Hey, just got back from that hike we talked about. The trail wasn't too crowded for a Saturday morning, which was a nice surprise. We started around 7 AM and the fog was just lifting off the valley. Made it to the summit by 10 and the view was completely worth the scramble near the top. Found a great little diner on the way home that does the best blueberry pancakes I've had in years. The owner said they source their syrup from a farm upstate. Let me know if you want to try that trail next weekend -- I'd go again just for the pancakes.

So I finally tried making sourdough from scratch. The starter took forever to get active -- I almost gave up after day five. But by day ten it was bubbling like crazy and smelled exactly like it should. The first few loaves were pretty dense, almost like edible hockey pucks. I tweaked the hydration and started doing stretch-and-folds instead of just kneading. Game changer. The last loaf had a decent ear and the crumb was actually airy. I brought it to a dinner party and everyone thought I bought it from a bakery. Next up is trying a whole wheat version.