Wilderness Hiking in the Inner City

For quiet some time now I've been wanting to hike to the top of Cochran Hill Tunnel.  Just to see how to get up there and what it looks like on top of the Interstate.  Today I decided to do it.

I drove around the park and around the hill trying to find an access. I thought there would be one around the dog run on Cochran Hill Road, but I couldn't see any.  I stopped in the parking lot and looked around, but couldn't see that there was any paths.  So, I parked in the little lot off Lexington Road and decided to walk around to see if I could find a way up there.  Walking up Lexington Road there was a 10' high chain link fence just off the road, but as I walked along, the fence ended.  I decided to go cross country.  So, I headed up this steep bank and into the woods.  Ah, this will be an adventure.

I made my way through the trees and underbrush, not always in the direction I wanted to go, but in the direction the openings would let me go.  So, after a short while I'd been turned around so many times I knew I'd never find my way back in the same direction I'd come.  So, in the true adventurous spirit, I pressed on.  Back in the trees I found this area that hand sandbags and erosion curtain.  They were laid out in squares and rectangles, not like they were holding anything back, but like they were sectioning off plots.  I wondered if I'd stumbled on someones private 'Pot' farm.  It really kind of worried me, as nobody knew where I was or what I was doing.

There were also a lot of these red plastic cups turned upside down, like the were covering some type of plant. None in rows, but just scattered randomly around, all the same way.  I didn't disturb them.  I was tempted to look under one, but decided I'd better just leave them alone.  Not knowing what the heck this area was, I also decided it might be best if I just got the heck out of the area.

I started making my way up hill, as openings would permit me, and I could see a clearing through the trees, so I worked towards it.  I came out onto a path.  So I followed it to the right, I thought 'away' from Lexington Road, and I came out on top the Cochran Hill Tunnels!

I took this picture, but I don't know if you can see the roadway down below. I tried to catch cars coming by so it would be more visible, but with my delayed action camera I couldn't be sure of when it would actually snap the picture.  But, you might be able to see the roadway on the 'wide screen'.

The path I was on was directly behind the 'dog run'.  So I followed the path a little ways, going away from Lexington Road to see if it had an access near the dog run.  It seemed to just go further into the park, so I turned around and headed the other way.  At this time I met several bicyclist mountain biking through this pathway. It was a nice path, but seemed pretty hard to bike.  Lots of roots, rocks, little turns, up and down steep hills.  I'd rather be walking.  So I followed the path I assumed was leading me towards Lexington Road area.  I was right!

After following the path for several hundred yards it came out onto Cochran Hill Road, right at Lexington Road.  There was this sign at the head of the trail, which I failed to notice when I'd driven by earlier looking for an access.

So, now I know how to get to the top of Cochran Hill above the tunnels.  If anyone wants, I can lead an expedition.

Tuesdays at Shawnee GC

My golf game slipped and fell a little today.  I just couldn't seem to hit those fairway irons when I needed to.  It didn't take me long to double bogey a hole today, either.  I doubled #2 and #3, then hung on and didn't double bogey a hole until #17.  I think that's two weeks ina row I've doubled #17, and I did it the same way.  A decent drive, chunked fairway shot, then dropping it in the greenside bunker.  Blast out onto the green in 4 and 2 putt.
It was really hot again today.  Walking 18 holes takes a lot out of you.  I thought it wouldn't be to awful bad on the front nine, but the humidity was so high it was sweltering right from the start.  I shot a 40 - 43 = 83 today.  Still keeping me in a consistant pattern with my previous 10 rounds.  My handicap on Tuesdays is still at 14, which surprised me.  My handicap on Thursday was 11, and may have dropped  another stroke since last week.
This was round 26 for the year.

