Views of the Quiraing, Trotternish Ridge, Isle of Skye

By the looks of this fantastic Jurassic landscape carpeted in Scottish green grass, the Quiraing could be part of Middle Earth, the Lord of the Rings continent replete with large scale mountains, valleys and coasts bordered by the undying lands and the land of the dead. And yet the minute you step on the trail, you forget all about what the landscape could be to admire what it is. Otherworldly comes to mind, unique for sure, or just plain stunning. So stunning it’s a surprise you even remember to keep on walking! It’s even more surprising that this trail is so accessible for all ages, from children to grand-parents. We hiked around the Quiraing with my girls and my dad and despite the 5 miles, some snow and a few airy parts, the adventure was over too soon for our taste. If your kids like scrambling, climbing, running or sliding (down scree slopes), this walk’s for them – a must for any pint-size world explorer shortlist.

Photo Gallery – Click on Thumbnails to Enlarge

First, the name Quiraing. Like a lot of Scottish names, the pronunciation is impossible until a local says it – it sounds like queer-ang, with -ang as in fangs with a twang. Now that you got the pronunciation down, the other burning topic – geology! The Quiraing is a landslip – an area of Jurassic sedimentary rock that collapsed under the weight of giant lava flows, causing huge rocks to break along a 2-km long fault and glide towards the sea, rotating in the landslide. Yes I know, it sounds complicated but that’s perhaps the most beautiful landslide you’ll ever see so it’s worth knowing what happened. Now that we got that out of the way, on with the hike.

The Map

When I first read about the Quiraing in Country Walking‘s April 2013 issue on Treasure Islands, I dutifully tore off the page and stored it in a plastic sleeve for our trip to Skye. Reading it closer to the day, I found I wanted more detail to spot a few funny rock formations and side trails. The article and my 1:50,000 Ordnance Survey map #23 North Skye proved not detailed enough so we used an annotated 1:10,000 satellite view of the  area instead. It’s called  ”10 Step Self Guided Walk through the Quiraing” and we found it at the Ellishadder Art Cafe.

From The Trailhead To The Prison

By mid-morning, we parked at the pass for the Quiraing trailhead under a heavy sky. Showers and/or wet snow might be in the cards, we didn’t know. While we were getting my girls’ gear sorted out, my dad walked over to a metal plaque. “They talk about The Lord of the Rings!” he said. I went over too. Indeed, the landscape was described as being similar as to that of Middle Earth. Such a reference bode well for the hike, even if it didn’t mean much for my young girls yet.

With full packs on our backs, we made for the trail right across from the parking area at the pass. Clearly marked and signed for Flodigarry, it headed north-east through flat moorland towards rocky pillars. Within minutes, we were on a narrow dirt path skirting the outline of the mountainous ridge. No place for cartwheels, it was single file or drop with the sheep. I followed my 7-year old and roughly 10 minutes in, reached The Wet Step. This small gully had a weird narrow rocky section and a hairpin turn where I had to trust my boots and just hop on over the rock to safety above a 6-foot drop.

Less than a mile away from the trailhead, we reached a rocky outcrop with terraced grassy slopes and decided to drop our bags for an early lunch and some play time (for my girls). Sheltered from the wind, comfortable and dry, this awesome spot invited both bird-gazing and grass-napping but for my girls, it also meant active bouldering and rock jumping. With our stomachs happy, we picked up our bags for a section that looked tricky to me – it was going to be seriously steep. As we reached a small rock pyramid, we had The Prison on our right, The Needle on our left.

To The Needle and The Table

From the pyramid, most people turned left and attempted the steep climb to reach The Needle, straight up an earthy slope without much to hold onto. Our guide map suggested a more gradual route to the left also, but along a snaking path up to the cliff base. Alas vertigo got the better of me and I bailed out, along with my 7-year-old who decided she’d stick with her mom and slide down the slope on her butt.

My 9-year old, my husband and my dad reached the cliff base and then walked straight to the Needle. From what I understand, hell of a view but it’s dizzyingly steep looking down. From there, they set out to find The Table. Within the Quinraing’s landslip are several odd rock formations including The Table, an elevated hidden plateau the size of a football field once used to conceal cattle from Viking raiders. I almost cried when I realized I wouldn’t be going up there because I knew scenes of Highlander had been shot there and it sounded quite breathtaking.

Frustrated by my vertigo, I decided I’d take a second shot at The Needle and undertook the “straight up” climb. However a third of the way through, a blond woman came down and delivered a message from my husband: “Do not climb. There’s a lot of snow up there. They’re coming down.” A part of me was relieved. They were not going up after all. I slid down the slope – again – and with my little one, we scrambled up The Prison for fun until we were all reunited.

Too bad Table, some other time.

To The Summit

Most visitors turned back at The Prison to retrace their steps but we wanted to see the top of the summit so we kept going on the same path. Walking under the overhanging cliff, we saw the grassy slopes and hills turn white with snow as that side was probably less exposed to the sun. We passed along the small Loch Fada, a small pond surrounded by snow. After some going down, the path leveled up and went up again. We were soon reaching our turnaround point, the lowest point of the Quiraing’s mighty “shield”.

At the pass we went over a style and turned around to doubleback. Time to hit the summit!

This side of the mountain was completely snowed-in. The sky was so dark that the area had a gloom-and-doom feeling. Had this been in The Game of Thrones, you’d know that winter was coming. I said a silent prayer for fair weather because by now we were on our own. No other travelers had ventured this far and a snowstorm would not be welcome without proper gear. Though we could follow footsteps on the hill, we would be by ourselves.

For scenic purposes, our path followed the cliff edge – which made me nervous at times – and allowed great views of the coast and mountain range. The snow got deeper and soon we were carving steps in icy patches with our hiking boots, trying to find the best footing at each step. It started snowing. My dad slipped twice, my 9-year old once, and the hill looked like it would never end. This snowy uphill walk was not easy! Each time I thought we were cresting the ridge, another formidable fold presented itself and I yelled to the ones behind, “It’s going to be the next ridge!” hoping I’d be right.

What a tricky landslip this is. Finally the slope got easier. The ground got flatter and we reached a rocky cairn marking the summit. We made it!

Back To The Trailhead

Next to the summit, the cliff edge presented some breaks through which we were able to glimpse The Table – from above. What had seemed impossibly high earlier on the trail stood now hundreds of feet below us. I dared not get closer to the edge – it’s deceptively round and any drop would be fatal – but it all seemed very high to me.

From there, we had a full view on the other hills of the Trotternish Ridge that go up the peninsula almost until the northern tip. What a view! The path was less obvious then but we did as before, skirting the edges of the cliff until we found a clearer path that went down the hill in successive drops. The last part of the hike was closer to running than walking downhill and my girls had a lot of fun skipping, jumping and racing each other.

