Nichols Preserve

Sorry for the long gap between my first and second post! I've had a few setbacks in trying to get my feet ready for the summer, but I'd say that my soles are beginning to get callused enough to really commit to this project! So be on the look out for posts once every week or two on new parks in the Connecticut/New York area that I will be reviewing in terms of how barefoot friendly they are.

Let's get started! My first brand new shoeless excursion of the year was at the Nichols Preserve, which is on the border of Greenwich, CT and Aramonk, NY. The entrance to this small park is in a residential area at the end of West Lane, which can be seen above. There was no parking lot of any sort, so I pulled my car off to the side of the road and walked in.

The initial walkway inside the park is technically part of Electric Road and is more or less a crumbling sidewalk. The very beginning of the trail was covered in a lot of gravel and prickers, which can be frustrating when trying to take in your surroundings. However, the trail quickly became more level and felt more like walking on the street.

As you can see in the left of the photo above, there were several horse jumps inside the park, which makes sense as the sign at the entrance mentioned it being a popular place for horseback riding. I only once encountered horseback riders while hiking in Mianus River Park, but did not run into any during my time at the Nichols Preserve.

I remember looking at the riders in Mianus with wonder, as I had never seen people in Connecticut riding horses outside of a ranch. One of the two riders had noticed my expression and nodded kindly before stopping his horse and giving me a surprised look of his own. "No shoes, eh?" he asked. To which I responded, "That's right." He gave me an approving smile and continued on his way.

While there were no horses or riders at the Nichols Preserve, there were a number of these large grassy trails leading off into the park, which are not typical in places made primarily for biking and hiking. I considered following one one of the trails, but decided against it out of fear of getting ticks from the grass or stepping on unseen pieces of glass.

Sadly, the one trail that was not either paved or covered in grass did have lots of small pieces of glass strewn among the pebbles. It is for this reason that I did not venture down that path and do as much exploring as I had hoped to do.

Glass is an inevitable annoyance when barefoot hiking, but is typically harmless unless it is broken down into splinters that can stick into the sole of your foot. Almost every park I have been to has had some spots where obnoxious people have decided to smash a bottle, but certainly parks are better than others. While the Nichols Preserve is beautiful, I did not feel comfortable hiking as much as I would like due to all the glass.

The path continues into an enormous grassy field full of flowers and the sounds of nature (and sadly the sounds of the highway as well). I spent nearly twenty full minutes just taking in the spot and basking in the openness of it. The trees surrounding the field and the pristine sky above really made me feel like I was far away from civilization, which is how I love to feel when hiking. I just wish the highway was a bit further away from the area.

The paved road eventually came to an end and gave way to the tall grasses that surrounded the walkway. While I was not about to walk through knee high grass, I couldn't help but take photos of the flowers and trees. This secluded spot would definitely be a great place to read or write.

As I made my way back to the entrance, I decided to take advantage of the emptiness of the place and take a few artistic barefooting photos. While I'm not a huge fan of walking on tiny pieces of gravel, I do love the feeling of silt and tree branches as they provide me with objects on the ground to explore with my feet.

For me, barefoot hiking is as much about feeling interesting sensations as it is about practicing mindfulness while walking. Instead of letting your mind wander and thinking about things that could be troubling you (trivial or otherwise), you need to be focused on each step in order to make the most of your walk.

While I was certainly surprised by the paved walkway instead of the typical dirt ones, I thoroughly enjoyed my walk. The pavement was just the right temperature during such a hot weekend and offered an array of textures to experience. Though I didn't get black soles like when I go barefoot around town, I did end up with some prickers stuck to my heels.

I highly recommend the Nichols Preserve to anyone who loves nature, quiet spots, or horseback riding! While my barefoot hike was very serene and I got to appreciate the sensations of my toes gripping the asphalt as I walked, I would say that overall this wasn't a very barefoot friendly spot.

