#thru-hiking 2014

[guerrerense]

Tunnel District, Southern Style por David Blazejewski Por Flickr: Here's another in this continuing Steam Sunday series presenting sequential shots from this location featuring my most memorable experience shooting 'The Queen of Steam', Norfolk and Western Class J 4-8-4 611 during her round trip from Spencer to Asheville and return via the S Line and the famed Old Fort Loops across the Blue Ridge Mountains. Though she traveled this route many times during her first excursion career in the 1980s and early 90s this trip would turn out to be her one and only time traversing the route during NS' short lived 21st Century Steam program revival. I missed her first rebirth in the 1980s and early 90s and fell in love with her when I watched one of the first railroad programs I'd ever seen on TV...National Geographic's stunning 1984 production, Love Those Trains. She had a brief presence in that show along with other legendary sights of railroading that I had no idea then that I would someday get to see for myself! If you're at all curious and haven't seen that classic program it is a available on YouTube here: youtu.be/JhD-V2tXlYg But I was too young when she was retired for the second time in 1994 and promised myself a few years later that if she came back for a third life I wouldn't miss her! And indeed I didn't. I was there in Spencer when Wick Moorman turned the ceremonial first wrench on the turntable at Spencer in 2014 and then again in 2015 to see her first revenue run as she stormed the Blue Ridge on 'home rails'. But the best show ever was the following year when she made this trip from Spencer to Asheville via the NS S-Line and the famous Old Fort Loops. We hiked in on the Point Lookout Trail to this spot between High Ridge Tunnel and McElroy Tunnel. In these views I'm an shooting railroad east as she marches first through the 589 ft Lick Log Tunnel, catches a splash of sunlight then approaches us through rhe short 77 ft long McElroy Tunnel. This is a legendary eastern mountain railroad that was little remarked except by a dedicated few. I always wanted to visit this place and made it on two occasions....and I'm glad I did. Because in May of 2020 thanks the closing of the Linwood hump as part of the continued PSR driven traffic changes all through trains were removed from this route leaving only the daily round trip passage of the Asheville to Bridgewater local, which itself lost most of its traffic with the closure of the massive Canton paper mill in 2023. But seven years ago there were still two daily pairs of trains that traversed the length of the route along with occasional unit trains, extras, and re-routes. The line is generally flat from Salisbury 111 miles west to Old Fort where suddenly it meets the thrust of the Blue Ridge Mountains and climbs 1000 ft to the Eastern Continental Divide at Ridgecrest, elevation 2535 ft. The top of the grade is only three miles as the crow flies from Old Fort, but it takes about 13 rail miles to get there. There are seven tunnels (including the 1832 ft long one at the summit) on the line and grades as steep as 2.9%. The train is seen here approaching MP 121 as it makes its way thru the second and third of five found in a mini tunnel district in the span of about 1 1/2 miles. Completed by the Western North Carolina Railroad in 1880 the route ultimately came into the Southern Railway fold and was an important through route for nearly a century and a half. But now times have changed and the future is uncertain. However, the state of North Carolina has longed to bring passenger rail to Asheville via this route, so with the shift of freight traffic away now may be the time. I'm confident the rails here will remain, though the main focus of their economic utility may shift. Only time will tell. To learn more find yourself of a copy the September 2006 issue of Trains magazine with a fabulous cover story on this line by the late Jim Wrinn. For a good map detailing this remarkable stretch of railroad check out this link from Trains: cs.trains.com/trn/b/staff/archive/2016/01/19/trains-chase... McDowell County, North Carolina Wednesday May 28, 2016

[bluecatwriter]

All the ones that start with S (not counting “the”) for the WIP ask game? (If you don’t want to go through and figure it out, that’s Stay, Safeword, Suitor Squad, and The Suitors and the Sierra.) Thank you!

Thank youuuu! :D

"Stay" is a Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea fic, taking place right after Nemo shows Aronnax the lost city of Atlantis (in my headcanon they're a couple at this point). Rereading it, I can see why it's still a WIP— the scene is blocked out but it's just... not well-written? The character interaction isn't there, the prose is really stiff, it just doesn't feel right. This makes me want to go back over it and change it, though, because I like the basic premise.

"Safeword" is a Jonathan Harker/Jack Seward (or, as I like to say, John/athan) fic, where they're early in a sexual relationship together and Jonathan keeps on being afraid of hurting him while Jack (with increasing impatience) tries to get him to go harder. This one only has a few paragraphs written so far but I know there are going to be a lot of Feelings that come up!

"Suitor Squad" is a name that didn't ring a bell, and I had to pull up the document before I remembered what it was about. It's an absolutely silly and self-indulgent PWP about post-canon Arthur and Quincey being playfully possessive of and "fighting" over Jack. Also not blocked out yet, so it'll be a while on this one yet.

"The Suitors and the Sierra" is a somewhat plotty multichap based on a pre-canon set-up where the Suitor Squad, in their adventures around the globe, end up hiking and camping in the Sierra Nevada in California. It was based on the wish to set a story in a place I've actually been (I hiked through the Sierra for several weeks during my 2014 thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail), and it's... kinda embarrassing? Like, I actually considered posting it anonymously to avoid being embarrassed? There are superfluous descriptions of birds. Jack solicits a prostitute at a tavern. They go swimming naked in a glacial lake. Quincey gets attacked by a bear. It's... it sure is something. We'll see if I ever actually finish it. XD

(Ask game here)

[pcttrailsidereader]

All Bets Are Off: Why the PCT will be More Dangerous than Ever This Year

We've been beating the drum about the implications of this epic snow pack for the past couple of months. It is important that the Class of 2023 really take the message to heart. This will be a dangerous year to be hiking the PCT and not to be tackled by the inexperienced backpacker . . . even seasoned veterans will need to be exceedingly careful. If you don't believe us, read this excerpt of a recent article from the SF Gate.

By Eric Brooks (March 27, 2023), SF Gate

The Pacific Crest Trail draws thousands of people from all experience levels annually. Hikers regularly contend with challenges like hypothermia, heat exhaustion, poisonous plants, lightning, bears and rattlesnakes, along with wildfires and other impacts of climate change. But this year, experts warn, hikers face one of the greatest risks in the trail’s history: the record-setting Sierra Nevada snowpack.

"These large snowpacks can be susceptible to fast melt if the weather conditions are right," Andrew Schwartz, lead scientist at the Central Sierra Snow Lab, told SFGATE. "Periods of above-average temperatures, particularly if they're prolonged, can cause significant rises in stream and river flows, which can be dangerous.”

A partly frozen Tioga Lake at the Highway 120 park entrance near Tioga Pass. George Rose/Getty Images

As of early March, the Sierra snowpack was already 177% above average — and could end up being the largest since the PCT was designated a National Scenic Trail in 1968. And it’s not just the Sierra. The mountains of Southern California have also seen record-setting snow totals this winter. Meanwhile, the Cascade Range — the third of three mountainous territories found along the PCT in Washington, Oregon and Northern California — has seen 99% of its average snowpack in a winter that’s smacked much of its southerly neighbors right in the mouth.

Although sunny, warm weather often shows up between Southern California and the Bay Area by May and certainly June, California’s mountains are usually still covered in snow. In fact, May and June are generally a hazardous time to hike the Sierra as "much of the trail will still be covered in snow and creeks will be full of fast-moving water, making fords dangerous," per the Pacific Crest Trail Association. Even the Tahoe section of the PCT is known to have "difficult" snow conditions into July.

Yet another cause for concern is the number of hikers setting out on the PCT. Over the past decade, the popularity of the PCT has exploded, thanks in large part to Cheryl Strayed's book "Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail," and the subsequent 2014 movie starring Reese Witherspoon. The total number of issued permits skyrocketed from 1,879 in 2013 to almost 8,000 in 2019. 

A Sonora Pass trailhead sign, located along California Highway 108 between Sonora and Bridgeport on the western side of the pass, is still buried in snow on June 28, 2017, near Sonora Pass, Calif. George Rose/Getty Images

"More people are taking more risks and going out early in the season during heavy snow years,” Jack Haskel of the PCTA said. “There have been many preventable tragedies during the heavy snow years that were caused by large snowpacks and people traveling across steep snow, mountains covered in snow and through creeks with snowmelt. Each of these tragedies were avoidable."

Some thru-hikers, like Robert Scheer, have already started their PCT journey.

Robert Scheer pictured on the Pacific Crest Trail.Courtesy of Robert Scheer

"I've been to these mountains a lot as a kid," said Scheer, who was born and raised in San Diego. "You usually get one, two storms a year. This prolonged onslaught of weather that San Diego, Southern California and really California as a whole state is having is just something that's totally bizarre. I knew that going in. I knew that starting the PCT, it was going to be a wild year."