Including the slow-going on snow and lunch stop, the hike took us 5 hours. That evening, we spent a lot of time looking at our pictures in awe. That’s one hike I’d do again in a heartbeat – in any weather.

Practical details

•  Map: OS North Skye 23 or above suggestions
• Hike length: 4.5 to 5 miles
• Elevation gain: 510 meters or 1,680 feet
• Difficulty: moderately strenuous
• Facilities at trailhead: none. BYO water. No restrooms. Gravel parking area.
• Dogs: allowed.
• Caution: when icy, be adequately prepared. Also make sure your camera’s battery is fully charged. You’ll need it.
• Kids: can get a delicious hot chocolate and scones at the nearby Ellishadder Art Cafe, where the owner is an artist and gave paper and pencils to my girls so they could make a drawing. Closer to The Quiraing – though we haven’t stopped there – is The Small and Cosy Teahouse.

Happy trails!

Pancake Breakfast at the West Point Inn

Most people eat breakfast before hitting the trail and I can’t blame them for that – hiking on an empty stomach can lead me to thoughts of the murderous kind. Some people eat breakfast on the trail – as in “eat your cereals, kid” or lumberjack-style, bringing a griddle and chopping a tree to fry bacon in the woods. Romantic but exhausting. And then a few happy hikers combine trail and breakfast in the most civilized manner – hiking to delicious fluffy pancakes and roasted sausages that someone else cooked for you! Now does that sound like a great idea or what? Note that you get Pacific Ocean views on clear days, a view that can’t be beat. That epitome of civilization in the woods is the essence of the West Point Inn pancake breakfasts on Mount Tamalpais and the perfect way to work your children’s appetite for a hearty Sunday breakfast.

Photo Gallery – Click on Thumbnails to Enlarge

Get There Early 

Now before you write the dates down and get in the car, let me break some news to you: you aren’t the only one who thought about this. The pancake breakfasts at West Point Inn are so popular, they serve anywhere between 500 and 1,000 breakfasts on each date. Out of the six Sundays, the busiest days are Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. It’s gonna be busy as a beehive and on Mountain Play dates you have to factor in musical-goers as well. If that weren’t clear enough, the earlier the better! Last time I went, we were at the Pan Toll Ranger Station parking lot by 9 am and we grabbed the last parking spot. The people behind me probably cried. See what I mean?

Where Will You Start?

There are many ways you can access the West Point Inn, none of them involving a car. The West Point Inn is a walk-in, hike-in inn. I’ve seen cub scouts bike to the inn from Mill Valley. I’ve seen people hike to the inn from Stinson Beach – awesome butt-kicking 9-mile  sand-to-redwoods-to-views hike. You can also hike down from East Peak but then you’ve got to hike back up on a full stomach and that requires strong mountain legs.

The easiest and most child-friendly route is starting at the Pan Toll trailhead.  With only two mostly-flat miles, this route takes you on a wide fire road that skirts the mountain with some lovely views of the trees and the valleys. An hour later and you’re in front of a plate of hot pancakes. Best option in my opinion.

What Will You See?

Mount Tamalpais is wildflower paradise so keep an eye out for pretty blooms on the side of the trail. On an early summer visit, we were lucky to spot some gorgeous Leopard Lilies, Foxgloves  and wild mustard along the way. The end of the trail is lined by young Douglas Fir trees whose pale green tips in spring are a true spring syrup delicacy.

Mostly you’ll be walking in the sun – only the start of the trail is shaded, a note for sun hat-wearers – and enjoying spectacular views until you reach the inn. Around the inn, kids can play on boulders or run around the packed dirt area facing the ocean.

What Will You Eat?

The menu’s fairly simple and is cooked by West Point Inn volunteers, nice folks who dedicate a lot of their weekends to maintaining and running this historical inn.

For $10/adult and $5/child, you line up and get a plate with a short stack of big pancakes (not gourmet but fluffy) and sausages. Then you go inside and add some cantaloupe to your plate – even for reluctant children, it’s the “healthy” part of breakfast – and pick up an orange juice or a coffee or tea. The last time we were there we were too late for hot chocolates so the kids didn’t have that option but then the weather was so nice, they were happy with orange juice and our water bottles.

The table turnover is pretty good and there are many picnic tables scattered around the inn so you should be able to find a table to claim. Once you sit at your table, you can douse your pancakes and sausages in Log Cabin syrup. Usually my youngest one drowns her plate in syrup and then eats it mostly as a sweet mush.

Of course if you want real maple syrup, you’ll have to bring your own. But then, why would you bring maple syrup when the spirit of the day is not to eat gourmet food but to hike to great views, support an old Bay Area institution and enjoy fun company?

Entertainment?

That part’s actually quite funny. The pancake breakfast comes with live music. Last year there was this guy and his guitar, a pretty good singer for a very happy crowd. Well the only song of his I can remember talked at length about how his girlfriend left him, and how she would never come back, and it all sounded so heartfelt I couldn’t help but wondering if this happened last night.

Nonetheless, good musician.

Now for the practical details!

• West Point Inn website: http://westpointinn.com/
• Pancake breakfast hours: 9am to 1pm
• Reservations: no
• Facilities: two restrooms, outside sink to wash hands and refill water bottles
• Ages: fun for all ages, from babes in carriers to fit grand-parents
• Dates for 2013: May 12, June 16, July 14, August 11, September 8, October 13
• Want to backpack and spend the night at the West Point Inn with your kids? You can do that too. Read all about it here.

Though my girls are sometimes reluctant to go outside – you know, the weather being what it is – inside is not where they belong. These girls need to jump, bounce, run, skip, climb, roll – they’re never happier than outside, preferably with their friends. For their sanity and mine, I make a point of taking them outside every single weekend and engage in new adventures or recurring activities that they enjoy. I’ll keep adding activities to that list so it represents a good range of outdoors adventures for school-age kids.

Since this post is a slideshow, simply click on a photo and read the full description for ideas and (some) tutorials.

Kids! Thrive and be active  - it’s the secret to a happy and long life.

Cross-country hiking in Scotland

Typical Davy Crockett stuff – discovering new territories. We conquered the hills and dales of a Scottish island without so much as a trail on the ground – just a compass, a map and a solid appetite for adventure. John Muir would have been proud, he the Scottish-born naturalist who hunted for bird nests as a wild boy. While we didn’t hunt anything at all, we were definitely looking forward to a new backcountry type of experience. Cross-country hiking.

Except cross-country hiking (or walking) comes with its own set of challenges that we rarely encounter in places where trail-walking is the norm. Think about it. Finding your way in the wild ain’t for the faint-hearted. Stream crossings, uneven terrain, dense vegetation, watery holes – it’s all good fun! More seriously, what makes you decide which route’s the best, or the shortest or the easiest? How do you guesstimate distances and travel time?

