Buggy Top Cave

Yesterday was an amazing day. We headed out to hike to Buggy Top Cave in Swanee, Tennessee. We started our trip mid day to drive to Swanee on top of Monteagle Mountain in Tennessee.
Buggy Top Cave is 80 feet high and 100 feet wide at the entrance. It has a rushing river spewing from the inside. The trail to the cave is about 5 miles long and is considered a moderate trail. The first portion of the trail climbs upward for a about a quarter mile then it plateaus. The walking is easy on the plateau, but watch for some muddy sections. The climb down to the cave was steep, but was well worth the trip.

Our dog Smash loved hiking with us, and we learned how well he can jump from boulder to boulder with the use of only three legs. The hike was tiring, but we had a good adventure. Mike saw one snake on the side of the trail going back up. There was plenty of new blooms, especially Dogwoods. Our dog even saw the chipmunks. He wanted to chase them, but he could only go as far as his leash would allow. We even saw evidence of deer along the trail.

If you are looking for an adventure, or you love to explore around caves, Buggy Top is a great place to visit.

My Daddy

To My Daddy

I always said I am "Daddy's little girl"

On Monday, January 16, 2012 my daddy transitioned to a new life when the angels took him to heaven. He started that day with lots of pain, but he left us with peacefulness surrounding him.

I will miss you daddy, but I am remembering the wonderful times we had as a family. I remember when I came home from school on the bus. I would look to see if your Studebaker was there and I always felt safe knowing you were there to meet me.

You always had a smile for me, Carol, and Len. You often laughed and our home was always filled with love. You never really raised your voice to us, but we knew when we needed to "adjust" our attitude.

You had a genuine love for us, but I know I saw it in what you did. You showed me love by how you treated our mama. You helped her in so many ways and always smiled at her. You not only listened, but you heard what was spoken to you. I know we joked saying you had selective hearing, but you always listened.

I just want to say, I will always be your little girl and I will always honor and respect you, and I will always remember you with lots of love and a big smile.

To you my daddy

From your little girl

Health and Wellness

Health And Wellness

Are you out there looking for healthy ways to help lose weight? Do you wonder if you will be able to keep the weight off? Are you looking for the right diet? Like many other people are you one that tries every diet for can find? Well, maybe dieting is not the answer.

When someone says they are on a diet I wonder if they will stick to it, and of course many do not. What people need to do is look at how their lifestyle can be changed and make the changes. Loosing weight also involves what you think about food and it also includes your level of stress.

I used to be one of those who could eat almost anything and never have to worry about weight gain. My metabolism was high and my stress level was low. However, throughout the years my metabolism has slowed and my stress level has become high. These two things has contributed to my weight gain. These two things also contributed to my heart attack a year ago.

Since my heart attack I have been looking for ways to decrease my weight by increasing my metabolism and alleviating stress. I have looked for many things, but what I have found is the answer is the same. Eat healthier foods, exercise more and think positive.

While eating healthier foods and exercise is not always easier, Staying positive is the hardest for me to do. I tend to let my mind wander sometimes and I find myself thinking about stuff that stresses me out. However, I have two wonderful pets who sense when I am stressing and one of them will do something to bring my mind back into perspective. The dog will either bark or the cat will crawl into my lap to be petted. This really does help and I am finding it its soothing for me and my pets to have me think in more positive ways.

As for eating healthier, I am doing my best to eat more fruits and vegetables and am drinking more water. I am also taking a vitamin supplement called OPC3 and one called ORAC. I can easily take these because they come in an isotonic form. and they taste great!

My friend Jennifer also takes these vitamin supplements and they help greatly with her asthma. When she takes these two products, she breathes easier and she used her inhaler LESS! These two products can also help with loosing weight because they help you to get rid of the free radicals in your body and help your body to detox. To find out more about these two vitamin supplements you can check out this link.

http://tinyurl.com/3hnpo5h

Another product you can use is NutriClean Probiotics. This product provides good bacteria to help your digestive tract and it helps your immune system. To learn more about NutriClean check out this link.

http://tinyurl.com/3bj5ra7

If you are looking to be healthy and lose weight check out OPC3, ORAC, and NutriClean. They really are good for you!

