Mother / Daughter Explorations with a Trailer

March 1, 2003 on 2:13 pm | In For Mom's |

Trying to stay true to my New Year’s resolution, and wanting more of an adventure than my neighborhood roads could provide, Hyla and I loaded up our Burley trailer and headed out for a ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway. A warm, sunny, Monday in February was indeed the perfect time for this ride as the road was not over crowded with tourist traffic. We first headed out on my neighborhood streets, which were safe and familiar. When we had ridden about 4 miles, we had made it to the parkway. I was a bit intimidated, but it was so beautiful and I was really feeling strong.

We decided to head south, as it looked a little more laden with sun. Let me tell you, you can sure feel the elevation you are gaining when you are pulling a trailer with a three-year-old child in it. It was a little slow going, but did it ever feel good to be on my bike, with my daughter, on a fabulous day! I felt a bit more in touch with the independent, adventurous self I once knew so well and I was proud. Hyla was having a blast, pointing out all the icicles that were here to stay throughout the winter no matter how warm it got. She found it a little more amusing than I did when a car approached and then proceeded to pass us. That was still a bit scary for me, but I was gaining confidence in every aspect of cycling by being out on my bikeWhen we had made it as far as I was going to go that day, we found ourselves at one of the first overlooks heading south on the Parkway.

I had made it about 15 miles from home with daughter in tow and was happy at that. I unbuckled Hyla from her burley trailer so we could take in the sights. We had packed a picnic in the back and we were ready to eat.

Sitting there, enjoying our sandwiches, Hyla asked me; “What is that noise?” Her expression changed to one of fear and she scooted in closer to me. “It sounds like a monster,” she said. I stood up and looked down into the valley trying to figure out where the noise was coming from. It did sound like a monster, a deep growling and clunking sound. When I honed in on the source I saw that indeed, it was a monster. I didn’t know how to answer Hyla. Do I tell her that in fact it is a type of monster, tearing down trees and flattening the land to make room for yet one more golf course. That it is big machines up on top of a beautiful a ridge clearing out trees for a humongous road and more “mountain homes.” A man who had just gotten back to his truck from a hike, confirmed that indeed it was a new development they were clearing for with over 200 lots in the works!

Had I been in better shape I suppose I could of made it further up the parkway, into more pristine wilderness for us to gaze upon. I’ll make a goal of it for next time. Trying, for my daughters sake, not to sound like a doomsday sayer, I explained to her what the noise was and told her next time we would go further where it is quieter and our view will be much prettier. I left it at that. I want to show my daughter something positive next time, something amazing, not something that will scare her. I don’t think she is quite ready to become an activist, but perhaps by preserving her wonder for this beautiful planet, she will be more apt to do so when she is grown.

Here is a picture of us before a ride.