EmilyGF Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 Hi all, I'm a Californian who lives smack-dab in the middle of the midwest, aka the Flat Lands. I miss my mountains. Sigh. We went on a short vacation to the closest area with real rocks last summer for four days and it was lovely, but four hours away. I miss the hard, steep trails. I miss the drop-offs. I miss the dry head and the rocky trails. I was almost a geology major. Ideas for meeting this longing? Travel is not an option right now, unfortunately. Emily Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YaelAldrich Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 Rock climbing or bouldering? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 (edited) I am a rock climber and mountaineer, and I have been missing that so much for many years here in the Midwest. We have hills and woods. My solution was to make peace with it and to embrace, and come to love, the natural surroundings I have available. So instead of rock climbing and strenuous mountain climbs, I am hiking the Ozarks. Pretty much every weekend. We know every destination in a two hour radius from our town, have explored all the trails; I now run a hiking website and facebook page. When we had been everywhere too often, we branched out and are now doing regular weekend trips (3.5 hours + one way) to a neighboring state with slightly more rugged terrain. 4 hours isn't really that bad if you do an overnight. We found that if we arrive at 10am and start climbing, our arms give out well before the daylight. My DD in Chicago has discovered many hiking destinations in the area. They regularly hike in the Indiana dunes. Have traveled to Southern IL for a week. Southern Wisconsin is a weekend trip away. They have also been climbing and bouldering at a gym three nights a week before the pandemic. This year, we added kayaking in the mix. No, it's not the same as climbing, but it is a beautiful outdoor pursuit that can be as athletic as one wants. Just a few suggestions. I get it. Btw, hiking is extremely family friendly. We have hiked with the kids every weekend since infancy. Edited October 18, 2021 by regentrude 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexasProud Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 (edited) 6 minutes ago, regentrude said: I am a rock climber and mountaineer, and I have been missing that so much for many years here in the Midwest. We have hills and woods. My solution was to make peace with it and to embrace, and come to love, the natural surroundings I have available. So instead of rock climbing and strenuous mountain climbs, I am hiking the Ozarks. Pretty much every weekend. We know every destination in a two hour radius from our town, have explored all the trails; I now run a hiking website and facebook page. When we had been everywhere too often, we branched out and are now doing regular weekend trips (3.5 hours + one way) to a neighboring state with slightly more rugged terrain. 4 hours isn't really that bad if you do an overnight. We found that if we arrive at 10am and start climbing, our arms give out well before the daylight. My DD in Chicago has discovered many hiking destinations in the area. They regularly hike in the Indiana dunes. Have traveled to Southern IL for a week. Southern Wisconsin is a weekend trip away. They have also been climbing and bouldering at a gym three nights a week before the pandemic. This year, we added kayaking in the mix. No, it's not the same as climbing, but it is a beautiful outdoor pursuit that can be as athletic as one wants. Just a few suggestions. I get it. Btw, hiking is extremely family friendly. We have hiked with the kids every weekend since infancy. She beat me to it. Find the beauty in the nature that you DO have. Great post regentrude. Oh, and I have always missed mountains even though I am a native Texan. We go to Colorado almost every summer to get our mountain fix. Edited October 18, 2021 by TexasProud Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 I have no suggestions. My daughter's can commiserate. 2dd loves to hike- (she's day-hiked Half-dome, and Camp Muir.) They moved to Texas. I gave them a book on the best hikes within 90 miles of DFW. Even my dsil was moaning about the book referring to a 300 ft elevation gain over 10 miles = a "strenuous" hike. 1dd was moaning about lack of proper trees in upstate NY where she was in college. (at least there was some type of fir outside her dorm room window freshman year.) When she came home for Christmas her freshman year, we had to take her to Hurricane Ridge so she could be "in" the Mts. You might like Nick Zentner's PNW geology series on youtube. it starts out on CWU's channel, but still searchable with his name. He's a prof at CWU*. And his lectures spread into northern CA - to Montana (they can track the Yellowstone hotspot all the way back to the Pacific Ocean) - BC. (one of the most fascinating things he's talked about was "fossilized hail". It's mentioned in a book from 1967? by a German geologist.) *we stopped at the bakery across from campus that he's always talking about. we got there 30 minutes before they closed and they were nearly cleaned out. They were selling everything at steep discount, so we got most of what was left (which wasn't that much.) