by guest blogger Bonnie Spencer   Part 2, Part 3 April 13, 2018 Before we even started our spring 10-percenter hike on the Buckeye Trail, our schedule changed. We had planned to begin the third week of March, but the 10-day forecast showed rain and snow. CW decided it would be best to move our start to April. As the new 10-day forecast came around, it showed rain and possible snow. Oh well. CW said not to worry. “It’s gonna be fun,” he told me. We will be getting into serious hill country. CW has …

March 10, 2018 The other day a friend asked me how my year was going. I told him I’d had my up and downs but I couldn’t complain. If my brain had been working—and that’s really the topic of this blog—I would have declared instead that I’d had my share of downs and ups. Mostly they occur at home. It goes like this. I go down the stairs to the basement to get something. By the time I hit the bottom step I forget what it is. Then I go back up to the kitchen …

by guest blogger Bonnie Spencer   Part 1, Part 2 October 30, 2017 All week, we have been watching the forecast for eastern Ohio. It appears as though there will be no escaping some rain, perhaps heavy; some winds, perhaps blustery; and some chilly mornings. Our rain gear and warmer clothes are packed. I’ve been reading the trail map for the Bowerston section. It is peppered with words and phrases such as “ascends,” “climbs,” “descends,” “over the hill,” “over the steep hill” (italics mine), “ridge top,” “undulate,” and “up the long hill.” Whew! I’m not …

by guest blogger Bonnie Spencer   Part 1, Part 3 October 16, 2017 Day 6 (Monday): Mogadore to Hartville (10.5 trail miles) We are rested up and in good shape for another week of hiking. The stitches have been removed from my nose, so I don’t have to bother with Band-Aids to cover them. A cold sore that appeared in the corner of my mouth on the previous trip up while hiking and stressing in all that heat is finally better. It was super painful and wouldn’t heal. This is the first morning I didn’t …