WRFH/Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM - Off the Trails: Happy Early Father's Day

Episode Date: May 28, 2025

Join Nicole Sighiartau as she discusses some of her wildest experiences in the great outdoors! This week she shares some of her favorite stories of hiking and traveling with her Dad. 

You're listening to Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM. Welcome to Off the Trails. I'm Nicole Segueratau, and I'll be your adventure buddy as we discuss some of my wildest stories from my outdoor endeavors. This week, we're going to do a little Father's Day special. Yes, Father's Day is a couple weeks away, but the next episode I'm actually going to have my dad on the podcast, and we already have a topic picked out. it was what we were supposed to record this week, but just timing didn't work out. So I'm just flip-flopping what we're discussing. And so we'll be doing a Father's Day special a little early, but I really want to do this episode. So we'll get into that into a second. But first, it's time to do my trail marker for the week. This week, I actually had a couple, and I couldn't really pick, so maybe I will share two of them. The first one was on Saturday. I decided to go for a nice long bike ride. My goal was to break my mileage record, which originally was, I think, 43 miles. And so I biked out to cold water to get donuts from Dutch uncles or dungles, as it's

known around here. And that ended up being a 50-mile bike ride. And I will say there were some low points. The bike ride down was not great. I took a bad route. However, on the way back, I came through all of this farmland and country roads, dirt roads, and it was a lot nicer of a ride, and it was really, really lovely. It was also kind of cold in the morning when I left, but on the ride back, it was just beautiful weather. I had a tailwind, which is really, really nice because normally I swear it's always a headwind. And there are all these yellow flowers blooming everywhere. And I'm not quite sure what those flowers are called, but they were really pretty. Another highlight, this is more so just, I'm not sure if this is normal geese behavior, but I just

wanted to talk about it. So yesterday, my boyfriend and I went to Windsor, Canada, because we were bored. It was Memorial Day and we had nothing to do. And so we walked around over there and we were on the shores of Lake St. Clair. And there was just this big group of geese in the water. And I don't particularly like geese very much. They're fine. I'll look at them. But they're just always very noisy and messy and they're kind of mean.

So I'm not a huge fan of them. But something was so different about these Canadian geese. I don't know if it's because they were at home in Canada, but they were taking little baths. I'm not joking, these geese would roll over in the water and their feet would be flapping in the air as they were rolling around, washing themselves. And they would do these duck dives down below the water and they would disappear for longer than you would expect. I would say some of them were down there for five or six seconds. and then they would pop up and then they would flap their wings. They were definitely washing themselves.

And it was just, it was very interesting to watch geese behave that way because they seemed so much friendlier. And they weren't honking or being annoying or anything. It was just, I have a new level of appreciation for geese, and I'm not sure if what we saw is normal and they actually wash themselves all the time, or if this is more of an infrequent happening, why I've never seen it before.

But that was honestly, that was a nice trail marker for the week. I feel like it's kind of rare to see different behavior from animals, especially ones that you've seen quite a lot throughout your life. We have Canadian geese at home on the lake that I say a lot, and so I've seen them my entire life, but I've never seen that before. And so it was just really cool. It was really fun and it was really special to watch them look like they were actually enjoying life as opposed to being miserable because otherwise they look a little bit miserable. So those are my trail markers.

I hope you were able to go outside this week and enjoy the sunshine because it is summer now that Memorial Day has passed. So it's really officially summer, even though it's not June 21st. But besides that, it's definitely summer. And so as summer is starting, Father's Day is coming up. And I have so many stories with my dad that I just want to share. My dad has been such a huge influence in my life in regards to my appreciation for the outdoors and just all of my different passions, climbing, sailing, sailing, skiing, biking. He doesn't have credit for running or swimming, but everything else,

camping, off-roading, I guess that's it. It's still a lot. All of those things, I give credit to my dad, and my mom as well, because she also played a big part in taking me these places when I was younger. but I think more so probably around high school my dad and I started doing more trips just the two of us, especially our trips to the San Juan Mountains in Colorado. A lot of those were just the two of us. And I have so many wonderful memories from those trips. And I've learned so much. I've gained so much outdoor experience from traveling with him and climbing different mountains and going on different mountains.

and going on different hikes. And just overall, it's just a really great experience. There is so much to learn when you push yourself in different ways. And a lot of it is just good, common sense stuff. So this is a big thank you to my dad for taking me all these places and for putting up with me when I'm less than ideal because sometimes I do get annoyed. Anyway, the first story I want to start out with isn't one that I actually remember super well. This was, I think, one of the first times my dad and I ever went hiking together when I was really little.

