* Shrimp Boil *
It’s been over a month since I've last posted! At the beginning of September, Paul and I went to visit my parents in WV. I love going back in the summer when all the flowers are blooming and everything is beautiful and green, not to mention the weather is great. The first family thing we did was to have a good southern shrimp boil. My dad thinks it’s very nifty to eat out in the yard with the food piled on a board (covered with plastic of course!) supported by sawhorses. I believe it was a success! I also got to see my godson Daniel and his mom Naomi : ).
* Rattlesnakes * 
My dad has been doing a bit of research on a couple of populations of rattlesnakes in some extremely rugged mountain areas, so of course we wanted to check out the dens and see some snakes. Above are the snake hunters, my dad tubing a snake to safely (for him and the snake both!) collect data, and a baby rattlesnake.
My dad has been doing a bit of research on a couple of populations of rattlesnakes in some extremely rugged mountain areas, so of course we wanted to check out the dens and see some snakes. Above are the snake hunters, my dad tubing a snake to safely (for him and the snake both!) collect data, and a baby rattlesnake.* Via Ferrata *
The last highlight (or extremely dumb thing we did) of the trip was an excursion I went on with my Mom. Paul and my Dad don’t care that much for heights, so they went snake hunting again. My Mom decided she really needed to climb the Via Ferrata at Nelson Rocks Preserve and needed someone to go with her. As I don’t really have issues with heights, I volunteered. Little did we know what we were getting into. The Via Ferrata is long rock climbing route with permanently fixed cables for protection that you are clipped into AT ALL TIMES! We ended up climbing 2 parallel rock fins of Tuscarora sandstone that jut out of the mountain from the top to the valley and tower hundreds of feet above the treetops. Needless to say, there were some very choice expletives tossed around when we climbed up the front face and could see what we had to climb to get down the back face and up the front face of the second rock fin. We had to cross a swinging bridge stretched between the two fins made up of a couple of cables and some 2 x 4’s with 1.5 ft gaps between them. The scenery was spectacular and the climb was defiantly interesting (read: have a very healthy respect for safety lines!). I think I will double check any of my mother’s schemes in the future to figure out exactly what she is getting me into. We had a great time! However, after Paul and I had been back home in MS for a week, my mom called and told us a girl had just fallen off the Via Ferrata and was killed. She was going around a tree, wasn’t clipped in, slipped and fell over 150 ft to the ground. I still recommend the climb though, my mom and I had no trouble; that just reinforced the need to always be clipped to the cable, no matter the situation or how comfortable you feel.
The last highlight (or extremely dumb thing we did) of the trip was an excursion I went on with my Mom. Paul and my Dad don’t care that much for heights, so they went snake hunting again. My Mom decided she really needed to climb the Via Ferrata at Nelson Rocks Preserve and needed someone to go with her. As I don’t really have issues with heights, I volunteered. Little did we know what we were getting into. The Via Ferrata is long rock climbing route with permanently fixed cables for protection that you are clipped into AT ALL TIMES! We ended up climbing 2 parallel rock fins of Tuscarora sandstone that jut out of the mountain from the top to the valley and tower hundreds of feet above the treetops. Needless to say, there were some very choice expletives tossed around when we climbed up the front face and could see what we had to climb to get down the back face and up the front face of the second rock fin. We had to cross a swinging bridge stretched between the two fins made up of a couple of cables and some 2 x 4’s with 1.5 ft gaps between them. The scenery was spectacular and the climb was defiantly interesting (read: have a very healthy respect for safety lines!). I think I will double check any of my mother’s schemes in the future to figure out exactly what she is getting me into. We had a great time! However, after Paul and I had been back home in MS for a week, my mom called and told us a girl had just fallen off the Via Ferrata and was killed. She was going around a tree, wasn’t clipped in, slipped and fell over 150 ft to the ground. I still recommend the climb though, my mom and I had no trouble; that just reinforced the need to always be clipped to the cable, no matter the situation or how comfortable you feel.
4 comments:
Oh HELP! What have you been doing, you and your mom!!! You seem to be quite adventurous!!!
My mom's a retired science teacher who still does geology classes and likes to get out and hike a bit. We weren't qite expecting it to be so challenging!
gretch i see why you guys call the shrimp, they are tiny. I will see you in december not to many sleeps
um, that's one climb you would have to take without me.
Post a Comment