Schneer, acknowledging the life-threatening risks that come with a record Sierra snowpack, said 2023 "is going to be the year of the flip," where hikers take on large sections of the PCT in pieces — many times out of order. "All bets are off," he said. "The idea of hiking a continuous path from Mexico to Canada, that's not going to happen this year. I just don't see very many people doing that."

Haskel, who thru-hiked the PCT himself in 2006, recalled dealing with that risk when he went during a season just after an above-average snowpack. "Some of the creek crossings were unacceptably dangerous," he said. "I thought it was too risky and it wasn't something I should be doing in June in a heavy snow year."

Robert Scheer's tent along the Southern California section of the Pacific Crest Trail in March 2023. Courtesy of Robert Scheer

"I was in my early 20s and an experienced wilderness traveler used to taking a lot of risks," Haskel remembered. "By the time I got to the Sierra Nevada, I was very physically fit. If I died, it was a risk I was clear-eyed in taking and I went for it. After you successfully do something risky, sometimes you look back and think that might have been too far across the line. I did that."

There have been weighty snowpacks before, namely in 2006, 2011, 2017 and 2019, and certainly there have been deaths related to these conditions. But there are no official statistics for injury or death along the PCT. The route is managed by a laundry list of federal, state and county agencies, Native American sovereignties and even private landowners. But it’s common knowledge that big snow years lead to tragedy and heartbreak for unprepared PCT hikers, Haskel said.

Located at Pacific Crest Trail Mile 1028, Sonora Pass is one of the highest passes along the trail. It takes hikers past the fast-moving Deadman Creek along California Highway 108 between Sonora and Bridgeport on the western side of Sonora Pass, Calif., as seen on June 28, 2017. George Rose/Getty Images

The snow that’s sitting in Southern California’s mountains has already led to dozens of search-and-rescue efforts in the year’s first three months. That could mean many early-season PCT hikers will see conditions they’ve never faced that far south, only increasing in difficulty as they make their way north into the Sierra. 

"I’ve never seen that much snow in the mountains of Southern California," Haskel said.

He is advising weekend backpackers and day-hikers to delay their hikes until August, when the Sierra snow has melted. But for thru-hikers who need five months to complete the trail, Haskel knows leaving later isn’t an option. Those braving the PCT thru-hike in the face of the trail's record-setting snowpack "generally accept risks and challenges that are not the norm for most normal backpacking trips" in leaving earlier, he said.

Schneer, who plans to pick up the PCT again as a solo thru-hiker once the weather clears, will likely hike to the start of the Sierra section before taking on the northernmost section of the PCT in June. He then hopes to "flip" and do the Sierra portion of the trail last, once the snow has melted. 

"People are looking for miles that they can do safely," he explained. "I don't think anyone wants to slog through feet and feet of snow and do one or two miles a day. That's not what I signed up for."

[mike-jacque-c-the-world]

02/27/24 - Tucson, AZ - SOMETHING IN COMMON - How often do two people with iconic long distance thru-hikes on their resume meet on the pickle ball courts? Answer at the end of this post. Meet Doug, who thru-hiked the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), 2,600+ miles from Mexico to Canada. Back in 2014, I thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail (AT), 2,100+ miles from Georgia to Maine. Not to be forgotten are the two ladies who 1) let us do it and more importantly, 2) wholeheartedly supported us during our multi-month journeys. The four of us have had a great time swapping trail stories whenever we get together in Tucson. Answer: Hardly ever if at all.

[brookston]

Holidays 6.20

Holidays

Bald Eagle Day (a.k.a. American Eagle Day)

Brownie 620 Day

Clean Air Day (EU)

Datsun 620 Day

Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Ossentian Genocide (South Ossetia)

Flag Day (Argentina)

Gas Sector Day (Azerbaijan)

Guru Rinpoche Day (Bhutan)

Hike with a Geek Day

International Asteroid Day

International Day of Nikkei

International Horseshoe Crab Day

International Nystagmus Awareness Day

International Tennis Day

Loch Ness Day

Martyrs’ Day (Eritrea)

Naked Hiking Day

National Celluma Light Therapy Day

National eGiving Day

National Goat Day

National Heroes’ Day (Bermuda)

National Hike with a Geek Day

National Jimmy Day

National Kissing Day (UK)

National Neuroscience Nurses Day (Canada)

National Public Display of Affection Day

National Seashell Day

National Surveillance Camera Day (UK)

National Yard Games Day

New Identity Day

Nystagmus Awareness Day (a.k.a. Wobbly Wednesday)

Oat Day (French Republic)

Oxford Charter Day

Ratha Yathra (a.k.a. Kang; Manipur, Odisha; India)

Sack of Baltimore (Ireland)

Sea Serpent Day (Plymouth, Massachusetts)

620 Day

Tall Girl Appreciation Day

Toad Hollow Day of Thank You

Vitamin Discovery Day

World Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy Day

World Peace & Prayer Day

World Productivity Day

World Psychedelics Day

World Refugee Day (UN)

World Wi-Fi Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Drink Chenin Blanc Day

Dunkin Iced Coffee Day

Flitch of Bacon Day (UK)

Ice Cream Soda Day

National Kouign Amann Day

Plain Yogurt Day

Vanilla Milkshake Day

Vinegar Day

Independence & Related Days

Aedeland (a.k.a. Republic of Aedeland, Declared, 943) [unrecognized]

Nixland (Declared, 2014) [unrecognized]

West Virginia Statehood Day (#35; 1863)

3rd Thursday in June

Dump the Pump Day [3rd Thursday]

International Knock Knock Day [3rd Thursday]

Recess At Work Day [3rd Thursday]

Social Mobility Awareness Day (UK) [3rd Thursday]

Throwback Thursday [Every Thursday]

World Kidney Cancer Day [3rd Thursday]

World Tapas Day [3rd Thursday]

Weekly Holidays beginning June 20 (3rd Full Week)

World Refugee Week (Australia) [week including 6.20]

Festivals Beginning June 20, 2024

Barefoot Country Music Festival (Wildwood, New Jersey) [thru 6.23]

Bartender Spirits Awards (San Francisco, California)

Belgrade Beer Fest (Belgrade, Serbia) [thru 6.23]

CiderFeast East Coast Tour (Haverhill, Massachusetts)

Cottage Grove Strawberry Fest (Cottage Grove, Minnesota) [thru 6.23]

Cranberry Blossom Festival (Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin) [thru 6.23]

Encounters South African International Documentary Festival (Cape Town, South Africa) [thru 6.30]

Farmington Dew Days (Farmington, Minnesota) [thru 6.23]

Haubstadt Sommerfest (Haubstadt, Indiana) [thru 6.22]

Herb Society of America Educational Conference (Malvern, Pennsylvania) [thru 6.21]

International Diaghilev Festival (Perm, Russia) [thru 6.29]

Isle of Wight Festival (Newport, Isle of Wight, United Kingdom) [thru 6.23]

JazzAscona [Ascona Jazz Festival] (Ascona, Switzerland) [thru 6.29]

London Strawberry Festival (London, Ohio) [thru 6.22]

National Arts Festival (Grahamstown, South Africa) [thru 6.30]

Pittston Fair (Pittston, Maine) [thru 6.23]

Placer County Fair (Roseville, California) [thru 6.23]

Quahog Day (Cataumet, Massachusetts)

Sommeliers Choice Awards (Chicago, Illinois)

Stilldream Festival (Wilseyville, California) [thru 6.24]

Summerfest (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) [thru 7.6]

Taste of Tippecanoe (Lafayette, Indiana)

Telluride Bluegrass Festival (Telluride, Colorado) [thru 6.23]

Feast Days

Adalbert of Magdeburg (Christian; Saint)

Bain, Bishop of Terouanne (a.k.a. Bagnus; Christian; Saint)

Carista (Day of Peace in the Family; Pagan)

Day of Cerridwen (Welsh Goddess of Barley)

Day of the Purification of All Things (Ancient Egypt)

Feast of the Irish Martyrs

Festival of Saint Joan begins (Spain)

Festival of Summanus (Ancient Roman god of the night sky & nocturnal thunder)

Festival of the New Knee (Shamanism)

Florentina (Christian; Saint)

Georges Dufrénoy (Artology)

Gobain (Christian; Martyr)

Idaberga (a.k.a. Edburge) of Merica (Christian; Saint)

Iron Skegge’s Day (Vikings)

Jacques Saly (Artology)

John of Matera (Christian; Saint)

Josephine Winslow Johnson (Writerism)

Joseph Smith Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Kubik (Muppetism)

Kurt Schwitters (Artology)

Magdalena Abakanowicz (Artology)

Margareta Ebner (Christian; Blessed)

Methodius of Olympus (Christian; Saint)

Michelina of Pesaro (Christian; Saint)

Omer (Christian; Saint)

Otho the Great (Positivist; Saint)

Paul Muldoon (Writerism)

Scira (a.k.a. Skirophoria; Festival for Demeter; Ancient Greece)

Silverius, Pope (Christian; Martyr)

Solstice [1st Day of Summer in Northern Hemisphere] (a.k.a. ... 