All these questions matter for any off-trail hike but they matter even more when you have children in the mix. Obviously, you want them to have an enjoyable experience. What’s the point of taking kids outdoors if it’s not to inspire them to come back for more? Therefore your goal is simple – no unnecessary hardships, no inadequate gear, no wrong compass readings. No fudging. Just be ready.

The good news is, common sense and a short list of essentials go a long way in making the experience a success. On a recent trip to Scotland we crossed an almost-desert island with my girls, ages 7 and 9, and navigated 8 miles across moors and hills to a Viking village on the other side of the island. Though we did get slightly sidetracked, my girls learned a lot in terms of where to put their feet, gauging how wet a terrain is by its color and texture, or where to cross a stream. I’d go as far as saying the experience was educational in the sense that we met new challenges and learned to overcome them.

Here is what I learned along the way and what can help you pull off your own Davy Crockett trip.

What You Need to Navigate:

• Topo map: the first navigational tool you need is a detailed topo map of the area you’re planning on exploring. We had a 1/25,000 laminated topo map of the island with us and benefited from a read-through of the map by locals before the hike. Now, hiking maps are usually drawn on a 1/50,000 scale and that’s good enough on trails but for cross-country hiking in remote areas, a 1/25,000 scale is recommended. You want to see the contours and waterways as precisely as possible. Since you’ll need to compare landscape features with the map regularly, a large paper map will be a lot easier to use than the small screen of a GPS. However if you can laminate the map, this will prove very useful in case it gets wet. As we all know, rain happens! To get started on maps, you can browse this list of free map resources across the world and see if you find the area you’re looking for. Otherwise head to your local rangers or park office and ask them for advice.
• Compass: an old-fashioned compass and the ability to use it are the perfect additions to a good topo map. My father is the compass expert in the family for having years of bushwhacking experience in the South Pacific so we had him be Master of the Compass. About compass readings, I recently read something useful in Outside magazine. To avoid anything metallic or magnetic interfering with the needle, get used to reading the compass away from cell phones, digital cameras or under-wired bras. They could throw off the reading.
• GPS: a GPS can’t be used as a single navigational tool in remote areas but you can totally use it as a back-up to double-check your bearings in case of doubts. We didn’t use one during our trip but we did use the GPS feature of my husband’s cell phone to check our bearings once or twice.

Now that you have your basic tools for navigation, don’t forget enough food and drink for everybody (with extras for the kids), a change of socks should the kids’ shoes get wet (my girls hate hiking with wet feet), warm layers for everyone (including a waterproof layer) and good hiking boots with ankle support if you’re going to tackle uneven terrain.

During our own cross-country hike, we were planning to walk on Scottish moorland and dressed for winter hiking with solid hiking boots or rainboots.

Now, moving on to the actual outdoors.

Choose Child-Friendly Terrain for Starters

With children, the best possible scenario is to hike across open terrain in good visibility conditions and where the vegetation isn’t higher than mid-thigh for the children. Poor visibility, densely wooded areas or tall vegetation add real challenges that I’m not ready to tackle with children just yet. For low vegetation, I’d recommend hiking in the winter or spring – as opposed to summer or autumn – and for child-friendly terrain I’d recommend grassy hills, open moorland, coastal bluffs, high meadows or rocky mountains. As long as you can features of the landscape with the naked eye, you’re good to hike.

Navigation Step 1 : Terrain Association by Checking your Bearings Regularly

A quick analogy with water here, as swimming is my other passion. I’ve come to realize that open water swimming is to swimming what cross-country hiking is to walking – moving forward without the black line at the bottom of the pool or a trail under your feet. It’s navigating in an uncontrolled environment. Therefore when I started open water swimming, I learned all about sighting – lifting your head at regular intervals so you can swim in a straight line. Similarly when walking off-trail, the best way to hike in a straight line from A to B is to check your bearings regularly.

For this, you need to head for higher ground regularly to find your bearings using the map and compass, and reconcile terrain features with your reading of the map (steep inclines, water courses, open valleys, etc.). Each time we needed to confirm our direction during our hike, we oriented the map pointing north (click here if you want to teach children how to read a map) and looked around. Lucky for us, our planned route included following the contour of a loch and crossing the island following a canyon to a point on the craggy coastline – all visible geographical features from higher up. Following a body of water in open landscapes is not rocket science – you just follow the edges and to make sure of your bearings, you climb a small hill (6 feet high or more), double-check the shape of the edges against the shape on your map and reconcile the two.

Navigation Step 2 : Triangulating to Correct Your Course 

Now as I said, a straight line is what you’re aiming for when cross-country hiking but it’s much easier said than done. In our case, we decided to deviate from our planned course and shoot straight for the coast at an angle. Obviously, we didn’t want to land too far off the mark on the coast and walking on unmarked terrain in a straight line is impossible. Rocks, hills, bogs, drops – many items made us deviate from our course at every step. We didn’t even walk single file! Since there was no trail to follow or soil erosion to consider, we walked like birds in a V formation with a leader with the map in front and the others behind. Our overall itinerary probably resembled a somewhat straight zigzag pattern.

To avoid unnecessary backtracking, we stopped on higher rocky outcrops three or four times to look at the shoreline and reconsider our route. Once we could clearly see the coastline and coves by the water, we discussed amongst us three adults to identify which point we were aiming for (A). Then we found another easily-identifiable point (B) and triangulated to guess where we were (C). It turned out we only needed to alter our course slightly and found the Viking village without problems.

• Read more on How to Navigate the Backcountry – Triangulation/Resection

Navigation Step 3 : Following Legs 

We used that technique on the way back from the Viking village as many terrain features were hidden from view by the ascending slopes of the hills. On the map, we knew where we wanted to get (A). We also knew where we were on the coast (B) since we reached a certain point without any doubts. To get from A to B, we plotted a few intermediate way points that we could use as a relay line to get us safely to our destination. It went something like this: here we should reach a hill. Then a steep incline would lead us to a ridge from which we’d see three lochs to the west. Keeping the lochs west we’d cross a strip of land between two lochs to reach a higher loch and the edge of the high plateau that marked the beginning of our descent. And so forth.

I would lie if I said that worked as planned. Unfortunately we got our second leg wrong and ended up doing an extra mile or two of scenic heather moorland to find our destination. We drifted off our bearings going upslope because we misjudged the higher point we saw with our naked eyes with a lesser hill than the one we were aiming for. Not that the effort was any less intense – my girls earned their ice-cream – but we got sidetracked.

The upside is, we enjoyed some spectacular views on other areas of the island and loops are always more fun than out-and-back routes. In the end we found our way so no harm was done. However if you’re going to do this, I suggest you practice memorizing notable features of the landscape and check the map frequently.

