I’m going to share with you the absolute BEST tomato soup recipe in the world and it’s really simple. First, buy a box of Trader Joe’s organic creamy tomato soup. Set the soup on the kitchen counter (unopened). Then take your dogs for a hike up Morton Peak.
MFN Tara and I hiked from the bottom of the Santa Ana River Trail to Morton Peak, as far as Cougar Rock.
The lookout tower was in sight when we decided to retrace our path back to the car, knowing that the descent would be punishing to our knees and feet.
Noting the snail-paced line of cars making their way up the highway below, we felt quite smug about our view from above.
The entire hike was about ten miles with nearly 1,700 feet of elevation gain and loss. I realize that, for real hikers, that’s not much of a hike; but for this mountain biker it was significant.
Once you have completed the hike, dump the box of soup into a bowl and microwave for a couple of minutes. I guarantee you will think it’s the best tomato soup you have ever eaten.
judyrutrider 
I love everything from Trader Joe’s. Hubby always says hunger is the best seasoning. Beautiful scenery, the sharp contrast of the peace and quiet to all of the activity down below, and of course Super Sadie. I summited Mt Katahdin (Maine) in 2004. The trail was about 10 miles round trip with an elevation 5,276 ft. I had never mountain hiked before. The descent is indeed “punishing” to the knees and feet. When we got back to the trailhead, I sat down to use the toilet and literally could not get back up. After 10 minutes, hubby snuck into the ladies room and rescued me. I was so hungry I would have eaten my backpack. 🙂
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We might suggest to the engineers at Camelback that they consider using an edible fabric for their hydration packs for just such outings. Also, handicap rails at trailside restroom facilities might be useful. I’ll bet you were sore for days after!
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Good idea. I didn’t think it was going to take all day (we left at 7 am and got back just after 1130 pm) so we packed way less food and water than we should have. We shared a small loaf of bread, cheese, and two apples for lunch. Besides that, I had only one Clif bar and two sleeves of trail mix. We were not able to refill our camelbacks at Thoreau “stream”–it was too shallow and silty. I was banged up, bruised, scratched, bleeding, and missing both big toenails when I arrived back at the trailhead. There was a handicap restroom, but it never occurred to me to use it. We stayed at a lovely B&B the next night. The owners offered libations from their liquor cabinet and at bedtime, they brought up two heart-shaped hot water bottles (covered in plush red velvet) to soothe our sore limbs. 🙂
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I’ve read Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods, and from his telling, I gather that Katahdin is rather fearsome for its size, Not a mountain to be trifled with, as your toes will attest.
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The queens of the dry mountains are looking at the world at their feet! 🙂
Love ❤
Michel
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Ha ha! They’re not so dry right now. We just got over two inches of rain from the last storm. It’s looking like this year we might get almost half of what we used to consider average. If we aren’t experiencing climate change, this has been a record breaking drought for the past ten years.
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I remember the east of the US got the drought those several last years . Water will be welcome .
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