A while ago, I promised an exciting tale of flip-flops and Aldi's bags! And then I got busy and I may have forgotten and ....... um ......... erm .......... Here it is!
I went up to Watkins Glen this past summer and took a guided tour of the gorge. The first day I went, we met up with the tour guide at the bottom of the park just as the clouds started to darken and it started to sprinkle and thunder started to rumble. And still, people were walking past our group and starting up the gorge trail.
Our tour guide (whom I may have had just a little bit of a girl crush on; she was adorable and cute and looked JUST like Reese Witherspoon, except without the alarming chin) said that we should wait to see if the weather cleared before we started up. Someone asked her if it was safe to be in the gorge when it was storming, and she was like, "well, no, the rocks get really slippery, and when lightening enters the gorge it tends to ricochet around, and, well, actually, it's REALLY REALLY DANGEROUS ......", and all the while people were walking past us and starting up.
So! Our tour was postponed until the following day. I had just started out of the park when the skies opened up and it was lightening-ing like crazy and the rains were pouring down ........ and I wondered how all those pooridiots people made out who decided to go up the gorge in the storm.
I went up to Watkins Glen this past summer and took a guided tour of the gorge. The first day I went, we met up with the tour guide at the bottom of the park just as the clouds started to darken and it started to sprinkle and thunder started to rumble. And still, people were walking past our group and starting up the gorge trail.
Our tour guide (whom I may have had just a little bit of a girl crush on; she was adorable and cute and looked JUST like Reese Witherspoon, except without the alarming chin) said that we should wait to see if the weather cleared before we started up. Someone asked her if it was safe to be in the gorge when it was storming, and she was like, "well, no, the rocks get really slippery, and when lightening enters the gorge it tends to ricochet around, and, well, actually, it's REALLY REALLY DANGEROUS ......", and all the while people were walking past us and starting up.
So! Our tour was postponed until the following day. I had just started out of the park when the skies opened up and it was lightening-ing like crazy and the rains were pouring down ........ and I wondered how all those poor
The next day I went back, and took the tour. There were about fifteen people in our group, but of course there were lots and lots of other people there too, just enjoying the gorge. I had on hiking boots, as did a lot of other people, and some people had on sneakers, and ........... some people had on flip-flops. To hike a total of three miles round trip, on a trail that included eight hundred shale steps which get extremely slippery when wet (which is basically all of the time; spray from the falls keeps them that way.)
And! There were women wearing heels! And people with babies in strollers! Yeah, I want to haul a flippin' stroller up eight hundred steps. And I guess I'm being judgmental, but jayzus, show some common sense here, people. Especially since there were signs ALL OVER THE PLACE alerting people to the fact that they were about to climb up a gorge.
Lots of people had day packs to carry their water and stuff. But this one couple really took the cake. Flip-flops? Check. Baby in stroller? Check. Day pack? Oh, nooooo. These guys just crammed a bunch of crap into a plastic Aldi's grocery bag for their little trip up the gorge. I was gonna take a picture, but I didn't want to be, you know, rude or anything. (ha!)
But! I did take a picture of this little guy:
He was just hanging out on the cliff wall, right on the main trail, watching hundreds of people walk by. And nobody noticed, except this one guy who stopped to take a picture of the seemingly-not-particularly-interesting side of the gorge wall, which alerted me.
I wonder why his momma picked that particular spot for the nest - talk about life in the public eye!
4 comments:
That reminds me of something I'd nearly forgotten: there were a couple of hormonally precocious cabinmates at camp who wore patent leather Mary Jane shoes on the ALL DAY hike. Why? Because the BOY campers were joining us.
I didn't wear flip-flops, but I have worn Teva sandals on a hike up Zion Canyon and it was ok. What I needed was a light and flexible shoe with a durable sole that wouldn't blister me and I needed something that would dry out quick in case I had to get in the river (I'm squicky about walking in unfamiliar water barefoot when I'm miles and miles into the backcountry). Looking back, the only thing I was really concerned about was getting snakebit, but I am reptilephobic and worry a little about getting snakebit everywhere, including while standing on a subway platform in Manhattan.
The stroller? Crazy.
Danger, did they wear frilly little ankle socks with the Mary Janes? And did it impress the boys? I have a hard time imagining boys being impressed by footwear!
And Bridgett, our tour guide was wearing Tevas that day. You just have to beware the dreaded toe stubbage (unless you're wearing the closed-toe variety). And, yeah, snakes.
I distanced myself from those people after the Mary Jane incident, and never found out what they did with the boys. Personally, I think my shoes would need Swiss Army knife attachments to impress the not-so-fairer sex.
Post a Comment