Farm To Mountaintop To Table

If you've participated in AOC events before, then you know all AOC events have the first two things covered! And if you've been on a Pioneer Camping trip, you've probably experienced all three things!

Here's another opportunity to experience all three: Let's go from Farm to Mountaintop (and back to your table). Note: The Farm part is optional, but recommended!

I recently learned that the Marietta Farmer's Market (standing in the shadow of Kennesaw Mountain) is a great place to not only buy unique, farm-fresh, foods and artisan products, but also a great opportunity to learn a little bit about the people who raise or craft the food. Many of these farmer/artisans raise their products locally and naturally, some organically, and you can bet they know a lot more about the food they're selling than the grocery stores do. No room for evil corporate giants or Frankenfood here! I've enjoyed farm-fresh, full fat, unhomogenized milk from happy, grass-fed organic cows, smoked trout, ginger zinger, cracked black pepper flatbread, organic veggies, sweet potato cheesecake, crispy Ezekial bars & more! I can't wait to see what new things we find this weekend.

Let's start our adventure at the parking-lot side of the entrance to the Farmer's Market at 9:30a.m. The website says the market opens at 10, but when I arrived at 9:40 on previous visits, everyone was set up and business was being done. Also, the big free public parking lot behind the market fills up fast.

I'm going to bring my trusty Trader Joe's grocery bags, as well as a small cooler for my car. I suggest that you do the same... once you sample some of these goodies, you'll probably be more than tempted to get some of your own to take home! Be sure to bring cash, or you may be able to find an ATM on the Square.

We'll wander around the market (either as a group or on your own) until 11:15, when we'll regroup at the meetup point. Please be sure to chat with the farmers & artisans as you wander around... many of them are very friendly and passionate about what they do, and are more than happy to answer questions.

Next, we'll get in our cars and head over to Kennesaw Mountain for a brisk, 5 mile (total) hike to the top, where we'll enjoy a relaxing lunch of items purchased at the Farmer's market (or whatever you bring from home). Hopefully we'll be able to share our finds with each other.

You can try to park at the Visitor's Center, or on the road, but we'll probably need to park in the overflow lot. It'll take 5-10 minutes to walk to the Visitor's center from there.

Let's regroup in front of the Visitor's Center between 11:30-11:45, and we'll be off on our hike by 11:50. The route we'll take will begin behind the Visitor's Center, and will start with a warm up; stretching is always good, and I usually like to go at a slower pace for the first mile, then pick up speed. After about 2-3 miles, we'll hit Pigeon Hill & take a little time for a small snack or just to enjoy the rocks. From here, the workout will really begin. Be sure that you are in at least D4 shape; going up the back of Little KM and then Big KM involves some pretty steep elevation gain, and you need to be prepared to keep pace with the group. We're not going to be going at a "fast" rate, but do expect a moderate-brisk pace. We should complete the 5 miles in 2.5-3 hours.

Also, with all the rain and warm temps we've been having, there's a chance there will be some fungus among us, and I'm probably going to want to stop and take pictures if it looks delicious, deadly or otherwise interesting. I'm definitely NOT an expert, but feel free to point out any fungus (or other wildlife) you notice on the trail & I'll try to identify it.

See you Saturday! For more information on the Farmer's Market, follow this link:
http://mariettasquarefarmersmarket.net/thisSat.htm

More about Kennesaw Mountain here:
http://ngeorgia.com/travel/kennesawmtn.html