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 Two Book suggestions: 60 hikes within sixty miles: Yourcity Hiking: Yourstate (America's Best Day Hiking series) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marbel Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 (edited) Oh honey, I grew up in CA (SF Bay area so fairly close to real mountains) and then moved to Oregon, where we could see Mt St Helens from our kitchen window and Mt Hood from several places as we'd drive around on our daily errands. Now we are in PA where the nearest mountains are the Poconos which are like foothills and a 2-hour drive away. (No disrespect to any Pocono residents, I think I know of one here - it's a beautiful area but not really mountains in comparison.) I have lived here for almost 15 years missing my mountains but recently have found other natural charms in this area. Lower elevations can have their own beauty. I second Regentrude's recommendation for hiking books geared to your area, along with embracing where you live now. I spent years hating this area and wishing we could leave... now I think of all the "new" places I've "discovered" that have been here all along, and I hope I have enough time to get to know them all. And re: geology - check out the Roadside Geology series; I don't know where in the midwest you are but they have books for Indiana and Illinois (among others) which I think are midwest? So maybe they have your state? Edited October 18, 2021 by marbel 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frogger Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 My poor kids grew up climbing the mountains behind us and everytime we drive from home going to town we look directly on Denali. DS is in Huntsville and only has a bike so he can't get far. He is constantly fighting feeling down and depressed without his snow and mountains. He tries to get to the Monte Sano park but it is a hill, not a mountain but it is the best he can do. He runs but even running isn't the same on flat. My poor daughter loves where she is going to school except the lack of mountains. She is in Chicago. She says she climbs to the top of the tallest building on campus just to experience a smidgen of elevation. So, I guess that isn't helpful unless you have tall buildings. But you have a car so finding something you love about the area might be easier. It doesn't have to be the same, just something you love. Instead of hiking, you may have to run. Instead of rock faces maybe you can find a beautiful garden? Best of wishes to you. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 57 minutes ago, frogger said: My poor kids grew up climbing the mountains behind us and everytime we drive from home going to town we look directly on Denali. That's hard to beat! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frogger Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 2 minutes ago, Starr said: That's hard to beat! I shouldn't have said "poor". Lol But it is a pretty rough transition. There is just something about mountains! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausmumof3 Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 (edited) I really missed the hills when we lived interstate and it was so sandy and the vegetation is different. Attachment to place is seriously underrated. I love that Australia is not doing Welcome to Country so much. I mean obviously important for an indigenous rights perspective but also really honours that sense of belonging to a place I think. Edited October 18, 2021 by Ausmumof3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 1 hour ago, Ausmumof3 said: I love that Australia is not doing Welcome to Country so much. I mean obviously important for an indigenous rights perspective but also really honours that sense of belonging to a place I think. Could you explain what you mean? I did not understand this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 4 minutes ago, regentrude said: Could you explain what you mean? I did not understand this. I think she meant she loves that Australia is doing Welcome to Country. https://www.reconciliation.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/welcome_acknowledgement_v4.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausmumof3 Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 1 hour ago, Rosie_0801 said: I think she meant she loves that Australia is doing Welcome to Country. https://www.reconciliation.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/welcome_acknowledgement_v4.pdf 1 hour ago, Rosie_0801 said: I think she meant she loves that Australia is doing Welcome to Country. https://www.reconciliation.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/welcome_acknowledgement_v4.pdf Thank you yes! Autocorrect changed now to not and made it the opposite of what I meant to say. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausmumof3 Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 1 hour ago, regentrude said: Could you explain what you mean? I did not understand this. Yes Rosie is correct. Should have said now not not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eos Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 6 hours ago, frogger said: He is constantly fighting feeling down and depressed without his snow and mountains. This was my ds in Ohio for his first two years of college. Our "mountains" in Maine are small but he was on them constantly growing up as are we all. It truly impacted his whole college experience until he finally decided to sign up to lead walks and trips to local rivers. He really made peace with it once he took his fishing gear out there and started fishing, then found a beater canoe for river trips. Exploring the rivers and connecting with the natural history brought him out of his depression. He was a belayer at the college's climbing wall and thought that would help but it was really being in nature that was needed. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eos Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 As I'm writing this, dd is sending me real time pictures of the bus trip back from Verona to Geneva. She is equally a mountain-person, and is in heaven! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmilyGF Posted October 18, 2021 Author Share Posted October 18, 2021 9 hours ago, frogger said: My poor kids grew up climbing the mountains behind us and everytime we drive from home going to town we look directly on Denali. DS is in Huntsville and only has a bike so he can't get far. He is constantly fighting feeling down and depressed without his snow and mountains. He tries to get to the Monte Sano park but it is a hill, not a mountain but it is the best he can do. He runs but even running isn't the same on flat. My poor daughter loves where she is going to school except the lack of mountains. She is in Chicago. She says she climbs to the top of the tallest building on campus just to experience a smidgen of elevation. So, I guess that isn't helpful unless you have tall buildings. But you have a car so finding something you love about the area might be easier. It doesn't have to be the same, just something you love. Instead of hiking, you may have to run. Instead of rock faces maybe you can find a beautiful garden? Best of wishes to you. I think part of what I miss is the heart-pumping and exhilaration of climbing up a sizable hill. We've got some tall buildings near us, but they are off-limits to visitors due to COVID. Maybe they are open again; I'll look into that. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmrich Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 I have a completly different idea... and it is not really a good fix for this, but I have a treadmill with a large screen on it where I can 'hike' trails from around the world. I have hiked all around the world on my treadmill. It is something I have enjoyed. In June I hiked to Everest Base Camp; I have hiked/ ran on Easter Island, and have hiked around the Grand Canyon recently without leaving my basement. Clearly, it is not the same, but it does feel like a little get away plus exercise. My machine moves automatically with the incline so there are times that I am hiking at 30% plus incline; it is prettty tough. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted October 18, 2021 Share Posted October 18, 2021 You can find steep hills even in the Midwest. Check out the 3 Dunes Challenge at Indiana Dunes. Slope greater than 30 degrees. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmilyGF Posted October 18, 2021 Author Share Posted October 18, 2021 10 hours ago, marbel said: Oh honey, I grew up in CA (SF Bay area so fairly close to real mountains) and then moved to Oregon, where we could see Mt St Helens from our kitchen window and Mt Hood from several places as we'd drive around on our daily errands. Now we are in PA where the nearest mountains are the Poconos which are like foothills and a 2-hour drive away. (No disrespect to any Pocono residents, I think I know of one here - it's a beautiful area but not really mountains in comparison.) I have lived here for almost 15 years missing my mountains but recently have found other natural charms in this area. Lower elevations can have their own beauty. I second Regentrude's recommendation for hiking books geared to your area, along with embracing where you live now. I spent years hating this area and wishing we could leave... now I think of all the "new" places I've "discovered" that have been here all along, and I hope I have enough time to get to know them all. And re: geology - check out the Roadside Geology series; I don't know where in the midwest you are but they have books for Indiana and Illinois (among others) which I think are midwest? So maybe they have your state? Yeah, me too. I ran in the foothills multiple times per week and took places like Big Basin and the Santa Cruz Mountains for granted (not to mention the Sierras). I do bird with DS16 a lot, and appreciate migration. I tend to be pretty type-A, though, so I like getting my heart rate up when I'm going into nature. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Condessa Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 Well if you were to marry the king of Babylon. . . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted October 19, 2021 Share Posted October 19, 2021 On 10/17/2021 at 9:13 PM, TexasProud said: She beat me to it. Find the beauty in the nature that you DO have. Great post regentrude. Oh, and I have always missed mountains even though I am a native Texan. We go to Colorado almost every summer to get our mountain fix. I'd take a class on the native plants and animas in your area, and do some guided hikes, to learn more about the details of your local landscape. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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