The Key to Success Is…

Practice, practice, practice – and bring lots of rewards for the kids. Soon they’ll ask you to fly to Denali National Park in Alaska, one of the few trailess national parks in the US. Or go to Scotland and hike the Highlands:)

Now off you boldly go where no trail has been marked before!

George MacPherson on the site of a shieling on the Isle of Skye

Meeting a skilled storyteller should be a must for travelling families who are eager to add another dimension to their experiences and make sense of the place in a different light. My girls being suckers for good stories, I organized our trip on Skye so we would spend a day with the man behind the Isle of Skye’s Storytelling Festival, George Macpherson. My husband was expecting a new-agey hippie in sandals – we found an old bard closer in beard and in words to Gandalf or Merlin. That whole day became the highlight of our trip as it brought us insights we would have found nowhere else – and stories now ingrained in the memories of my girls.

Every inch the Highlander, George Macpherson looked quite the part when we met him at his house on a Friday morning.  Wearing his clan’s kilt and calf-high socks with a dirk dagger, the 79-year old Scottish storyteller invited us in for a cup of tea and some home-baked cakes. Impressed by the Scottish dress, my girls became very shy and sat still on the living room’s couch.

Once we agreed there would be no script to the day and the stories would be led by our interests, my father asked a question about old paths, land management and farmers. Macpherson replied by telling us the story of Glendale his village and how his great-grand-father John Macpherson led crofters into a revolt to take over the land they farmed from their landlord in the late 1800s.

Photo Gallery – Click on thumbnails to enlarge:

Then he turned to my girls and announced a story “for the children,” the story of Ewen the best dancer on Skye who met little people coming back home from a ceilidh and was never the same again. Drawn into the story, my girls relaxed and sat up straight to listen.

Macpherson’s Highland voice was clear. He rolled his Rs and said wee for small. His delivery was well paced and he used pauses timely. In a few words, he was a real storyteller, the bearded bard who’d traveled around and could tell age-old stories in chosen words and in a low rhythmic voice.

Ewen the dancer was a first of several Celtic and folk stories that punctuated our day. After fairies, my 9-year old asked for witch stories. When you’re 9-year old, evil is cool. Obligingly, Macpherson launched into the chilling story of the Waternish witches and young cattle herder who witnessed a witches’ dance through the heather. That boy got surrounded by black cats and torn to pieces by the river.

“Is it true?” asked my 9-year old asked squirmily on the couch. “Ah, you want a true witch story? Then let me tell you about the witches of Paisley and the curse that became true two centuries after their death burning at the stake,” he continued. As you can guess, Macpherson had a story to answer any question we had. Realizing that my girls needed to run around, we got out of the house, drove to the limit of Glendale’s houses and walked out onto an open valley crossed by a river. We started walking and my girls took the bow and arrows they had made to run wild on the moor.

Several miles away, the MacLeod Tables dwarfed everything around them with their flat tops at 1,600 feet of altitude. Asked about them, Macpherson gave us the story of the Giants of Glendale who fought one drunken night with another race of giants and threw rocks off the top of two mountains far into the sea. Looking across the heather and the mountains, we liked the idea that the mountains we were looking at  had been leveled off by giants.

At that moment my 7-year old joined us and told us she and her sister were followed by a sheep. We turned back and indeed, a white fluffy sheep was playing friendly with them. Inspired, she asked for a sheep story to Macpherson who told her not one but two ungulate stories. Without noticing it, we had followed an ancestral cattle trail and reached the ruins of a croft house by a bend of the river. George’s uncle had lived there as a sheepherder in his youth. We looked at the four stone walls with wide eyes and wondered about that kind of life without electricity or modern comfort.

Just a little ways further, the ruins of the Shielings appeared. Had we not paid attention, they would have looked like a series of grassy domed mounds set beside a burn. “This was the summer village of women and children in the community,” said Macpherson, “It was last used in the early 1800s.” In front of us was in fact the remains of a small farming settlement where boys were welcomed until they turned 10 and became men, where girls learned the facts of life from the wise woman, where sheep was fattened up and cheese made for the winter. Here was a place of rituals and rites of passage. Reminded of his childhood on his grandmother’s farm, Macpherson shared with us the Saturday childhood chore he liked the least. “One of my jobs as a boy on Saturdays was to churn the butter. My grand-mother taught us Gaelic songs to go with the churning and we knew the stages according to the sound. When all was done, we were given a cup of fresh buttermilk.”

We entered the Shieling where the ghosts of crofters past were still very alive to our storyteller. Macpherson led us through “alleys” of soft moss, pointing here to the house of so-and-so, here to another big house abutting the hill, past a crystal-clear creek to a squarish mound that was the wise woman’s house. We all sat down on the “walls” for more stories. Listening to Macpherson, it was as though he’d lived the stories – which was true for some – or heard them from the person who first created them. And that, to a certain extent, was true as well. George Macpherson was taught the rigorous art of storytelling from the age of three onwards, at his grandfather’s knee. His grandfather learned them the same way, learning to repeat word for word an oral story heard from his father or grandfather.

The fact the stories have come so far with minimal distortion explains why they were so captivating. Good stories last! As the sun warmed the heath, moss and fern around us, we heard about the legend of the Seal People, the last grey wolf of Skye, and the ghost black car of Skye – the latter really got my 9-year old’s attention.

It was time to head back and Macpherson still had so many stories to tell. One last time we followed him down a ravine to the Waterfall of the Fairies. When you swim underwater, you find a cave under the waterfall. You have to swim through the cave to come out and make a wish. Framed by rowan, alder, honeysuckle and hazel, this magical waterfall was the last spot we haunted with Macpherson.

When asked where we could find his books, the old wise man replied “at the post office!” After saying our goodbyes, we headed straight to the post office. Unfortunately they were out of his books but they still had one of his CDs. That night as we were driving back from a delicious dinner at The Three Chimneys, we listened to three stories of The Swans on the Loch. It was just like listening to Macpherson except without the green open valleys. When we reached our B&B late at night, there were still 8 minutes to go until the end of a story. My girls pleaded for us to stay in the car until the story was over. We did.

I told you they are suckers for good stories.

If you’ve ever wondered  what it’s like to listen to a skilled storyteller, try to imagine this told by an old bard in Scottish dress: “This is a story about Katrina who, each evening, left a wee bit of milk and food for the little people in the fairy stone in front of her house and about how the harvest was done for her in one night.”

Aiming for a balloon with bow and arrow

Thanks to Brave action girl Princess Merida, archery has taken our household by storm. When I told my girls I’d signed them up for a Brave junior ranger day in Scotland where they’d be making their own bows and arrows, they were over the moon. I mean, making your own bows and arrows at ages 7 and 9? That sounded pretty cool and Legolas the elf would have approved.

