KAYAKING GREAT MIAMI RIVER SIDE CHANNEL Moraine, Ohio

Expedition Team:  Rosie Miller,  Dave Miller                                                                                   Expedition Date:  September 2017

It was a little chilly but we wanted to go kayaking.  It had rained twice that week so the Great Miami River was up.  We paddled south a mile and then back towards the dock.  Just north of the dock is a small creek or side channel about 8 feet wide.  With the higher water I was able to paddle the farthest east back into that channel than ever before.  It got too shallow just before the overhead bikeway bridge.  I took a photo and video.  It is one of my most watched videos.  The photo is so good that it was made into a large photo and is hung at the Moraine Municipal Building.  Another copy of it is in my basement at home.  It is the first photo below.  I am very proud of it.

DANIEL BOONE NAT’L FOREST-AUXIER RIDGE TRAIL Red River Gorge, Ky

Expedition Team:  Nick Kelly, Jacque Kelly, Dave Miller, Rosie Miller                                  Expedition Date:  July 2017

After hiking the Natural Bridge and having lunch outdoors at Miguels Pizza, a local popular pizza place, Nick drove us to the National Forest where they had over a dozen trails.  Nick led us on the Auxier Ridge Trail, a 5 mile moderate, challenging trail that led us up to a high plateau with a tight trail and a long drop if were not careful.  Along the flat, high summit, you had a majestic view of the area and could see a smaller natural bridge in the distance.  Nick did his Luke Skywalker impersonation by jumping across two rocks and it looked like he was walking on air.

HOPALONG CASSIDY MURALS Cambridge, Ohio

Expedition Team:  Dave Miller, Rosie Miller       Expedition Date:  May 6, 2018

Old-Time Radio, TV, Comic Book and Movie western star Hopalong Cassidy had a museum in Cambridge but it unfortunately burned down a few years ago.  William Boyd portrayed Hopalong and Boyd was born and raised in Cambridge.  There was still a large mural on the small downtown building walls in tribute to Boyd and Hopalong.  We visited the site after we left Salt Fork State Park where we camped and hiked all weekend and attended the Ohio Bigfoot Conference.

HIKING SALT FORK STATE PARK TRAILS Cambridge, Ohio

Expedition Team:  Dave Miller, Rosie Miller                                                                                    Expedition Date:   May 5 & 6, 2018

We camped at the state park campground and attended the Ohio Bigfoot Conference.  But we were mainly there to try out our new travel trailer and to hike.  It was Amish country as we talked to several Amish who were fishing, kayaking and playing in the park.  One Amish man had modified his buggy to hold his kayak and fishing gear (Photo#2).  The trails were nice and diverse.  The state park has been the site for several Bigfoot sightings so I kept my camera handy as we hiked four trails.

The Morgan’s Knob Loop Trail, a one mile trail, was our favorite with both hilly, wooded and challenging terrain.  We saw dozens of chipmunks and a few deer.   The two mile Shadbush Trail was more hilly but shady.

The Hosaks Cave Trail also one mile, had a dangerous upper trail above a small waterfall and cave (Photo#6 & #7).  Another trail lead us a rugged 1.8 mile loop to the Stone House Museum and the Kennedy House, early pioneers whose house built in 1837 from locally quarried stone overlooked Sugar Tree Fork.  A strange lean-to made of tree branches and sticks looked like a Bigfoot cabin (Photo#9).

GERMANTOWN METROPARK ORANGE & BLUE TRAILS Germantown, Ohio

Expedition Team:  Dave Miller, Rosie Miller, Nick Kelly, Jacque Kelly, Holly Miller        Expedition Dates:  March 2018

We hiked four times in March at Germantown Metropark.  Winter hiking on the 7.5 mile Orange Trail is fun but right after snow melt or rain some of the trail by Twin Creek or on the steep hills are wet and slippery.  One creek crossing was very slippery as Holly fell down and got muddy (Photo#5).  Genius Nick bypassed the creek and went overhead on a tree limb (Photo#6).  We saw a few turtles on the trail and a large animal print which turned out not to be a sasquatch print.  Someone had left a large unique hiking stick behind.  From the looks of the stick it might have been Moses.  We noticed another pair of hiking sticks leaning up against the restroom.  I wonder who was in there?

PINNACLES EAST HIKING TRAIL Moraine, Ohio

Expedition Team:  Justin Eller, Holly Miller, Dave Miller                                                            Expedition Date:  November 2017

We hiked this heavily overgrown trail on the east side of the Pinnacles just north of the Devil’s Backbone.  This was one of the last hikes in this wooded area that has now been 80% deforested in order to build Pinnacle Ridge Subdivision.  We searched for the remains of the old Darroch house.  Finally, in the trees and bushes we found the foundation.  We dug and removed a brick from the foundation engraved W.W.C.O. that dated back to 1928.  The remains of a concrete and wood bridge over a small gorge was engraved 1929.  We are not sure if that was the year it was built or not.  Along the trail we also discovered an old abandoned outhouse which gave me the opportunity to pose for a crappy photo.

 

TWIN CREEK METROPARK TRAIL Germantown, Ohio

Expedition Team:  Rosie Miller, Dave Miller                                                                                      Expedition Date:  March 2018

We frequently hike here and begin at High View Trailhead and hiked the 6 mile Orange Trail.  One stop is at Dogwood Pond where Justin proposed to Holly Photo#2 & #3).  Rosie sits and views another small wetlands pond.

HIKING CINCINNATI NATURE CENTER Cincinnati, Ohio

Expedition Team:  Nick Kelly, Jacque Kelly, Rosie Miller, Holly Miller, Dave Miller       Expedition Date:  July 2017

Nick & Jacque guided our group on two trails at one of their favorite hiking spots. We hiked the Rowe Woods Trail about 4+ miles enjoying the trees, some open areas, butterflies and occasional wild flower.  We came upon a unique wood toilet made from a tree (Photo#5) and also a large millipede (Photo#6).  Dave ignored the danger of falling sign and fell from a bridge (Photo#7), although witnesses claimed that Holly pushed him.

GREAT MIAMI RIVER KAYAKING Moraine, Ohio

Kayaking Team:  Rosie Miller, Marylee Dunphy, Jo Hinker, Joyce Williams                        Kayaking Date:  September 2018

River Guide Rosie was busy in September as she met her friends on several occasions to kayak north from Moraine East River Landing, into some side channels and then south back to the dock.  She doesn’t charge a fee for her service but does work for tips or Panera Bread gift cards.

KAYAK FISHING AT CHAUTAUQUA Miamisburg, Ohio

Fishing Team:  Matt Miller, Dave Miller          Fishing Date:    June 2018

Matt and I put in just south of the low dam south of Miamisburg opposite Chautaucqua.  The Great Miami River glistened in the bright sunshine.  Matt had his kayak loaded with fishing gear.  We headed south and immediately encountered some fast rapids.  Sadly, his friend Adrian had overturned his kayak at this spot a few days earlier and lost his tackle box and some gear.  Just beyond the rapids near the east bank was the body of a dead deer.   Matt and Adrian caught some huge catfish there.  Apparently, the deteriorating remains and smell of the deer attracted catfish.  The odor was pretty rank but Matt casted near the deer and soon he caught one large catfish.  I tried the same area but had no luck.  Later downriver we beached on a huge flat rock in the middle of the river and fished off of it a few minutes.

I added a photo of the same rock when I was bicycling on the nearby bike path. One single sunflower was growing out of the rock.  The photo I took got published in the Dayton Daily News.