Bob and the night visitor

Once again during the night my squirrel traps were being pummelled by an unknown source.  I would find my traps upside down several feet away from where they sat waiting to catch a curious and hungry squirrel. I knew a larger animal was after the peanuts.
So, out comes the heavy artillery...my big varmit trap.  It took three nights, but here he is. See all the grass inside the trap?  I guess they try to dig their way out and pull all the grass and dirt around the trap they can get their hands on and pull it inside the trap.  They don't get out, but they sure make a mess.
I took this raccoon to my usual opossum release point, across from the Mellwood Art Center, on Mellwood Avenue, and let him go.  Hope he makes new friends their and won't think about coming back to the Goddard Neighborhood.

THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP FISHING CONTEST!

The World Championship Fishing Contest was held this evening in Spencer County, Kentucky.

The competition was fierce.  The tournament was open to men and women of all ages.

The bank was lined with competitors.  Each one concentrating on their line and just exactly what bait would give them the edge.

Old timers sat around bragging about how big the fish were that they used to catch.

The really top fishermen kept on their toes, awaiting even the slightest nibble on their lines.









But, in the end, only one would come out on top. The Champion....The best fisherman in the world...

                                                         GRAMPY!

A little metal detecting to go along with golf

I 'm  easing back into metal dectecting a little.  I think I'm a little out of practice.  The weather has been so hot and the ground so dry it hasn't been good for metal detecting.  With the temperature down and the ground wet,  I did get out this morning to detect a little.

As I said, I think I'm a little out of practice.  I didn't find much.  Other than a bunch of pieces of aluminum cans, pictured at right  is all I found.  I detected at Chance School.  I looked along the gravel road above the gravel parking loop.  And, everything I dug up I had to dig through gravel.  It was an area I wanted to check, but it just didn't yield anything.  A small piece of aluminum, broken off something, a copper strap, that I broke in half getting out of the ground, and a Cub Scout neckerchief tie.  It was fun, and I wish the weather would allow me to detect a little more often.  It got hot so soon this summer that my Spring detecting was a very short season.

A model of consistency

Bad Bob has played consistent golf the past month or so.  My last nine rounds are 81-81-80-80-80-85-78-80.  My round today, 39 - 42 = 81, was almost double bogey free.  I had one, on #18, which was my 9th hole because we started on the back.

I just can't get that double bogey free round completed. Today was windy and the course was really sloppy wet.  I don't know the official amount of rain we had last night but I know we had several inches.  It was hard on many of the holes to find a place in the fairway that wasn't 'casual water'. I don't think the greens had been cut today, either, and they were pretty hard to judge any speed of your putts. I walked the 18 holes today.  It wasn't real hot, nice breeze, but the humidity from the wet ground really made you sweat, or perspire. And that zapped your energy.  But, all in all, I'd have to be satisfied with an 81.  Once again, it lowers my handicap without me winning any money.  That's not good.
But, that's the story of round 25 for the year.

Golf Lessons

Well, Erin has already one-uped me.  I've never had a golf lesson in my life, and I don't need any snide remarks about it.  But Erin had a lesson today and did really well.  She was the only one who actually made a 'nice' putt.  Only one other girl made a putt and that one was 'skulled' and would have gone off the green if it hadn't hit the pin and dropped in.  Erin's was the perfect speed and plopped in on the last turn of the ball.

The first thing they did was talk about golf.  Explaining what "par", "birdie", and 'bogey' means.  How playing golf is a sport you can enjoy all your life even when you get old.

They were taught  the proper stance and where the ball should be in relation to your feet.  You should never take more than two putts per green.  If you don't make the first putt it should be close enough to the hole to make the second one.  She really stressed how important that was.  Two putts are OK, but you never want to 3-putt!  This is the distance of the putt Erin made.

Then they practiced chipping.  Erin can tell you, just like she told Mommy and Daddy when she got home, "Keep you weight on your left foot and the ball between your feet". 

Then they practiced 'pitching'.  And Erin can tell you "you need to pitch the ball sometimes when you need to get it over high grass on sand"









After the lessons Erin and I practiced putting .  It was amazing how much she improved in just 10-15 minutes of putting.