Go Take a Hike

If you have been reading this blog for a while, you know that last year, from spring through autumn, I took a lot of long walks to make up for the fact that the gym was closed due to the pandemic.  I like to walk.  It was a good way to keep my sanity during that time of isolation, and I got to see some places in the area that I had never seen before.  Of course, come winter, I was too sedentary, and my waistline showed it.  

I took some long walks in Mexico City during my trip in April.  However, after that I was too busy working in the garden to take time for walking... not to mention that I was just too tired after four to six hours of gardening.  

I recently read an article on the internet that said that the best way for those over 50 to add years to their life is to walk briskly for two and a half hours each week.  The garden is no longer requiring as much of my time so I decided to get back to walking.  So far this week I have put in a bit more than two hours.  On Sunday I walked at a good pace from my house to downtown Berea, about an hour round trip.  On Monday I went to one of my favorite places for walking, the Cleveland Metroparks.  There are miles and miles of paved trails for walkers and cyclists.

I parked my car at the lot by the scenic overlook at Berea Falls, a short drive from my house.

I started walking north along the trail.  Just beyond my starting point was the 12.5 mile marker.  

This trail continues more than twelve miles through the Rocky River valley almost to the shore of Lake Erie.  My plan was to see how far I could go in a half hour.

Just a couple pictures along the way.

I was not pausing much to take photos.

After a half hour of walking, I knew that I should be approaching a mile marker... so I walked another minute.  I reached the 10,5 marker.  I had done two miles in just over a half hour.

I turned around and headed back to the car.  The return took a little longer.  My pace was probably a tad slower by this time, plus I had to trudge my way up one uphill section.  

Yesterday was too hot for walking and now we are going to have a couple days of rain.  But I figure that before the week is over, I should be able to take another walk, and exceed the recommended two and a half hours per week.