Trail Fever

June jubilation exists on our region's trails. Read below about what has happened this Spring and what is in store in the Summer of 2018. Share your positive experiences and support the community by enjoying the local scenery.

The Laurel Highlands Ultra, a 70.5 mile race, blazed through the forest this June. The Laurel Highlands Trail, running from Johnstown to Ohiopyle, is a challenging landscape to hike, no matter the distance. To run the entire thing - astonishing and a bit mad. According to the results link, 85 brave souls finished this wilderness test with finishers from across Pennsylvania and all over the land, including Vermont, Florida, North Carolina, and Canada. Congratulations to all those who finished this incredible adventure run.

One week later, another batch of brave men and women were on the Ghost Town Trail for a 50K, 25K, or 12K endurance Saturday. The event, Ghost Town Trail Challenge, is part of the 2018 Cambria County Trail Series. According to the results page, 191 men and women completed their challenge. The Ghost Town Trail is a regional gem for hikers, bikers, and runners. Upcoming events on the trail include the 4th Annual Chernisky Classic on Saturday, July 7th featuring a 10K, 5K, and Firecracker Run for the young bucks. Later in the summer, on Saturday, August 11th, the Run for the Trail 7K will takeoff from the Dilltown trailhead.

On the same day as the Ghost Town Trail Challenge, 59 humans completed the Levity Summer Festival 5K on the Hoodlebug Trail in neighboring Indiana County. This out-and-back course included a run through a tunnel and across a bridge. I was with this jolly gang as 3.1 miles is more in my wheelhouse. 70.5 miles or a 50K would be my nuthouse. 25K or 12K would be doable, but I would live in a house of pain well into the following week. Alas, I zipped along the Hoodlebug. My wife and her cousin pushed my daughters via strollers in the 2-mile family fun walk. They both fell asleep proving that exercising is relaxing and a good way to get some color. My daughters fell asleep - not my wife and her cousin.

The trails into Stackhouse Park are ready for summer fun. Take any trail to the main pavilion for tonight's First Day of Summer party. Games, music, and children will be running free at 7 PM. Then, this Saturday, join an adventure crew for Faith and the Forest. We will be leaving the Saint Michael's church parking lot at 10:30 A.M. to explore and more. It will be a looped hike for kids and adults. And finally, Run the Park, a 10-mile, 10K, and 5K is coming to Stackhouse on Saturday, August 25th.

My daughters and I recently visited the Jim Mayer Trail in Riverside, not to hike, but to bird watch (chase). Near the playground before the trailhead, a gaggle of geese and dozens of quackers were a-quacking. My 3-year-old and 15-month zoologist were mad over mallards. It was National Geographic meets Family Circus. The Family Fun Run on the Jim Mayer Trail is scheduled for Saturday, September 9th. I did it last year. It's a great 5K and the last leg in the Cambria County Trail Series.

If you voyage over Ligonier Mountain, check out the Ligonier Valley Trail that hugs Route 711. It is a smooth and flat trail, covering roughly 3 miles if you do an out-and-back. On a LVT run this morning, I competed against rabbits darting in and out of the brush. Mountain bikers need not travel over the mountain to find adventure as the Inclined Plane Trails in Westmont is now open for biking business. Ride at your own risk. Check out videos on the Facebook page - Friends of the Inclined Plane Trails.

Find a friend. Find a trail. Share the love. Share the trail.

Faith and The Forest

This weekend I adventured into Stackhouse Park, something I have been doing since I was a kid. On Saturday and Sunday, I was proud of two adventure teams, family and friends willing to explore; to discover, wander, and appreciate. Please respond to this blog if you want to join in Faith and The Forest adventures into Stackhouse this spring and summer. My hope is to teach and show my kids how to love nature and experience this community's great outdoors; how to experience nature and count your blessings along the way. And for the adults, rediscovering the kid at heart might just happen in the wilderness. Here is the Top 10 to the 1st weekend of Faith and The Forest:

10. Big, Fat Worm

My 3-year-old volunteered to hold this chubby invertebrate once I scooped him up. They had a brief, friendly relationship before she launched him back into his habitat.

9. Mark the Trail

That same daughter was fascinated by how trails are denoted by colors on trees. Saturday was blue. Sunday was red. Studying and staring at bark, she excitedly announced when her eyes locked on a mark.

8. Slithery Snake

My wife was the one who announced when a snake made his way across the trail. Everyone stood their ground as this footless creature disappeared into the brush.

7. Chuckling Crow

On our Sunday ascent out of the park, a crow flew right over top of us. This chattering bird landed on a tree branch and let out one mighty howl. My daughter immediately asked, "What is he laughing at?"

