Thursady - 209th

Well, we went away on a vacation trip today. I know, you're surprised. We never go far together these years, and we never go anywhere at all of note these months, and we're not the type to just get up and get away, or at least Ed's not the type.

But the weather! You can't just go to your local park and call it a day. When you wake up to all this glory, you have to do something big!

After breakfast of course.

 

Yes, Dance is there, because these days she thinks it's only right for her to be included.

In the later morning, our retired mason guy shows up with his younger sidekick-helper. They're ready to get started on our front stairs. Even as they begin work, the design idea gets adjusted once again. We have worked our way through so many design ideas that I swear it's as if we cannot move beyond the final edit -- there will always be another one. Still, the men get to work and Ed and I pack up our stuff and drive off.

Where to? Is it the airport with a ticket to Paris? Is it maybe to the Pacific coast? Or an island with golden sands and turquoise sea waters? Well, maybe nothing so ambitious. We drive south and west to Governor Dodge State Park.

I know, I know, that doesn't meet your criteria of a vacation escape. I mean, it's 50 minutes by car, door to door. But for us -- that's a lot! And the park is big (over 5000 sq acres) and it offers variety, so that on our planned hike, we would hug a lake, delve into many forested areas, and cut through a prairie meadow. We're not at a peak leaf color moment yet, but we saw plenty to enthrall us. A few photos from our rather long hike...

 

And a selfie, of course. Notable for the fact that I am not wearing glasses. I put them in my pack for the day. It felt grand to be without them.

How about looking up toward the perfectly blue sky?

We paused twice: once because Ed wanted to "take in the forest," and then again to eat our snack of mandarines and nuts.  We encountered a couple of hikers at the outset, and then no one at all for hours on end.

Perhaps in your estimation, it wont have been a full and fabulous getaway, but for us it was just that. Nearly four hours of hiking, 20,000 steps recorded on my tracking device and that perfect Autumnal weather! I will say no more.