Ouachita Trail Adventure Mile marker approx 188 - 192 (Lake Sylvia to Hwy 9)

Well last weekend it was time for another trail adventure on the Ouachita Trail (OT), this adventure would take me from Lake Sylvia to the Hwy 9 trail head.  The distance was around 5 miles out and back.  I didn't really know what to expect going into this run/hike, but was looking forward to it.  The trail started off going uphill on a gradual slope towards the Nancy Shelter.  Most of the trail was bench cut with the "valley/creek" below you.  The trail was very clear to follow and well marked.  It was not that rocky and only had a couple of trees down on it.  The first 2.5 miles were uphill and then you dropped back down towards Hwy 9.  The views of the creek were great.  There were no sweeping vista views for this hike, but still it was nice to be on the trail. 

52 Places to go in 2014 Article

So where do you want to go?  Pretty good article on places to go visit.  A few of these are my list - Nepal being one of the top.  I thought seeing Indianapolis and Downtown LA on the list were different. 

http://nyti.ms/19iFvGz

Ouachita Trail from Mileage 187 to 183 OAB

On Sunday Jan. 5th, I went out to Lake Sylvia to run/hike a section of the Ouachita Trail from Lake Sylvia parking area to about mile marker 183.

To get to the OT, you take an approx .5 mile trail spur from the Lake Sylvia parking lot.

The trail begins with an uphill climb for around 3 miles to the Flat Side Pinnacle.  The trail heading up to this area is bench cut and easy to follow.  I had no trouble locating the trail even when some trail markers were hard to find.

Once you reach the Flat Side Pinnacle you can scramble your way up to the top to get some good views of the Ouachita mountains.  The day I went it was pretty cloudy and windy, but I was till able to enjoy the views.

From here you have approx 2 miles downhill towards Brown Creek Rd/FR 805.  Again the trail here was well marked and easy to follow.  There were a couple of flat sections, but it was mainly pretty clean trail with some rocky spots.

At the turnaround area below:

This was a very enjoyable hike.  It was a lot of up and down, but I took it easy on the trail and enjoyed the day.  I think my next hike/run will be from Lake Sylvia east to Hwy 9.

Overview Picture

Yes it's cold outside

Clear and cold weather make a great sunsrise!

Trail Running the OT Mile Markers 202 to 198 approx.

One of my goals for the new year is to increase my trail running for the first part of the year.  Trail running gives me new places to explore and new challenges.  The first part of my trail running goal is try to run as much of the Ouachita Trail as possible.  So far, I've run the trail from the Pinnacle visitor center west to just past 300 a little ways.  Last weekend, I decided to go ahead and try to run from Hwy 10 west working my way to Hwy 9.  The plan was for an 8 mile run, 4 miles out and 4 miles back.  This part of the trail follows the Maumelle River for most of the miles.  The first 3 miles followed the river and was flat and easy to follow.  As I approached mile 3-4, the trail was a little overgrown, but not too bad along the river, before heading more into the woods where it was easy follow again.  The views over the river were great and the change into the woods was nice also.  Miles 3-4 were also uphill.  This was a change from the overall flat of most of the route.  Overall, it was a great run. 

The mileage for the trail was from Mile 202 to Mile 198 approx. 

Trail Head at Hwy 10

Turnaround Mile 4.1 or so, at the top

Before you make your goals for 2014 watch this

Very cool video.  Makes sit back and think.  This video doesn't just apply to sports, but applies to all aspects of your life.  They could have used other images to portray that.  You just have to think about the words and go out and achieve. 

The Dialect test

Everyone has been taking this on facebook, so I figured I would go ahead and see where my answers put me.  The test was 25 questions on how you refer to certain items or say different words.  My results came out as the following for most similar, Jackson, Shreveport, and Lubbock.  I lived in Mississippi for about half my life, so this one made sense to me.  Shreveport because I'm from the south.  Of course, Lubbock was the confusing one.  I guess my words and speech span the south.


Results here - 
http://nyti.ms/1hCPBCl

Beautiful Earth - Looking for A Purpose

Awesome video, love the landscapes and the meaning! Find your purpose!

Ice Adventure Run

Arkansas was hit with an ice storm on Friday.   I usually try to get out and explore after the winter storms and today was no exception.   I went out on a 5.5 mile run with the goal of running too the top of the Ridge.  I was hoping to get a nice photo.

The roads were a mix of ice and clear.  The best spots to run was the grass.  The ice on the grass gave you a nice base to run on.  I managed to make it to the top and took a nice picture.  Overall it was a fun run, walk, and slide with one fall.

Run Anywhere

Never leave home without them!   Run Anywhere!  

Thought I had posted this, guess not.  Been traveling a lot for work llately and never leave the shoes at home!

Road Trip

20 hrs and close to 1400 miles ahead of me.

Ironman Wisconsin 2014

On September 16th, I made the decision to sign up for Ironman Wisconsin in 2014!  I have been wanting to complete an Ironman for awhile now, but just would never take that leap to sign up.  I finally felt that I was ready to go and registered the day it opened.  Good thing because it was filled about 3 hrs after it had opened. 

Why Wisconsin, well I knew that this has been described as a great course that is spectator friendly and numerous and a challenge also.  I was not looking for a flat course and this is not one of those courses.  It has a lot rolling hills that will challenge you all day.  Another reason, is that it is reasonable to get to.  I have family that live in Chicago, so I could fly in there and drive up from there.  Also, they know people in Madison, so I have some places to stay and even chances to head up there before the race and pre-ride the course.

I'm looking forward to challenge of the training and race day in September 2014!