A Fellow Barefooter - Final Camp Day

Friday was a much easier day.  No rush to get the pools cleaned and we just needed to get them all set for whatever the camp manager had planned next.  By we I mean basically myself.  I did get some volunteers to assist on occasion, but the care of the pools was my sole responsibility.  The head life guard did stick around and help get things tidied up.  He even requested to vacuum a pool.  Seems as though he had a lot of chigger bites and sitting around a pool for a while is a home remedy.  The camp quickly emptied and the soon there was only a fraction of the volunteers so we moved back into the main lodge for lunch. 

As I was seating eating, my supervisor came up to me and inquired about Xero shoes.  I was caught off guard at first and didn't know what he was talking about.  But he explained that his son had given him a gift certificate for some Xero sandals.  I showed him the pair I was wearing and explained I hadn't gotten use to the thing between the toes and would prefer the other sandals, but they cost more.  He told me he went barefoot at home all the time, so while he was not 100% barefoot, he may have been another reason why I was not hassled at this camp. 

We finished getting things cleaned up and I headed back to Springfield, MO.  I would stay at his house for the night and catch my plane first thing in the morning back to Manchester, NH.

Tough 5 Mile Hike

Today we hiked up South Mountain in Pawtauckaway State Park in New Hampshire.  For this hike Starry, Christian and I were accompanied by my friend John and his almost 9 year old son Noah.  The hike 1.5 miles up the mountain was pretty easy barefoot.  The trail was not too tough on the feet, of course I expected that hiking up hill would be much easier then hiking downhill.  The kids had a blast climbing many of the huge boulders that are all along the trail.  Everyone climbed the tower and enjoyed the view.

The trip downhill started out pretty easy as well. Had to take a bit more care where I placed my feet, but much easier than last week when I was guiding a three year old.  The kids found some more huge boulders to scramble on and I began to think that we were never going to make it home.  The boulders eventually faded and the kids began to get board.  We did find a snake and toad to help distract them for a little bit.  After hiking down about 2 miles the trail turned onto a gravel road.

Here is where the going got really tough.  I began to slow down and try and find a safe place for my feet.  The rest of the group didn't seem fazed by the rough terrain and pulled a little ahead.  Several times I thought about putting on my VFF, but resisted the urge.  I found a couple of spots along the way that gave my feet relief for a short period of time, and one nice cool rock that I stood on for a few seconds.  So hobbling along as fast as I could after about 1.5 miles the rough road ended and we were back on a nice dirt road.

My feet were really dirty after the hike, but besides being a little sore don't seem to have sustained any injuries.  I did stub my toe only once and it didn't hurt for long and seems fine now.  Perhaps I should add a little addendum tomorrow morning on how my feet are doing.

That evening my mom and I were invited to join a pizza party for a friend who was visiting from Texas.  I started to head out the door and my mother asked if I was going barefoot.  I told her of course, she asked if I couldn't wear something, so I reluctantly grabbed my Xeroshoes.  Funny how it doesn't take much to make some people happy.  I wore my shoes into the venue and but took them off shortly afterward and my mom gave me a look and I smiled.  No one said anything and she let me be.