Our master trail guide made a brilliant discovery while we were walking down the trail that afternoon. A discovery so incredible that when he stated his observation all of us looked at him and then at the sky. "It's sunny out" he exclaimed! It was times like these that made this trip memorable.
My first backpacking trip originally was to go to South Manitou Island, but when we arrived at the boat dock we found out the ferry was not running due to bad weather conditions. As bummed as we were we decided to head back to the house to form a new game plan, and take naps.
After a while we decided to go backpacking in the Pigeon River State Forest. When we arrived we took a few minutes to relax and walk a small footpath leading down to the Pigeon River. As we were walking the first thing we discovered along the path was a fresh pile of bear scat (not the most thrilling thing to find as a camper), however this did not deter us from continuing.
When we got back to the car we decided to throw on our backpacks on and head 3 miles north to the campground. As we started out on the trail we walked at a leisurely pace, enjoying the scenery and each other's company. I started to fall behind a little bit trying to wrap my head around the beauty that was surrounding me. The trees were a brilliant shades of green along with the plants on the forest floor. The sun was peeking through their branches in patches which reached down to the plants below, almost as if the rays of sun were gently resting upon their leaves from its long journey. I was finding myself staring at nothing in particular, but the nothingness was captivating.
I finally caught back up with my friends and we had reached the Pigeon River Park Headquarters which was about 2.5 miles into our trip. We stopped and rested here for a few minutes before heading back on the trail for our last 0.5 miles. When I stepped out of the forest and into the clearing, where the building was situated, I found myself feeling a little disheartened. The building was a beautiful log cabin style structure and was pleasing to look at; however I found myself saddened because it was in a place which had at one point been untouched forest.
(That moss is really lichen that porch)
Once back on the trail we were determined to make it to the campground and set up camp before hunger set in. Once we reached the campground we quickly started to pitch our tents and made dinner; which turned out to be a "round robin" kind of situation. It was not supposed to be that way but we quickly found out that some freeze-dried food was better than others ("sharing was caring" in this situation).
We played games and relaxed the rest of the night and quickly retired to our tents. What we did not expect to happen was the night to be so cold. The temperature ended up being around 36 degrees that night, and I was miserable. I could not feel my feet or my hands all night and I got virtually no sleep.
When I finally decided to tear myself from what little warmth the sleeping bag was offering and go outside, I realized I was the first one up. I went for a walk around the campground to try and warm up my body and regain feeling in my feet; ans as I was walking I found myself looking at a campsite filled with a blanket of fog. While I was standing there the sun was starting to rise and cast its orange and yellow rays unto the tree tops. At this moment in time my frozen body seemed to disappear and was replaced with a warm fuzzy feeling.
When I returned to my campsite I found that I was not the only one awake anymore, my friends had also torn themselves from the warmth of their sleeping bags. We packed up camp and stuffed our backpacks with our gear and headed back down the same path we had taken yesterday, in hopes to make it back to the car.
By the end of the trip I had done at least 7 miles (which was I do not think was bad for my first time). When I started the trip I was excited to experience nature in a way that I had not before and by the end I realized that experiencing nature in my own way was refreshing, but experiencing nature with people I loved was just as rewarding.
Remember: Round the bend, take a chance, for it may be rewarding
