The Hoka Torrent 2 trail runners are cushy, but less so than other Hokas. Pam LeBlanc photo

I’m pretty sure no one ever picked out a pair of Hoka One One shoes because they liked how they look. Or if they did, they’ve got an entirely different shoe aesthetic than me.

I saw my first pair of Hoka One Ones, with their almost cartoonishly thick soles, at The Running Event, a global trade show for running specialty retailers held in Austin. That was nearly 10 years ago, about the time an earlier trend of thin-soled, minimalist shoes designed to mimic barefoot running was fading.

Running shoe trends get dizzying sometimes.

I tried a pair of Hoka One Ones a year or two later. I’d grappled with plantar fasciitis over the years, and the lightweight, heavily cushioned shoes made me feel like I was running on marshmallows. I liked the cushioning but wasn’t so sure about the high-rise feel. When the Hokas wore out, I switched back to my old familiar Brooks.

The Hoka Torrent 2, in front, gets my vote for a Grand Canyon hike. Pam LeBlanc photo

A few weeks ago, though, Hoka One One sent me two new pairs of trail runners to test, and I think one – the Torrent 2 – is going to be perfect for an upcoming adventure. In late September, I’ll hike 9.5-miles down Bright Angel Trail at Grand Canyon National Park to join some friends who are rafting the Colorado River. I’ll be with them the next two weeks, rafting, camping, and hiking side canyons as we make our way to Pearce Ferry.

Testing the Hoka One One Torrent 2

The Hoka Torrent 2 trail runners are characteristically ugly. They’re black, for one, with green, pink, black and blue outsoles.

I switched from using clunky hiking boots to trail runners for backpacking long ago. I’m happier in something lighter and more comfortable, which is why I wore trail runners on a 15-day backpacking trip along the John Muir Trail.

I like the Hoka trail runners for several reasons. First, the Torrent 2’s weigh in at just 7.6 ounces – less than my cell phone. Second, they’ve got a mesh upper, made with recycled polyester fibers. That keeps my feet cool. Third, while they’re cushy, they’re not as extreme as other Hoka One Ones on the market. I don’t feel like I’m wearing platform shoes, ala a 1970s fashionista.

They’ve got sticky rubber outsoles and rugged lugs on the bottom, which should provide good footing for my downhill hike into the canyon. They sell for $120 online.

I’ll wear river sandals while I’m on the water but will probably use the Hokas for side hikes during the rafting trip.

Hoka One Ones look goofy, but I don’t care. I’m more interested in a comfortable shoe with good traction. And that’s what the Torrent 2 serves up.

Chris LeBlanc relaxes in the river at Pedernales Falls State Park. Pam LeBlanc photo

I moved to Texas with my family from Michigan when I was 4 or 5, and when we got here, my dad bought a copy of a book of interesting places to visit around Central Texas.

Pretty quickly we stumbled into Pedernales Falls State Park. I can remember many trips to the park, a 45-minute drive west of Austin, to wade in the river and cook burgers on a grill. According to family legend, I once spotted a snake while swimming and ran so fast to get away that I actually walked on water.

I still visit the park a few times a year, and my husband and I made the trip this past weekend. Instead of going to the falls, which looks like a giant dropped a massive slab of limestone on the ground and then poured water over it, we spent our afternoon at the swimming area downstream. (Back when I was a kid, swimming was allowed at the falls, and you could slide on your rear end down the slab. The area is now closed to swimming.)

Chris LeBlanc soaks in the river at Pedernales Falls State Park. Pam LeBlanc photo

At the designated swimming area, we hiked down a hillside to a sandy, cypress-lined stretch of riverbank. We arrived just as a family hastily vacated a prime spot beneath some trees after spotting a snake. We don’t mind snakes, if they’re non-venomous, so we tossed down towels and plunged into the green water.

Upstream, kids clambered over boulders and leapt into pools. Downstream, a couple of anglers cast a line. We just floated around, drifting over to inspect the gnarled knees of some cypress across the river and drifting back to check out the nippy little fish just below the water’s surface.

Repeated flash floods have shaped the cypress trees here. Some are broken midway up; all lean downstream, as if a huge wind had blown their billowing skirts to the south. We nestled on the smooth wood of their roots and drank in the warm sun.

Anglers hike through the Pedernales River. Pam LeBlanc photo

Reservations are recommended, but I went online Friday and was able to get a day pass for Saturday afternoon. Entry fee is $6 for ages 13 and older. Since I have a Texas State Parks pass, we didn’t have to pay.

The park is located at 2585 Park Road 6026 in Johnson City. For more information or to reserve a pass, go to https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/pedernales-falls.

I may look like a rodeo clown, but I’m well-protected against the sun in these tights (with shorts over the top), sun shirt and cowboy hat. Chris LeBlanc photo

I’ve never had a problem peeing in the woods. In fact, I generally prefer squatting behind a tree to some of the restrooms I’ve encountered at roadside convenience stores.