Acophony (G’BroagFran of Anti-Music; Church of the SubGenius)

Alban Hefin (a.k.a. Litha or Midsummer; Celtic, Pagan) [4 of 8 Festivals of the Natural Year]

Aimless Wandering Day

Anne and Samantha Day

Aymara New Year (Año Nuevo Aymara; Bolivia)

Cuckoo Warning Day (it will be a wet summer if the cuckoo is heard today)

Daylight Appreciation Day

Day of Private Reflection

Day of the Martyrs (Togo)

Feast of the Great Spirit (Native American)

Fête de la Musique

Finally Summer Day/Finally Winter Day

Hump Day (Tasmania)

Indigenous New Year (We Tripantu; Año Nuevo Indígena; Chile)

International Day of the Celebration of the Solstice

Into Raymi (Incan Sun God Festival; Sacsayhuamán Andes Mountain Natives)

Jaanipäev (Estonia)

Jāņi (Latvia)

Juhannus Day (Finland)

Kupala (fertility rite)

Kupala Night (Ukraine, Belarus, Poland, Russia)

Litha (Wiccan/Pagan; northern hemisphere)

Midnight Sun Festival (Nome, Alaska)

Midsomarsblog (Norse celebration of fishing, trading & raiding)

Midsummer

Midsummer Baal (Celtic)

National Celluma Light Therapy Day

National Daylight Appreciation Day

National Day of Greenland

National Energy Shopping Day

Polar Bear Swim (Nome, Alaska)

Saint Jonas' Festival (Lithuania)

Solsticio de Invierno (Bolivia)

Sommar Börjar (Sweden)

Summer Saucestice (Pastafarian)

Tall Girl Appreciation Day

Tiregān (Iran)

Wadjet (Ancient Egypt)

We Tripantu (winter solstice festival in the southern hemisphere; Chile)

Wianki (Poland)

Willkakuti (Andean-Amazonic New Year; Aymara)

World Humanist Day

World Peace and Prayer Day

Yule (Wiccan/Pagan; southern hemisphere)

Takekiri Eshiki Matsuri (Bamboo Cutting Festival; Japan)

Watching the Ferns Day (Starza Pagan Book of Days)

World Juggling Day (Pastafarian)

Islamic Lunar Holidays

Eid al-Adha, Day 5 [Muslim Feast of Sacrifice] (a.k.a. ... 

Al Adha (Egypt)

Eid al Adha (Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Yemen)

Eid ul-Ad’haa (Maldives)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Sensho (先勝 Japan) [Good luck in the morning, bad luck in the afternoon.]

Yellow Day [Happiest day of the year.]

Premieres

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (Film; 2012)

The Palm-Wine Drinkard, by Amos Tutuola (Novel; 1952)

Batman & Robin (Film; 1997)

Blonde on Blonde, by Bob Dylan (Album; 1966)

The Blue Lagoon (Film; 1980)

The Blues Brothers (Film & Soundtrack Album; 1980)

The Blue Train (Le Train Bleu), by Darius Milhaud (Ballet; 1924)

The Call of the Wild, by Jack London (Novel; 1902)

Carry On Camping (Film; 1969)

Chinatown (Film; 1974)

Clown of the Jungle (Disney Cartoon; 1947)

Count on the Saint, by Graham Weaver (Short Stories; 1980) [Saint #49]

Dangerously in Love, by Beyoncé (Album; 2003)

Don’t Be Cruel, by Bobby Brown (Album; 1988)

Double Vision, by Foreigner (Album; 1978)

Extinct Pink (Pink Panther Cartoon; 1969)

Fastest Tongue in the West (Tijuana Toads Cartoon; 1971)

Father’s Week-End (Disney Cartoon; 1953)

Friend or Phony (Fleischer/Famous Popeye Cartoon; 1952)

Get Smart (Film; 2008)

Happy Scouts (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Cartoon; 1938)

Hare Trimmed (WB MM Cartoon; 1953)

Heart Break, by New Edition (Album; 1988)

HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I, by Michael Jackson (Album; 1995)

Hulk (Film; 2003)

Independence Day: Resurgence (Film; 2016)

Jaws (Film; 1975)

The Last of the Just, by Andre Schwarz-Bart (Novel; 1961)

A Leap in the Deep (Tijuana Toads Cartoon; 1971)

The Merchant of Venice, by William Shakespeare (Play; 1605)

Mickey’s Rival (Disney Cartoon; 1936)

Moving Day (Disney Cartoon; 1936)

My Best Friend’s Wedding (Film; 1997)

The Nifty Nineties (Disney Cartoon; 1941)

Nurse-Mates (Fleischer Popeye Cartoon; 1940)

One, by George Jones and Tammy Wynette (Album; 1995)

Picnic Panic (Color Rhapsody Cartoon; 1946)

The Reluctant Dragon (Disney Animated Film; 1941)

Rippling Romance (Color Rhapsody Cartoon; 1945)

Rommel, The Desert Fox, by Desmond Young (Biography; 1951)

Shanghaied Shipmates (WB LT Cartoon; 1936)

Superman: Brainiac Attacks (WB Animated Film; 2006)

Teenage Idol, recorded by Rick Nelson (Song; 1962)

Them, by Joyce Carol Oates (Novel; 1969)

To Hell and Back, by Audie Murphy (Memoir; 1949)

Tonight’s the Night, by Neil Young (Album; 1975)

A Touch of Class (Film; 1973)

The Trooper, by Iron Maiden (Song; 1983)

Unsafe at Any Speed, by Ralph Nader (Book; 1966)

Very Good, Jeeves! P.G. Wodehouse (Short Stories; 1930) [Jeeves #4]

Wee-Willie Wildcat, featuring Barney bear (MGM Cartoon; 1953)

A Wet Knight (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Cartoon; 1932)

Yellowstone (TV Series; 2018)

Yesterday and Today (a.k.a. The Butcher Cover), by The Beatles (Album; 1966)

Today’s Name Days

Adalbert, Florentina (Austria)

Margareta, Naum (Croatia)

Květa (Czech Republic)

Sylverius (Denmark)

Kaari, Karlotte, Karola, Karoliine, Karolin, Lota (Estonia)

Into (Finland)

Silvère (France)

Adalbert, Florentina, Margot (Germany)

Methodios (Greece)

Rafael (Hungary)

Ettore, Silverio (Italy)

Imula, Maira, Rasa, Rasma (Latvia)

Silverijus, Žadvainas, Žintautė (Lithuania)

Salve, Sølve, Sølvi (Norway)

Bogna, Bogumiła, Bożena, Florentyna, Franciszek, Michał, Rafaela, Rafał, Sylwery (Poland)

Metodie (România)

Maria, Valeria (Russia)

Valéria (Slovakia)

Florentina, Silverio (Spain)

Flora, Linda (Sweden)

Earl, Earline, Errol, Fatima, Ofelia, Omar, Omarion, Ophelia (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 172 of 2024; 194 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 4 of week 25 of 2024

Celtic Tree Calendar: Duir (Oak) [Day 12 of 28]

Chinese: Month 5 (Geng-Wu), Day 15 (Yi-Mao)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025) [Wu-Chen]

Hebrew: 14 Sivan 5784

Islamic: 13 Dhu al-Hijjah 1445

J Cal: 22 Blue; Oneday [22 of 30]

Julian: 7 June 2024

Moon: 97%: Waxing Gibbous

Positivist: 3 Charlemagne (7th Month) [Otho the Great]

Runic Half Month: Dag (Day) [Day 12 of 15]

Season: Summer (Day 1 of 94)

Week: 3rd Full Week of June)

Zodiac: Gemini (Day 31 of 31)

Calendar Changes

Summer [Season 3 of 4; thru 9.22]

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 6.20

Holidays

Bald Eagle Day (a.k.a. American Eagle Day)

Brownie 620 Day

Clean Air Day (EU)

Datsun 620 Day

Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Ossentian Genocide (South Ossetia)

Flag Day (Argentina)

Gas Sector Day (Azerbaijan)

Guru Rinpoche Day (Bhutan)

Hike with a Geek Day

International Asteroid Day

International Day of Nikkei

International Horseshoe Crab Day

International Nystagmus Awareness Day

International Tennis Day

Loch Ness Day

Martyrs’ Day (Eritrea)

