Me and my gal (and the "Great Moxie Adventure")

Hello everyone!

Stickman here, just checking in... Things are busy around here these days, lots of lawn to mow (apparantly, we didn't plant a big enough garden), and a fairly large garden to weed (and, happily, the beginnings of our harvesting the veggies!). We are both busy at work, and are tired, yet thankful at the end of the week.

So, after working very hard on Saturday, we were very, very happy to see Sunday roll around! We attended services at Crossroads, visited briefly, then went to get a bite to eat. It was a beautiful day, perfect for doing "something"... but what? We talked a bit about it... garden? mow? hike? visit? projects?

We decided to go "adventuring" together! Adventuring can take just about any form, as long as it is exciting, and possibly involves some risk...

ad⋅ven⋅ture  /ædˈvɛntʃər/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [ad-ven-cher] Show IPA noun, verb, -tured, -tur⋅ing.
–noun 1. an exciting or very unusual experience.
2. participation in exciting undertakings or enterprises: the spirit of adventure.
3. a bold, usually risky undertaking; hazardous action of uncertain outcome.

Our adventuring of the day consisted of driving somewhere, maybe explore a backroad or two. Exciting, huh?!? Well, yah!! You never know what you might see! And the risk... well... maybe we'd get a flat tire, or something... I dunno!

So, down the road we went, finding our way to Rt 201, then North. We made a couple of quick scenic stops, spending time together. At some point, we found ourselves at the Forks. If we continued North, we'd go to Jackman... or we could veer right, past Crabapple Whitewater, and we would make our way to Moxie. Moxie... the name just draws you there. A short while later we were parked at the pond, and feeding a huge flock of ducks.

The ducks well fed, and we being thoroughly entertained by them, we decided to adventure further. We started South, down Troutdale Rd., following the shoreline of Moxie Pond. When we got down to "Joes's Hole", I showed Cari where I stepped out of the woods when I was on the Appalachian Trail, and had filtered a good helping of delicious water from the Pond. It brought back good memories, as this was the spot where Pete Lloyd, his son, Scott, and a couple of old friends were fishing from a pontoon boat. I was surprised to come across them that day, and they we're equally surprised to see me! I think it was a Wednesday... I do know that it was a weekday, and I questioned them as to why they were'nt at work. I was told to let them know back in Madison that they were building a new road around the pond, and that it was going well! That tale was almost as big as the "fish tales" that would surely be shared later on! I remember that the encounter that day had lifted my spirits greatly, and that "Faithful" and I then crossed the stream and climbed up magnificent Moxie Bald without a hitch.

Cari and I continued South, and Troutdale Rd. became Old Railroad Rd. We went past Moxie Bog, and were pleased when we finally saw a moose, up near the treeline. It was nice to spend a bit of time watching her, and she seemed content to stare back. Along we went, along Austin Stream, and ultimately coming to a stop at Rt 16, and Bingham.

I figured to head home to Madison... Cari figured to see another Moose. We turned up Stream Rd., and headed North, this time crossing over Austin Stream. On we went past the "Radar Range", a military installation that is closed up. We took a right turn onto Chase Pond Rd., coming back to Old Railroad Rd., turning left, and North a bit. One more right, and we were off to Austin Pond. We saw no more moose, so we got ourselves turned around to begin our trip home. On our way back, on one of the gravel roads, Cari saw something! As we approached, it became clear... Bunnies! They were in the middle of the road, and were excited to see us. They hopped around in circles, and one of them jumped straight up in the air. It was very comical, and they finally found their way into the safety of the woods.

The show was now over, and the curtain of nightfall was fast coming down around us. It was time to go home... We backtracked on our trail, and when we got back home, we unpacked a bunch of fond memories, ones that we will keep and cherish. We are looking forward to our next "adventuring", whatever shape or form that may come in. I suspect that if it isn't on a trail, it will be on some old dirt road...

Until next time, God Bless!

Stickman