Into the Woods I Go
Jun. 15th, 2022 10:03 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
pshaw_ravenWith the passing of Disney races, as I said Fox and I are looking at doing other things like trail runs, ultras, and going hiking and camping. I always liked hiking when I could do it, though I have never been camping. I guess the closest thing to camping I've done is just existing in that time period between a hurricane passing through and when they turn the power back on.
Anyway, since day hikes are something we're actively looking at doing, I started thinking about a hiking stick again. See, I've got a stick I've long wanted to turn into a walking/hiking stick and just never did much with it. It's even got a cool backstory.
The stick is a branch from some bald cypress from Louisiana. When I worked at the housing development, I was on the phone one afternoon with one of the residents as a storm was brewing, and while we were talking there was a loud POP on the line, and an even louder BOOM that rattled the windows. The guy I was talking to said something garbled, and I grabbed a maintenance man and headed over to that unit, assuming it had been hit by lightning. Actually, a big cypress tree growing near it had taken the hit and was on fire. We got that taken care of eventually, and the guys cleared the dead tree out, dumping the logs and stuff where the parish could come pick it up. One afternoon I spotted a branch about as tall as me, so I stowed it in my car and took it home. I brought it with me when I moved here.
I already know I need to carve the end down if I want a metal ferule with a spike on it - and I do want that. I still need to smooth it and cut off the smaller broken branches, and probably make a wrapped grip though I haven't decided between paracord (useful) or leather (easy on the hands).
I'm also curious about hiking medallion "etiquette." I've done some trails already - when I lived in Tennessee and then Kentucky, I hiked Cades Cove, Daniel Boone, Cumberland Falls, and a few others. I thought it might be cool to acquire some medallions and put them on my stick, since my Raven Brain likes shiny stuff and I have every intention of collecting more of these things. I mean, I think I can add ones for the trails I have done, even though it wasn't with this particular stick. I don't think there's any sort of clear rule about it, and I assume that as long as I actually did the hike I am allowed to show off the bling.
I'm not planning a lot of decorating or anything now, as I want it to develop "organically" with stuff I find on my future hikes. Gator tooth from a gift shop near the 'Glades? String it onto the stick with some rainbow beads. :) I get the feeling that things are going to get very aggressively RAINBOW.
I also don't have much skill at woodcarving, but I'm decent at pyrography. I made a friend a set of runes out of some red bay laurel sticks and she really liked them. We have several of these laurels around the property and a few actually look like they don't have bark beetles. Most of the wood here is pine, and pretty resinous pine, too, which is why fires in the area make me have Big Damn Anxiety.
Any of you wonderful folks go hiking? I'm thinking if we start doing short road trips or something we might try to get a couple of other states in - though Florida has a lot of trails.
Anyway, since day hikes are something we're actively looking at doing, I started thinking about a hiking stick again. See, I've got a stick I've long wanted to turn into a walking/hiking stick and just never did much with it. It's even got a cool backstory.
The stick is a branch from some bald cypress from Louisiana. When I worked at the housing development, I was on the phone one afternoon with one of the residents as a storm was brewing, and while we were talking there was a loud POP on the line, and an even louder BOOM that rattled the windows. The guy I was talking to said something garbled, and I grabbed a maintenance man and headed over to that unit, assuming it had been hit by lightning. Actually, a big cypress tree growing near it had taken the hit and was on fire. We got that taken care of eventually, and the guys cleared the dead tree out, dumping the logs and stuff where the parish could come pick it up. One afternoon I spotted a branch about as tall as me, so I stowed it in my car and took it home. I brought it with me when I moved here.
I already know I need to carve the end down if I want a metal ferule with a spike on it - and I do want that. I still need to smooth it and cut off the smaller broken branches, and probably make a wrapped grip though I haven't decided between paracord (useful) or leather (easy on the hands).
I'm also curious about hiking medallion "etiquette." I've done some trails already - when I lived in Tennessee and then Kentucky, I hiked Cades Cove, Daniel Boone, Cumberland Falls, and a few others. I thought it might be cool to acquire some medallions and put them on my stick, since my Raven Brain likes shiny stuff and I have every intention of collecting more of these things. I mean, I think I can add ones for the trails I have done, even though it wasn't with this particular stick. I don't think there's any sort of clear rule about it, and I assume that as long as I actually did the hike I am allowed to show off the bling.
I'm not planning a lot of decorating or anything now, as I want it to develop "organically" with stuff I find on my future hikes. Gator tooth from a gift shop near the 'Glades? String it onto the stick with some rainbow beads. :) I get the feeling that things are going to get very aggressively RAINBOW.
I also don't have much skill at woodcarving, but I'm decent at pyrography. I made a friend a set of runes out of some red bay laurel sticks and she really liked them. We have several of these laurels around the property and a few actually look like they don't have bark beetles. Most of the wood here is pine, and pretty resinous pine, too, which is why fires in the area make me have Big Damn Anxiety.
Any of you wonderful folks go hiking? I'm thinking if we start doing short road trips or something we might try to get a couple of other states in - though Florida has a lot of trails.
