Welcome!
I am an artist who hikes. A hiker who arts. A traveller who revels in the journey without undue devotion to the destination. I hike to be somewhere, not to get somewhere. Thanks for joining me on this journey.
Expect reflections on long distance hiking, art-making on trail and off, hiking culture, nature and my undying love for backrests.
All in long distance hiking
Trail: Shining Creek Trail to Shining Rock
Distance: 8 miles
Elevation: 2,500 feet (bad ass!)
Date Hiked: 8/16/16
These training hikes are testing my strength and endurance, but also testing my commitment and my ability to talk myself down off the ledges. In other words, they're firing up my fears in a big way.
My motto is "Hike Strong. Hike Long. Hike Happy."
And to achieve it, you have to navigate the delicate balancing act of paring down what's in your pack but still saving room for little luxuries that will satisfy the happy part of this equation.
On the one hand, lightening your load will help you hike long.
On the other hand, eating well on the trail is, for me, near the pinnacle of hiking happy.
I've pared my trail kitchen down to a tiny, cozied package, so read on to see what's inside.
I'm training for my upcoming Appalachian Trail thru-hike and I'm fortunate to live in a place that makes training easy and fun.
It's also wet here. Which leaves me thinking about rain-gear. A LOT.
Today I ponder the pros and cons of carrying an umbrella on a 2,000 mile hike. Read on to see if an umbrella is something you might consider, too.
Picky enough that eating out isn't a recreational activity we indulge in that often because I generally prefer my own cooking. Food snob!
So it's a given that I'll be preparing many of my own meals and sending them to myself at mail drops along the way.
Here is my first recipe. It's a little breakfast ditty I composed for you called Sweet Potato Porridge.
I've just finished reading Appalachian Trials by Zach Davis. (Read my book review here.)
Using a classic coaching first step, he encourages thru-hiker wannabes like me to spell out our why.
Here's my why.
I expect the only books I read between now and mid-March will be books about hiking the Appalachian Trail. From poetically, descriptive tomes about nature and spiritual evolution to wonky missives centered around gear and mileage and locations of all you can eat pizza buffets within hitch-hiking distance of the trail.
It’s all good and I’m soaking it all in.
To wit, I’ve just finished Appalachian Trials: A Psychological and Emotional Guide to Successfully Thru-Hike the Appalachian Trail by Zach "Badger" Davis.
This is my review of the book and some personal musings on how I know I'm in the right place doing the right thing in spite of the fear.
I'm training for my 2017 Appalachian Trail thru-hike and I realized I don't have to be a martyr for 2,000 miles. At least not where my feet are concerned. I need to treat them well because I'm counting on them for so much.
When I realized my boots might be doing me more harm than good, I took cues from the thru-hikers I crossed paths with last year in New Hampshire. I'm training in trail runners and I've got the Pro/Con breakdown on the blog, today.