Naked Hiking Day

National Celluma Light Therapy Day

National eGiving Day

National Goat Day

National Heroes’ Day (Bermuda)

National Hike with a Geek Day

National Jimmy Day

National Kissing Day (UK)

National Neuroscience Nurses Day (Canada)

National Public Display of Affection Day

National Seashell Day

National Surveillance Camera Day (UK)

National Yard Games Day

New Identity Day

Nystagmus Awareness Day (a.k.a. Wobbly Wednesday)

Oat Day (French Republic)

Oxford Charter Day

Ratha Yathra (a.k.a. Kang; Manipur, Odisha; India)

Sack of Baltimore (Ireland)

Sea Serpent Day (Plymouth, Massachusetts)

620 Day

Tall Girl Appreciation Day

Toad Hollow Day of Thank You

Vitamin Discovery Day

World Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy Day

World Peace & Prayer Day

World Productivity Day

World Psychedelics Day

World Refugee Day (UN)

World Wi-Fi Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Drink Chenin Blanc Day

Dunkin Iced Coffee Day

Flitch of Bacon Day (UK)

Ice Cream Soda Day

National Kouign Amann Day

Plain Yogurt Day

Vanilla Milkshake Day

Vinegar Day

Independence & Related Days

Aedeland (a.k.a. Republic of Aedeland, Declared, 943) [unrecognized]

Nixland (Declared, 2014) [unrecognized]

West Virginia Statehood Day (#35; 1863)

3rd Thursday in June

Dump the Pump Day [3rd Thursday]

International Knock Knock Day [3rd Thursday]

Recess At Work Day [3rd Thursday]

Social Mobility Awareness Day (UK) [3rd Thursday]

Throwback Thursday [Every Thursday]

World Kidney Cancer Day [3rd Thursday]

World Tapas Day [3rd Thursday]

Weekly Holidays beginning June 20 (3rd Full Week)

World Refugee Week (Australia) [week including 6.20]

Festivals Beginning June 20, 2024

Barefoot Country Music Festival (Wildwood, New Jersey) [thru 6.23]

Bartender Spirits Awards (San Francisco, California)

Belgrade Beer Fest (Belgrade, Serbia) [thru 6.23]

CiderFeast East Coast Tour (Haverhill, Massachusetts)

Cottage Grove Strawberry Fest (Cottage Grove, Minnesota) [thru 6.23]

Cranberry Blossom Festival (Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin) [thru 6.23]

Encounters South African International Documentary Festival (Cape Town, South Africa) [thru 6.30]

Farmington Dew Days (Farmington, Minnesota) [thru 6.23]

Haubstadt Sommerfest (Haubstadt, Indiana) [thru 6.22]

Herb Society of America Educational Conference (Malvern, Pennsylvania) [thru 6.21]

International Diaghilev Festival (Perm, Russia) [thru 6.29]

Isle of Wight Festival (Newport, Isle of Wight, United Kingdom) [thru 6.23]

JazzAscona [Ascona Jazz Festival] (Ascona, Switzerland) [thru 6.29]

London Strawberry Festival (London, Ohio) [thru 6.22]

National Arts Festival (Grahamstown, South Africa) [thru 6.30]

Pittston Fair (Pittston, Maine) [thru 6.23]

Placer County Fair (Roseville, California) [thru 6.23]

Quahog Day (Cataumet, Massachusetts)

Sommeliers Choice Awards (Chicago, Illinois)

Stilldream Festival (Wilseyville, California) [thru 6.24]

Summerfest (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) [thru 7.6]

Taste of Tippecanoe (Lafayette, Indiana)

Telluride Bluegrass Festival (Telluride, Colorado) [thru 6.23]

Feast Days

Adalbert of Magdeburg (Christian; Saint)

Bain, Bishop of Terouanne (a.k.a. Bagnus; Christian; Saint)

Carista (Day of Peace in the Family; Pagan)

Day of Cerridwen (Welsh Goddess of Barley)

Day of the Purification of All Things (Ancient Egypt)

Feast of the Irish Martyrs

Festival of Saint Joan begins (Spain)

Festival of Summanus (Ancient Roman god of the night sky & nocturnal thunder)

Festival of the New Knee (Shamanism)

Florentina (Christian; Saint)

Georges Dufrénoy (Artology)

Gobain (Christian; Martyr)

Idaberga (a.k.a. Edburge) of Merica (Christian; Saint)

Iron Skegge’s Day (Vikings)

Jacques Saly (Artology)

John of Matera (Christian; Saint)

Josephine Winslow Johnson (Writerism)

Joseph Smith Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Kubik (Muppetism)

Kurt Schwitters (Artology)

Magdalena Abakanowicz (Artology)

Margareta Ebner (Christian; Blessed)

Methodius of Olympus (Christian; Saint)

Michelina of Pesaro (Christian; Saint)

Omer (Christian; Saint)

Otho the Great (Positivist; Saint)

Paul Muldoon (Writerism)

Scira (a.k.a. Skirophoria; Festival for Demeter; Ancient Greece)

Silverius, Pope (Christian; Martyr)

Solstice [1st Day of Summer in Northern Hemisphere] (a.k.a. ... 

Acophony (G’BroagFran of Anti-Music; Church of the SubGenius)

Alban Hefin (a.k.a. Litha or Midsummer; Celtic, Pagan) [4 of 8 Festivals of the Natural Year]

Aimless Wandering Day

Anne and Samantha Day

Aymara New Year (Año Nuevo Aymara; Bolivia)

Cuckoo Warning Day (it will be a wet summer if the cuckoo is heard today)

Daylight Appreciation Day

Day of Private Reflection

Day of the Martyrs (Togo)

Feast of the Great Spirit (Native American)

Fête de la Musique

Finally Summer Day/Finally Winter Day

Hump Day (Tasmania)

Indigenous New Year (We Tripantu; Año Nuevo Indígena; Chile)

International Day of the Celebration of the Solstice

Into Raymi (Incan Sun God Festival; Sacsayhuamán Andes Mountain Natives)

Jaanipäev (Estonia)

Jāņi (Latvia)

Juhannus Day (Finland)

Kupala (fertility rite)

Kupala Night (Ukraine, Belarus, Poland, Russia)

Litha (Wiccan/Pagan; northern hemisphere)

Midnight Sun Festival (Nome, Alaska)

Midsomarsblog (Norse celebration of fishing, trading & raiding)

Midsummer

Midsummer Baal (Celtic)

National Celluma Light Therapy Day

National Daylight Appreciation Day

National Day of Greenland

National Energy Shopping Day

Polar Bear Swim (Nome, Alaska)

Saint Jonas' Festival (Lithuania)

Solsticio de Invierno (Bolivia)

Sommar Börjar (Sweden)

Summer Saucestice (Pastafarian)

Tall Girl Appreciation Day

Tiregān (Iran)

Wadjet (Ancient Egypt)

We Tripantu (winter solstice festival in the southern hemisphere; Chile)

Wianki (Poland)

Willkakuti (Andean-Amazonic New Year; Aymara)

World Humanist Day

World Peace and Prayer Day

Yule (Wiccan/Pagan; southern hemisphere)

Takekiri Eshiki Matsuri (Bamboo Cutting Festival; Japan)

Watching the Ferns Day (Starza Pagan Book of Days)

World Juggling Day (Pastafarian)

Islamic Lunar Holidays

Eid al-Adha, Day 5 [Muslim Feast of Sacrifice] (a.k.a. ... 

Al Adha (Egypt)

Eid al Adha (Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Yemen)

Eid ul-Ad’haa (Maldives)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Sensho (先勝 Japan) [Good luck in the morning, bad luck in the afternoon.]

Yellow Day [Happiest day of the year.]

