High Exercise; Low Entertainment

21 February 2009

Today’s 5-mile (8 km) hike was high in exercise value, but low in entertainment value. That is, there wasn’t much to see on the trail until we reached the waterfalls at the turnaround point. Overall, the outing gets a “B+”.

We left the house rather late, waiting for the temperature to rise above freezing to where it would be comfortable to be out and about. By noon, we were at Rockburn Branch Park in Elkridge, Maryland. That there were no markers to identify any of the trails was not a good sign. Nonetheless, figuring we could always find our way back to the parking lot, we headed off on what we hoped was the right trail. It wasn’t! No problem — we made a few adjustments to the directions we were following and found the Morning Choice Trail at Patapsco Valley State Park without having to go too far out of our way.

There weren’t many people on the trail — just a few other hikers and some mountain bikers. That was a plus. The sky was blue; the air was crisp without being cold. Those were additional plusses. The hike would have been perfect except that the trail was a muddy mess, requiring extreme care with our footing. The terrain was relatively level, with little elevation gain, but there were several shallow creeks that we had to ford. Using partially submerged rocks as stepping stones, we crossed the streams without mishap. Finally, we made it to the small, partially frozen waterfalls that are a popular feature of the PVSP.

The only other people at the falls were already leaving, so we had the place to ourselves. A tree trunk that had fallen across the creek-bed provided an excellent perch for us. We made ourselves comfortable, eating our snacks while we listened to the melodious trickle of the water as it flowed down the rocks. We were at one with nature when suddenly the silence was broken by the sound of a splash, followed by an even louder splash — the latter was a dog plunging into the frigid water to get the stick his master had thrown. It was time for us to take our leave.

Ice Drape

After checking out another waterfall a little ways down the trail, we started our return trek. Where the Cascade Falls and Morning Choice trails joined up again, we took a detour, bypassing the muddy path in lieu of a more comfortable walk on a service road that took us first to the main road and from there to the parking lot to pick up our car.

We brought the day to a close with an early dinner at G&M — home of “crab cakes broiled to golden perfection.” True, the crab cakes were good, but I have to admit I much prefer the ones at our local Sweetwater Tavern. Somehow a couple of take-out desserts found their way home with us!!! Speaking of which, I’d better complete this blog entry and go downstairs for my share of chocolate cheesecake!!!

Check out the snippet of video for sounds and sights from the waterfall.

Pompeii to Perú

15 February 2009

A cold, but sunny day found us on the mall in DC, visiting not one, but two museums. Truth be told, had I known that we’d be having beautiful blue skies and glittering sunshine instead of the overcast that was forecasted, I would have planned a hike, as we much prefer outdoor activities to museums.

We started off by visiting the “Pompeii and the Roman Villa” exhibit at the National Gallery of Art. No photography was allowed, so I don’t have much to show for our time at the NGA. The artifacts on display ranged from intricately-carved bronze and marble sculptures, to exquisite jewelry and paintings, to a remarkably-well preserved 1st century AD fresco from a triclinium (dining room; so named for the three couches on which diners reclined). Perhaps someday we will have the chance to see these artifacts in situ as we're roaming the ruins of Pompeii.

As demonstrated by this mural, the pre-Vezuvius villas of Pompeii were lavisly decorated.

Our second stop was at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. The lure for the visit was the opportunity to see the Peruvian Scissor Dancers performing at the "El Poder del Chocolate" — The Power of Chocolate — event.

I’m not sure what I was expecting the Scissor Dance to be, but it certainly wasn’t “break-dancing circa 16th century!” The dance is a one-on-one competition between acrobatic dancers while playing a three-pound, scissors-like steel instrument in one hand. The dancer in the spotlight must keep a constant rhythm and finely-tuned ringing sound with the scissors in his right hand, while performing intricate footwork, escalating into acrobatics and balancing acts. Judging from the reaction of the audience, they accomplished this feat beautifully. It was an intriguing performance — we hope to see more demonstrations of traditional dancing when we visit Perú in April.

The Yawar Chicchi dancers perform the Peruvian Scissor Dance.

(What's not clear in the photo above is that the dancers are in fact continuing to play the scissors-like instrument even as they stand on their heads. Check out the snippet of video for sounds and sights from the Scissor Dance.)

A Stroll at the Tidal Basin

8 February 2009

Slightly aching muscles — a result of yesterday’s 9-mile hike — did not stop us from going out again today. After all, who can resist 60F (16C) temps in February? Considering what we put our bodies through yesterday, however, we took it easy, going for a walk in Washington DC instead of doing another hike. Mui’s luck for finding a parking spot held — not an easy feat in DC — and 30 minutes after leaving the house, we were walking along the Potomac River, enjoying the sunshine and the breeze coming off the river. The lack of crowds at the Tidal Basin was surprising, but we didn't question our good fortune. It was nice not having to dodge runners and bikers as we strolled the narrow footpath. The two-hour walk around the basin was a great way to make the most of the spring-like day.

