Valley Link Trail

2.8 Miles today
22.67 miles completed total

Today we hiked the Valley Link Trail.  The Valley Link starts and ends with the Schumacher trail.  My husband has been joining us more lately.  I don't think he is interested in completing a "Big Year" with us but it is nice to have him come along and spend time with us even though he walks twice as fast and Annie and I always dawdle along behind.

And as the hike went he would get farther, farther, and...

 farther.  Luckily when he would realize he had lost me he would stop and wait.  We would talk for a few minutes and then his long legs would carry him away again.   I would stop every now and again and take a picture which would put me even farther behind.  He's a foot taller than I am which makes me vertically challenged anyway but the camera makes me even slower.  I try to take pictures only every other day otherwise I would never get my heart pumping. :) Here's a picture of the Ohio and Erie Canal.  It's very overgrown but still there after all this time.

We were in a very important area historically.  Even farther back than the canal, prehistoric Indians used this area for hunting a fishing. There was quite a bit of archeological evidence gathered in this area where a sign had been erected telling about tools that had been found.

  Then I found some bring orange fungus growing.  It doesn't look as bright in the picture as it actually was but in life it looked almost neon.  In the pic it looks almost more burnt orange.  I don't know what kind it is but I love it .  I was so excited.  I love fungus right now and think it's so pretty.  I know, I'm hopeless.

I love fungus.  Annie is even starting to point it out to me. At this point Annie grabbed the camera and I love the picture she took.  I think she could win a prize with it  I think it's just a interesting way to look at hiking.  So now that I've totally built it up you're probably gonna be disappointed but here it is anyway. 

I would love to have a picture like this of me and Annie walking.  Maybe my friend will help me with this. 
And here's the Cuyahoga River

This is probably where we were supposed to turn around...but we didn't.  We kept walking. Of course we didn't look at the map before we left.  Who needs the map? Right?  Well if we didn't want to add2 miles maybe we did but we just kept trekking on.  There probably was a sign around there somewhere but we never saw it. 
I saw these two trees that looked like lovers.  I love how they are all twisted together.

 Once we finally got to Sand Run and I don't know what the other road is we decided we must have already walked our 2.8 miles. so we decided to turn around.  It's a good thing because by the time we finally ended this hike I was really tired.  Here is Annie with the arrowhead marking Portage Path. 

We tried to speed up the pace on the way back because Francis did have to get to work by 2 and we had quite a ways to go by this point but there were a few pictures I couldn't refuse. 

 Liked the orange fungus :)

Not a very good picture but it was this weird thing growing.

I'm not sure what kind of tree this is but I think this is insect damage that is on the bark.  Do you see the circles that almost seem eaten into the bark. That is the only thing I was able to figure out.  I saw it on about 3 trees right in that area.  Not sure what it was.  If you know please tell me.

 And finally our fungus flowers.  We couldn't get very close because they were under a bridge but I did my best.  Annie and I thought they were pretty so eventhough we don't have spring flowers yet we have fungus flowers.  Ahh the joys of nature. :)