Brave and Lord of the Rings aside, archery is as close as today’s children will ever get to an ancient hunting technique practiced outdoors and the good news is, there are many archer heroes they can relate to. Think of Robin Hood, Katniss Everdeen or William Tell – they’re all good role models kids can look up to. Fortunately, today’s children don’t have to kill anyone or anything to use their bows and arrows. Practicing their aim and going on an archery hike across grassy trails gets top score in my girls’ outdoors book.

Here’s how my girls made their own bows and arrows from wood harvested in a nearby forest the previous day. As you will see, your kids will need the help of an adult for some that require physical strength.

Photo gallery – click on thumbnails to enlarge

TO MAKE A BOW

1. Choose a long piece of wood for the bow

The Scottish ranger who led the activity had harvested pieces hazelnut wood, about 3 to 4 feet long. It was pliable but not so much, which I understand is what you’re looking for. It should be a hardwood that’s free of knots, twists and side branches. You want a wood that’s not brittle but that will still give you good tension when you pull on the string. The piece of wood we used was roughly an inch wide in diameter.

2. Cut notches at each end of the bow

The notches will help hold the string in place. What you want to do is cut an inch into the middle of each end of the bow. We did it with a the saw of a Swiss Army knife but any small wood saw would work.

We used a fishing line type nylon string but you can choose other type of string (ordinary twine, thin nylon rope) as long as it is not stretchy. My girls tied a triple knot at the end of the string and secured it by slipping it in the notch and going around that end three or four times with the string, then tying a final double knot. To measure how much string the children needed, the ranger pulled the string from the secured end along the piece of wood and cut two inches beyond the other end.

5. Prepare a handhold

My girls were more than happy to reclaim possession of the Swiss Army knife for this step. With the knife, they shaved off an area around the middle of the bow that was larger than the size of their hand. It made holding the bow easier at the end. If you have sanding paper, you can sanded it  or if you thick twine, you can wrap it around the middle over a couple inches to create a comfortable hand grip.

6. Finish the bow

All that needed to be done was tie a double knot at the loose end of the string, shorter than the length of the wood by roughly two or three inches, and then bend the wood until the  string could be slipped inside the second notch. We had to repeat this step with varying lengths of string so as to get the best curve possible the bow. All ready! Now the arrows.

TO MAKE ARROWS

1. Select the wood

Arrows can be made from the straightest sticks you can find in a forest. Lengthwise, our sticks were about half the length of the bow piece.

2. Clean off the wood and sharpen the arrow

For this step, children will need to whittle the wood smooth around the circumference of the arrow by using a knife. To prevent sharp knives ending in legs, the children used a thin rectangular piece of wood that they laid across their thighs as a support. Holding the stick, the kids shaved off the bark all around the stick and holding one tip of the arrow on the piece of wood, sharpened it with the knife until it was pointy. That’s the arrowhead.

3. Make fletchings

If you’ve seen Brave, remember the slow-motion flight of the arrow and the fletchings that improved the arrow’s flight. For this, you’ll need nice big feathers that you can collect around your neighborhood or around a lake in a park. Using a knife, split the feathers in half along the quill (that’s the tough central stem). Then trim the halves so you have bits about two inches long. For each arrow, you’ll need three of those.

Then split the wood at the end opposite the arrowhead in three parts. Slide the feathers in and tightly wrap the end of the arrow with string or duct tape. We also duct-taped the area right below the fletches.

It’s all ready. A precautionary note that seems self-evident – never shoot an arrow if anyone is standing in front of you, even sideways. Wait until the area is clear and everybody is behind you.  Now go outside and have fun!

Boat moored at Scalpay Harbor

You don’t have to be rich and famous to spend your next family vacation on a private island, longing for peace and quiet in the middle of the ocean. With 14 miles of shoreline, the Isle of Scalpay in Scotland counts only two guest cottages that you can book for week-long stays. It’s you and a hundred sheep on 200 acres of wild moor and ancient hills. You want to put your feet up and watch clouds drift by? Let the kids run outside and collect seashells? No problem, this is as secluded as vacations come.

OUR STAY

After we discovered the Isle of Scalpay researching family holidays on the Isle of Skye, we were lucky to spend a few days and explore this little-known gem with my girls (7 and 9), my dad and my husband. What we discovered when we set foot on the island was bigger that what we expected. When you hear people speak of unchartered territory, you think of the Wild West or darkest Peru. Scalpay was partially that. Because it’s so close to cities on the Isle of Skye, you can easily escape from your island escape for some Scottish city fun. However we preferred staying on the island and discovering hills where we were free to roam around and spot sea eagles.

Photo gallery – click on thumbnails to enlarge:

GETTING THERE

The Isle of Scalpay is so off the beaten track that you won’t even need your car once you’re there. There are no roads anyway, only a four-mile track that connects the harbor to a remote cottage. Once you park your car on the Isle of Skye after Broadford on a parking area, a boat will come to pick you and your kids up. You’ll be happy to secure your luggage in a waterproof box because just so you know, you might get splashed during the boat ride! Sure it’d be tempting to swim across but a boat’s best to cross the half kilometer that separates Scalpay from the Isle of Skye at high tide.

WHAT TO DO

Viking Village

Our most memorable experience was a through-island hike to a Viking village, a real adventure that kept us busy navigating pure wilderness during a whole day to find the ruins of a Viking village on the coast opposite from the harbor. Our excursion included a lunch stop in a cute hut by a loch on top of the island, looking at waterfalls from a hill overlooking the ocean, walking on a sandy beach by a loch, and spotting sea caves and seashells by the coast. Plus walking house to house in what remains of the Viking village – pretty cool stuff. (Note you can also visit the Viking village by boat.)

Wildlife Sighting

Along our hike to the Viking village, we startled four red grouse in the heather moorland of the island’s hills. Alarmed by our loud voices, these beautiful birds took off in a flurry and went into a long glide to disappear far from us. As they rocketed upwards, they made funny sounds. We also spotted two red deer on the hills who scampered away as soon as we saw them grazing on a hillside. By the harbor, hundreds of blue mussels clung steadily to the floating dock at water level. With our binoculars, we spotted a lone sea eagle coming out of a forested area and over the hills but the bird was so high that we didn’t see much details. We hear that the nearby islands and coves accessible by boat are great spots for colonies of seals and schools of dolphins. I’m not going to include sheep in wildlife but since they’re the first animals we saw on Scalpay and as they look so very fluffy and decorative on the grassy slopes, I’m going to mention them anyway.

