This is a trail I have been wanting to hike for a long time. The one thing I can say about the adventure challenge is that it has really motivated me to get up and do the stuff I’m always talking about wanting to do.
I went with a friend up to Smithville, MO. I heard there are really great bike trails around the lake. We found a tail just off of the main paved biking trail and cut through the woods. I never really figured out if we were on the Copperhead Trail or Whispering Pines. We hiked a total of 3 miles so I’m guessing we were on a little of both. I would have liked to hiked longer but we went too late in the early afternoon and it got too hot.
The most surprising thing on this trail was my encounter with a snake. I heard the rattle before I saw the snake. Growing up in Kansas (and many early years on a farm), rattle snakes aren’t uncommon. When I’m hiking I often hear animals moving in the brush to the side of the trail and I try to tread lightly and quickly. I was leading down the trail and my friend was talking. I heard the rattle and immediately stopped. I didn’t say anything, but kept looking for where the sound was coming from. My friend, not noticing my sudden stop, came quickly up beside me, where a snake jumped and then slithered away into the woods. I won’t lie, I nearly peed my pants. It was less than a foot from us and it was huge. I hate snakes. I have no idea why they creep me out so much, but they do. It left me paranoid for at least the next 20 minutes, jumping at everything small noise I heard in the brush.
Break the Rules 