But long-distance paddle racing presents its own array of challenges, especially when it comes to bathroom breaks.

I raced the Texas Water Safari, a 260-mile paddling race from San Marcos to the coastal town of Seadrift, in 2019. Since most boats never pull over to take a break, I had to learn how to balance in the boat and pee into a plastic cup. Pulling down a pair of shorts and peeing while riding in a moving canoe takes skill, and I’m not very proficient at it.

To complicate matters, most female canoe racers wear tights to protect their legs from sun exposure during long races. (My team finished the Texas Water Safari in 53 hours, plenty of time to get a brutal sunburn if left uncovered.)  Many of us resort to cutting a hole in the crotch of our tights, and wearing a pair of loose fitting shorts over the top of them. Cutting up your tights tends to doom them to an early retirement.

This week, I tested out a new pair of tights by ZipHers.

Designed for runners

I met Debbie Mercer, a Houston entrepreneur and marathon runner who designed the product, while photographing and writing about this year’s Texas Water Safari. She’d set up an info booth at the check-in tent the day before the race started.

I expressed interest, and she sent me a pair of long white tights to test out while paddling. This week I tugged on the UPF 50 plus Maxidri leggings with four-way stretch. I got them in white not because I like the way white tights look (I don’t), but because dark tights tend to heat up more in the sun.

They sell for $95 online at www.ziphers.com.

Mercer, the owner of USA Fit, a marathon training program, came up with the idea for the tights after noticing women waiting in lines for porta-potties during marathons. While the women waited, the guys discretely peed behind bushes, trees, or porta-potties, and got back under way. No fair.

ZipHers tights open from the front waistband to the back waistband. Women can pee without pulling down their pants. Because of the handy fabric flaps that conceal the zipper, the metal never touches skin.

“It was created especially for our paddlers in mind, but it has the right amount of stretch and comfort for most any activity, even casual wear or just lounging around,” the webpage states.

Test driving ZipHers tights

I wore the tights for a two-hour run down the San Marcos River. It was a hot day, and I hate having anything on my legs for a short run. I wore a pair of board shorts over the top of them.

Thoughts? ZipHers tights open wide, and really do make it easy to pee. The fabric is nice and soft, but remember that zippers don’t stretch. Make sure you get the right size for your crotch. (Haha.)

I wish the waistband wasn’t as wide. (The band on the tights is 4.25 inches.) That wide waistband holds a secret pocket big enough to stash a key or an ID, though, which might be nice.

The fabric is midweight, not super lightweight. One seam goes down the inside of the leg; there are no seams on the outer leg, which makes them comfortable.

But they’re white. Yeah, I know. I picked that because they’re cooler in the summer heat. But dang, if they were black, I might be able to use them hiking or something. White being white, if you wear underwear beneath them (I don’t), they’ll show through. And if you don’t wear underwear underneath them, well, that’ll show right through, too.

Bottom line? They’ll probably become my go-to pair of tights for summer paddling.

They’re available online here.

I bought this new Specialized Diverge gravel bike a year ago. Chris LeBlanc photo

A little more than a year ago, I retired the Trek 5200 road bike I’d been pedaling back and forth to the Austin American-Statesman for 15 years and bought a gravel bike.

Since then, I’ve been riding my new Specialized Diverge (nickname Banana Cream Pie) gravel bike around town – and on gravel roads near and far. I love pedaling home from swim practice every morning, taking the slow route up the Johnson Creek Trail beneath MoPac, past a historic stone windmill, along the edge of Tarrytown, next to The Grove development and finally to Shoal Creek Boulevard and home.

I like riding the gravel roads east of Bastrop. Chris LeBlanc photo

I ride my gravel bike for a bunch of reasons, and here are my top 10:

1. Biking places makes me feel like a kid again. I ramble over creeks, pop up and down curbs, and zip down bike lanes, and it makes me smile.
2. Biking gives me an up-close look at an ever-growing city. I like seeing buildings go up and come down and neighborhoods change. It somehow feels less overwhelming when I watch it bit by bit from the seat of my bike.
3. Biking gives me a chance to spot new murals.
4. Biking places gives me a bonus workout – and keeps my legs strong and cute.
5. Biking saves me gas money. At the Statesman I once went six weeks without filling the tank of my car because I chose the bike as my main mode of transport as often as possible.
6. Biking is way better than sitting in gridlock traffic.
7. When you bike the same route day after day, you see a lot of the same people, and they’re friendlier out in the real world than they are inside a cocoon of metal and plastic. I love the community – the nod from fellow cyclists, the smile from the old man walking his dog, the wave from a construction worker I pass four times a week.
8. I like the pace of biking. It feels more natural than zooming around in the insulated capsule of a motor vehicle.
9. The parking’s usually easier on a bike than in a car.
10. I gather story ideas. I’ve usually got a notepad tucked in my backpack or pocket, and I jot down stuff I see along the way – things that go by so fast you miss them when you’re driving a car.

