The Hiking LaFasto's - Elm Fork Trail 7/23/11

For our second hiking trip, we chose the Elm Fork Trail, because of the allure of the "haunted" bridge. It is apparently a location that is even top-choice stomping grounds for the Denton County Paranormal Activities Group. Legend has it that there is some sort of goat-man that guards the bridge and if you honk three times, he will appear. After the harrowing self-inflicted trauma that resulted from my foolish decision to test the Bloody Mary myth in 5th grade (after which I was not able to shower or be in bathrooms by myself for a week), I decided to forgo honking at the goat-man. I sent Dresden to check things out instead...

Here's that Blair Witch Project footage I was attempting to capture, with Alex capturing me. 

I am a huge nerd, and look ridiculous. I know this.

After the uneventful surveying of the bridge we started on our way. This idyllic image would have you believe it was another fairy-forest land like we had at Rowlett Creek, but this was purely a mirage. We were out in the sun with no tree cover almost the entire time, with grasshoppers EVERYWHERE. To be fair, we are not the best hikers (YET!), and we stay up way too late the night before hikes (so far) and haven't been able to get anywhere before the sun starts in with its maniacal laughter at our folly. Still, we don't let a little thing like hiking at High Noon stop US! We let Dresden stop us soon as he's ready, instead. As disappointed as I have been that we haven't been making it very far these past two times, I send up a little prayer of thanks each time Dresden says "I go back to car now!" But I digress...

Dirty before we even began...his cold had still not quite begun to set in.

Until about five minutes in, when he begged to be carried, pretty much the rest of the way. Carrying a wriggling 25-pound toddler while hiking in 103-degree, directly-sunlit heat should be considered a new form of torture. I seriously felt insane!

Daddy's turn, and our new "thing" we do, sticking our tongues out at the camera!

Ooh, my turn again! 

Sadly, I was unable to focus on the prettier things while carrying the boy, but they were there. I definitely want to come back to this trail during the Fall. I think it will be much better then. For now, we are avoiding any trails that the woman who wrote our hiking book deemed as "partly sunny". 

Partly sunny = WAY too sunny in our book.

Still, we did manage to make it a mile! 

And Dresden agreed to walk part of the way back to the car by himself, so that was a definite win!

And just because I like to keep it real (though Alex was disgusted I would post this, lol!), this is how dirty we got as we hiked. I considered it a sign of success!

So that was our hike to Elm Fork trail! Next up for The Hiking LaFasto's was the Fort Worth Nature Preserve and Refuge. Stay tuned!

Love,

Cassie