Wandering Knight

New post by Kenknight

Who is happier about this hike? I think Jim probably is. Kip though would enjoy himself though scampering through the woods when Jim was sure no one else was about. The Jordan River Pathway and North Country Trail form an 18-mile loop. Located in the northwestern part of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula the Jordan River valley is perhaps a bit less well known than some other areas. I’ve actually not done this loop hike before. On May 31 and June 1, 2015 I joined Jim Walke and his dog Kip to backpack the loop. Like most people we decided to do the hike in the traditional counter-clockwise fashion starting at the overnight parking lot at Deadman’s Hill. But, I am getting ahead of myself - let’s start at the beginning….   There is a fair bit of information available about the Jordan River Pathway Loop. The JRP is maintained by the Jordan Valley 45° North North Country Trail Association Chapter. While some maps exist online for the area they are pretty meager affairs. You can get a rough sense of the area from this ov

It has been a very long time since I went to a major league baseball game. Since Andy had to work on Thursday, just before we would head up north for our backpacking weekend at Pictuted Rocks National Lakeshore, I was able to go to a Detroit Tigers baseball game at Comerica Park.

New post by Kenknight

Three times a year I join Andy Mytys and Joh Lawton and we drive west and north towards Lake Michigan to maintain a section of the North Country Trail (NCT). Our section runs about 6.5 miles from 13 Mile Road (north) to 16 Mile Road (south) in Newago County. You usually can find something different in any trail work session and this year was no exception. Finding the very hot remains of a campfire in an illegal campsite was the unfortunate standout this time (see video here). Learn more about the North Country Trail and Western Michigan NCTA Chapter.

New post by Kenknight

New post by Kenknight

On the weekend of January 24 and 25th, 2015 I joined nine other adventurous kayakers to paddle a stretch of the Manistee River between Tippy DAm and Rainbow Bend. It would be a good adventure with plenty to learn and experience for all. The trip was organized by the Fortune Bay Expedition Team.   Additional photos can be found here.  A more detailed written account is on my blog. 

New post by Kenknight

New post by Kenknight

Photo by Paul HaanFor a few minutes the sun broke through the overcast. It didn't last long but was nice to see for the time it was visible. This is the 16th annual November GreatLakesHikes Gathering. The weekend before firearms deer season opens here in Michigan members of the GreatLakesHikes Yahoo email group and others gather at a former one-room schoolhouse near White Cloud, Michigan for a weekend of hiking, eating, chatting, and general good fun. This would be one of the smaller gatherings we have had but it was no less fun because of that. The Gathering is an annual event that is organzied by members of the Great Lakes Hikes Yahoo email group. While the group isn't nearly as active as it used to be we still do use it to talk about hiking and other activities mostly within Michigan. Many of the GLH members are also members of the North Country Trail Association. The trails we typically hike when at the Gathering are maintained by the Western Michigan Chapter of which I am a member. If you enjoy hiking

New post by Kenknight

New post by Kenknight

New post by Kenknight

New post by Kenknight

New post by Kenknight

today July 11, 2014 was the 20th rolling sculpture car show here in Ann Arbor. I have not been to all of them by any means but I do try to go when I can. Even though I, naturally since I am legally blind, do not drive. There is something special about seeing a plethora of cars from a variety of decades. I think part of what makes car shows like this special is the chance to see how the styles of cars have changed over the years. It also gives us a chance to reflect back on how our society has changed over time after all the styles of the cars affect our society our society also fixed the styles of the car.    Forgive any odd quirks in the text of this web post. I am using dictation to creatwe it as I broke two fingers of my left hand last weekend and typing therefore is impossible. Fortunately I didn't need to type to create this podcast audio.

There is about one week left before the Ann Arbor Summer Festival closes its doors for 2014. Top of the Park is in full swing and I've been a few times already to this basically free outdoor music festival. Their is quite a variety of music to be heard as well as the regularly scheduled movies. I do hope you can get out and enjoy what remains of this special event that takes place every year. Music heard in this podcast includes Magdalen Fossum Transe Express The Crane Wives The Ragbirds More photos can be found in this Flickr Album.

New post by Kenknight

New post by Kenknight