That's it for today! I hope you all enjoyed my post! Look for another in the coming week and thanks for reading!

First Barefoot Hike of 2015!!

Since today was the first day of the year that it was in the high 50s, I decided to go for my first barefoot hike of 2015 over at Mianus River Park in Stamford. I also decided to make today the day I post my first entry on my blog. So hello!

I've been a casual barefoot hiker for a few years and want to share my experiences with other barefooters. From now until October, I plan on visiting a number of parks and trails in both Connecticut and New York in order to review these places in terms of how barefoot friendly they are. Feel free to reach out and share your own experiences as well!

Mianus River Park is my definitely my favorite barefoot hiking location in Southern Connecticut since it offers so many different terrains. I usually go there a number of times at the beginning of Spring to get my feet readjusted after being trapped in shoes for the entire Winter.

Whether you are an avid barefooter, a casual hiker (like myself), or a first timer, Mianus is an excellent location to experience nature through your soles. I personally like entering on the Riverwalk Trail near the Merribrook Lane entrance as this trail isn't immediately as rough on the feet as The Main Road or River Road trails. For a decent map of the trails, look here.

Being my first hike of the year, I decided not to over do it and only walked for 1 mile today before retracing my foot steps (nearly nonexistent compared to those made by hiking boots) and heading back to the parking lot. It was a pretty great first hike as there were still not many bugs flying around (which can sometimes be an issue at Mianus during the summer months).

There were also lots of soft, wet leaves on most parts of the trail, which are always helpful during the early Spring, when my feet are still getting used to being bare outdoors.

Since today was a somewhat rainy day, there were few people in the park that weren't fishing. I personally love hiking on these kinds of days since I can enjoy the sounds and sensations of the woods in a peaceful solitude.

Despite the fact that it was nearly 60 degrees out today, the ground was still a bit chilly. I wasn't terribly surprised since there were still piles of snow in the parking lot. I was a little disappointed that the ground wasn't as muddy as I had hoped, since squishing my toes in mud is one of my absolute favorite things to do while barefoot. I'm hoping that once it gets a bit warmer, the ground may loosen up a little more.

I was pleased to see that the river was running high from the recent rains and melting snows. While the main river (for which the park is named) is always robust, the streams that run through the park were entirely dried up during the Summer of 2014.

At this point in the trail, which passes through a bog, there was actually so much water than I needed to jump on these moss covered rocks in order to get across. As any barefooter knows, moss is nature's carpet and feels incredible underfoot. Wet moss is a special treat, but can be a bit slippery.

After reaching the other side of the mossy rocks, I stood for a few moments listening to the sounds of dozens of frogs calling out to each other. I was glad to see that the bog was also filled with so much water, since it was a dry bed of earth for many of my hikes in 2014.

Having walked a mile down the trail, I decided to walk back the way I came and head home. While I usually walk for at least 4 miles, my feet were a bit sore and chilly from walking through the cold water in the bog and it was getting late.

On the way back, I passed an area where one of the small streams connected to the Mianus River crosses through the trail. While I had passed this stream on my way down to the bog, I noticed a patch of soft mud off to the side of the trail that I hand't spotted earlier.

I, of course, couldn't resist squishy around for a few minutes and getting my feet really muddy. It was a little chilly and took a bit of stepping to loosen it up, but it was so worth it to feel the mud sliding between my toes and over the tops of my feet.

Having not seen anyone for my entire hike, I happened to run into a man walking a couple small dogs while I was less than a quarter of a mile away from the parking lot. He passed me on one of the more difficult spots of the trail, which is covered in gravel and stones, but I pushed through so as not to flinch in front of someone wearing shoes.

He looked down at my mud caked feet and gave me one of those looks that I am more than used to at this point, before quickly saying hello and moving on. Right at the exit of the trail, I passed by a couple that was in the middle of a deep conversation and didn't take notice of me at all.

I certainly hope there will be more warm days like today very soon! Happy Barefooting!