Premieres

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (Film; 2012)

The Palm-Wine Drinkard, by Amos Tutuola (Novel; 1952)

Batman & Robin (Film; 1997)

Blonde on Blonde, by Bob Dylan (Album; 1966)

The Blue Lagoon (Film; 1980)

The Blues Brothers (Film & Soundtrack Album; 1980)

The Blue Train (Le Train Bleu), by Darius Milhaud (Ballet; 1924)

The Call of the Wild, by Jack London (Novel; 1902)

Carry On Camping (Film; 1969)

Chinatown (Film; 1974)

Clown of the Jungle (Disney Cartoon; 1947)

Count on the Saint, by Graham Weaver (Short Stories; 1980) [Saint #49]

Dangerously in Love, by Beyoncé (Album; 2003)

Don’t Be Cruel, by Bobby Brown (Album; 1988)

Double Vision, by Foreigner (Album; 1978)

Extinct Pink (Pink Panther Cartoon; 1969)

Fastest Tongue in the West (Tijuana Toads Cartoon; 1971)

Father’s Week-End (Disney Cartoon; 1953)

Friend or Phony (Fleischer/Famous Popeye Cartoon; 1952)

Get Smart (Film; 2008)

Happy Scouts (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Cartoon; 1938)

Hare Trimmed (WB MM Cartoon; 1953)

Heart Break, by New Edition (Album; 1988)

HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I, by Michael Jackson (Album; 1995)

Hulk (Film; 2003)

Independence Day: Resurgence (Film; 2016)

Jaws (Film; 1975)

The Last of the Just, by Andre Schwarz-Bart (Novel; 1961)

A Leap in the Deep (Tijuana Toads Cartoon; 1971)

The Merchant of Venice, by William Shakespeare (Play; 1605)

Mickey’s Rival (Disney Cartoon; 1936)

Moving Day (Disney Cartoon; 1936)

My Best Friend’s Wedding (Film; 1997)

The Nifty Nineties (Disney Cartoon; 1941)

Nurse-Mates (Fleischer Popeye Cartoon; 1940)

One, by George Jones and Tammy Wynette (Album; 1995)

Picnic Panic (Color Rhapsody Cartoon; 1946)

The Reluctant Dragon (Disney Animated Film; 1941)

Rippling Romance (Color Rhapsody Cartoon; 1945)

Rommel, The Desert Fox, by Desmond Young (Biography; 1951)

Shanghaied Shipmates (WB LT Cartoon; 1936)

Superman: Brainiac Attacks (WB Animated Film; 2006)

Teenage Idol, recorded by Rick Nelson (Song; 1962)

Them, by Joyce Carol Oates (Novel; 1969)

To Hell and Back, by Audie Murphy (Memoir; 1949)

Tonight’s the Night, by Neil Young (Album; 1975)

A Touch of Class (Film; 1973)

The Trooper, by Iron Maiden (Song; 1983)

Unsafe at Any Speed, by Ralph Nader (Book; 1966)

Very Good, Jeeves! P.G. Wodehouse (Short Stories; 1930) [Jeeves #4]

Wee-Willie Wildcat, featuring Barney bear (MGM Cartoon; 1953)

A Wet Knight (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Cartoon; 1932)

Yellowstone (TV Series; 2018)

Yesterday and Today (a.k.a. The Butcher Cover), by The Beatles (Album; 1966)

Today’s Name Days

Adalbert, Florentina (Austria)

Margareta, Naum (Croatia)

Květa (Czech Republic)

Sylverius (Denmark)

Kaari, Karlotte, Karola, Karoliine, Karolin, Lota (Estonia)

Into (Finland)

Silvère (France)

Adalbert, Florentina, Margot (Germany)

Methodios (Greece)

Rafael (Hungary)

Ettore, Silverio (Italy)

Imula, Maira, Rasa, Rasma (Latvia)

Silverijus, Žadvainas, Žintautė (Lithuania)

Salve, Sølve, Sølvi (Norway)

Bogna, Bogumiła, Bożena, Florentyna, Franciszek, Michał, Rafaela, Rafał, Sylwery (Poland)

Metodie (România)

Maria, Valeria (Russia)

Valéria (Slovakia)

Florentina, Silverio (Spain)

Flora, Linda (Sweden)

Earl, Earline, Errol, Fatima, Ofelia, Omar, Omarion, Ophelia (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 172 of 2024; 194 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 4 of week 25 of 2024

Celtic Tree Calendar: Duir (Oak) [Day 12 of 28]

Chinese: Month 5 (Geng-Wu), Day 15 (Yi-Mao)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025) [Wu-Chen]

Hebrew: 14 Sivan 5784

Islamic: 13 Dhu al-Hijjah 1445

J Cal: 22 Blue; Oneday [22 of 30]

Julian: 7 June 2024

Moon: 97%: Waxing Gibbous

Positivist: 3 Charlemagne (7th Month) [Otho the Great]

Runic Half Month: Dag (Day) [Day 12 of 15]

Season: Summer (Day 1 of 94)

Week: 3rd Full Week of June)

Zodiac: Gemini (Day 31 of 31)

Calendar Changes

Summer [Season 3 of 4; thru 9.22]

[birdieofparadise]

I guess I will introduce myself…

My love of Girl Scouts started when I became a daisy in the 90's as part of the Virginia Skyline Council. I continued in Scouting until I bridged to Cadettes (7 years total). I am anow a card carrying Lifetime Member of the Girl Scouts. In 2014, I decided to start volunteering as a co-leader while my husband was stationed in California because I wanted to be around children and impact their lives for the better the way Girl Scouts impacted mine. We were also struggling with infertility and this seemed like a good outlet. So began my adult journey into Girl Scouts.

I co-led a multi-level Daisy/Brownie troop until moving away in 2016. Which is the same year my twins girls were finally born. I took a break from volunteering to raise my little ones in Florida before moving again to Italy in 2019. There, I started leading a troop of Cadettes and Seniors, but unfortunately our time was cut short due to Italy being hit hard by Covid. Now we are in Japan! This year I’ve happily lead over a dozen amazing Daisies and am ready to move with them to Brownies next year!

Foremost, I am a mother to my oddball identical twins, but I am also a hobby photographer, computer game nerd, and avid roller skater. I love Miffy, and collect vinyl records. I am weirdly obsessed with the USPS and love to travel, camp, hike, kayak, backpack, and pretty much anything involving nature. My husband and I hiked 60 miles of the Appalachian Trail in 6 days for vacation in 2013, and we had an absolute blast! Doing a full thru hike is now at the top of my bucket list. When I married my husband in 2007 we tied the knot in the George Washington National Forest tucked away in the beautiful Virginia Blue Ridge. I hope to pass on my love and respect for nature to my upcoming Brownies.

This summer I finally get to fulfill a lifelong dream of being a camp counselor at a Girl Scout camp. My twins and I are headed back to Virginia to spend time with family while my husband is deployed and school is on break. I get to give back to the council that did so much for me. Even if it’s only for a long weekend. I’m really looking forward to it and hope my twins have as much fun at camp as I did when I was a kid.

Welp, there ya have it.

[faunceblaze]

LT 2020: Part I - Preparation

This is the first of two posts recounting our recent hike of the Long Trail, a 272-mile long hiking trail traversing the length of Vermont along the Green Mountains. The northern terminus of the trail is the Canadian border and the southern terminus of the trail is the VT/MA border. This post discusses the lead up and planning of our hike, including our hiker ethic in a pandemic environment. The next post will cover the trip itself (and will have the pics!).

We decided to do a 2020 LT hike back in 2019. The southern 100 miles of the LT are concurrent with the AT, which we did back in 2014. Since then it has always been in the back of my mind to complete the remainder of the LT. It’s also one of the three trails that make up the ‘mini triple crown’ (along with the JMT and the Colorado Trail). We already hiked the JMT, so it just seemed to “make sense” to hike the LT next.

Our friend (”TBD”) also decided to join us on our thru-hike. This would be his first thru-hike experience, which we were very excited to be part of. After considering our past experience on the southern section of the LT, particularly the infamous mud of Vermont, we decided a fall thru-hike would be the best time to go. The advantages were (hopefully) missing most of the mud, bugs would be at a minimum, crowds would be smaller, we would be hiking south with the changing of the foliage, and day time temperatures would be cool for some wonderful hiking. The disadvantages were that we would be limited in daylight hiking hours, and temperatures could dip which could become an issue if we encountered much rain.

Since we have had some considerable experience with thru-hiking, initially there was not much planning done for this trip other than deciding what shoulder-season hiking clothes to bring. We figured we would start out on-trail with a few days of food and just start hiking. However, in early 2020 and the start of the COVID-19 pandemic all of that changed. Now we had to evaluate hiking in a pandemic environment. The first hurtle we encountered was deciding if we would even go on the hike. A typical thru-hike would mean going into small mountain towns, most likely by hitch-hiking, and interacting with a lot of people in small mountain/rural towns as we traverse the state. Given the precautions we were taking to prevent the risk of spreading COVID-19, this type of behavior did not lineup with our hiker ethics. Additionally, if the number of cases did not reduce, then no matter our best-practices it might not be prudent to go. There was absolutely no reason for us to put others in undue risk for the sake of wanting to have a vacation.

As the time neared for the trip, we made the decision that the number of cases in New England, and in particular NH and VT, were at a level that we decided it was an acceptable risk to go as long as we followed some self-imposed guidelines. We were not going to go into towns and potentially risk being a spreader to what are generally insular towns. This meant that there would be no hitch-hiking or resupplying in towns. It made for some logistical hurdles to coordinate our food, but thankfully we were able to organize food drops by TBD’s partner. The major downside to this was having to carry at least 7 days worth of food at a time. Additionally, we would not stay in shelters (which we wouldn’t do anyways, but reaffirmed that decision) and would make sure to practice social distancing from other hikers we encountered.

