XY and XX Hikers

On Saturday I had to get up early to deposit son#1 at non-local HS to take his SATs. So, I got to the gym early, had plenty of time to stretch, do assorted core activities, take a spin class, do UBWO, and stretch out some more! I sure felt it the next day, but it was a great feeling.

On Sunday I did some trail maintenance with my hiking buddies. Our first task was to clean up the "white trail." It made me realize how much maintenance these trails really need. There were several downed trees across the trails, and since we were not carrying a chain saw, all we could do was cut off as many of the branches as possible so you could easily hop over the trees. We hammered some new trail markers onto the trees (leave a half inch of the nail out, to allow the tree to grow without popping off the marker), and lopped off overhead branches that could poke your eye out! Our second assigned task was to try to finish the yellow trail so it connected back to the blue trail. It was like a dream come true for the people in our hiking group with gender XY. Wander around in the woods without having to ask for directions. Tell hikers with gender XX that all you need is a compass and a topographical map to succeed in this mission. When mission fails, blame it on lack of adequate number of XY hikers. When we finished a little walk in the woods and found ourselves at a trailhead about a mile away from where the cars were parked, XX hikers walked down the road to the deli to enjoy refreshments and conversation while XY hikers made their way back to the cars (we assume on marked trails, but we can never be sure). We walked up and down some big hills, had some good laughs, and definitely burned some calories. We saw some incredible wildlife, including a very new faun sleeping in the tall grass.