Early Christian Burial Ground

Budding archaeologists to the rescue! On the hill right above the harbor, we respectfully walked through an ancient burial ground where modern graves share a peaceful meadow and the shade of a tree with the ruins of Temple of St. Francis (known as Teampull Fraing, or Teampull Frangaia) and a historical grave slab. The history of the island indicates that the original Celtic inhabitants were converted to Christianity by St. Columba in the 6th century and though the island is home to only two people today, there’s evidence 200 to 300 farmers lived on it at a time. If you look closely, you’ll find a narrow tall slab engraved with a cross and another slab with the capital letters P M A. Who knows who they were for? In the middle of the fenced-in burial ground, a jumble of stones indicates the footprint of the former temple. For creative kids, this place would be a perfect spot to sketch to illustrate and write a ghost story. What’s a Scottish vacation without ghosts anyway?

Boardgames and Reading

I think the part that my girls liked the best was having down time in the evening and being able to play board games or read books at will in their bedroom. Without iPads or TV to transfix them into a hypnotic stance, they enjoyed relaxing play time and when dinner was ready, reluctantly left their hideout to join us at the table. Had the weather been warmer when we visited – dang everlasting winter – I know they would have loved exploring the woods and shore next to the house.

Boating

What else to do while on an island? You can’t really ride bikes and you certainly can’t drive a car. Boats are the only vehicles to go around and a fun way to go around at that, even if my girls protested when we told them they had to put on kid-sized life-jackets. “It’s the life-jackets or you stay!” Of course they put them on while grumbling and forgot all about it once they were aboard. By the time the engine went full throttle and split the blue sea with a foamy wake, they were laughing out loud sitting at the back of the boat next to the engine. You’ve never seen bigger smiles. A short ride on an open speedboat is definitely more fun than a ride on a ferry sitting in your car – I’ve got proof!

You can take part in various types of boat trips once on Scalpay.

Picnicking

Obviously since you have the island to yourself, you could picnic anywhere you want but here a few suggestions to inspire al fresco excursions:

- The hut by Loch a’ Mhuilinn

- The bridges on the Trails Loch – kids can splash in the stream or play hide and seek in the woods

- The point facing the sheep field by the harbor – on a clear day you’ll have unbeatable views on the majestic peaks of the Cuillins range and there are mudflats for kids to play nearby

WHERE TO EAT

While foraging and farming feed the residents of the island, guests stock up on food before arriving on Scalpay. Here is your chance to plan a week’s worth of nutritional family menus and stick to them! Or you can go River Cottage on the kids and catch tonight’s fish if you feel so inclined – that’s an option too. Just know there’s no food store on Scalpay so you’ll have to get organized.

LODGING

The Isle of Scalpay features two holiday cottages available for week-long rentals. Check the website for details on the Garden Holiday Cottage or the Keepers Holiday Cottage. Once you put away your luggage and make yourself at home, don’t be surprised if the kids are lulled to sleep by the sound of waves in the evening. It’s pretty much the only sound you’ll hear apart from wind in the trees aand tweeting birds in the morning.

PRACTICAL DETAILS

• Website: www.isleofscalpay.com
• Contact:  info@isleofscalpay.com or + 44 (0)1471822276
• Lodging rates: see here.

 Disclaimer: I want to thank the owners of the Isle of Scalpay for inviting my family and I for a super comfortable and friendly stay on their beautiful island. It was our first stay on a private island and we’re amazed at all the work and efforts they put into beautifying the island and planting new trees. My girls had a blast away from all electronics and honestly, all holidays should have some of that. The opinions expressed on Frog Mom reflect my true opinions regarding our stay.

Viking Village on Scalpay

Vikings in Scotland? You bet. Due its proximity with Norway, the northern part of Scotland experienced major Viking and Norse influence from the 8th to the 15th century. No wonder then that on a recent trip to Skye and the Isle of Scalpay, we came across not only Viking names but Viking remains. Though it would be fun to picture helmet-wearing warriors strolling grassy paths between thatched farmhouses and cross slabs engraved with runes, reality is more subdued and tainted with the passage of time. During our April break, we hiked 10 miles across the Isle of Scalpay to the ruins of a Viking village and loved it.

Scalpay is a small private island featuring 2483 acres of wild Scottish moors, hills, coves, lochs and caves off the north-east coast of the Isle of Skye. Yes, private as in Scottish Robinson Crusoe far from busy roads and tourist buses – with rental cottages to boot. How’s that for an adventure?

Photo Gallery – click on thumbnails to enlarge:

From Scalpay Harbor to Loch a’ Mhuilinn

The morning of the hike, I was briefed by the owners of the island, Veronica and Michael. With a laminated topo map of the island, they showed me how we would be going up the only existing trail to three lochs at the top of the island. There, we would find a loch-side hut for our picnic lunch. Past the end of the trail, we were to follow the lochs and – maybe, drought-depending – find a waterfall off the northern tip of Loch an Leoid. Then we’d find a valley carved by a stream and walking straight, hit the coast and head East to our end destination – the Viking village. All good!

We laced up their hiking boots or put our rainboots and got on the way. Walking past the Georgian house and onto the Lochs Trail, we crossed a small evergreen forest, up and over two bridges and once out in the open, reached the Deer Fence. In an effort to prevent Red Deer from eating all newly-planted trees, Michael and Veronica set up a tall fence that runs all the length of the island. We keyed in the 4-digit code in the lock and entered deer territory- which my dad was very excited about because he wanted to see wild deer.

Walking at a good pace, we reached Loch a’ Mhuilinn (1 mile, 240m/790ft elev gain) in about an hour. Apparently that’s the standard hike for most guests staying at the cottages.  What a surprise it was to coast the last hill before leveling off and discover a wide silver-gray lake with a little hut and a boat. My soil-scientist dad immediately remarked on the glacial lakes formation and the sandstones. I did a little digging and for geologists out there, Scalpay is  a unique ancient landscape whose rocks - north-west dipping sandstones of the Torridon Group - are roughly 1000 million years old. If you wonder, that’s before animals even appeared on earth. Didn’t look that way for us rock-savages but knowing it now makes it kinda special.

Considering the beautiful loch, we pulled up the hood of our jackets. Snowflakes started falling hard just then and the scenery became magically wintry. My girls noticed a half-decaying wooden boat on the loch and we took turns standing on its watery skeleton, wondering if we’d end up sinking through or not. Snow fell harder now, one thing to do – to the hut! The circular hut was a welcome shelter from an unseasonal April snowfall. Inside, we sat on benches arranged around a fire pit, regretting that we didn’t have wood to roast marshmallows or sausages. We had our picnic watching the snow get heavier through the glass door, and the brown heath carpet become whiter.

After lunch, the real adventure begun. We had 8 miles to navigate in unknown territory and a Viking village to find.

