My husband and I have always loved hiking in the woods, at any time of year. We have a problem, though. We get lost. A LOT. Sadly, it’s not that we don’t look at a trail map ahead of time. We zero in on a trail we like and start trekking. Somehow we never seem to end up following the “easy” loop we chose and end up walking oodles of extra miles.

The last time this happened Max was in a back carrier. And HEAVY.

So we’ve shied away from hiking the past couple years.

This year we tried again.

So far, we’ve played it safe and stuck to really simple trails like the Audubon’s Stony Brook in Norfolk and Oak Knoll in Attleboro. There, the only trails ARE loops so there is no chance of getting lost.

Last week we ventured into Hopkinton State Park, where we found a trail that was marked clearly with numbers. We can’t follow trail maps, but we can count.

Yesterday we went searching for giant bugs at the Garden in the Woods in Framingham. This was probably our most adventurous trail yet. We got a clearly-marked map (that we let Max tanslate, just in case), and then followed the yellow signs and arrows to each of the bugs, which are amazingly carved and larger-than-life.

BUT, if you choose to be a little risky, you can veer off the loop onto a less-traveled path. You might find a surprise like mesh bags hanging in the trees- protecting newly-hatched caterpillars as they eat their way into the next stage of their lives- or a rock sculpture that looks like a stegosaurus.

The beauty about these trails is that they all lead back to the main trail, and hence back to civilization. The entire trek can be as short as a half hour or as long as two hours. There is a visitor’s center with nature kid-friendly options and a selection of native plants for sale, too.

Max had a blast on this hike and we’re feeling a little more confident, too. I think we might just try a double-looper next time around…but I’m bringing bread crumbs, just in case.