I snuck away last Friday to try out a hike at Strouds Run State Park, which is located a whopping twelve minutes away from our new homestead.

The map I'd downloaded off the internet didn't give me a very good idea of distances, so I lucked into a bite-size loop --- Thunderbunny Trail to Vista Point Trail to White Pine Trail back to Thunderbunny Trail. I'm guessing the walk was about 1.5 to 2 miles, with one short but steepish uphill and the rest a gentle stroll through towering white pines, an oak ridge, and a hillside coated in sugar maples.

The Thunderbunny portion of the walk suffered a bit from proximity to the road. But I enjoyed the location anyway when I found a big patch of yellow-capped mushrooms and a grove of regenerating white pines to catch my interest.

Later, there was a lovely vista of Dow Lake (shown at the top of this post) and a fascinating if rather inconspicous Indian Mound.

Mostly, though, I just enjoyed the trees.

One trail explored. At least a dozen within a similar distance from our farm left to check out!