The Challenge...The Awakening...Hike # 1

A few days later I was driving to my friend's house, Kim. Her husband had recently passed away, and we attended the funeral of her good friend's husband - who died on the same day. Too much death for spring. This was my epiphany. While driving to Kim's home for a visit, I thought to myself... "If I can't hike the Alps at 60...perhaps I can make 60 hikes during my 60th birth year." It was as though a life-spring welled up in me and confirmed the challenge. I was awakened to the possibility of doing something celebratory for this marker of time and it cemented my beginning. 

The next day Kim and I hiked the perimeter of Hidden Springs, Idaho. We took it slow and level, since she wanted me to feel some success and not get discouraged... after all it was my first hike of 60. We enjoyed some amazing sites along Dry Creek in Hidden Springs Idaho. My favorite was the homestead built by farmer  Phillip  L. Schick. Schick settled the land in the early 1860's and lived there into the 20th century.  Today, the preserved farmstead covers 2 acres along Dry Creek, with seven historic farm buildings: the farmhouse, a detached kitchen and well house (called the Red House), a root cellar, a wood shed, a saddle shed, a granary & a horse barn. The historic site was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2006. My favorite site was the chickens running around the grounds. The folks in this neighborhood feed the chickens and gather their eggs. What a life in the 21st century!

The 1.5 hour hike left me huffing and puffing a bit, but I was exhilarated! On April 21, 2013, I completed my first of 60 hikes.