When we first moved to NY’s Capital Region, I sought out all the best dog walks in the area. Every day, I packed Kayla into the Kelty carrier so that we could explore new trails with our dogs.
Unfortunately, these care-free outings came to an end as Kayla outgrew the carrier. At first, her legs were too short for long walks; and later, with Alex, it became increasingly more difficult to satisfy the needs of a baby and a preschooler.
The dog walks became a daily necessity, rather than a grand adventure.
Now that the kids are old enough that I’m the one struggling to keep up, we’re eagerly exploring new trails and rediscovering old favorites.
Rensselaer Lake to Rapp Barrens Loop
On a recent visit to an old favorite, the Albany Pine Bush Preserve, we were confident, repeat visitors. Sure, it had been several years since we’d set foot in the Rensselaer Lake section of the park, but with marked trails, who needs a map?
Apparently, we do.
It really shouldn’t have been a difficult to complete the 2 mile loop on the trails as they were well-trod and liberally labeled with red trail markers.
Dave and Yoohoo led the way, and Alex and I followed, stopping frequently to admire the vegetation.
Well, perhaps we were a little too caught up in trying to identify mysterious flora. We found these curious pink sprouts on leaves in one spot, and mammoth primeval water plants - possibly skunk cabbage - in another. Somehow, we lost site of those markers.
Still, we weren’t too concerned. We had a general sense of direction and we knew that the park isn’t too huge. Eventually, we were bound to find civilization (we could hear the not-too-distant honking cars, after all.)
All true, but we hadn’t taken into consideration that we were circumnavigating a lake.
After seemingly endless trudging along, we found ourselves gazing wistfully at our trail - on the other side of the lake!
Not ready to swim the distance in the sometimes clear, sometimes swampy water, we were forced to turn around and head back to the mid-point of the loop where we had last seen those red markers.
It took a little more pleading than usual - and promises of jumbo-sized ice cream - to keep Alex trotting along. He had been ready to turn around at the one mile mark, and he certainly hadn’t expected the 3-hour-tour.
Ice Cream Incentive
Fortunately, Alex really loves ice cream, enough to keep him moving at a fast clip so that we could pick up Kayla in time to go for a treat.
We ended our grand adventure at Moxie’s - a road side ice cream stand that looks like it was transported from the Happy Days set.
Bypassing the international vanillas - my palate isn’t sophisticated enough to appreciate the subtle differences between Haitian or Venetian Vanilla - I ordered the Espresso Mocha, with crunchy bits of espresso beans. Alex loved his plain chocolate, Kayla enjoyed the real strawberries in her ice cream, and even Dave - who never likes sweets - agreed that this was one of those not-to-be-missed pleasures in life.
Slowly savoring our ice cream cones, we headed to the playground. It’s gorgeous, full of retro equipment, but I wondered how they’ve avoided a lawsuit. Even as I thought this, a child banged her mouth on a metal bar. Not a big deal, but surely a risk in our litigious society.
Meanwhile, I couldn’t help noticing a neon blue ice cream cone in a child’s hands. It was so bright, so unreal.
I asked the little girl to describe the taste, and she promptly answered, “It tastes like Blue Moon!”
OK, I’d already figured that was their signature ice cream, but I was compelled to explore this unknown flavor myself.
You know, I could describe the flavor of this Blue Moon Ice Cream. I’m pretty sure that I’ve figured it out. But, I think I’ll do you a favor, I’ll let your spirit of adventure guide you there to try it for yourself.
Our Tales From The Trails:
Imagination On The Trails at the Clarksville Cave Preserve, Clarksville, NY
Mud People and Rainy Day Hikes at Grafton Lakes State Park, Grafton, NY
Art on the Trail at Olana State Historic Site, Olana, NY
Spring Break at Home on Peebles Island State Park, Cohoes, NY
Girl Scouts Help Save The Earth on the Bradley Farm Trail, Mt. Greylock State Reservation, MA
Hiking Book Resources:
Trails with Tales: History Hikes through the Capital Region, Saratoga, Berkshires, Catskills & Hudson Valley: Russell Dunn,Barbara Delaney: BooksISBN: 1883789486
ISBN-13: 9781883789480
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