Tag Archives: Lake Hope State Park

Living Your Values

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Values.

This is a word I have thought about a lot lately. I’m trying to align how I spend my time with what I value. I’m trying to spend my money with companies whose values are similar to my own or at least whose values are things I can live with. I’m trying to be careful to not allow people whose opinions I do not value drag down my energy. I’m trying to question the true values of those who want something from me. I find that some people will manipulate you at every turn if they want your vote/money/help regardless of whose grandmother they have to sell to get their way.

Values matter.

This week, I took two very small actions to speak up for my values. Last night I went to Wheatberry Bookstore in downtown Chillicothe where I bought a couple of books. I’m calling them birthday gifts for myself because, as my mother would say, I need more books like I need another hole in my head.

This won’t stop me from buying them, mind you, but my birthday is coming and who can argue with presents?

Buying books is hardly an act of revolution but Wheatberry is a charming independent bookstore in a downtown where small businesses are suffering because of construction. Honestly, it isn’t nearly as bad as locals think it is and I had no trouble navigating where I needed to be.

If I want them to survive, I need to make sure I’m supporting them. Granted, my two book purchase won’t make that much of a difference but my two books and your two books and someone else’s two books will add up.

I value having a bookstore nearby and I value the programs, kids stuff, and community mindedness they bring to the table. Supporting authors is important to me as is making sure a variety of books are accessible locally.

I need to act like they matter.

The other thing I did was join in a chorus of voices expressing our dissatisfaction that the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) was entertaining the idea gas powered boats should be allowed on Lake Hope.

In a busy, noisy and all together sometimes unpleasant world, Lake Hope is a last bastion of quiet and calm. I hike there. I know people who bird watch and pass the day floating around in their kayaks. I have sat near the shore reading and solving all the world’s problems beneath a peaceful autumn sky. The air is cleaner and the world feels lighter once your boots hit the trail at Lake Hope State Park.

I get irritated when people are hiking with loud music or let their kids scream like banshees on a forest trail. Yes, I sound like an old crank but that kind of noise scares away the wildlife and ruins the experience for everyone around. I certainly don’t want to listen to someone’s boat motor.

So I wrote a letter like many people and became part of a movement that forced ODNR to listen. A single voice might not have mattered but a lot of us together brought meaningful change.

Humans need a place where we can go for free and listen to the frogs, watch a squirrel scurry up a tree, and witness a turtle sunbathing on a half submerged log. We need a place to go where your only job is to enjoy the aroma of pine trees and the crunch of fallen leaves underfoot.

The wonderful thing about living in America is that we can make individual contributions that will matter. A single snowflake is hardly noticeable but put enough of them together and you might have a blizzard on your hands.

Contact your politicians. Stand up for what you know is right. Support the businesses you want to keep in your community. Get your friends to help too.

Exercise your right to free speech and stand up for what matters to you. Living your values is how things get done.

Into The Woods

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I finally made it back into the woods today. Our last hike was in April and the time before that is a fuzzy memory. Mind you, I live in the woods but this is different.

Hiking is different.

Stepping out of the grass and onto a trail softened by pine needles is different than the loud crunch of a stone driveway. Reaching out to touch the rough bark of a tree, eyes following the trunk as it reaches toward the sun is different than just glancing at the tree line of your yard while you carry in groceries. Closing your eyes to appreciate the texture of that bark beneath your fingertips generates strength and energy.

Listening to the sounds of the forest change as you follow a trail away from civilization is one of life’s gifts. The variety of birds, insects, bees and frogs chattering amongst themselves is unbelievable if you stop and really listen for it.

The aroma of honeysuckle mingled with decomposing wood and leaves ought to be bottled and sold because there’s nothing like it.

We need the textures and sounds, the beauty and smells of these places for our own mental health as much as the creatures who live in them need these spaces for their survival.

People who work to protect these public places are heroes in my story and those who aim to destroy them are the villains .

If you are like me and live in the woods, I hope you are actually doing something to enjoy the experience. There’s nothing like it and you will feel so much better. If you’re aren’t sure where to start, Lake Hope State Park in Vinton County, Ohio is a good place to hit the trail!

Silent Sunday

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Saturday Hike At Lake Hope

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Saturday’s hike was a literal breath of fresh air after a long, hot, stifling summer. The high at Lake Hope State Park was an unseasonable 79 degrees, a severe shift from the high nineties and humidity of just days earlier.

The mostly shaded trail was inviting. The aroma of pine intoxicating to the senses. A periodic light breeze felt luxurious.

The three mile hike over hilly terrain follows a trail covered in soft pine needles in places, dirt in many places and areas riddled with tree roots. The ground is important because you need to notice how the earth feels beneath your feet and to allow that connection to course up your legs, through your stomach, and up into to your heart, spirit and mind.

Hiking isn’t just moving forward. It’s an exercise of the senses so I always touch trees, breathe deeply and look all around.

Kayakers glided through the glassy open water but labored to cut through thick lily pads on the back side of the lake. A butterfly landed on the trail before taking off again, soaring ahead before stopping to wait as though to confirm that we were still coming.

