New Hiking Group

We have started a new hiking group at my church, and today was our first hike. I wanted to lead a beginner's hike for those who are new to hiking. (Psst....I'll let you in on a little secret...it's just walking!) Radnor is a great hike because:

• It's convenient. Located in South Nashville, it just takes half an hour or so to get there.
• It's flat, though offers a variety of trails if you want more distance or ridges. Also, half of the lake trail is paved, and the rest is well maintained.
• It's absolutely gorgeous! There are beautiful trees and wildflowers, excellent views of the lake and creeks flowing into it, and there's much wildlife to be found. I hiked it quickly Tuesday night and saw deer, red-eared sliders (turtles), Canada geese, mallards with ducklings, otter, chipmunk, squirrels, and woodpeckers.

We had a bit of bad weather brewing on Saturday, and due to various other circumstances, our group for the Radnor Hike was reduced to three people (including me).We decided to try to go ahead and do the hike, praying that the rain would hold off. It did not. We were about a half mile down the trail when it started raining. We were under tree cover, so that wasn't too bad. Then the sky turned dark and the thunder and lightning started, so we turned around and went back to the visitor's center.

We ate some lunch while we hoped the storm would pass, and Shirley looked around in the visitor's center. The ranger was nice enough to look up the radar on her computer. While the major line of storms, had passed, it was obvious that the rain was not going to let up anytime soon. We headed back to the church. I expressed my regret that they didn't get to see much of the area, but they both said they were glad they came. I'll probably try to lead this one again this summer, but I'll probably do an early morning hike so it won't be too hot.