With these plans, we set out...

[whywishesarehorses]

Limitless - 2021 Pacific Crest Trail Ride Through

3 days ago, on April 7th, Jess Goodlett started the ride of her dreams - a 2,650 mile ride of the entirety of the Pacific Crest Trail, border to border. She is attempting this ride alone, with two BLM mustangs she has trained herself. Jess is part of the Limitless team, a group of women going on various adventures to prove that the things women can accomplish in pursuit of their dreams are Limitless. This ride is fantastic, and Jess is still sourcing financial support. She has venmo, PayPal, and merch set up if you are interested in helping out!

This is similar in spirit to the idea of Unbranded, and Jess has been in contact with some of that team for advice.

Below I've shared a blog post she wrote discussing the trip and her plans! Under a readmore because it's LONG.

Time to Make this Official.

Yes, the ride is on.

I am planning a thru-ride on the Pacific Crest Trail for 2021.

My name is Jess Goodlett. I am 25 years old, and I have been a part of Limitless since the beginning.

📷Photo of the Limitless group from 2017

People seem to say that I am pretty outgoing and adventurous. When I set my mind on a goal, I definitely become very determined to make it happen. Most of my family and friends were not too surprised when I dropped the news that I was going to continue the plan to attempt a thru-ride on the Pacific Crest Trail. This trail has been on my mind for years, and it was actually how Limitless got its start.

My trail name is Raindance (this is how I got my trail name), and these are my BLM Mustangs, Makani (10-year-old bay roan mare) and Malana (7-year-old chestnut mare).

Also, here is little Zendaya. She is too young to join in on the fun next year, but maybe she will get the chance to tag along in the near future.

📷Zendaya (Daya for short) is my youngest mustang. I hope that she will be able to join in our an adventure in a few years. She is only 3 right now, so she still has some growing to do.

Here [is a photo] of me from a few years back, when I was able to set foot on a small section of the Pacific Crest Trail. This is the moment that sparked up the passion for the trail again after dealing with nostalgia from the group’s ride on the Colorado Trail in 2017.

I had convinced my dad and uncle to drive a rental car up some narrow mountain roads just to be able to set foot on part of the Pacific Crest Trail near Big Bear Lake. It felt magical getting the chance to hike a very small section of the trail. It was like getting a small taste of a big dream. My time on the trail may have only lasted 30 minutes, but it made me realize that I was still very passionate about this trail even after my experience on the Colorado Trail.

📷Repping Limitless while dreaming of a thru-ride on the Pacific Crest Trail.

Making Plans

The plans have gone back and forth a few times, but the goal is to set out on trail in the Spring of 2021. For me, there are a lot of emotions tied in with this thu-ride. I am sure there will be a lot of time for reflection on the days leading up to the trail, including each and every day spent out there with my horses.

This is a big trek. Every time I look at the maps, I feel excited. Maybe a little nervous. But I am focused on what is ahead. The days are flying by fast, and I know the day that I head out to California will be here sooner than I can even imagine. A lot of my time right now is being spent with the horses, and any additional free time goes toward researching the trail.

Let’s talk about the trail.

📷Hike at Kendall Katwalk (part of the PCT) near Seattle, Washington near Snowqualmie Pass

What is the Pacific Crest Trail?

📷Map of the Pacific Crest Trail

The Pacific Crest Trail is a border to border trail that starts at the Mexican border and travels through California, Oregon, and Washington to the Canadian border. The trail is 2,650 miles long, and it is open to both hikers and equestrians.

There are only a handful of completed equestrian thru-rides that are documented. I am sure there are a few more that have gone unmentioned online, but to be honest, it is much more likely for people to plan a thru-hike along the Pacific Crest Trail. Us thru-riders are very few.

For those who may not know, a thru-hike or thru-ride is a long distance trail that is completed in one go (typically one season) – from one end of the trail to other end. This differs from section hiking where one may just complete small sections of the trail instead of the entire length. Though, what a thru-hike or thru-ride is for one person may differ slightly for another. Sometimes trail conditions during a certain year results in hikers or riders having to alter the original path on the trail to detour things like a fire or trail closure. But this does not take away from the fact that the trail was completed if they reach the end. As they say, hike your own hike, or in this situation – ride your own ride.

On the note of section hiking and riding, the Pacific Crest Trail is also a very popular option for those looking to just complete certain sections. According to the Pacific Crest Trail Association (PCTA), there are a total of 29 sections: 18 sections in California, 6 sections in Oregon, and 5 in Washington.

Elevation ranges greatly throughout the entire trail, along with a vast variety of terrain. The Pacific Crest Trail travels over many mountain passes and through many wilderness areas, national forests and parks.

More information can be found on the PCTA official website.

The Difficulties of Planning a Thru-Ride

Taking on a thru ride comes with a lot of its own types of challenges that hikers will not have to face. Adding in one or two horses on trail adds its own difficulty especially when it comes to the logistics.

As I am researching the trail, I am trying to answer questions such as: How are the water sources in this section? Where can I camp? Are there any grazing restrictions? Any trail concerns?

How will I resupply? Where are some places I may be able to pull the horses off trail to rest them? Who will be my emergency contacts? And the list goes on.

I cannot really plan too far ahead with any set plans, but one of my biggest obstacles will be the snow. Trail conditions can change daily, and I have no idea how the winter is going to look at this moment. Because of the length of the trail, some decisions will not be made until I am on trail. I expect many unplanned things to happen. That is just the way it is, and that is why the focus right now is to study and learn the trail as much as I can.

📷Photo of Makani from our 2017 ride on the Colorado Trail.

Why the Pacific Crest Trail?

It was 2013 when I first heard about the Pacific Crest Trail. I was actually scrolling through Facebook when I came across a post in an equestrian Facebook group where a few people were talking about long distance trails. The main topic was riding horses from coast to coast ,but then the Pacific Crest Trail was brought up in the discussion. It was the first time I had heard of an established border to border trail. I was very interested and after a few quick searches online, I quickly became obsessed with this trail and the idea of completing a border to border trail horseback.

Though, I knew I was not ready at that time to take on such a big adventure. I kept the idea stored away in my mind. It would sneak back into my thoughts every so often. When it did, I would spend hours researching this trail and looking for any information I could find for equestrians. I told myself that one day… one day, I would ride the Pacific Crest Trail.

It wasn’t until 2015, when I decided to reach out to some people about the trail. I talked with Gillian Larson, who had completed the trail horseback in 2014. She has been a big inspiration to me and to many others. Over the years, she has now completed the Pacific Crest Trail two times horseback. She has also completed the 800 mile Arizona Trail, the 500 mile Colorado Trail, and the 3,100 mile Continental Divide Trail, which is another border to border trail. (Seriously, check out her Instagram. Her photos and videos of the trails are absolutely breathtaking!)

I also spoke with Ben Masters of Unbranded who encouraged me to get out and “just do it.”

This is when I started to think about friends who may be interested in riding with me. Initially, I reached out to Devan Horn about riding a border to border trail. Devan was the first person I ever thought of to even contact about a thru-ride. She is adventurous and possibly the only person I knew at the time who would have been up for such a challenge. I mentioned to her that I was interested specifically in riding the Pacific Crest Trail. We talked briefly about a long distance trek, and we told each other that we would keep in touch.

A few months passed, when Ragan Kelly reached out to me about a long distance trail. She had spoken with Devan who had mentioned my name to her. Ragan knew a few more people interested in a thru-ride, and that is how Limitless began.

Now, the Pacific Crest Trail is a much longer trail than what my friends and I rode in 2017 with the Colorado Trail. But as I mentioned, the Limitless team originally started with the goal of riding a border to border trail together.

Our exact plans were to ride a shorter trail, the Colorado Trail, in 2017. Then, we wanted to ride a border to border trail, the Pacific Crest Trail, in 2020. But since the start of Limitless in 2015, a lot of things have changed.

When we completed the Colorado Trail, we could all agree it was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Out of the group, I was honestly one who did not see myself fully committing to another thru-ride anytime soon. My end of the ride on the Colorado Trail was not what I wanted. Also, what they do not warn you much about long distance trails is that life continues on in the “real world.”

Life. Work. School. Other hobbies and interests. New goals and new opportunities.

There was nothing negative that happened within the team. We are all really good friends and forever will be. I love each and every one of them wholeheartedly. Though, we do not get the chance to see each other often, we will forever hold onto the memories that we created together on the Colorado Trail.

So wait… you are doing this trek solo?

Yes, that is correct. Solo. I am riding the trail alone with my two horses.