From Loch a’ Mhuilinn to the Viking Village

We arrived easily at the tip of Loch an Leiod and found the waterfall without too many zigzags. Despite the winter drought, it was trickling down a cliff face in pale white ribbons and we got a good view from the opposing hill. We even saw two deer scamper away, fulfilling my dad’s wish for the day and making my girls grab our binoculars to look for more on top of a hill.

After the waterfall, we shot straight for the coast rather than try to find the valley and the stream. Since there were no rivers to ford, we’d be treading on mostly dry ground – note the mostly dry, it’s Scotland we’re taking about. Orienting our map with an old school compass to point north (click here if you want to teach children how to read a map), we figured we needed to follow a 45-angle NW course over 3 miles.

The lower we got, the boggier the terrain became. If you don’t speak Scottish hiking, boggy means wet spongy moss and peat ground with water-filled ditches prone to swallowing boots without notice. Sounds like great fun, eh? Using the clear outline of the coast and the map as our guides, we came about the first wall of  the Viking village around 2pm. We made it!

The Viking Village

Scalpay’s Viking village is a series of house foundations evidenced by 3- to 4-foot high walls in open moorland on the coast. Using Google Earth I determined that the most eastern walls are 150 meters East of the mouth of the stream that takes its source on SitheanGlac an Ime – that’s for you hiking geeks. Now we were lucky that during our spring visit the walls were clearly visible because later in the year, vegetation takes over and the ruins are easy to miss. Without a precise guide to the village, we literally discovered it as we walked, house by house and wall by wall. Oh the settlement was big, much bigger than we had anticipated.

Judging by the size and location of the structures, we tried to guess which ones were regular family houses, the clan hall or the church, the coastal lookouts or the barns for cattle. From what we could see, the village would have been built as a single row of houses on either side of a path parallel to the coast. According to typical Norse village custom, the village was built on a hill next to a stream and around a cove, providing easy access to fresh water and a natural harbor for fishing boats. Sounds perfect for your Viking settler, doesn’t it? As we walked West to find the creek to come back up the mountain, we found more houses closer to the cove and spent some time walking on the sandy beach. There were even sea caves on the bluffs. How fun this was! Even more fun, Yoda would say, if archaeologists could dig a bit. Then more about that settlement find out we would and better picture the village we’d be able to.

Back to Scalpay Harbor

An hour later it was time to head back. Since we’d just crossed the island SE by NW, we thought it’d be a piece of cake to retrace our steps along a similar route backwards but hey, what did we know about moorland navigation? It’s one thing to look down on a coast and aim for a point feeling like Columbus on the Santa Maria but quite another to go up a hill and aim for a moor that looks like the moor next door. That, my friends, is utterly disorienting.

Of course initially we did find the creek by the coast  but after 50 feet or so, the creek split in two branches and neither looked like a worthy candidate to find a canyon upstream. Again we decided to wing it and cross the moorland towards the highest peak we could see, hoping it would lead us to the lochs. Suffice to say that going up was grueling and I am forever grateful that my girls neither complained nor stopped along the way. It was tough and boggy and wet and sometimes it felt like we were making no progress at all.

Eventually we reached the peak but got the peak wrong – hiking shit happens, that’s why it’s an adventure – and the ascent was so steep we were all puffing and huffing. Tired, my girls just wanted to go home and so did we. Finally the hill leveled off and we found a lovely loch on a high plateau surrounded by peaks. And another loch. We looked at the map.

So that’s where we were?

Goodie! Elated to know we’d be home soon, my girls started playing games and telling each other goofy stories. They weren’t even hiking with us. In fact from that moment on, they kept chatting and exchanging jokes until the end of the hike, completely independent from us. Mind over matter, people, keep up the good spirit on tough hikes !Since the lochs were at the base of a wide basin-type landscape, my husband and I went for the higher points and my girls and dad followed a level line along the lochs.

We descended along the steep face down to water level and were surprised to find a dark sand beach with … fresh footsteps (whose?) and deer tracks in the sand. I climbed another hill, and another hill, and another hill – did these hills ever end? – and finally spotted the iron roof of the lake hut. I waved frantically and the rest of the troops followed.

We did it! An hour later, we were back.

If you want to visit by Scalpay Viking Village by land from Scalpay Harbor:

• Length: 10 miles
• Elevation gain: 300m/1,000 feet with a lot of ups and down, so double that for a cumulative elevation gain
• Water & food: bring your own
• Terrain: wet, boggy, steep at times. Relatively dry on the Lochs Trail and on the coast.
• Topo Map: Base map is Landranger Map 0032: South Skye & Cuillin Hills. The owners of Scalpay have a more detailed topo map.
• Island access: ask the owners if you boat over for the day or enjoy relaxing holidays and stay at their vacation cottages.

If you want to visit the Viking village by sea:

• You can go by boat from Scalpay Harbor. Check here.

Candied grapefruit peel drying out on a rack in the kitchen

The first time I tasted one of these babies was at Chez Panisse in Berkeley. It was heaven. Tangy and sweet, between jelly and fruit leather, the candied grapefruit peels were the perfect ending to a fine dinner with a cup of hot mint tea. I asked for seconds right away but you know how seconds are – sometimes they aren’t enough and you can’t ask for thirds. I had to have more! I opened up the Chez Panisse Desserts cookbook I have in my kitchen and browsed the index. There, Candied Citrus Peel, recipe on pages 64-65. The recipe was so simple that I had to try it. Worse came to worse, I would have lost the peel of two grapefruits. Big deal. Since grapefruits are in season, I had grapefruit for breakfast yesterday and today, saved the peels in a bowl and had all I needed to get started. And since  I’d rather share the recipe than my candied grapefruit peel (I’m being honest people), here is the recipe for you!

Candied Pink Grapefruit Peel

Ingredients:

• 2 pink grapefruits
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 tsp cream of tartar (the book also offers 2 Tbsp corn syrup as an alternative)
• About a cup of sugar for sprinkling the peel

How to:

1. I removed the peel with a sharp knife, slicing right into the white  pith and ate the flesh (as I said, breakfast).

2. I dumped the peel in a pan, covered it in cold water, covered everything with a lid and brought it to a gentle boil. At that point, I left the kitchen to check my emails and came back when my home smelled like a grapefruit candle but you should probably stay nearby. The book recommends you simmer the peel until the white pith begins to look translucent.

3. I drained the peel and using the same (empty) saucepan, made a syrup by boiling the sugar with the 1/2 cup of water and the cream of tartar. While waiting for the sugar to dissolve and the liquid to bubble, I scraped off the white part of the peel with a spoon and sliced the peel in long stripes. Then I added it to the syrup and stirred it with a wooden spoon so the peel was completely coated and floating in the syrup. I lowered the heat to the lowest setting and then I’m afraid I left the kitchen again – more emails – but I’m not completely insane. I knew this step would be faster and unforgiving if messed up so I came back ten minutes later.