I believe I was six years old, maybe five going on six. No, I was six because it was fall. I'm pretty sure it was October. and my dad and I had driven up to the sierras around the bishop area to hike up to Shepard's Pass and to spend the night over there and get some pictures of the beautiful Aspen, which were all turning yellow and orange around that time of year. And like I said, I don't remember it super well. I know we spent one day before we did the hike, I'm pretty certain, we were up over by Lake Subrina, North Lake, that area, and we were just doing some fall photography. And then I think we started our hike the next day or later that afternoon. Not 100% certain. But I was pretty little, and I mean, all little kids don't really like hiking. So I can definitely say that at this point in

my life, I didn't really love it that much. I mean, it was nice. It was fun. It was beautiful, but it's certainly not the level of appreciation I have for it today. And so we didn't end up making it up to Shepherds Pass. My dad made the call as we were heading up the Boulder Field that we could just sleep with the lake behind us. And honestly, that was a really good call on his behalf. I think there's times when it's good to push your kids when they're little with hiking. But I think that my dad making the call to say it's okay, we could stop and spend the night there was really, really good because we weren't trying to do a 14 or anything. We just wanted to have a good night. night. And so we set up camp. We made macaroni and cheese, which I mean, all little kids

love macaroni and cheese. So I was very excited, even though it was dehydrated macaroni and cheese. And I'm pretty sure I must have said, this is the best macaroni and cheese I've ever eaten, which is such alive. But hey, at the time, it tasted really good. And I think my dad carried up a little chocolate milk thing or a strawberry milk container for me to drink. So that was really nice of him. And we had a super nice evening. I remember my dad woke me up in the middle of the night to look at the frost that had accumulated on the inside of the tent because it got very cold. It was October, so pretty chilly weather. And so all the condensation from our breath as we were sleeping had frozen on top of the tent. So I remember him waking me up and us looking at that. So that's one of

my favorite memories I have with my dad from when I was little. and the little hikes that we would do at the time. You're listening to Off the Trails on Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM. And I have another story with my dad. This one is much more research, so I remember it a lot better. This was right after I got my permit, my driver's permit. So I was not one of those kids who was super excited to drive. I actually was a little scared of it. Now I love it. But at the time, before I got my permit, I was pretty

afraid. But after my dad had me drive around for the first time, I felt a lot better. But anyway, so I got my permit and we were up in the San Juan Mountains. And there's lots of off-roading trails. And technically I wasn't actually supposed to be driving with my permit, but we're just going to ignore that fact. And I was driving anyway on some off-road trails. And there are some easy passes such as Cinnamon Pass. That is one that I drove and felt pretty comfortable on. And then there's also definitely some more technical exposed areas where there are cliffs on one side of the road. And when you have two cars passing each other, can be a little high stress, especially for a new driver, such as myself. And so one of these instances occurred where we were going, downhill from Engineer Pass. I did not drive up Engineer Pass for the record. I have done that since then, but not with my permit. So if you've ever done Engineer Pass, I have not driven up. I did not drive up it. And when I say drive up, I mean drive up from the Silverton side. And then we were

heading down towards Lake City. So that's what I was driving down. And with off-roading, cars that are going uphill have the right of way. So if you're going downhill and you come to a spot in the road where it's too narrow, the downhill car has to back up or maneuver in some way to make room for the vehicle that is going uphill. That is typical courtesy and procedure. So I was pretty nervous because it's a narrow road and I was on the side with the cliff. And so we get to this one point where we're kind of going around a bend and I see this big truck driving up towards us, this Ford. I was a black for it, I'm pretty sure. And I remember looking at it and it's like, oh gosh, this is the end. I don't know what to do because in my brain, I thought it was much too narrow for the two of us to fit side by

side. But my dad was like, no, no, no, keep going. It's fine. It's whatever. And I was like, I don't know, dad. I really don't think that this is going to end too well. But he had me go forward. And sure enough, we were able to scooch past each other. But it wasn't. It was a high stress moment for me. And the amount of faith that my dad put in me with letting me drive the GX on these mountain passes is insane. I mean, really, it was a great learning experience and definitely made me much more comfortable with driving because after that trip, it's like, oh, driving on the streets, that's nothing. There's no cliffs next to me. This is going to be easy. So it was certain, I'm really glad that he had me do that, but it was very stressful for me. And

another stressful driving story with my dad was actually when we went to the Sierra's in the fall after I'd turned 16. So at this point, still didn't have my license. Like I said, I wasn't really prompt with the timing of trying to get my license. So I was permitted, but I was also driving around on the streets at this time. So I believe on our drive up to this. Syrias once we got to the divided highway on 395. My dad had me drive, and so that's just a normal, easy road to drive on, just getting more time behind the wheel. But anyway, when you go past mammoth and you get to Lee Vining, off to the left is the road that you take to go to Yosemite. And the pass that goes over to Yosemite is called Tioga Pass. So this is a real mountain pass,

okay, curvy roads, pretty steep grade, and, you know, you have to be a competent driver. So I drove us up, which is no problem. Going up is, that's not an issue. You're away from the cliff, you know, it's, you are in charge of the speed entirely. But as we're driving up, my dad was telling me about all these ways that brake systems can fail when you're going down, hill because people ride their brakes. And he was talking about my dad's mechanics. So he was really diving into all the details. And he was saying how if the brake fluid heats up, then air can get in there. And then when you step down on the brake, you know, you just press down and the brake doesn't actually do anything. There's no fluid for you to step down on the break with. I may be explaining