In keeping with our “this is for exercise motto,” I only took a point & shoot camera … here are a few scenes from our stroll.

Some like water in its liquid form; others like water in its solid form.

A glimpse of the Jefferson Memorial from the footpath around the Tidal Basin.

Mother Nature scallops the edge of the ice in the Tidal Basin.

A River & A Canal

7 February 2009

With the forecasters calling for temperatures in the mid-50F (13C) range, we decided to enjoy some outdoors time today. Throwing a couple of snacks and our point & shoot cameras in our backpacks, we headed out shortly before 11:00a. By 11:20a, we were parked at Theodore Roosevelt Island and off on our trek — a 9-mile (14 km) round-trip hike on portions of the Potomac Heritage Trail (Virginia) and the C&O Canal Towpath (Washington DC).

The section of the Potomac Heritage Trail (PHT) that we hiked follows the Potomac on the Virginia side of the river. The trees are bare this time of the year, affording beautiful views of Washington DC's Georgetown skyline for the first mile or so. We took our time on the 4-mile (6.5 km) PHT hike, stopping frequently to enjoy the scenery and snap photographs of anything that caught our eye.

Panorama of Georgetown from the PHT.

The trail started out relatively flat, but soon became less so, necessitating some scrambling over and around rocks. Nothing that we could not handle. When we came across some waterfalls frozen in time, we scampered up for a closer look at icicles dangling from the cliffs. In a few places, fallen trees blocked our path, but we found alternate ways to ford the rivulets that were streaming down to the Potomac. We encountered very few people on the trail, which added to our pleasure in the outing. There was quite a bit of ice on our side of the river and the sound of it crackling as it softened and broke up was just about the only sound breaking the silence. I imagine most, if not all, of that ice will be gone by tomorrow when the temperature is expected to soar to the low-60F (16C) range.

Mui at the most impressive of the three icefalls we came across on the PHT.

We found the PHT to be an easy trail, but it certainly threw up a challenge or two along the way. The most demanding portion was at the very end when we had to climb up to reach the Chain Bridge to cross over to DC. The incline in this spot was quite steep. In a few places, we had to pull ourselves almost straight up using iron railings bolted to the side of the cliff. For the workout we got here, we were rewarded with a bird’s eye view of the Potomac River and the surrounding landscape.

Munching on the apples we had brought with us, we crossed the Chain Bridge and joined the C&O Canal Towpath for an easy 5-mile (8 km) walk to DC. Constructed between 1828-1850, the historical Chesapeake and Ohio (C&O) Canal was a shipping canal connecting the tidewater on the Potomac River in DC with the headwaters of the Ohio River in western Pennsylvania. It stayed in service, transporting goods until 1924, by which time the railroad had captured almost all of the carrying trade.

The level walking trail on the towpath is a welcome change from the boulder-strewn PHT.

Despite the sun that was streaming down warming rays, the water in the canal had a layer of ice on it — a reminder that spring has yet to come. Compared to the number of people we encountered on the PHT, there were a lot more walkers and runners enjoying the towpath — including Senator Kerry and his wife, whom we ran into as we neared Georgetown. More exciting than that chance encounter, however, was the glimpse we got of a great blue heron perched on a log, warming itself in the sunshine.

When we eventually reached Georgetown, it was chock-a-block people — young and old; locals and visitors; foreign and domestic. Many of the eateries already had a waiting-list, but we managed to find a window-side table at Pizzeria Paradiso. The ice-cold Belgian beer recommended by the waitress turned out to be the perfect accompaniment to our simple meal of Insalata di Tonno e Fagioli (tuna and white bean salad) and Pizza Bosco topped with tomato, mushrooms, spinach, red onion, and mozzarella. We skipped dessert at Paradiso, opting for some Belgian chocolate-chocolate ice cream from the nearby Häagen Dazs shop instead.

By the time we concluded our stroll through Georgetown, we were ready to throw in the towel. We were simply too tired to walk across the Key Bridge back to Roosevelt Island. Hopping into a cab, we cheated and took the easy way back to the parking lot. It was 6:00p when we finally pulled into the driveway — dead tired, but very pleased with our trekking adventure.

The article that was the inspiration for today’s trek listed five hikes. Time and weather permitting between now and April, we hope to do at least a few more of the recommended trails. They all lack the altitude we need to really get in shape for our upcoming Perú treks, but when you live at sea level, you take what you can get.

For a pictorial journal of our trek, browse our online gallery.