Outdoors Archive:

Mount Mitchell State Park

After spending 5 days and 4 nights hanging out in Mount Mitchell State Park in North Carolina, I can honestly say it’s one of my favorites places in the country (so far). The mountains are unlike any of the mountains I’ve seen out west and have a mystic feel to them, especially when the clouds surround them.

The hiking was incredible, especially when the trails were surrounded by moss covered trees and rocks. There were even a few…

Hiking The Appalachian Trail

One of the things my girlfriend and I have wanted to do for a long time is take a hike along the Appalachian Trail. Luckily we were able to check it out on our recent trip up to North Carolina. The weather was a tad cloudy but it was still an awesome experience.

The section of the trail we hiked was right along the Tennessee and North Carolina border. The elevation was somewhere around 5,000 ft. so that explains all the…

I’m Off To Climb A Mountain

It’s true…Florida is completely flat. Matter of fact, it’s almost impossible to find a hill, let alone a mountain to climb. So that’s why my girlfriend and I are hitting the road and heading up to North Carolina in a few hours.

For the first time in awhile, I plan on spending 6 full days in the wilderness with no access to the internet or a computer. It’s going to be a challenge but…

Hiking The Old Fort King Trail

After driving by the entrance to the Old Fort King Trail on our way to the Hillsborough River State Park, my girlfriend and I decided to head back to check it out.

The Old Fort King Trail is approximately 6.7 miles long and runs just south of the Hillsborough River State Park. It also runs into the John B. Sargeant Sr. Park which is right along the 301. It’s great for hiking and also looks like it…

Hiking In Hillsborough River State Park

One of the best adventures I’ve had here in Florida happens to be hiking through the Hillsborough River State Park. The park is one of the oldest parks in the state of Florida and features hiking, canoeing, camping, and kayaking. Best of all, it’s located less than an hour outside of Tampa.

When it comes to hiking, the park has four different trails that you can choose from with a total of around 7 miles…

Hiking In Withlacoochee State Forest

It’s no secret that Florida is a flat state. There are no mountains and barely any hills from what I’ve seen. I miss mountains a lot more than I thought I would after leaving Arizona but I have not given up on finding some cool hikes here in the sunshine state.

The good news is that Florida does have a handful of state forests and parks that have some great hiking trails. A perfect example is Withlacoochee State Forest located near Dade City. My girlfriend and I made the drive up there from St Petersburg to check it out and were not disappointed.

Honeymoon Island State Park

Of all the places I have visited in Florida, Honeymoon Island State Park is currently my favorite. Not only is the beach amazing, but you can also hike through the tropical landscape and see all sorts of different things.

The two-mile hike takes you on a loop throughout the island where you can see all different types of wildlife. Osprey (a huge bird) seem to be everywhere and there are also a few Bald Eagles in the park. And who would have thought the park is also home to a ton of armadillos.

Besides hiking, you can also spend time on the beach swimming, snorkeling, and shelling. Not a bad place to spend a day out in the sun.

Armadillos In Florida?

While I was out hiking on Honeymoon Island, I stumbled across an armadillo along the trail. I was pretty surprised to see one here in Florida. For some reason, I never pictured armadillos hanging out under palm trees.

Weird thing is, I lived in Texas for six months without seeing one even though they are very common there. The first time out on a hike here in Florida I ran right into one. Weird.

As it turns out, the nine-banded armadillos are common here in Florida. They are not native to the state but were introduced here in the early 1900′s. They now live throughout the state and can be found wherever there is dense ground cover (read more facts here).

I’ve never seen an armadillo in person before and was pretty amazed by the creature. It sort of looks like the result we might see if the Easter bunny hooked up with a rhino.

The Perfect Morning

I woke up this morning and had the idea of taking my camera along with me on my morning run. Turned out to be the perfect morning for some photography:

Pedernales Falls State Park

This past weekend, I went and checked out Pedernales Falls State Park. It’s located about an hour outside of Austin here in Texas. It’s made up of more than 5,000 acres of land and has a bunch hiking trails and camping areas.

Although the waterfalls weren’t what I was expecting, they were still cool to look at. It was also nice to get outside and do some hiking, especially in November. The leaves are starting to change colors so the scenery is pretty amazing.