Sleeping Giant Video Diary

What does doo-wop, classic cars, nuns, and mountains have in common? Normally nothing unless you hike Sleeping Giant on Memorial Day. Check out the video diary to see what I mean.

Sleeping Giant State Park, Hamden CT

Hope you enjoyed your Memorial Day. Weather was perfect in Connecticut so me and my sis decided to hit the trails. Didn't go to crazy today. We headed up to Sleeping Giant in Hamden, CT right across the street from Quinnipiac College where there was a Classic Car show taking place. So between the crowds on the trails and the booming doo-wop music from below the wilderness factor was at an all time low. It's a pretty challenging hike though, especially the begininig when you hike up very steep trap rock next to a huge quarry. The Tower at the 740 foot summit offers amazing views. I didn't take too many videos but I will still post them tomorrow. In the meantime enjoy the picture slide show. The music selection and product placement is purely coincidental......

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What's in my pack? Day Hike Essentials

Happy Memorial Day fellow Ramblers. It the Wandering Poet Frankie Faz with a behind the scenes webisode of TalesFromTheTrails. As promised here is the "What's in my pack" segment I mentioned a few weeks ago. Check out the items you should bring along when you venture out in the woods. On a side note I apologize in advance for the lens cap that makes numerous appearances in the video. I upgraded my camera and am still getting used to recording with it. The old one didn't have a lens cap to get in the way. I bought a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20 10 MP Digital Camera with 10x Optical Zoom and Super Steady Shot Image Stabilization
I have much more zoom and the ability to record HD video. So now I can get you guys up close and personal with creatures without having to actually get up close and personal with creatures.

Well enjoy the vid. Next hike will be Sleeping Giant in Hamden CT. I have hiked this one a few times but never had the chance to record it for the blog. Have a great rest of the weekend, and get your ass outside!

Mystery Solved-Black Rat Snake, NOT a Rattler!

"OK he is hidden in the grass but you get the idea. Jumped right in front of me and was at least 6 feet long. When he was hiding in the grass his rattler was rattlin' real loud! I decided it was then time to move along. Click on the pic for a high resolution view where you really will be able to see him. If you are getting this post via email or RSS feed click HERE to go to the site."

So the above text is what I wrote in the heat of the moment. Some days have gone by, I have now calmed down, and have had some time to research what kind of snake I saw. The answer my friend is the Black Rat Snake. After reading about it I have learned a few things.
A: NOT venomous (whew!). NY has three venomous snakes, timber rattlesnake, the massasauga, and the copperhead. The good news is that they are all very rare.
B: I did not exaggerate when I estimated the size was 6 feet. These guys can grow up to 8 feet!
C. I also wasn't lying when I said it's tail was rattling because these snakes do vibrate their tails to mimic the sound of the rattle snake. Congrats Mr. Snake, your tail vibrating did it's job and scared the crap out of me!
OK so I feel a little safer going in the woods knowing most of these guys are not venomous. So lets make a pact creatures of the woods, don't mess with me & I won't mess with you. This includes all you wild chickens and turkeys out there too!

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Fishkill Ridge Conservation Area Slide Show

Fun with Creed and movie transitions to make a short slide show. Oh and PS, next post is going to be a high resolution pic of the mack daddy snake I saw. You guys probably think I exaggerated but if you take a good look in the grass you will see that this was a big ssssssssssssssssssssucker!
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Fishkill Ridge Conservation Area Video Diaries

Real tough hike today. 5 miles, 3 1/2 hours, 1,700 foot vertical rise. This sucker was steep, buggy, and, well that's all I am gonna say. The video diaries will give the you the dirty details. I would NOT recommend this hike if you are bringing kids. Actually I am not sure I would recommend this hike at all, because it is VERY strenuous and I didn't feel the views on tops were worth all the effort (and dangers) in getting there. One thing for sure, it was not a boring hike. Well enough yapping about it, check out the vid to see what I mean. I took about 16 minutes of footage so I had to break it into two sections. If you received this post via email or RSS feed CLICK HERE TO ENJOY!!!