this wrong. But anyway, so he was telling me about how brake systems kind of fail. And so I was like, okay, that's cool. Good knowledge. Thanks for telling me. So we get to the top of the past. We don't go over to Yosemite, but we get to the top of the past, have a snack. There was, I believe we built a snowman or I beheaded a snowman. A long time ago when we were in the Grand Canyon, I beheaded a snowman. So it's, I guess, a tradition for me at this point. But anyway, we're getting back in the car to go down the past to head back towards mammoth. And I assumed my dad would be driving. I mean, he had just traumatized me with telling me about all these ways brake systems can fail and how you can go careeting off the side of the cliff. And my dad said, no, no, no,

you get to drive. So I was petrified at the idea of driving down this because it is a very steep road. And so I was super afraid of accidentally riding the brakes, having the brake system fail, and then trying to downshift and it just not working because we were going too fast. So that was my fear, and nonetheless, I got to drive us down. Thankfully, we had none of those problems. If anything, I was probably going a little too fast because I was afraid to touch the brakes, since I was convinced that if I even put my foot on them for two seconds, that they would overheat or something. So that's another really fun story with my dad.

A lot of these have to deal with him pushing me out of my comfort zone, which I am very very, very grateful for. In the moment, it's certainly not fun and can be really scary, but I think that because he's in his brain, he knows nothing is going to go wrong. He is there to help if anything were to go wrong. He also trusts me a lot, which I really appreciate. But he's, he's giving me an opportunity to fail with a safety net in a way because he's there and he can help solve the problem if one were to arise. So I am super grateful. but now all these stories are just popping into my head of times where he's really pushed me out of my comfort zone. Another one would be a sailing story. My dad taught me how to sail when I was five years old. We moved houses when I was five and now had access to a lake.

And my dad would go sailing all the time with my best friend's dad on the ocean. But now that there was a lake near us, he taught me how to sail. And the first time we went sailing was on. Mother's Day and my mom was with us, and I didn't actually sail at this time. This is him just kind of figuring out the lake boats. But it was a super windy day, and it freaked me out a lot because the boat was tipping quite a bit. And so that just kind of left a bad taste in my mouth regarding sailing. But after that, we went out a couple of other times, just the two of us, and pretty soon I began to enjoy it in the lighter breeze, and he even started having me drive. So this is all fine and dandy in light wind. And at this point, we realized there was a yacht club on the lake. So we started racing and we were doing regattas together, the two of us, I skippering and him crewing. And there was

one particular regatta that was super duper windy. And I was really scared and did not want to go out for the day. I said, forget it. Let's just not race. We're going to flip. And I don't want to flip because I was scared of flipping. I was probably six or seven for this regatta. And my dad said, no, no, no, we're going to go racing. It'll all be fine. And so sure enough, we did. And I honestly think we won because everyone else was, everyone else in our class was too afraid to be out there in that high breeze. And so they didn't go. And so it was my, just my dad and I out there and we ended up winning. So that was another really great experience. All right, time for one more story. My final story is in relation to my dad's mindset of work hard and play hard.

He is a big believer in this, and so am I. So I was homeschooled throughout high school, and my dad and I are really big skiers and would go up to mammoth very frequently, sometimes every other weekend. Typically, more so like every three weekends in the winter. But anyway, I had just taken, I believe it was either, I was probably the ACT, and I got a really good score. And I remember suggesting three days before Friday. or maybe it was even two days. It was very last minute. But Mammoth had gotten quite a bit of snow earlier on in the week, so they were supposed to have really, really good conditions for that weekend. So two or three days in advance, I remember coming to my dad with my test score in the back of my brain to use as means of persuasion. And I said, hey, we should go to Mammoth. You should just take off this weekend from work and we should go skiing. And at first he's like, ah, I don't know. know, and then he looked at the weather, and that kind of was starting to convince him because it

looked good. And also, my dad loves to go skiing, too. So it wasn't as if I really had to do that much convincing. And then I told him my test score, I'm pretty sure, and he's like, all right, let's go skiing. And my mom wasn't too happy because I think she had something planned for us to do that weekend at home. I'm not sure if it was yard work or whatever it might have been. But it was April and so it was just beautiful skiing conditions, perfect spring skiing. And to make the situation even funnier, the next week I was on spring break. And my dad and I had already planned to go to Mammoth with my mom and then we were also meeting up with some friends. So I'm pretty sure once my dad and I got back from our first little trip that we did the two of us, we were home for four days. And then we

went back the very next weekend for more skiing. So my dad works extremely hard at work and I know that going skiing for him is his play and his version of a break as well. But it was just kind of fun to turn the tables on him in a way and say, look, here's my really good test score that I studied for super hard. So now it's time to go skiing and have some fun. Overall, I am just so, so grateful for my dad and all the wonderful experiences and lessons that he has taught me over the years and over the course of our travels. So I'm so excited for all the trips that we will continue to go on and all the mountains will continue to climb. And I hope that you and your dad, or if you are a dad listening, that you have a very happy Father's Day. Thank you for listening to Off the Trails on Radio Free Hillsdale

101.7 FM. I hope you have a great week. time to go outside and enjoy the great outdoors with your dad. I'll see you out there. Happy trails. Bye guys.