6. Slippery Salamanders

The stream was full of salamanders on Saturday. Everyone got in on the salamander chase. When my daughter found her own salamander under a rock, she shouted with spastic pride. The amphibian slipped along the rocky shore, eluding the passionate pursuit of a crazed child.

5. Detective Doe

There were no salamander sightings on Sunday, but deer were watching us through a maze of trees. At one point, two doe locked eyes with a daughter and her Dad. Silence was broken when the daughter screamed,  "What are you doing, deer?" They maintained their position and remained quiet. In a battle of who blinks first, the whitetails won. 

4. Beautiful Butterfly

Four of us - my parents, myself, and eldest daughter - got a glimpse of a purple butterfly on Saturday. When resting on leaves, it had no distinct color, a gray and gloomy look, but in flight, we were all struck by the color. My daughter contested the butterfly was blue, not purple. She immediately chastised me for incorrectly labeling this beautiful animal of the sky. It was a blue butterfly. Get it right or pay the price. 

3. Water Woman & LadyBug Lady

My youngest daughter desperately wanted to swim in the stream. With her mother holding on, this 1-year-old aquatic fanatic thrashed in the cool and flowing water, dipping her legs in pure happiness. Meanwhile. her sister was one with the water and the bug kingdom. She found a lady bug and they were best friends for two solid minutes. The lady bug traveled up and down her arm and all was right with the world. 

2. The One-Clawed Crayfish

A "sand castle" was a must-do for the Lady Bug Whisperer. In a sandy and sloppy mess, Dad and daughter dug and dug and found a crustacean with only one pincher. Our digging and discovery created a private pool for our one-clawed comrade. Sand castle architecture was interrupted by this bandit on the bank. 

1. The Scarlet Tanager

The most unexpected sighting was actually the first. On the steep descent into Stackhouse following the Brownstown Trail, my Dad called for our caravan to be still. There, in a tree overlooking the stream, sat a remarkable red and black bird. My Dad, who has taught me a lot about nature and enjoying the outdoors, knew this songbird. It was an awesome moment. My parents, my wife, my brother, and my kids froze to appreciate the Scarlet Tanager - amazing colors and amazingly quieted my children. 

"Nature has an unparalleled capacity to stir our emotions, fostering raw and powerful feelings of wonder, awe, mystery, joy - and yes fear." - excerpt from How to Raise A Wild Child  (currently reading, currently raising).

Summer is almost here Johnstown.  Who wants to adventure into the forest?

Amazing May

Amazing Grace

On a Thursday evening in May, my wife and I were at Our Mother of Sorrows church and surrounded by community members. The connection - Alpha, a Christian-based course offered around the world and locally initiated years ago at this Johnstown parish. This weekday celebration brought people together who shared a bond and a belief. "How sweet the sound" was heard and felt. Initiated by a dedicated few in our region, the Alpha course has helped many, including myself, shape and shift their spirituality.

Amazing Face

While my wife and I were singing Amazing Grace, my 3-year-old was pretending to be a turtle. Her younger sister, age 14 months, was being the shell. They were not at church. They were at the babysitter's humble abode. So deep into character, my eldest and wisest daughter was sliding her skull across the carpet, burning the first layer of skin off her nose. Her fearless tortoise role was Academy Award worthy and appreciated by her family, friends, and all those who support her imagination. At the time of this blog, she is still healing and remains willing to star as a jungle or barnyard animal.

Amazing Race

The 2018 edition of the Path of Flood Historic Races was a sight to behold. Almost a thousand competitors participated in one of the three distances - 5K, 12K, and half marathon. I have participated in the 5K each year and decided to challenge myself this spring. The 12K was a unique and fun route that included a scamper through the Staple Bend Tunnel. After emerging from the wilderness, the final stretch was in sunny Conemaugh to Peoples Natural Gas Park. As my feet pounded the pavement and the sun scorched my skull, I called upon some inner inspiration. I could still hear Amazing Grace. I sprinted to the finish line. Thanks to all the race organizers, volunteers, and competitors who make the Path runs a huge success.

Amazing Space

To end the month, my wife and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary without the presence of our children. We did not recklessly abandon them. Their loving grandparents provided love, nourishment, and housing. Our coastal getaway was a blessing. It was also incredibly bizarre not having our daughters around. Having a window of opportunity free from parenting provided an unparalleled amazement. When we triumphantly returned to Johnstown, those daughters hugged us hard. It was amazing to be back and so, so, so much louder.

Amazing Place

While part of me could have stayed on the Rhode Island shoreline, it was never in doubt - I was coming home. Johnstown is where I am from. It is where I belong. I've witnessed grace here. My daughters continue to grow here. I'll keep running through our neighborhoods, sometimes with a stroller.

Goodnight Johnstown. There is always something to be grateful for. Discover something or someone amazing.

And if you need a pick-me-up, come watch my daughter pretend to be a reptile.