“It had to do with how it felt to be in the wild. With what it was like to walk for miles with no reason other than to witness the accumulation of trees and meadows, mountains, deserts, streams and rocks, rivers and grasses, sunrises and sunsets. The experience was powerful and fundamental. It seemed to me that it had always felt like this to be a human in the wild, and as long as the wild existed it would always feel this way.” – Cheryl Strayed
National Take a Hike Day is observed annually on November 17th. With over 60,000 miles of trails in the National Trail System across the 50 states, there is no lack of opportunity to take a hike.
Events around the country are scheduled tomorrow to celebrate Take A Hike Day. Hiking can burn between 400 and 550 calories per hour. What better way to get a head start on all those ‘other’ holiday temptations and observe Take a Hike Day? Be sure to wear good shoes, take a snack and bring a buddy, but get out there and enjoy the fresh air, scenery and get a little exercise to boot!
We in Dallas are lucky enough to live minutes away from the beautiful Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge. With over four trails to choose from you can select the trail best fits you. The Highway 22 wildlife viewing kiosk is a great place to stop to view the hundreds of migrating waterfowl that use the wetlands of Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge. Canada geese, cinnamon teal, mallards, bufflehead and hooded mergansers are just a few of the species that you will see during the winter months. Look for great blue herons and shorebirds along the water’s edge. Bald eagles and red-tailed hawks can be seen flying over the refuge.
Take a Hike Day was established by the American Hiking society to encourage groups of families and friends to get out into the wild and really get a taste of what it means to be away from it all again. Hiking is something that really helps to rebuild our connection with nature, and helps to maintain healthy hearts and bodies as well.
Hiking should not be an affair that one rushes through, nor should one idle their way through the journey, instead on should listen to their heart and body, and when restlessness strikes head out for the distant hills, and when weariness sets in let the body rest and take in the environment.
Take A Hike Day reminds us that we are creatures of the wild as well as creatures of civilization, and sometimes it does our wild heart good to be taken home again and get out into the wild.
https://www.fws.gov/refuge/Baskett_Slough/Visit/Trail_Descriptions.html