Throwback Thursday

I love the Throwback Thursday theme online and on Fox News Channel's Fox and Friends weekday program.  I enjoy looking at friend's TBT pictures and laughing at how they looked back in the day.

This one brought back a LOT of memories.  Back in our younger days, my long time friend, Nancy, and I did a lot of backpacking and canoe camping trips in the backwoods of the Adirondacks, and day hikes to all over.  This particular picture is from a weekend backpacking trip into Wanika Falls, near Lake Placid.  Jen, who later became my daughter-in-law, was with us on this trip.

Oh, the stories I could tell about our adventures!

My friends know I carry a legally licensed concealed firearm.  There was one trip Nancy and I did with another lady whom we knew, maybe a little better than "casually."  She was an avid backpacker and we invited her along on a week long backpacking trip in the Adirondack Park of New York State.  I wasn't going to mention the fact that I carried.  But Nancy did.  The atmosphere became a little tense after that conversation.  The subject wasn't brought up again. . . until after our first night on the trail!  It was getting late in the day and we needed to find a place to camp.  The only spot available was on a lake where a gang of guys in a motorboat had taken up residence with several cases of beer.  We pitched our tents as far away from the leanto (which, by the way, by state law is only available to canoe campers and backpackers. . . not motorboats) as we could.  Fortunately, the men left us alone.  The next day on the trail, the other lady told me she felt comfortable knowing I had my firearm. . . just in case.

On another backpacking trip, with just me and Nancy, she brought along a two pound chunk of German sausage.  I didn't like the sausage at all!  She did.  But two pounds is a lot of weight when you are backpacking.  After a few days on the trail, we ran into a German couple. . . it was obvious by their accent!  Nancy and I looked at each other as soon as we heard them talk.  "Would you like this German sausage that we have but Sherry doesn't care for?" Nancy asked.  Their eyes were like those of a kid on Christmas morning.  They were hiking for three weeks and their food consisted of freeze dried food and rice cakes.

They were totally thrilled to get "REAL FOOD" as one of them exclaimed. . . and we were more than happy to get rid of the extra, unwanted weight!

Several winters "back in the day" Nancy and I and whoever else we could talk into coming along would stay at a bed and breakfast in the high peaks region of the Adirondacks and spend our days snowshoeing or cross country skiing in the backwoods.  One winter, it was just me and Nancy.  The owner of the B&B offered to drive us in to Lake Placid and drop us off at the trailhead of the Jack Rabbit Trail, a wonderful long distance cross country trail.  We left a car at our end spot.  We spent the day on a truly delightful cross country ski through the woods.  At mid-day, we came to a nice little restaurant where we had a wonderful hot lunch that energized us for the rest of the afternoon.  I will remember that day for the rest of my life.  It was just a leisurely, very scenic, fun day.  We went at our own pace, neither one of us into setting any speed records.  I would love to do that ski trip again someday.

Isn't it amazing how running across an old picture can bring back great memories from the past?