I will be honest. This was never my plan. Originally, I was unsure of a solo trek. I did not want to ride this trail alone.

When plans for a 2021 trek started, this thru-ride was going to be made for two riders. But plans changed yet again, and I had to make a decision to either hold off riding the trail or to just go after my dreams.

I know the pros and cons of going by myself, and I know the pros and cons with riding with others. I have heard the recommendations. I have heard the concerns. And with that said, I will continue on with planning this trek solo. This will allow me to put all of my focus on my horses’ needs to get them safely through the trail.

Though, I do hope to have a few friends join in here and there for sections.

How long will this trail take?

This trail will approximately take five to six months to complete. The horses and I will average 20-25 miles per day. I am also factoring in plenty of rest days for the horses. We are starting early enough to get through the hotter, dryer Southern California sections, but we will very likely have to skip around and circle back to some parts of the trail because of snow. In order to complete the full trail in one season, we need to be done sometime in September before the snow starts back up in Washington.

So What is Next?

I have a little over half a year left to get ready for this trek. I am looking forward to sharing our progress leading up to the trail and sharing the adventures that are to come.

[cakirk2]

Day 31, Tuesday Sept 28. Off day, 50 miles, no hike

I've officially decided to bail on the East Coast. A bit bummed, though, adds a week to the trip and creates a few visiting date conflicts down the road. Heading southwest on Thursday.

Rode to Lafayette, stopped at Spykes KTM to hopefully catch my friend Robin - struck out. :( Robin rode with me to Alaska in 2014. Great guy, professional motorcycle mechanic, and, lead singer for a hard core rock and roll band! Bought some oil and headed to Kevin's for an oil & filter change.

Snapped a pic of my second childhood home - 4th grade thru High School graduation. Chatted with the neighbor across the street for a bit, grabbed lunch on the Highway 26 crazy restaurant row and headed back out to the cottage.

Life time friends Kevin, Kim, Sam, Tom & Dan came out to play on my last night in town. We have stories going back to 4th grade. Was nice to see us all together again. Fun!

Kevin has a bucket under a downspout outside - it's full. Around midnight I could hear a deer drinking it down. Nice to hear the Coyote Choir again too. Saw a bald eagle on the river before dark.

Water level on the river is dropping quickly. First pic taken Sunday, second pic taken Wednesday morning.

Staying out at River Cottage has been a highlight of my trip. So quiet and peaceful. Thank you Kevin and Ruth!

[ayearoferewhon]

#Repost @brandonexplores
・・・
In 2014, I thru-hiked the #pacificcresttrail A 2,660 mile hike across the country from Mexico to Canada. The experience was amazing and extremely different from the life I had come to know while living in Chicago. This is about 300 miles in, and one of the first of my most memorable spots along the hike. Have you ever seen those movies about the guy walking across the desert, and then suddenly out of no where an oasis appears?! Well I have good news for you, that place really exist, and it is called Deep Creek Hot Springs. After being hammered by a snow storm while camping in Mission Creek days before, we moved on towards a more dry climate and elevated high into the desert once again. After two separate days of twenty mile long waterless stretches of desert, I was running low on energy and motivation when suddenly I rounded a switch back and it was just like a scene from the movies. Down in the valley, sat a magical place. A clothing optional natural hot springs right in the middle of the desert. I couldn’t believe my eyes. My motivation to finish the last mile of my day was immediately no longer an issue. For the remainder of the day I just sat in the hot springs, moving from the hot pools to the cold ones. The water was like therapy to my sore muscles, and the conversations provided plenty of fuel for thought. That night I cowboy camped under the stars and as I was closing my eyes thinking about how lucky I was to have the privilege of experiencing this journey, a shooting star flew by almost as confirmation that my thoughts were completely justified. #2014yearinreview

[mysticsandwich]

what was it, around may of 2014, I sold my truck and all of my camera equipment, probably for way less than what it was worth. I bought a bunch of random hiking and backpacking/camping gear and a bus ticket from orlando all the way across the country to spokane washington. I had decided to volunteer on a vineyard/family farm thru wwoof, worldwild organic orginzation of farmers. you basically work like 4-8hrs a day and in exchange you get some form of housing and food. I’d be staying in a tent and get 3 meals a day. I really didnt know what to expect except I was ready for some kind of adventure and was miserable where I was. I had no idea what I was doing and about $3k in my bank account. I was an emotional mess, duh. I rode the bus for 94 hours, it was insane. I barley slept, the bus stopped about every 1-2 hrs for bathroom breaks and stretch/snack stops. I remember leaving atlanta around 12am, the random girl next to me kept falling asleep on my shoulder and waking me up. I didn’t get off of the bus until Chicago. I had an 8hr layover to the next bus. I bought a pack of menthol american spirits and walked around downtown chicago for like 6-7 hours. it was great, besides the exhaustion. it was the first time I had really walked around the heart of a real big city in my adult life. I got on the next bus and endured another 45hrs or so of bus riding to spokane washington. god I was beat. I got picked up by leah, the woman who kind of ran the whole wwoofing operation her husband and her ran. She picked me up from the greyhound station in spokane around noon, her firstborn son, henry was in the back of her truck asleep, I think he was two years old or so. She is very chatty and friendly. she hugged me upon meeting me and was very welcoming. after almost 4 straight days on buses with strangers it was very nice. she chatted as we drove out of spokane northwest to the small town of hunters,wa. after an hr and a half we arrived at a small gas station, the first store in about 30 miles. her dad owned the store/small mechanics garage all the locals got their trucks and equipment fixed at. I met her mom who ran the shop part of the store and dad who ran the store and mechanics garage. then we headed to the farm. we arrived and i met john, leahs husband. john and leah were 30 and 29 at the time, respectively. they had a house on an absolutely gorgeous 45 acre piece of land overlooking the Columbia river, a huge river that flows from canada all the way to Oregon. the property was amazing, small mountains or hills overlooking a sharp 200-300 foot drop to the wide river. they showed me my tent spot, right on a cliff below their house overlooking their house. it was amazing and gorgeous. i set up my tent and unpacked my backpack. i had to be back at the house around 7pm for dinner. i arrived and john was cooking while leah cleaned up. henry was just running around the garden that was their backyard. their entire house they built themselves. it looked like a house, kind of slumped and lopsided but normal enough. but they built it from bales of hay, wrapped in chicken wire, with spackle on the wire to look like normal walls. hardly any wood, mostly built of hay. it was very cheap to build, john did all of the wiring and plumbing hisself and hay has absolutely amazing insulating capabilities, so it was never too hot in the summer and never too cold in the winter. amazing. the first night there dinner was salad hand picked from their garden, we all just chatted and got to know eachother. I slept in my tent like a baby, the first nights sleep in like 4 days not on a bus in a seat constantly being woken up, with the sound of the nature and river below. the next day was the first day of work and learning the farm. most of the work I did there wsa trimming grape vines with john. leah would go to the gas station/country store her parents own and work, so in the morning i’d scramble up the hill to the house and john would make breakfast for me him and henry then we’d head out the vineyard. most of the work we did while I was there was trim vines. you have to snip off the weakest vines and keep the strongest ones to get the most grapes. so everyday me john and henry would go out to the vineyard, it was 10 acres big, not very big but big for two guys and a baby. me and john would each get a row of vines, we’d go down a trim and leapfrog each other, trimming all the extra vines off. henry would sleep in a stroller or waddles around john, sometimes coming to me to hangout. me and john would usually work at the same pace once I go the process down, and we’d talk the whole day till about lunch or 1pm. then go back to the house, he’d make lunch and then we’d get a break for about 2hrs. I’d usually go down to the river or take a nap in my hammock. then we’d meet around 3pm and work on another farm project, maybe fixinga a drain or a fence, etc. then leah would come home and we’d all make dinner. these people were so kind and just took me in and included me in their lives and family and farm, gave me good advice, etc. they told me of their adventures from their earyl 20′s. they both went to new zealand and traveled and worked for about 2 years. leah was a white water raft guide and john worked on bikes. they did that and hiked thru new Zealand. they went bak to america and saved money, then hitchhiked down the entirety of south america for a year. then decided to return to leahs parents hometown and start eh vineyard. amazing people, very warm and kind and hardworking. i was so lost at this point in my life and they gave m a good goal of how I wanted to be or at least were very positive role models. so went about 2 months, working with john mostly, hanging with leahs family, meeting their friends, working hard, learning about growing wine grapes, learning alfalfa farming, hitchiking to town, reading a lot. then late june hit, and john and leah got 3 more WWOOFers. 3 girls from rhode island, culinary students on a summer road trip, wwoofing to see where organic food comes from. two were very pretty and all 3 were very nice. they set up thier tent and I became their tour guide, showing them how all the work was done, how the farm and house worked. they liked to drink and party, were all older than me. we had a good time, though my work ethic kind of went ot shit, distracted by a bunch of girls haha. it was nice to be the only guy around them. they were there for about 3 weeks and then were heading to another farm in northern california. they invited me to go with them. I loved the farm in spokane..but 3 college girls when you’re 19...duh. so they left and I said my sad goodbyes to john and leah and hit the road with 3 college girls. we stopped all over down the west coast of the country. we all went skinny dipping in a pool in portland, one tried to sleep with me and I was too stupid to realize it. huge regret. story for another time. we finally reached pescadaro, CA. an absolutely beautiful little coastal town. the farm was owned by an absolute lunatic who thought he could talk to aliens and grew a a LOT of illegal weed. all we did for about a week was smoke weed and hangout with crazy vagrants the farm owner brought in, the absolute opposite of john and leahs farm. I liked the 3 girls but I missed john and leah a lot then. I was supposed to go visit my bestfrind, Gabe, in texas at some point that summer and after a week at this sketchy “farm” I decided to leave. the girls, katie, becca and kristen were awesome and i was pretty much in love with katie, but it was time to go. so they drove me to san fransisco and I got on a greyhound bus around midnight around the end of july and headed for texas. before I left the farm in pescadaro the head “farmhand” there gave me about 2 ounced of weed as a parting gift. being 19 and dumb I took it. I put the damn thing in my backpack and got on the greyhound. I slept from san fran to LA and from La to around new mexico. more bus riding, yay. I got to el paso, tx.

