Driving and hiking

The weatherman charitably referred to the current Arctic cold blast as "January-esque winter conditions," but that doesn't stop our stalwart hiking group. After an hour drive, we met the group to go hiking at Marengo Ridge, only to discover it closed for deer hunting season. So we came up with Plan B and drove a few miles away to Coral Woods Conservation Area. You guessed it -- Closed for deer season. Okay, we're flexible, and we did drive a long way, so on to Plan C -- breakfast at the cute Marengo Cafe...




... and during the tasty meal, we devised Plan D, and subsequently drove to Moraine Hills SP. Guess what! Closed for deer hunting! Well, we're highly educated, self-actualized adults, able to control frustration, able to remain calm and flexible and be open to other solutions, so we caucused and determined a Plan E, and then drove back to Wauconda's Lakewood Forest Preserve. So, after over 2 hours of driving and 80+ miles traveled, we wound up hiking 4+ miles in the forest preserve that is a mere couple miles from my house!



It was a nice hike in the woods, despite temps in the 20s, and the sunny sky added to the enjoyment. And the irony was obvious to us, for we rarely see deer at the places with the hunting season, whereas we saw nearly 2 dozen deer where we were allowed to hike. Maybe deer are pretty smart after all!