Frisco Highline Trail

We finally got a break from the sweltering heat today, so you know what that means...it's time to get outside and do something cool before it gets hot again! Today I went on a ride with 2 guys I work with (Jared and Joe), on the Frisco Highline Trail which is now the second-longest rail-trail in the state of Missouri. The trail was created and is maintained by Ozark Greenways. They are a local organization that develops trails throughout the Springfield area. Be sure to check out their website and see if there is a trail near you.

The Frisco Trail runs between Springfield to Bolivar. You can get the map from the Frisco Highline Trail's website. The trail is about 35 miles, but today we didn't really feel like doing the whole thing. In the past I have done sections of this trail (Springfield to Willard, Willard to Walnut Grove, and Walnut Grove to Wishart), but I hadn't done the section from Wishart to Bolivar. Today we started in Bolivar and rode to Walnut Grove, which is essentially half the lenth of the trail.

Last summer there was vandalism to the Little Sac River bridge. The bridge was constructed of treated wood, and someone thought it would be a good idea to torch the whole thing. Needless to say, it created a stopping point for many people riding the trail, and it was near impossible to get around the bridge in any way because the river was fairly deep in that section. Today was the first time I had seen the new bridge, and I must say it was very nice! Congrats to the Greenways folks for making a bridge that is a bit more difficult to burn, unless there's some way of burning concrete that I am unaware of.

Looking back, I'm glad we only rode 18 miles, I was unprepared to ride the entire distance because I didn't have enough water and I'm not in that great of shape. All I can say is that I was glad to see the car! I downed two bottles of Gatorade I bought in Walnut Grove, which tells me I was a bit dehydrated. Enjoy the pictures, it was a beautiful day!

Where did the time go...

Man, I sound like an old guy huh? It's almost midnight and I'm not tired, so you all are going to hear my thoughts right now. I went running this evening in an effort to get back into working out. Last year around this time I started running to prepare myself for the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving day. I know, August may be a little early to start preparing for a 5K in the middle of November, but I thought I'd give it a go again this year. Getting back on subject a little, running gives me a chance to ponder things I don't normally think about. Tonight I started thinking about how the summer is almost over. It's hard to imagine, considering it's only August 14th, and the high temperature for today was 103° F , but I start school next Thursday for the fall semester (so technically it is almost over). It just seems like summer started a month ago, and I haven't been able to do everything I wanted to yet.

I really wanted to make a trip to Colorado this summer, so I started thinking of how I could take a couple days off work and make a long weekend trip just to get a hike or two in. My friend Tyler and his wife Annie went a couple weeks ago, and hearing their stories of a hike they did made me feel sick with how bad I would have liked to go. Jerilyn and I went 2 years ago with them for 10 glorious days of hiking, flyfishing, and just enjoying the summer in Colorado. If you have never been..well, you just don't know what you're missing. The pic to the right shows Jerilyn almost to the saddle ridge between Gray's and Torrey's Peaks.


These are my wishes for today, if anyone could grant me one I'd appreciate it.
1. I wish life wouldn't get in the way so much of things you want to do in life. (maybe this one is my fault)
2. I wish Colorado wasn't 12.5 hours away.
3. I wish it wasn't 103° F every flipping day this week, because I'm sick of being stuck inside.
4. I wish the Cubs would start winning baseball games again. (Maybe Lou Piniella needs to go on another rant and get kicked out of the game, that seemed to help last time.)

I know it might be stupid to wish for things that you have no control over, my time could probably be spent more productively on things that I could actually change...maybe I need to focus on #1 in my list. But writing it sure makes me feel better.

If anyone is interested in going to Colorado soon let me know!