We left the trail feeling rejuvenated and satisfied. Nature’s balm had again soothed our tired spirits. We were refreshed and ready to face another day.

I wish more people understood and appreciated the restorative qualities of nature. We need nature to survive- the sun and moon, clean water, soil, pollinators and fresh air are all vital to human survival. We need all of this and more.

We need quiet and we need someplace where we can simply exist with the glorious earth that gives us life. I am eternally grateful for this wisdom and for the places that make it possible to embrace nature.

Squeezing In And Looking Down

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Sometimes you have to squeeze in what you need around the stuff you have to do. Whether it’s rest or adventure, odds are other people in your life aren’t going to make sure you get what you need. It’s up to you to find time.

Yesterday didn’t go as planned so, when my commitments were finally done, it was time for some badly needed exercise and fresh air.

I detoured to Lake Hope State Park where I hiked in my dress pants. You see, I had hiking shoes but no change of clothes. That didn’t matter at all since I was there for my sanity rather than a fashion show.

My focus this time was on the ground and all the fascinating things Mother Nature leaves lying around.

Red and orange scream fall to me.

This acorn caught my eye.

Oh, and the fungi were fabulous!

Incidentally, fungi always remind me of British writer Beatrix Potter. You probably know her for children’s storybook characters like Peter Rabbit. Did you know that her fascination with nature and drawings of outdoor subjects actually began with mushrooms?

She was a prolific and talented painter of mushrooms, mosses and spores before ever imagining the incredible world of the delightful Peter Rabbit.

Stick around, friends. I’m the keeper of all kinds of useless information!

If you’re out and about today – whether it be on the trail or wandering around your hometown, be sure to look down occasionally and study the ground for interesting things. You may be surprised at the beauty you find!

Journey From Moonville To King’s Hollow

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Twenty years ago, a group of folks in my community joined together with a shared vision to create a rail trail. But it’s not just any trail. It’s a muscle powered trail open to folks who walk, ride bicycles or ride horses. It stretches for sixteen miles through the Zaleski State Forest, Lake Hope State Park wetlands and some small villages.

It’s called the Moonville Rail Trail, named for one of Vinton County’s most famous landmarks, the Moonville Tunnel. The trail follows an old Baltimore and Ohio rail line through sheer wilderness. The tunnel is famous primarily for legends and stories about ghosts and hauntings. It’s also a super cool old railroad tunnel.

In fact, many people come just to see the tunnel. They park, walk the short distance to the tunnel, nose around a bit and leave.

Sadly, they’re missing the best part. I was there with a friend after work last night. We parked at Moonville and then walked the approximate two miles to another tunnel. This one is called King’s Hollow Tunnel or sometimes King’s Switch.

First of all, I want to say how amazed I am at the work the Moonville Rail Trail Association has accomplished. When the railroad pulled out of this stretch years ago, they took out everything including the bridges which cross ravines as well as the incredibly twisty Raccoon Creek.

Having new bridges placed was imperative to making this rail trail usable. This is not a wealthy community so they have relied on grants, fundraisers and donations of blood, sweat and tears from a very small core group of people. You cross several of their bridges in that two mile stretch between Moonville and Kings Hollow and I couldn’t help but smile every time we approached a new one. This is what can be accomplished when people unite for a common good.

This is a densely forested area with gorgeous views of the changing foliage, wetlands and stream. Plus, there are the tunnels.

The Moonville Tunnel was built in 1856 and repaired at the turn of the next century. It’s brick and very cool. It’s named for the small town that was once located here. No more than a hundred people ever lived in Moonville at one time and they were mostly miners and rail workers. There’s not much left except a cemetery, the tunnel and some tall tales. Even the foundation stones once left from old buildings have been mostly swept away by flooding or souvenir seekers. However, if you go off trail in your exploration you might stumble into an old cellar or two so be careful.

Today the tunnel is largely covered in graffiti. Visiting here has long been a rite of passage for young people, including Ohio University students, to visit at night. They commonly leave their mark.

Walk a couple of miles east of Moonville to find the King’s Hollow Tunnel. What makes it special is that it’s wood. It’s a 120 foot long wooden tunnel carved through rock. I love the way the rock juts out overhead so you can truly see what the builders were up against all those years ago.

This tunnel has a distinct smell. It smells musty and old like old wood and oil. You can actually smell the tunnel before you can see it. Also, the temperature drops at least ten degrees as you approach. Sadly, graffiti artists have found this one too.

You can drive to this tunnel but then you would miss out on the glorious views along the walk and the true peace and quiet that you don’t find many places. Speaking of quiet, don’t expect much cell service.

Click here to see some more pictures from another King’s Hollow visit. Read more about the Rail Trail and get directions to Moonville at the Vinton County CVB site. You can also take a trail ride to Moonville at Uncle Buck’s Riding Stable. I did that last year and wrote about it here! Finally, I want to mention they typically have a fun event at Moonville in October. It’s cancelled this year because of Covid spikes in Ohio but they’ve already announced the 2022 date. Read about that event here.

Check back. I’ll tell you what I know about Moonville’s ghosts soon.