Start of Hiking Season and Wednesday Wanders

I declare the Hiking Season officially OPEN.  Sure, there's still snow on the ground (and it's still coming down in some parts of Minnesota) but I am ready for it.

What does this mean?  This means that the Mileage and Tick count will run from May 1st-October 31st.  Thunderdog has a tick collar this year, I'm interested in seeing how well it works!  I wish I could get two tick anklets for myself!  Joe and I want to earn our 75 mile Minnesota State Parks Hiking Club patches this year, as well as do a good deal of biking.  I plan on dragging out the camping gear, exploring more of the Superior Hiking Trail, and doing some volunteer projects.

After much considering, I've decided to keep the list of 2012's State Parks Visited and Superior Hiking Trail Sections and Spurs lists up in the footer of this blog.  (Never seen them?  Scroll all the way down to the bottom of this page...each entry is a link to the post about it.  Yeah, I hiked a LOT in 2012!)  I will be starting new lists for 2013 but the 2012 ones will remain there.  If it gets really clunky, I'll archive them.

I noticed the first pussywillows a week or so ago.  A sure sign of spring in the northwoods!

Another new thing for 2013: I'll be starting a new feature here on Tales of the Witch of November.  With a little bit of finagling I was able to carve out mid-week-mini-weekends for myself.  I am done with work at 4pm on Tuesdays, have Wednesdays off, and return to work at noon on Thursday.  This mid-week-mini-weekend is perfect for day hikes, volunteering, short camping trips, or whatever may come.  I've got plans, oh just you wait!  The first Wednesday Wander was yesterday, so stay tuned for the recap.


Total miles hiked today: 0
Total miles hiked in 2013: 0
Total Superior Hiking Trail miles hiked in 2013: 0
Total ticks today: 0
Total ticks in 2013: 0