My Summer Went Downhill...

My summer went downhill in a split second--both literally and figuratively--when I sprained my ankle hiking at the Eno River thanks to a number of things...

1. My husband's discovery of a path off the hiking trail that meant getting closer to the water
2. My need to document everything, hence cute pictures near the water
3. My super small bladder

But, let's back up before I get to that story ;)

Kyle and I had gotten back from Florida after our two-week vacation and were settling in nicely to our summer roles-- me not teaching and enjoying my Summer break, Kyle still working but with more flexible hours and less going on at his job because it was Summer!

We spent a lovely weekend in Wilmingon mid-July to celebrate my Dad's 60th birthday (which we had technically already celebrated in Disney World, but I couldn't not be with him on the actual day!). And, it ended up being just lovely--one of those rare times when it was just the four originals because Kyle was playing golf with his brother, and my brother's girlfriend was out of town. We feasted on pizza at Mellow Mushroom after enduring monsoon-like rain on our way to the restaurant! I took my Dad to a music store downtown to let him pick out some c.d's, and he was so excited that one of the radio hosts from his favorite station worked at the store!

Kyle and I had a peaceful afternoon reading on the porch at the Yacht Club before his family joined us for dinner down at the beach. We chatted and munched on appetizers before realizing that it was the "London Broil" night, hence the overflow of elderly people, so we decided to move our party elsewhere-- to the Fish House for a less crowded dinner!

Two days after we got home from Wilmy, we decided spur-of-the-moment to have a mid-day lunch date and to also take a little hike along the Eno River. 

We had the best lunch ever at one of our new favorite spots, The Refectory. Pure heaven on a plate and the perfect way to kick off what we fully expected to be an awesome first hike!

We were so pumped to finally be hiking the Eno River trail together. It was something we'd been talking about doing for forever! Kyle had just done a solo hike there a week or so earlier, which is how we ended up quickly going off-trail, down a slope to get closer to the water. I was totally game because, let's face it, water pics are way cuter! We had a fun little photo session before I realized that we were fairly early into the hike and that I would probably need to pee at some point since I'd had a lot of water to drink at the restaurant. Why not pop a squat while we were down off the trail and out of site? 

Well, let's just say that before I could even find a good spot, I'd lost my footing on a mossy-rock, only to fall over after hearing/feeling my ankle pop and experiencing the most excruciating pain I've ever felt. It was so bad that I started blacking out, and it took a while before I was even calm enough for us to even began thinking of a plan. 

So, there we were. Off the trail, down a hill. Me unable to bear any weight on my ankle. Out of site. No one around to help. One cell phone. Kyle offered to leave and go get help, but there was no way that I was going to be left alone. We finally just decided that I was going to have to crawl my way back up the hill to get on the path where Kyle could then start to carry me. 

It was seriously one of the hardest things that I've ever had to do, trying to get up this 8 or 9 foot slope without being able to put any pressure on my right leg or foot. Luckily, we had packed a towel, so I was able to put that under my right knee to keep from totally scraping it up, while pushing off rocks with my left foot and pulling myself up the hill (it reminded me of climbing up a rock wall, only we were not going to completely vertical!). I wish we had taken a picture of this slope to document what turned out to be one of the times in my life that I've felt the proudest--pushing through and getting back up onto the trail. Kyle says it was pretty B.A., and I have to agree! I also have never felt more at one with nature, as I literally was dragging myself through the dirt. I just knew I was going to get poison ivy every where. Thankfully I was spared that fun!

Once we were back on the trail, Kyle was able to carry me as best as he could (we tried multiple ways, stopping frequently because, let's face it, we were so sweaty that I was slipping, and we were trying to keep Kyle from spraining his ankle!). We finally got to a spot where a family had been swimming, and the nice Dad offered to help Kyle carry me back to the car. 

3 hours later, I was released from urgent care on crutches, with strict instructions to ice, elevate, and rest my swollen ankle. 

It would be the understatement of the century to say that this threw a little wrench in my Summer plans. 

I blame it on my small bladder. And, I didn't even get to pee...until I got home from urgent care...which tells me I didn't even have to go that badly in the first place!

Grrrrrr :(