My backpack! You probably thought I was going to introduce you to a friend, didn't you? Well, I would, but I'm going by myself. However, the backpack belongs to a friend, and I'm borrowing it from her for the three months, so does that count?
Anyways, my backpack and I went for our first walk together the other day. About 10:30 in the morning I got myself ready for the day, loaded 26 pounds worth of free weights, my sleeping bag, and some miscellaneous stuff into my pack, hauled the pack out to the car, and drove over to the Kinsol Trestle. Because this was our first walk together I decided to keep it simple and not climb too many big hills, and I'm glad I did. Armed with my Billboard Top 100 Playlist and some Jazzercise tunes, I headed down the familiar, relatively level gravel path to the trestle. As I walked I came to a few conclusions: a). I'm really glad I'm not 30 pounds heavier than I am. I'm not sure my knees would appreciate that. b). I really do live in a gorgeous part of the world. c). I can sort of dance-walk in my pack.
As anyone local knows, they've put in a series of paths around the trestle, now that they've fixed it up, and I took full advantage of them. Before crossing the trestle I went down to the lookout and looked around, then I got my first taste of hill-climbing with the pack. It's not terrible, but it's a bit more calf work than I'm used to! So I crossed the trestle and took some more photos, then it was off to the other trail. This one winds "through the forest" and down to the supports of the trestle, and then another trail goes off along the river. I didn't go far along the river, but I went down to the supports and took some photos, then back again. I didn't go much further, but instead turned around and headed back to make lunch and get ready for work.
On the way back down the trail I was behind a lady pushing a wheelchair, and it was incredibly encouraging to see that trails like this have been created and maintained so that they are wheelchair accessible. I also passed a several groups of people heading down the trail to the trestle, and it was both encouraging to see so many people around, and a sign that it was time for me to head back.
S what did I learn on my first sojourn with the backpack? It's more difficult to get out of the car and onto my back than it is to actually carry around; wear one of those enough and you'll have killer calves; and it's really not as uncomfortable as I feared. However, I think I may have slightly bruised my hip and collar bones because of the weight and where it sits, so a few more walks are in my future before I leave!
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