New trail surprise

This morning before we left the campground we went to a new trail that is part of the Palmetto Trail that goes from the mountains to the coast and is about 500 miles when it ever gets completed.     This section was just added last year after negotiations were completed for the land that it crosses.   I hope to walk more of these trails as they always have some interesting things along the trail.

This trail, the Walhalla passage, runs beside a creek with small ponds and then at the one mile area at the top of the hill this large lake came into view.   A big surprise for us as we were just expecting a small pond according to the map.    And the husband said he saw fish jumping!    The trail here was fairly easy for walking with the ankle as it is used for a mountain biking trail so the path was smooth in most places except for the areas where they had left berms, roots and rocks to make it harder for the bikers.     

This lake was so calm and we were the only people there so it was so totally silent.   I can imagine on weekends the bike riders will be making lots of noise as they zoom through and continue on to the end of the trail which we did not do.  

So I got another two miles walked on the ankle today.   The total I have walked the past two and a half days is six miles so I feel really good about getting back to the new normal on the foot.   It did hurt some but nothing that stopped me from walking.     

When I got home one of the monarch caterpillars was making a chrysalis on the back porch!!    About 20+ feet from the butterfly weed on the other side of the porch.    I actually watched her cover herself up and got a little video of it.   I hope it will be okay there and in ten days I will have a butterfly.     There are still two other caterpillars, one is not eating but climbing on the net I have around the plants.   The other on a different plant is eating well.        Keep your fingers crossed!