More GPS Fun!!

I have been playing with my new GPS in conjunction with Google Earth.  I have found that I can now make elevation profiles of my hikes for those of you that may be interested.  I know that when I am out hiking I like to know what I'm in for and I use elevation profiles along with the altimeter on my watch to help me pace myself over varying terrain.  I will try to be diligent in creating this type of description of my future hikes and publish them on this site for others to utilize in planning their next trip.

Happy Trails!!! Live Life!!

Rovious

GPS of Bryson City Hike

     Just me playing around with the GPS.  This is the Google Earth map of the route we took into the Smokey's to camp.  The town on the bottom of the photo is Bryson City, NC.

Happy Trails...
Rovious

Bryson City, NC - Camping, Tubing & Hiking

    I just returned from a very enjoyable weekend near Bryson City, NC.  I enjoyed a weekend of "tubing" on Deep Creek, camping both in the woods and at the Smokey Mountain Campground and hiking a few miles in the Smokey's.  It felt both strange and welcome at the same time.  Strange in that I am starting to find myself falling back into the 9 to 5 grind and seeing my time spent in the simpleness of the woods dwindling down (becoming distanced from my comfort zone) and Welcome in the sense that it just feels like home.  The sounds of the outdoors soothes me while the noises of civilization stress me out.  These little outdoor adventures are really doing a world of good.

GPS Tracks from Lakeside Trail Julian Price Campground

     Been playing with my new toy...Garmin ETrex30 GPS System. This is just a sample/test of my trip to Julian Price Campground this past weekend. I hope to utilize this while out adventuring with the idea of posting coordinates (tracks and waypoints) for others to utilize and Get Out and Hike!!

Julian Price Campground - Relaxing Weekend

     Decided that I needed a little R&R in the woods.  It's been a while since I've been out with nature and seeing that I can't get out and hike significant distances a camping trip was in order.  I have really forgotten how relaxing and enjoyable a peaceful weekend car camping could be.  With my major directives of always trying to complete some hiking accomplishment I had forgotten the simple pleasures that drew me into the woods to begin with.
     I got out pretty early from work on Friday Afternoon and was excited to head out to the mountains for a relaxing weekend without all the distractions that society provides.  I already had my gear lined up in the garage at home so my touch and go would be swift. Pack the van, get the dog and off we go!!!

Week of Ups and Downs

If you have been following my "Exercise" tab from the home page you may have noticed that I have not updated the past few days.  This is in large part to me hurting my back and not being able to hit the gym or the Insanity program.  I have had to take a few days off to rest and recuperate before getting back into it. 

I have truly missed working out the past few days and the resulting depressed feeling has been reflected in my diet.  I have fallen off the wagon and indulged quite a bit over the past couple days.  I will not lie and say that I didn't thoroughly enjoy the pizza, Chinese food and the homemade tacos my wife is currently making.  Tomorrow I will hit it hard!!! I already have my food prepped and ready to go!!!

I will also be back at the gym tomorrow and start back at the Insanity program.  I am going to start last weeks schedule over again with the only exception being Monday's Fit Test.  I am going to just do one of the programs full workouts tomorrow and do Tuesday-Saturday as week 3 all over again.

I have had a few questions sent my way as how this all pertains to my hiking.  The answer is simply this... The better shape I am when I hit the trail the more enjoyable the hiking will be.  As I mentioned before just looking at the weight in the pack doesn't really reflect ALL of the extra weight I take with me. Also, I am doing this to get myself into better health.  As I creep towards middle age I know I have to make sure to take care of this more so than anything else.  I really want to keep at my hiking and adventurous lifestyle for years to come and I will need my optimal health to do so.

I have a couple camping trips coming up over the next few weeks so stay tuned for trip reports!! I also have a couple new toys to try out so I will try to get some products reviews up as well.

Until then...Happy Trails!!!

Rovious