Moonlight Hiking

Every winter I say I am going to go a moonlight hike and every winter the weather is too cold, the hubby is has a basketball game I want to see, or I have one excuse or another. This year, the weather looked favorable and I didn’t mind missing basketball so I called and reversed my spot for the hike at 1000 Islands.

The weather was just right for a night hike except that it was partly cloudy. You could still see the snow moon at times so it wasn’t completely dark. However, the temperatures have been above freezing for several days this past week so there was a lack of snow for snowshoeing. I was disappointed by the lack of snow since I’ve not been able to use my snowshoes at all this winter yet.

About 20 people joined me for the hike including one guy from work and his wife. Besides being a moonlight hike, it was an educational experience as well. We stopped a few times to learn about night animals in winter and winter sounds. At one point our guide stopped by the river and was going to do a night vision experiment but she gave us the option of going on ahead which I did.

The worse part of the hike was the condition of the trail and boardwalks. Because of the warm weather, the snow melted and refroze causing the paths to be icy. I struggled up my favorite part of the trail because of the icy incline. Between walking off the trail in the snow and dirt and using the fencing as a safety rail, I made it to the look out. Instead of trying to kill myself on the way down, I opted to follow the road back to Nature Center. I wasn’t the only one.

Hopefully the weather and schedules work out in the future because this is one hike I would like to go on again especially in snowshoes. It is fun and educational, free family event. I got me outside and enjoying nature when I would have normally been parked on the couch watching a movie. Next time I will wear boots though.