I’m back to riding my bike all over Austin. Chris LeBlanc photo

These mid-weight Injinji toe socks are made for trail running. Pam LeBlanc photo

I first heard about Injinji toe socks about 15 years ago, when I hiked 27 miles on the Good Water Trail around Lake Georgetown with a group of retirees from the Sun City Hiking Club.

By the end of the all-day hike, I was hobbling, thanks to two blisters the size of unshelled pecans that had sprouted on my heels. One of the seniors suggested I try the socks, which look like something I might have worn in the 1970s, with separate cups for each little piggy.

Before my next hike, I purchased a pair. (Whole Earth Provision Co. and REI carry them locally.) I wore them, and voila – no blisters. Since then, I always wear Injinjis when I’ll be walking long distances. They got me through a 15-day backpacking trip on the John Muir Trail, a week in Glacier National Park and another week on the High Sierra Trail, all without blisters.

Testing the socks

Last week, a public relations company mailed me three new packs of the socks to test – one midweight, mini crew length pair ($16) specifically for trail running; one ultra-thin pair of anklets for road running ($13); and a set of thick socks without toes and an accompanying pair of ultra-thin toe liners ($29) for hiking.

At left, the Injinji hiking socks plus liners; at right the lightweight running socks, all by Injinji. Pam LeBlanc photo

I’ll admit, they feel a little weird when you first put them on if you’re not used to them. Once you put your shoes on, though, you hardly notice the difference. And the five-toe design swaddles each toe, preventing toe-on-toe friction and wicking moisture.

They work like a charm for me. I especially love the trail runners, when in the close-up photo at the top, which come up just above the ankle to keep out debris.

I’m planning to wear the hikers plus liners – or maybe the trail runners – when I hike from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon down to Phantom Ranch in a few weeks to join a passing group of whitewater rafters. And I’m sure I’ll get on that raft without a blister to slow me down.

Carrie Arnold rides the Great Escape Trail at Muleshoe Bend Recreation Area. Pam LeBlanc photo

Muleshoe Bend Recreation Area just moved up a notch on my list of favorite places to ride a mountain bike in Central Texas.

I spent Saturday morning zipping along the Great Escape Trail, which served up tight turns, a few ledgy drops, some fast zoomy stretches and plenty of shade, making it a perfect place to grind out miles on a hot summer day. Afterward, I plunged directly into Lake Travis to cool off.

I last visited Muleshoe Bend in May, when I parked Vincent VanGo, my all-wheel drive campervan, in one of the park’s 34 campsites, and explored some of the park’s trails during a guided night hike.

This time, though, I could see where I was going, and I covered a lot more of the park’s network of trails.

Cyclists walk their bikes down a tricky stretch of trail at Muleshoe Bend Recreation Area. Pam LeBlanc photo

Mountain biking feels a lot more natural than road riding. You hear the gravel crunch under your tires, you get slapped in the face by the occasional tree branch, and you don’t have to worry about getting hit by a car.

The Lower Colorado River Authority acquired this property as six separate tracts beginning in 1939 for the creation of Lake Travis. In the 1990s it began managing the 615-acre parcel as a park for recreation. The Austin Ridge Riders built Muleshoe’s network of biking trails, which includes the 6.5-mile main Great Escape Trail plus six short add-on loops and helps maintain them today.

It’s known for bluebonnet viewing in the spring as much as biking trails and added a boat ramp in 2015. Equestrians and hikers are welcome on designated multi-use trails, but cyclists who encounter horses should dismount and let the animals pass to avoid spooking them.

Chris LeBlanc rides the Great Escape Trail at Muleshoe Bend Recreation Area. Pam LeBlanc photo

Here are half a dozen things to love about Muleshoe Bend Recreation Area:

1. Almost 10 miles of single-track to explore. I love to ride my bike, but I’m not an aggressive or particularly skilled mountain biker. The Great Escape Trail fit the bill, with some exposed roots and rocks, a few short and steep inclines and drops, and lots of fast twisty stretches.
2. Clean facilities. The restroom building next to the park entrance has flushing toilets – “not prison toilets without a seat,” as my friend puts it – and an outdoor shower.
3. Campsites with a view. The campsites are nicely spaced along the lakefront, the grass is lush and everyone’s within walking distance of the water.
4. Kayak and standup paddleboard rentals. You can borrow a boat or board for $10 per hour (minimum two hours) on Thursday through Sunday during the summer.
5. No crowds. Arrive before 10 a.m. and you’ll have no trouble getting a parking spot and you won’t encounter much traffic on the bike trails.
6. The park host. She’s one of the friendliest, most helpful park employees I’ve ever encountered. Meet her once and you won’t forget her – and she’ll probably remember you the next time you visit.

Pam LeBlanc relaxes next to her campervan, Vincent VanGo. Chris LeBlanc photo

Muleshoe Bend Recreation Area is located at 2820 County Road 414 in Spicewood. Entry fee is $5 adults; free 12 and younger. Standard campsites cost $25 per night.