My butt had acquired the shape of my chair, and my hiking window was rapidly closing.
It was the last day of the conference, and the first meeting of the newly elected board was winding down in hour three. The other board members were rapidly dispersing.
“Anyone want to go for a short hike with me?” I blurted.
“YES,” two friends sitting nearby said without hesitation.
Whew.
This intrepid group of women journalists started as a gathering off the beaten path, so my odds were good, but you never know.
We didn’t have much time before the light faded and the evening activities started. Luckily for us, our hotel was right across the street from Hot Springs National Park.
The park is almost exclusively a network of short trails in the middle of downtown Hot Springs, Arkansas. We passed 147-degree hot springs bubbling from the ground, an angry squirrel barking, a couple getting engagement photos taken. A fellow conference attendee joined our group, then split off on her own path.
A steep paved trail through trees led us to a brick promenade. We climbed a set of steps to a gravel path, where an extremely steep but short section awaited.
Late-afternoon sunlight poured through the leaves. It had been many years since I’d been in the Deep South in fall. It’s not a riot of red and orange and yellow leaves, but a show of how many shades of green and brown there are.
A cloudless blue sky peeked through the trees. We came out of them at a gazebo with a great view across the valley. A couple on horseback preceded us. Below, the town of Hot Springs stretched before us, water tower standing tall, mountains on the horizon.
We walked into the Hot Springs Mountain Tower gift shop, but elected to skip the $8 fee to go to the top. We’d gotten our climb.
On the way down we talked about families, favorite hiking spots, board meetings and travel plans, mountains and springs.
This was my sixth time at this conference, which is held someplace different every year, always a place where there are amazing outdoor activities nearby. Last year in Roanoke, I joined a group of attendees for an eight-mile hike on the Appalachian Trail to McAfee Knob.
Everyone in this group is devoted to their profession and the conference is always full of things to learn. But you can find that in many professional organizations. The reason I love this group goes beyond work. As women journalists, we automatically share a bond, and challenges, before we even open our mouths. When we do, the things we have in common only become more evident.
What I love about this group is the chance to share things beyond work with each other.
And the side of a mountain is a great place to do that.
Hike length: 2 miles
Difficulty: moderate
Trail traffic: moderate
Wildlife spotted: squirrel, chipmunk, jays
Woman Seeks Elevation 