Softies rock! by Marge Forslin
The spring 2008 Softies Hike was another winner. Eight hikers and a driver spent the first weekend (2-4) in May hiking at the west end of the peninsula. We finished the east end of the Porkies and made our way east to Old M-64. Hikers were Lorana Jinkerson, Cliff Stammer, Bob and Sue Hotelmann, Jan Lindstrom Wester, Bruce Schwenke, Pavie Rasmussen-Donnelley, and Marge Forslin. John Forslin was the driver and ham radio base station.
We enjoyed three days of hiking on the trail—5.5 miles Friday afternoon, including a log-crossing of the spring-melt-filled rushing Little Carp River that gave some of us shaky knees; 13.5 miles Saturday of varying terrain-- swamp, followed by creeklets and ravines until we ended with another swamp; and 2.5 miles Sunday--first up Bergland hill to the abandoned fire tower then down the back to the waiting van.
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Fall: The fall Softies Hike took place the first weekend in October, Friday, the 3rd, through Sunday, the 5th in the Trap Hills near Bergland. Marge Forslin, Kathy Davis, Jan Lindstrom Wester and Lorana Jinkerson, with John Forslin as their support person, partook of the beautiful fall colors and great hiking weather.
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Friday the hikers left Old M-64 and hiked 3.7 miles spooking up 7 grouse as they traversed hills and valleys. Saturday brought 8.9 miles of ups and downs with breathtaking views of fall’s palette of oranges, yellows, reds, rusts and greens. In addition, the Bush Creek bridge (see pic, lower right) provided a little challenge. Not only did it lean side to side. but it was not connected to the eastern shore. Over the course of the day, eleven grouse were flushed from their abodes. Finally, Sunday as we trekked approximately 4.7 miles including an early morning hike to Cascade Falls for a spectacular mist show, we ousted 5 more grouse from their hideaways. The hike ended at Forest Road 630.
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Just beyond Bush Creek we came across a plant that none of us could identify (see picture ?). Marge suggested calling it “pumpkin berries” because the clusters of small orange berries around the stem in this fall season, reminded us of miniature pumpkins. Upon our return, Marge researched and found its real name - Feverwort (Wild Coffee, Tinker's-weed) Triosteum perfoliatum - a member of the honeysuckle family. See the website: www.ct-botanical-society.org/ galleries/triosteumperf.html for wonderful pictures of, not only the berries, but the flower as well. We still like “pumpkin berries” better!
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If you travel M-28 through Covington, you might consider stopping at the Hardwood Cafe. We ate there both Friday and again on Sunday and found the food both healthy and tasty.
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