4. The thing is, you have to cook the peel slowly until the peel is translucent and tender. After 10 minutes, it wasn’t there for me so I left it to simmer another 10 minutes. Alice Waters recommends you cook until the syrup reaches 230F on a candy thermometer but I don’t have one. When I saw the peel was translucent and the syrup much thicker, it looked good to me.

5. I drained the peel and faster than lightning, tossed the peel strips in a salad bowl with the last cup of sugar to end up with sugar all over the peels. (Your dentist will really hate this recipe, you better have a good electric toothbrush.)

6. Last but not least, I painstakingly removed every single peel with a fork and lay it on a rack to dry out. Every peel nicely spaced and not touching. I wish there could have been a quicker way to do this but I just sang my ABCs and was done in 15 minutes or so. Tomorrow they’ll be dry enough for me to store in a good airtight box, then I can tuck them away in a steel-reinforced visitor-proof safe behind the chimney wall and only I will wear the key around my neck. Or I could share with my friends who are coming over for dinner. I’m not sure yet. Time will tell. Time and my dentist.

CARSON, CA – MARCH 29: Mia Hamm looks on as her daughter plays with a ball prior to the match between the Washington Freedom and the Los Angeles Sol at The Home Depot Center on March 29, 2009 in Carson, California. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images)

How do you raise active kids and stay fit as a parent while keeping a smile on your face? This is not a trick question, it’s something I ask myself regularly. To me an active lifestyle is part of a happy life because when you exercise your body feels better, you’re less stressed and you sleep better. It’s also important for your kids to  be inspired and encouraged by you to sign up for sports, get out the door or simply enjoy some play time outside. How do you do that when you’re raising a family and have a full agenda?

That’s why I was very glad to learn that soccer superstar Mia Hamm was going to be part of a web chat organized by natural oral care leader Tom’s of Maine. I’ve known about Mia Hamm since my friend Christine shared her passion for female soccer (women football) and she’s always seemed bigger than life in many good ways. Now the mom of three kids under age 6, Mia Hamms spearheads a foundation dedicated to raising awareness and funds for bone marrow transplant patients and their families, as well as creating sports opportunities for girls. A true inspiring power mom!

In the webchat, Mia Hamm discussed many things including raising active kids and staying fit as a parent and I can’t resist sharing the parts I really enjoyed as an outdoors and active mom. The questions you’ll see below are questions every parent faces at some point. Thank you Mia for your wisdom!

How do you get your kids to try new things that are healthy?

That’s a great question. With food the rule with our kids is that they have to try it. I’m not gonna put anything in front of them that I probably don’t like. If they have to try it then I have to try it as well. A lot of the times, they like it and they’re like, “Oh my gosh, I really like this!” You have to tell them that it’s important for their bodies and their minds to eat healthy or try new things – like jumping off the diving board. Hopefully it empowers them to have the courage to do it.

How do you stay in such great shape?

In complete honesty, it’s not as easy as it used to be. For my entire life I had someone who organized my day and now that I’m retired I have to do it myself. It really is about how I feel about myself and how I interact with my husband and my kids. I’m a lot easier to deal with when I’m able to go out and exercise. Not only that but it sets a good example for my kids. If they see me sitting in front of the TV, not eating healthy things, not taking care of myself – I shouldn’t expect differently from them. One of the things I like to do is I like to run and play with my kids. I recently got into vikram yoga which is great because flexibility was never a strength of mine and as I get older, it’s important.

How do you keep your kids active?

Well first of all, my girls will be 6 tomorrow and our son is 1 year old so they’re constantly active. But you know, as I said earlier it’s about setting a good example – getting up and wanting to go outside with them. We live in an area of the country [LA] that has great weather year-round so there’s really no excuse not to go outside. We go for walks, we go to the park, we kick the soccer ball, we throw the baseball. With our son now walking it’s even easier to go outside and be active.

With 3 kids and your charity work, how do you de-stress?

I like to cook, I like to read but also exercising. That for me is the biggest de-stresser. Going out for a run, putting on my earphones, listening to great music – getting lost for that 30 minutes to an hour that I’m out there. Or going to the gym. Having that time to breathe a little bit and knowing that I’m taking care of myself, not just physically but mentally as well.

Is there a cause that you’re passionate about and if so, what is it?

In 1999 we started the Mia Hamm Foundation. In 1997, my brother Garrett died from a complication after a bone marrow transplant and at the time I wasn’t making a lot of money and my parents were looking at very large medical bills with regards to his care. Many other families were facing these obstacles so I started the Mia Hamm Foundation to help families who were going through it. We started raising money, we gave out money to hospitals.

My brother and I also shared a love for sport and he was so great with regards to wanting me to be a part of that experience. The other aspect of the Mia Hamm Foundation is creating more opportunities for young girls in sports and helping them feel empowered. Whether it’s being on the national team or getting a high school or college diploma – if participating in sports gives them the strength to do that, then it’s so important to make sure they have those opportunities.

Who taught you to be healthy?

My mom, she was a ballet dancer and she also liked to cook. We had spinach salad growing up, every vegetable that’s available. She really set a good example and I try to do the same with my kids.

What advice would you give to parents of kids who resist them participating in sports?

First of all, talk to your kids about it. For some parents there’s a safety issue, you want your kids to be healthy. Of course a big part of sports is  being active but the other thing, especially at a young age, is how sports is extremely social. You want to be around your friends and do the things they do. If they’re into sports, that’s an important part of socialization. I played all different sports because that’s my friends were doing. Just because what my friends were up to.

Frog Mom Note: The Q&A you read is my version of the webchat. Some answers I deliberately shortened, others I transcribed word for word, striving to provide my faithful version of the answers. You can listen to the whole thing and see Mia Hamm read her book Winners Never Quit here.

About Mia Hamm: As an all‐time leading scorer, male or female, in international soccer history, Mia Hamm has been the five‐time US Soccer Player of the Year, the most any player has been honored. In 1997, Mia’s brother, Garrett, passed away from complications related to AplasticAnemia, a bone marrow disease and in his honor, she established the Mia Hamm Foundation. The Foundation’s focus is dedicated to raising awareness and funds for bone marrow transplant patients and their families. See miafounation.org for more information.

A Message from Tom’s of Maine: Tom’s of Maine is asking parents to consider what’s inside their children’s toothpaste with the launch of its new natural toothpaste, Wicked Cool!, formulated for kids 8+. With no dyes, saccharin or artificial flavors often found in other brands, Wicked Cool! and Tom’s of Maine Silly Strawberry natural toothpaste, are available nationwide and at tomsofmainestore.com.