Sixteen TrailBlazers were champing at the bit to get back on the trail after we only managed to get in one hike, a TrailBlazer first, during the January Operation Deep Freeze Arkansas. Some of us were beginning to wonder if we had become candidates for The Biggest Loser! The good news is that we had at least four newcomers to fill out our ranks. 

We headed down to the Ouachitas to Brushy Creek, but we hiked it a little differently than usual. We went up the mountain and came back down, but did not start out on the section where there are several creek crossings. We were concerned about creek levels, and nobody was particularly anxious to do any wading in water shoes in a chilly creek. Rock hopping in boots is one thing, cold wet feet is another! We started down the road, crossed the bridge, and then started up the wooden staircase leading to the trail to the top. 

It was cool when we started but we soon warmed up on the upward trek as we huffed and puffed our way up – OK, only some of us did some heavy breathing. We took a side trip over to a high ridge for lunch. It was a scenic spot, but windy, so we had definitely cooled down by the time we got back on the trail. A really neat sight as we finished the hike was the water cascading in the creek. Yours Truly risked life, limb, and her knobby knees to scramble down the steep bank for some photos, and she is not entirely happy with them. Oh, well, it is the thought that counts! Let’s hope for good weather for next week.