Hiking: Woolly Hollow State Park

I've had an itch for some hiking for a couple of weeks, so this morning we packed up the kiddos early and hit Woolly Hollow state park (east of Greenbrier) for a 3 mile hike.

I packed lots of water, apples, and cookies in the hopes that the kids would actually have fun instead of thinking it was too much work. It almost worked...

The first sign that things were not 100% in kid land was Alyssa's comment that her legs were tired. While the trailhead was still in sight. Ugh.

But once we got going, it turned out mostly ok. It was an easy walk, not a lot of up and down, and the path was well maintained although mostly single file. The shoulder that would have been used to haul the girl up and down small hills was kinda grateful for the inability to walk beside her. But overall, she was a trooper until we got into the third mile and it got hot. Can't say I blame her, but it's a bit hard to go zen with nature when the little one next to you is chanting "owwwww" with every step. I tried changing it to "ommmmmm" but she just hit me. Suppose I deserved it.

I totally enjoyed the walk, though. There was still a cool breeze, even at 10 this morning, and the kiddos still walk slowly enough to let me lag at the back and enjoy looking around and taking in the views.

I'd like to do some more of these day hikes, there are a ton of beautiful areas nearby, but the challenge will be getting the kids - errrr, girl - on board. Maybe more chocolate chip cookies next time...