Hiking: Neale Forest (20)

5.6.20

As a way to integrate Cub Scouts, school, and outdoor activity we've been having the boys plan different activities.  For this hike we gave Theo and Woodrow a map with a point on the trail they had to reach.  Woodrow planned which trails we'd take to get from the parking lot to that point, and Theo had to plan the route back.  They had to use the map scale to determine how long they thought the route would be all together.  (They figured 2.6 miles).  They also had to mark each intersection on the map and list a way that they would be able to tell which direction to go at the intersection.  On the hike they had to look for a piece of trash that they could reuse as a survival tool (Bear Grylls style).

We decided to do some hiking at Neale Forest which is normally not too crowded, and has lots of different trail systems on hilltops, in canyons, and through forested area.  The last time we were there they had just completed some controlled burns, so it was nice to see the new greenery growing in.  When we we headed to the trail head we discovered there were two horses roaming free.  I suspect from a local farm, but it was fun for the kids to get up close with the horses for a few minutes. 

Woodrow did a nice job navigating us to the half-way point.  They had fun skipping through the forest and playing with each other.  Since Theo's route ended up having some backtracking, we decided to take a different route back to the starting point.  We talked with them about how their plans changed and their estimate length (2.6 miles) versus my Fitbit trackers (3.5 miles).  The boys were pretty done with hiking at this point, but it was such a nice day we decided we'd walk some more trails.  We ended up doing 7.2 miles total, and by the end, they were done.  But, it was still a gorgeous day, and this is definitely a gem in Omaha.