We forgot our fancy pillows at the cabin. My second hike of the 52 Challenge ended up being in Shawnee National Forest after a pillow rescue mission.

A week after we stayed at the cabin we took another scenic drive past endless cornfields, picked up the forgotten pillows, and went on another hike. Since this would only be a day trip, we stayed close to the area and tried out the Indian Point Trail tucked away off the road before you reach the often crowded Garden of the Gods.

This was a nice trail for the dogs and offered a lot of variety, including some beautiful green-tinged stone walls. A rather short hike but a good second hike for the challenge. As it is, I now have a few to makeup since the weather turned bitter and windy here in the Midwest.

Hike #2: Indian Point Trail

Length: 1.8 miles

Elevation gain: 209 feet

AllTrails: https://www.alltrails.com/explore/trail/us/illinois/indian-point-trail

If you can tell by my absence, the past few months were a bit of a black hole. While I was out hiking, I neglected posting about it due some forces in my personal life. After coming back from hiking Mt. LeConte (more about this soon!) I was let go from my job somewhat abruptly. This left me with a lot to think about but I’m happy to say I came out the other side with a new position and work schedule that will allow me more freedom to get outside during the day. Having mornings to myself with also allow me more time for blogging at my favorite coffee shop.

I’ll be sharing more on some of my outdoor goals for the year and expanding my content beyond single hikes. I have more to share and more conversations to get started.

This leads me to my first hike of the year which is also my first hike in the 52 Hike Challenge for 2020. I started the challenge before but had major difficulties getting out in the Midwest without a car and a reluctant hiking partner who did. I now have a used Subaru Forester and can’t wait to double up on adventures this year in Missouri and the surrounding area 🙂

My first hike in the challenge was on New Year’s Day in the Shawnee National Forest. Though a short trail, the Rim Rock Recreational Trail offers a fun side maze of trail through some large rock formations. I absolutely love Shawnee and try to get down there at least once a year since it’s only a couple hours drive.

The trail was greatly loved by our dogs who had been getting restless in the cold of the winter without any hikes or long walks.

We stayed at the coziest cabin only minutes from the trailhead which was the perfect place to decompress after an adventure. The Rim Rock’s Dogwood Cabins are situated on a small farm with a short hiking trail around the perimeter, some llamas, chickens, and a super goth looking goat I was in love with.

The cabins had all the basics needed including firewood, screened-in porches, and a coffee maker. I brought my own coffee but they did have Folgers available. We spent New Year’s here far from the fireworks and gunshots of St. Louis where we live, playing cards and hanging out with our dogs.

Hike #1: Rim Rock Recreational Trail

Length: 1.7 miles

Elevation gain: 360 feet

AllTrails: https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/illinois/rim-rock-recreational-trail

I took a little break from the blog to regroup and take a harder look at what I want to offer in this space. Largely this is still the same, I want showcase outdoor spaces in the Midwest through my photography and words. I would also love to start sharing a little more behind the scenes on my Instagram (@bootsandblackcoffee) and provide more resources, gear reviews, etc. I hope you’ll follow along and don’t forget to add me on Bloglovin so you don’t miss any updates.

It’s now October but still hotter than I would like it to be. Outside Online keeps trolling me with cooler weather gear articles and roundups of the best flannel this fall. It seems only fitting to just now share a few pics from my camping trip in August.

My best friend lives in Nashville, Tennessee and we agreed to meet up (along with my reluctant fiancé and our dog) at the Pharaoh campground which is just a short walk to Garden of the Gods in Shawnee National Forest. As with many campgrounds in the Midwest, there wasn’t a surplus of information on what to expect.

We were pleasantly surprised to find fairly large sites each complete with a picnic table, removable grill top fire pit, metal hook poles for trash, nearby vault bathrooms, and a water pump station. We were easily able to fit 2 tents on the site and both our cars. While this might not sound as amazing as other campgrounds, it was luxury compared to the amazing, but primitive, Lily Pad Obed that I had last camped at.

The sites are first come, first serve and fill up fast since there’s only 12 sites total. There’s no one on duty for payment so make sure you bring the exact cash you need for the envelopes. We ended up getting a larger site on the left side since the only ones left on the right side were in the sun and we needed plenty of shade for my pup. Make no mistake though, if you get there early enough, the sites to right can provide a bit of a view and one in particular had a little lookout path next to it. I would also mention you don’t want to skimp on the bug spray, even a little higher elevation, there were still plenty of mosquitos and many of the hiking trails in Southern Illinois are prone to heavy tick populations.

My biggest tip for this site would be to make sure your food is put up. It might sound super obvious but this isn’t something we were thinking too much about since it’s not bear country or anything like that. After hearing some super loud crashing during the night though, we woke up to something (maybe Bigfoot?) having stolen a backpack with my dog’s food in it. More likely it was a raccoon or coyote but it sounded crazy loud in the pitch black. Luckily about 20-30 minutes away on the way to Bell Smith Springs was a gas station with dog food, PBR, and some other snacks. There is a little convenience store and souvenir shop right outside Gardens of the Gods and another small gas station close to there. If it’s something that matters to you, they don’t have beer and you should plan ahead. The convenience store does have milkshakes and Shawnee swag like t-shirts and patches so it’s worth popping in to.

All in all, this was a lovely wooded campground and I look forward to returning. This was also my dog Jack’s first camping trip at 8 years old. Since we’ve recently added a new puppy to our family, I can’t wait to take them both back for more exploring.