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

The Glass Castle

I just finished reading the book The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. It is a book of true courage and determination. How can s family so dysfunctional be so close.

Throughout this book I kept wondering how can a child grow up like this and still become some who graduates from college and does so well in her life. So many other people grew up the same way, and what you hear from many is how bad their life was and they still cannot seem to get out of the situation. They blame their parents, grandparents and anyone else they feel has it better.

In The Glass Castle, you find a daughter who makes the best out of her situation, and she learns how to face life and except all that comes her way. Her father and mother were loving, but they often seemed most often to do what they considered best for them. Although the parents did say many times that the lessons they learned while doing without would make them stronger, it sometimes appeared that they just simple neglected the children.

The father taught them to love the outdoors and to appreciate the outdoors as well. He gave them a sense of adventure whenever they moved to another place. He even taught them the value of appreciation in his on strange way.

The mother was closed off most of the time, and appeared weak. This was especially seem when the father would come home drunk; she would hide from him and have the children deal with him. She had lots of mood swings, which caused her to act more like a child than a parent. However it was during these times the children learned to fend for themselves and they learned to not always depend on others for their survival.

It was the children who most people suffered the most. However, I saw individuals who grew up strong and able to face life. The children found their place in the world by helping each other and looking out for each other. Strong family ties developed between them and because of this they each grew up strong and independent thinkers.

So whenever you want to blame everyone else for what is happening in your life, stop and think about the positive things in your life and appreciate what you have and where you came from.

You can find The Glass Castle here. http://tinyurl.com/4pgab9p

Getting Into The Flow

Life Is Really Easy

Sometimes it seems that life is just to difficult, but usually that means we are going against the flow of life. Going with the flow is much easier, but human nature seems to tell us to take control and pick up the "oars".

I sometimes feel as if I am not going anywhere, but in reality I am fighting the current and trying to be in control. I know I must let go and allow my true Spirit (my God) be the one in control.

Right now life seems difficult for me, but I know my God (Spirit) is leading me now to a better life, a better opportunity, a better everything.

As Abraham Hicks would say, "Why not go with the flow?"

http://tinyurl.com/2v5

Fall Crawl Black Mountain Harlan, KY

Fall Crawl and Black Mountain A Rider's Point of View

This past weekend was a blast. We were at Black Mountain in Harlan, KY with a group of really great people. We were there for the annual Fall Crawl.

This year we had lots of fun with varying weather conditions. The first day there we had thunder, rain, hail, freezing rain, snow, and sunshine. This happened while on the trails. No matter what the weather we found plenty to have fun.

I may not drive one of the wheeling Jeeps, but I rode with my friend Jenny in her XJ named Princess. I had an exciting time riding. (Before we left for the trails the doors had to come off Princess.) Jenny is a good driver and she can handle Princess. We started on a new trail called Pappy's Pass. This was a trail with switchbacks and mud, and it is rated a Truck Class 3 trail. It was a fairly easy trail to run along the ridge over to the White Tail Camp. It was at White Tail Camp where I videoed a couple of the guys and their rigs going up White Tail Trail rock crawl. It was at this site where we experienced the changing weather in one day.

After playing here for a while we got back into the rigs and headed to Trail 15 which is rated a Truck Class 4 trail. This trail was slippery and it was said to be a great trail to learn how to trust our rig and yourself. I thought of it as a trial on which I had to also trust the driver to know what she was doing. Jenny and Princess with her new tires proved they know how to get through slippery mud on the up slopes and the down slopes as well. Great driving Jenny and get handling Princess; love your new shoes (tires).

After a cold night at camp (cold when I got away from the campfire) we started a new day heading up to Middle Fork. At first we were going to run the other end of Trail 15, but found the first hill to be a challenge and knowing the second hill would be tougher some of us decided to run Trail 20 and meet up with the ones who ran Trail 15. It worked out great. We all met at the intersection of 15, 20. and 12 at the same time.

Before heading to the Truck Challenge Course we went to a small rock garden close to the Little Stadium and a trail named Frankenstein. Jenny decided to take Princess over the rock garden and once again Princess showed how well her tires worked.

