New Releases

 

Good morning, all! There are so many aspects to writing a book - any book, any genre - that brings joy to my heart: Beginning the research and the possibilities that blank page holds, the writing process to bring all of the pieces together, seeing the cover photo for the first time, even the editing process. But the one thing that makes me really happy is opening the front door and there sits a box from the publisher with copies of my latest book hot of the press.

And yesterday, there they were! The brand new book, Hiking Waterfalls Alabama, and copies of Paddling Alabama 2nd Edition.

Both books are now available online or at your favorite brick and mortar book store. I'm lining up some book signings and presentations so be on the look out for those and (hopefully) will have some autographed copies available online soon.

Now to finish the next two books - Hiking Alabama 5th Edition and Space Oddities: Forgotten Tales of Mankind's Exploration of Space. It won't be long before there will be a knock on the door and again, I will feel this feeling again.

Have a safe Memorial Day weekend, everyone. Until next time...

Even Astronauts Love a Good Laugh

Good morning, all. Work continues on my latest book for Prometheus Books, "Space Oddities: Forgotten Tales of Mankind's Exploration of Space". I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying the research and writing on this one.

I'm currently working on a chapter that introduces us to the lighter side of space and proves that astronauts and engineers are humans who love a good joke. Wally Schirra tells a great story about the splashdown and recovery of his Mercury capsule - Sigma 7 - in 1962 (an excerpt from the chapter, photo courtesy of NASA):

After successfully completing six orbits, the capsule’s retrorockets fired and Schirra made a textbook landing in the Atlantic Ocean only a half mile away from the recovery ship, the USS Kearsarge. Schirra jokingly radioed to mission control that he was so close that he thought they were “gonna put me on the number three elevator.”

The plan was for a team of Navy Underwater Demolition Team (UDT) swimmers (now known as Seals) to swim up to the capsule and secure a floatation collar around it to prevent it from sinking with the astronaut aboard. This was in response to the near tragic incident during the second Mercury flight in which the hatch of Gus Grissom’s Liberty Bell 7 capsule was blown, causing the capsule to fill with water and sink leaving the astronaut helpless in the ocean until help could arrive.

Panels had been removed from the top of the capsule to let fresh air in and from which Schirra could hear the swimmers outside.

“I hear this unbelievable splashing, yelling and screaming,” Schirra says. “All of a sudden everything lurches and this…guy in the water leaps up on the top [of the capsule] and I said, ‘What in the hell is going on out there?’”

The swimmer, who is trained to have nerves of steel to perform some of the most dangerous and terrifying covert missions one could ever imagine shouts back, “I saw the biggest jellyfish of my life here in the Pacific. It's unbelievable."

"What color was it?" Schirra asks.

"Orange and white!" the swimmer replies.

Schirra laughs, "You never saw a parachute under water before?"

The Alabama 100 Miles Challenge - Are You In?

If there is one thing many people have learned during the pandemic is that getting outdoors and participating in an outdoor recreational activity is fun and good for the heart, mind, and soul. With that in mind, I thought it was a good time to update an article of mine from two years ago that introduces you to a great program in Alabama - the 100 Miles Challenge. No, you don't have to hike, walk, bike 100-miles all at once. It's a total goal you are striving for during the year. Let me explain:

The Alabama 100-Miles Challenge.

It seems like a no-brainer but sometimes we all need a little reminder - doctors say that outdoor recreation is the best form of medicine to keep you healthy, relieve stress, and promote mental health. In fact, medical journals are reporting that some doctors have now started prescribing outdoor recreation as a means to cure what ails you.

For many, however, freeing up time to get out and away from work and the bustling lives we all lead can be a challenge, and getting the kids away from their video games, well, that can be an even bigger challenge, but it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, Alabama has a program that will help both kids and adults jump start a healthy lifestyle while at the same time, getting out and exploring one of the most beautiful and ecologically diverse states in the country - the 100 Alabama Miles Challenge.

This is Where is All Began 

Brian Rushing with the University of Alabama Center for Economic Development was the mastermind behind the Challenge. His plan was to encourage Alabamians to get out and walk, run, hike, swim, bike ride, paddle, or skate 100-miles in a year while exploring the state’s blue trails, state parks, preserves, and national forests. 

With the backing of organizations like AARP and the Alabama Trails Commission, the Challenge was off and running (no pun intended) and hasn’t looked back.

 

How to Take Part in the Challenge 

The Challenge invites you to challenge yourself, your friends, and family to do 100-miles of activities over the course of a year. Sounds like a pretty lofty goal, right? Actually, it is quite doable and really a lot of fun. All you have to do is to hike, paddle, bike ride, swim, skate, even ride horses for two-miles a week for a year, and you’ve made the challenge. The ultimate goal is that once you get started, you’ll find that you will quickly burn past that goal and add on additional miles because you are healthier and feel more invigorated while at the same time exploring even more beautiful Alabama landscapes. 

Now, you don’t have to do an extended backpacking or paddling trek to get started. A simple neighborhood walk is a good place to start.

If you want to involve your children, it’s much easier if you start them off right by taking them to a destination with plenty to do and see. Engage them as you experience nature by talking about the wildlife you come across (especially insects), try to identify different varieties of birds and wildflowers, or take them on an easy walk to a beautiful waterfall, swimming hole, or on a short canoe trip where you can pull off to a sandy beach and do a little swimming and picnicking.

 

Events 

What’s your pleasure? The 100 Alabama Miles Challenge isn’t limited to hiking. Mix and match your activities to make it even more interesting for you and your kids. Eventually you will find one activity that you all prefer over another. One week it may be a hike through a nature preserve, the next a paddle down a black water river, or maybe a little roller skating along the Chief Ladiga Trail.

Don’t know where to start or where would be a good destination to take your kids on their first adventure? Your best bet is to head off to the safe confines of an Alabama State Park where the options seem endless – take a short hike to some beautiful waterfalls or try your hand at mountain biking on the 2.5-mile long Family Bike Loop at DeSoto State Park; take the 1.5-mile round-trip walk to explore the magnificent stalagmites of Cathedral Caverns; or maybe do a little paddle boarding with the dolphins at Gulf State Park, 

The 100 Alabama Miles Challenge and the Alabama Trails Commission websites list plenty of destinations for you to explore. The Challenge website has also set up a special directory that lists participating groups across the state. These groups and organizations plan fun events where you can join in with a community of friends with the same goal and that will help get you and your family off on the right foot to make the challenge and continue on for a lifetime.