Just Short of the Top on My Birthday

Somebody had a birthday, and that somebody was me!  So I stopped at the store for a birthday treat and to say hello to a few familiar faces.

Then I hid a rock for a special little cousin based on her favorite pal Pepsi.

Pepsi the skunk in her pink tutu

And finally I was off to the small town of Sunnyside to do a bit of hiking!  The sun was shining and I was not about to let a beautiful June day go to waste.

I had stopped in Sunnyside last fall for a quick look at the Centre Hill Trail, but now it was time to tackle the 10 km roundtrip hike.

Within 15 minutes I was crossing the bridge where I had stopped previously and filling my bottle with water.

For two and a half hours I plowed uphill, some spots loaded with blueberry bushes...

...some spots level but rocky...

...and one spot destined to be a tripping hazard.  I took one look and said to myself, that looks like a lovely place to have a fall.  Five seconds later I was on the ground with a bruised hip and a throbbing knee.  Who knew I was psychic?

I saw the big hill in the distance, legs starting to tremble, and hoped that the final destination was a little short of the peak.

No worries about being confused in the wilds of Newfoundland if you come for a visit, the names on the signs will say it all.

 A gal came up behind me RUNNING and informed me I was at about 3.7 km and she breezed past me to the peak.  What??

Okay, okay, the throbbing knee had returned to normal so I told myself to take my time and see how far I could make it.

Was I still on the trail??  It seemed more like a hillside runoff and in spots I had to grab onto trees and haul myself up, hoping I didn't stumble with my muscles running on empty.

Up above Bert's Pond but with probably another half a kilometer to go I decided I was far enough.  I was tired, I was alone, and as it was my birthday I was pretty aware that I wasn't young anymore and should know my limits.

So I only did 9 km instead of 10 km, so what if that girl at least 20 years my junior sped past me with her dog again on the way back like it was a jog around the block?  I was happy to have gotten out for my first big hike of the season at last and to make it home with only a few bruises.

See her there, she ran so fast I couldn't barely get my camera up for a photo in time!

Back at the car I had to rest before struggling out of my sweat drenched clothes, and then made another delivery to a little Harry Potter fan in Sunnyside.  I have a soft spot for kids who read and when I heard she was a Hufflepuff fan I had to reward her with a custom rock.

My goal is to get out for a big hike at least once a week, and probably stay out overnight for the rest of the summer.  I'm giving up on promising to post in a timely manner, obviously I just have too many hobbies but I'll do my best!