We then headed to the Truck Challenge Course and the Soup Bowl. after a rest time at The Stadium. At the Truck Challenge Course there was a big pile of boulders that some of the guys took their rigs over. While they were doing this Josh decided to check out the Soup Bowl which looked like a small pond to me. He got his truck to swim across the width of the soup bowl where his rig had to climb up a small but fairly steep hill. Evan decided to take his rig for a swim going the length of the Soup Bowl. As his rig came out of the Soup Bowl water drained out from every where or so it appeared. There was a rust hold in the floor where much of the water drained out. Of course Evan had wet feet for the rest of the day.

After playing here we decided to head back to camp. We had two rigs that needed some repair. That night found us once again huddled by the campfire with many telling stories of the day.

The next day we once again got up to the cold weather and headed out to run Trail 15 uphill. With the snow and rain Trail 15 was to prove itself a challenge. When we got to the muddy slope Mitch was sliding back down and got himself aid a bit of a pickle. After Mitch made it to the top it would soon be Jenny and Princess's turn. However, before she went uphill Tall Mitch took his Jeep up the trail. He got a little stuck and with the help of Josh he made it to the top.

Then Jenny was told it was her turn. She told everyone to get out of the way because she and Princess were not stopping until they reached the top. Jenny stepped on the gas and we were off to the top. Princess and her new tires dug in and with cheering from the guys and Jenny and Princess's determination we made it to the top. Princess did get a laugh from Jenny when she sprayed mud on Jenny's nose.LOL

We went back up to White Tail Camp and had lunch. From there some of the guys went to get lunch while Mike and Scuffy led the way down Trail 22 to the trail called T.R.O.U.B.L.E. We checked out this trail and decided it would be more fun to run uphill instead of downhill on the slippery eaves. It also looked as thought it had been run in quite some time. We took trail 22 over to Trail 18 which had a couple of interesting climbs. Princess hung her bumper cap on a log, but she didn't mind.

We eventually made it over to the Lower Rock Garden where Jenny drove up the trail for her first time and Frosty came down the trail toward her. On her second run I decided to ride with her and it all looked so easy from inside the Jeep. Mike said at one time that the skull and crossbones on the tread was the only thing pulling Princess up onto one rock.

After the Lower Rock Garden we headed to Rail Bed. This is the trail where Princess hung over the side of the cliff at Spring Fling. She was determined to not let this trail beat her again. There are three ways out of this trail. One trail goes by the boulder Jenny was staring out when she hung over the cliff. The second trail is the trial that Jenny was taking when dirt came out from under her and Princess at Spring Fling. The third way out was the way most of the rigs were taken this time. It had been rutted out and some of us had to be helped up to the top with a tug. Jenny and Princess however made it up the furtherest before having to be tugged.

After the adventure of this day, we all headed back to camp for a wonderful and tasty steak and potato boat dinner around the campfire. Once again the guys did a great job and the dinner was a success. It was a great four days! We all had fun, and with the doors off we got muddy, wet, cold and had a total blast !!!!!

Turtletown Falls Tennessee Hikes

Turtletown Falls and Tennessee Hikes

This weekend on Saturday Mike, Smash, myself, along with Jennifer and Caleb went on a hike to Turtletown Falls. The trip there was interesting and long because we were following directions that did not take us directly there.

The directions to the falls is actually easy. Travel highway 64 East to Ducktown, TN and take highway 68 North to Turtletown,TN. Turn left at the post office in Turtletown onto Farner Road and go approximately 3 miles to the sign marking Turtletown Creek Falls. Drive to the parking for the trail and start hiking up the trail. I believe the entire trail is about 1.5 miles long. As you near the falls you can take the trail to the left which will take you to the bottom of the falls.

At the falls you will see a beautiful sight. the falls come over a boulder that juts out over the creek and the falls split to go over both sides of the boulder. You can walk in the water under the falls but the stream is swift as it travels on sown the creek. The water is clear and cool and will cool you off from the hike.

Our dog Smash laid down in the water to cool off. He loved the cool water and he was so cute gulping the water as fast as he could. While playing in the water Caleb lost a shoe and it went floating downstream. Mike and Smash hiked down the trail and caught up with it since it got caught in an eddy. Caleb was happy to have his shoe back and he make sure he kept up with them after that.

After we all cooled down we hiked back to the Suburban and headed back to Cleveland,TN.