the Appalachian Trail in CT.

Here are the rest of my images from Sleeping Giant State Park.

Tower 1 | Tower 2 | Tower 3 | Tower 4

Tower Door 1 | Tower Door 2 | Tower Window 1 | Tower Window 2
I couldn't decide between Door 1 and Door 2...

Tower Window Detail 1 | Tower Window Detail 2 | Tower Window Detail 2 Alternate
I couldn't decide which one I liked better, the original or alternate...

Clouds 1 | Clouds 2  

Enjoi,
Chris

Rainbow Casa Grande is one of the most recognizable mountains in Big Bend. Casa Grande Again The Lost Mine Trail is one of my favorite hikes. This is what the family looks like when the peak is achieved. Rest Most folks who have been to Big Bend have seen "The Window." Here's what it looks like from the bottom. Window 1 Window 2 Those folks at the top are my friend Mike and his wife. I didn't even know he was in the park until I yelled for his email address and recognized it!

Big Bend is one of my favorite National Parks. I love the mix of desert and mountain and the fact that in July you can walk all day without bumping into another soul. These photos were taken early one morning on a trail called Grapevine Hill. It's a nice walk in the morning before the desert heat takes effect. View East from Balanced Rock Balanced Rock Approaching Balanced Rock The Trail