NOTE: IN ORDER TO BETTER SEE PHOTOS IN THEIR FULL 1600 PX. RESOLUTION, VIEW THEM IN THE ALBUM FORMAT BY CLICKING ON THE LEAD PHOTO OR ANY PHOTO IN THE POST. This is especially true for landscape shots. Thanks to Mark for the idea of adding this alert so the photos can be seen at their best!

Saturday, February 15, 2014

Winter Hiking - What To Wear in Wisconsin

It seems like the snow and cold will never end here in the Midwest, but the 5 day forecast is showing a warm-up finally on the way next week!


Knowing that more snow was on the way last week, I drove up to Kettle Moraine for my first hike since I left Reno.  After driving an hour to get there, my heart stopped for a minute when I pulled into the parking lot at the Scuppernong Springs trailhead.


I circled through the lot and saw another sign indicating that hikers could go across the street to the Ice Age Trail.  Since I'm planning on doing some serious hiking on the Ice Age trail this summer I took it as a sign that this was my day to start a new section.


In the winter the woods all kind of look the same, but it was great just to get some exercise and fresh air.  The cross country skiers were all across the road and I had the Ice Age Trail all to myself.



John made a comment about there not being enough clothes to keep him warm in our neck of the woods, and Sharon asked a while back what one would have to wear to hike in winter in Wisconsin.  I use a layering process.  First it's the Smartwool socks, figure skating tights and Smartwool baselayer shirt.  Then the fleece lined Columbia stretch pants followed by ski pants, a jacket, gloves, and boots.  The final touch is the wool hood liner I steal from Wayne's side of the closet.

I've got a question for you techies out there.  When I play my video I take using my SX50 without editing it on my computer at home the picture is clear and good quality. (On Full Screen on my computer anyway)  But not after I edit it OR after I upload it to YouTube and go to Full Screen it gets pixelated and fuzzy and looking.

(By the way, I show up at the 4:45 mark in the video, all dressed for my 19F hike!  That part is clear because the camera wasn't moving at all.)



When I edit it, using either Movie Maker or Photoshop Elements, it comes out all pixelated, even before I upload it to YouTube.  I noticed it even more when I did the Chimney Tops movie.

Anyone know what is happening here??  Why does it look great on my screen until I upload to YouTube or edit it??  Until I fix this problem I won't try John's tip for making my insert larger. (I know you were thinking it, John!)




4 comments:

  1. Alright, you won me over. That looks like fun to hike in. If I had the proper clothing I'd be into it. My only guess as to your pixel problem is the resolution your camera is shooting the video. Are there different settings for video mode on your camera? I think some cameras have them so as to be able to hold more video on a card but at a lesser resolution. Also, the last couple of videos I've done I just used the edits provided on YouTube, usually just the 'enhance' and 'stabilize' to reduce the shakiness. Less troublesome. Thank you for your kind comment on the violin.

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  2. I don't know - the video looks pretty clear to me.

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  3. I can't believe they don't let people hike on snow covered trails. Last week I skied in zero temps - just added an extra layer on and a face mask and did fine. The chairlift ride was the coldest part. Good for you for getting outside despite the cold and snow!

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