Winter Winds: East West Lake Trail

Common picture for Brandy

With a text from some comrades at 8:15am, I rolled out of bed to make almond milk hot chocolate. The weather was thirty-nine degrees Fahrenheit as we were driving, and it was scheduled to be dropping as the day progressed. In addition, the winds were supposed to be ruthless, so I wanted to have something warm for the picnic. We all met up at the Elachee Nature Center. The only time we got any reprieve from the cold weather was when we were in the sunny parking lot of the Chicopee Aquatic Center. The wind picked up when we reached the lake because we had less trees protecting us. If I hadn't over-booked the month of February, I probably would have rescheduled this hike due to the looming cold weather. Unfortunately, I have something else planned every other weekend of this month, and I need to do at least (2) hikes a month for the rest of the year. Perhaps March will be less hectic, but that is doubtful.

The nature center has two parking lots. Its better to park in the overflow parking lot when doing the East West trail. We had a tough time finding the trail head and had to go into the nature center to ask for some direction. One of the hikers had his new Garmin device with him, and he measured our distance on the hike. It says that once we found the trail head, we did 4.9 miles in 2 hours. However, from when we left the car, my Nano says we did about 6.2 miles until we made it back to the car. His device is probably much more accurate than my Nano, so we probably did at least the scheuled 5.4 miles in total. We walked around quite a bit looking for that trail head, and then from the trail head back to the car. Lunch was about 30 minutes, so we were hiking for about 2.5 hours on the trail, and closer to 3 total. 

Difficulty

The trail was supposed to be about 5.4 miles, and that is a lot of hiking to do hung over. I wasn't hung over, and I went out for diner and drinks afterwards. I felt as though I was getting a workout on this hike, but it did not feel too terribly difficult. Another cool feature of the Garmin, was that it tracks total ascent throughout the hike. It measures as you go up and down during the whole hike. The total ascent for this hike was 2500ft, including up and down, which is probably why my thighs were a little sore on Sunday. As I already mentioned, the trail head was not easy to find, mainly because of where we parked. Once on the trail, there were plenty of maps and markers guiding us. The trail itself was pretty wide and easy to follow. Although, it was very rocky and it was important to pay attention to where you were putting your feet.

Not the best timer photo

The park has many other trails that you could follow, and it connects to the Chicopee Aquatic Center, that also has other trails to hike. Here is the East West Lake Trail Map. At one of the forks in the road, we came across a large suspension bridge. Even though it wasn't on the trail we were doing, I thought it was a good spot to take a timer photo. Turns out it was not a very good photo partly because everyone seems to be looking for Brandy to join the frame, but I'm going to display it anyway. Once I was home, I was definitely tired and did a little couch time before mustering up the energy to get dinner. We didn't go very far. A new place recently opened up that is walking distance from home, and was the most appealing option. the food was very good, and the staff is friendly; I highly recommend The Pullman.

Natural Beauty

An example of the information stations around the lake

While it was a beautiful hike, there was a parking lot at the half way point when you arrived at the Chicopee Woods Aquatic Studies Center. So, the building and parking lot definitely remind you of civilization. Throughout the rest of the hike, the natural beauty was superb. The trees acted as a barrier to the strong gusts of wind. The lake was not for swimming, but nice to see, nonetheless. There were plaques around the lake with pictures of different animals you could possible see. They seemed to be sponsored by someone named Rod Smith, and had his picture on it. They were pretty entertaining to us. Most of the hike we were walking near a creek. There were no big expansive views or exceptional water or rock features to make this hike breathtaking. The natural beauty stemmed, mainly, from the creek that you follow along and a typical Georgian forest surrounding you.

Dog Friendliness

Brandy descending to the lake below

Brandy was off leash most of the hike, even when we came across the parking lot at Chicopee Aquatic Center. It didn't seem to be open, so no cars were driving around and there was no reason to put her back on the leash. Also, while we enjoyed our lunch, she was able to run around and explore. At the lake, she went swimming and came home smelling like fish. One great thing was that on the entire hike she had access to water. In the summer, the trees would probably offer a nice canopy of shade to keep her cool from Hotlanta's weather. I think it would be a great place to take a dog year round. One word of wisdom, make sure to bring a towel or something for the dog afterwards; Brandy was pretty dirty when we got back to the parking lot.

Picnicability

The lake at Chicopee Aquatic Center is the halfway point for this hike. As soon as we came across the lake, there were two picnic tables available with a good view of the lake. We stopped and pulled out the best picnic thus far. I brought roast beef and Dijon mustard sandwiches. We had homemade granola, homemade applesauce mini muffins, Oatmeal and cranberry cookies, 3 bean salad, caprese salad, almond milk hot cocoa, and of course, Bandit wine, We had plastic bowls for the salads, cups for hot chocolate, and plastic silverware to share. The picnic table seemed new, and were perfect for our feast. If it hadn't been freezing cold, we probably would have lunched for longer.

Our amazing picnic spread

If you didn't want to eat at the picnic tables by the lake, there were a few other spots to stop along the hike. Also, there were a few picnic tables by the first parking lot that could have been nice at the beginning or end, if that suited your schedule. I wouldn't say that there were too many places were it would have been appropriate to lay out a blanket, but the picnic tables were a perfect substitute.

Despite the cold weather, this hike was very enjoyable. A few of my friends that I hadn't seen in a while attended, and I really enjoyed spending some time with them. It made me realize that my hiking goal is actually offering a vehicle to plan a healthy, fun and different way to make plans with my friends. I am living a one hundred miles per hour life-style right now. However, I am realizing that not only is the hiking helping me appreciate the world around me, it is offering me time to spend with my friends in a way that is different than the typical dinner out, happy-hour or house party. My comrades and I are accomplishing something together by making the picnic delicious and completing the hike.

A view of the creek along the hike

The idea of making myself available in scheduled time slots sounds like it is counter-acting the idea of enjoying the moment, but it is in fact allowing my friends and I to enjoy the moment together. In my life, as most people, I have to prioritize how I spend my time. Often things I feel that I "need to do" take rein. This year, I have made completing this goal a priority and, it turns out, that the hikes are giving me a slot of time to do something that I feel has priority and invite people with whom I want to spend time. I am fitting in an opportunity to see people in a different setting while achieving my priorities. I can imagine people having valid arguments that criticize almost everything I've said in the last two paragraphs because it sounds very type A pretending to be zen. Despite the possible contradictions, I still think it is important for me to create the opportunity to connect with my friends instead of constantly feeling like I don't have the time.

Mental Enrichment
Sometimes you need to be reminded of things that seem obvious, such as trees' superior ability to block the wind.