Lost In The Woods : Brown County In Summation

For 48 hours one of my best pals and I spent a weekend in Central Indiana among trees, secluded cabins, tourists, bikers, hikers, joggers, and a cast of quirky characters. We rented a place outside of Nashville so we could spend our days hiking trails in two state parks, and our nights chilling out at our rented space eating, laughing, and watching classic horror movies on the TV. It was the first time we’d ever taken a trip like that together. We’d gone to concerts before, and in 2008 and 2016 we’d gotten a hotel room and stayed overnight in Chicago when we saw The Cure. But this trip was different. We’re older and for a lack of a better term, more mature than we were back then. We aren’t the drinkers we were then, so this weekend was about pushing ourselves physically and being in nature. And instead of drowning those good deeds in beer we were up by 6am both days eating breakfast and then back out by 8am to hit the trails.

It felt pretty damn good.

Over the course of those two days we logged in over 15 miles, 6 miles on Friday and whopping 9 miles on Saturday. Saturday was a little rough, as we didn’t read the map correctly and ended up on several different trails within the woods as opposed to sticking to one and finishing. 6 miles of trails led us to the main road, which we then had a solid 3 miles on the park road to get to the car. It was exhausting and a little overwhelming, but we survived to tell the tale.

I bought dinner for us Saturday night from Big Woods Pizza Company in downtown Nashville. Pizza, BBQ pork nachos, and breadsticks were on the menu, which we ate to our hearts content. After cleaning up from the 9 mile jaunt earlier in the day, that carb-tastic meal was just what we needed. We watched The Fog and then Hell Night before crashing a little after 9pm.

We were on the road by 7am Sunday morning, leaving the big woods and mountain bikers behind.

Besides pushing ourselves on the trails, my pal and I realized we could do something fun together besides drinking too many beers and Saturday night Youtubin’. I’m not saying those things aren’t fun, but at almost 50 years old they don’t hold the satisfaction that they once did. A day spent feeling awful from drinking feels like an absolute waste when you’re in your late 40s. Time goes quick, as does youth, so I’d rather not feel like hot garbage because of a decision I made. Now, I felt pretty damn rough after that 9 mile jaunt through the woods and park service roads. But it was a different kind of rough. I’d rather not feel that bad again, but I’d take that over a Sunday morning nursing a headache and sour stomach.

My pal and I had a weekend filled with hikes, laughs, and lots of conversation. It’s just what we’d hoped it would be and even a little more. Brown County was a major success, and a weekend we hope to repeat again.

I highly recommend you get out and do something that like if you never have before. Get out of your comfort zone of home and spend a weekend with a good friend sweating out some of those everyday demons the 9 to 5, life stress, and all the rest that sour our heads and hearts. It adds up, so a good physical reckoning does the head and heart good. Get away from home and unplug for a couple days. It makes you appreciate home that much more, while also giving you a little relief from those all too familiar surroundings. It’s a hell of a mental reboot. And who can’t use a mental reboot?