Summer Hike

At one time I quit hiking in the summer. The high temperatures, ticks, and spider webs along the trail made it difficult to enjoy the hike. This year I discovered gravel roads. Why not just find a decent gravel road, park the car and walk? The roads are wide (compared to hiking trails) Few are traveled much, and if you choose the right one they can offer the solitude of a hiking trail. My biggest obstacle is dogs. A lot of folks that have homes in the country have big dogs that are quite territorial. Another obstacle is if a car does come down the lane the dust cloud it produces can make it difficult to breathe. The rock called chat makes the worst dust. Its soft rock so each time a car drives down it the rocks tend to get crushed a little more creating lots of dusty particles. Hiking after a rainstorm can eliminated this problem. This gravel road is part of the Tower Rock Nature Area Perry County Missouri. I was passed twice on this hike, once was a pickup with a trailer heading up to his property, and the other was a farmer on a tractor.

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