-----

{2oz weed story]

[empathytour]

Are These Luxury Lodges Uganda’s Best-Kept Secret?

Uganda is respected for its gorilla-crammed jungles, awe-inspiring Nile waterfalls, and untamed, un-touristy safaris thru the savannah. But simply recently, Americans have woken as much as this dreamy destination: The quantity of annual U.S. traffic grew via way of means of 31 percentage from 2010 to 2014, consistent with information from the Uganda Tourism Board. And once I visited in February, the overall supervisor at Apoka Safari Lodge showed that almost all in their visitors these days are from the U.S. (Thank the sturdy U.S. greenback and a stateside call for for uncrowded, off-the-beaten-route experiences.)

This is extremely good information for the pleasant, landlocked country, wherein newly constructed, breathtaking motels have cropped up in lots of its 10 country wide parks (all with services you may not count on from their far off locations: Hot showers, flush toilets, and scrumptious eating places come standard). From deluxe “glamping” tents simply steps from the Nile to non-public motels tucked right into a tangle of rainforest, right here are seven of the first-class hotels withinside the Pearl of Africa.

Mahogany Springs Safari LodgeTucked into the Virunga Volcanoes mountain range, this assets contains sun-splashed cottages and a sweeping primary inn overlooking the Munyanga River and the plush Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Unwind subsequent to the fireside or at the wraparound terrace after an afternoon of gorilla trekking  monitoring; Bwindi is certainly considered one among a small handful of locations withinside the international wherein human beings can come inside toes of mountain gorillas, who eat, play, and nap with out giving their traffic a 2d thought.

Apoka Safari LodgeKidepo Valley National Park inhabits Uganda’s northernmost tip, a brief distance from South Sudan and Kenya. This is the safari excursion you’ve usually pictured: a dry, fawn-coloured panorama dotted with Tim Burton–esque acacia shrubs and fats Kigelia trees, and the roar of lions rolling in from remote hills. Apoka Safari Lodge is a stunning oasis of luxurious withinside the center of the rugged savannah; there’s a beautiful open-air primary inn, a curated handicraft shop, or even a luxe swimming pool, now no longer to say 10 good-looking cottages with non-public terraces and out of doors stone baths. Come for the remoteness; on 3 half-day recreation drives, my institution encountered elephants, zebras, giraffes, lions—and 0 different jeeps.

Kyambura Gorge LodgeThis 8-cottage inn, housed in a transformed espresso processing plant, has sweeping perspectives of each the thickly wooded Kyambura Gorge and the splendidly biodiverse Queen Elizabeth National Park. The 764-square-mile park is domestic to nearly one hundred mammal species and extra than six hundred species of birds, way to its various habitat, from papyrus swamps to crater lakes to open, rolling savannah. Kyambura Gorge is cutting-edge and luxe, constructed from regionally sourced, environmentally pleasant substances equipped and made my nearby craftsmen. Plus, it’s a perfect domestic base for birding, monitoring chimpanzees, and viewing lions, leopards, elephants, and extra, in addition to travelling the Rwenzori Sculpture Foundry & Gallery, a foundry and sculpture gallery offering the paintings of European and Ugandan artists (Damien Hirst helped fund its production via way of means of donating a paintings).

Baker’s LodgeOn the grounds of this Nile-the front resort, a touch signal published subsequent to a suspended rattan seat bears a warning: “Beware of crocodiles.” The reptiles, along side hippopotami, buffalo, baboons, screen lizards, and a menagerie of different creatures, are wont to wander alongside the river, beyond this assets’s plein air inn, 8 thatched “safari suites,” and little vegetation of out of doors seating. With Baker’s as a domestic base, move on a water safari beyond herds of elephants, hippos, and extra crocs than you’d like, and prevent at Murchison Falls National Park’s eponymous waterfall for a hike to the top: At the top, the Nile, miles huge at different points, squeezes over a gorge simply 23 toes across.

Ishasha Wilderness CampQueen Elizabeth National Park isn’t only a birdwatcher’s paradise; the Ishasha Sector is likewise domestic to one in all simply regarded populations of tree-mountaineering lions. (Yes, the delight actually may be located enjoyable many of the knobby branches of fig trees.) Ishasha Wilderness Camp, a constellation of 10 luxurious canvas tents perched subsequent to the Ntungwe River, is the most effective camp located in the park, for clean get admission to to safari drives and sundowners overlooking the pristine African bush. The belongings additionally arranges dawn hot-air balloon rides, in which the sight of predators at the prowl rewards the ones inclined to awaken earlier than dawn.

Crater Safari LodgeKibale National Park in southern Uganda protects a swath of lush, misty tropical rainforest. A few minutes’ pressure from its border is Crater Safari Lodge, a nine-cottage belongings at the banks of Nyinabulitwa Crater Lake. There’s a cell spa facility and in my view designed furniture, and every room has its very own incredible view of the pristine lake.

Clouds Mountain Gorilla LodgeOne of the best-regarded (and maximum-awarded) hotels withinside the usa is Clouds, a pioneering eco lodge on the foot of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. The motel includes a chalet-like important motel and 7 guesthouses, constructed from neighborhood volcanic stone and geared up with handwoven rugs and works from the usa’s maximum famend artists. At nearly 7,000 toes above sea level, Clouds is Uganda’s maximum inn—and it’s commonplace for traffic to look the Virunga volcanoes sparkling amber in opposition to the darkened sky.

[pcttrailsidereader]

The Trail Badges of Merit

Dave Baugher completed his nine-year quest to walk the PCT this past summer. On the final leg of his journey, he was joined by four family members including his wife, Luann. Anyone whose hike of the PCT spans many years can imagine the building emotion as the elusive finish line approaches. I appreciated the creative way that Dave's family celebrated and honored the end of Dave's journey.

By Dave Baugher

It was nearly the end of July, and I wandered northwards. Although technically summer, the morning sky was dull and grey, and the swirling cool, grey mist had a sickly pallor against the aging snow blanketing the Pacific Crest Trail. I had started at Snoqualmie Pass, Washington, and 2022 was going to be my last year hiking the PCT. This hike would conclude the M.Y.T.H. (Multi-Year Through Hike), which started on March 3, 2014. Unfortunately, the trail crews had not cleared the path from here to Stevens Pass. It was a short section, but a rotted snowpack, downed trees, and avalanche chutes clogged with the worst debris made my hike difficult. Tough? You bet, but that hiking tale is another story for another time.

When I arrived at Stehekin, my body and mind were trail hardened, and all was fine. With the arrival of my wife, Luann, and Brother-in-Law, Mike, my spirits truly improved. Even better, my son Jacob, and Son-in-Law, Patrick, arrived at Rainy Pass the next day, rounding out our trail troop. This group would join me for the remaining miles to the Northern Terminus.

The five of us began hiking those last fifty miles on August 4, an exceptional section of the PCT for me. A trail family of five hiking along the trail was unique after my many years of solitary hiking. However, events at the end of every day were even more memorable with this intrepid group. These proved to be one of those golden, marvelous moments you treasure forever: Let me tell you about the Trail Badges of Merit.

Jacob and Patrick had conspired together before the hike and produced the Trail Badges of Merit concept. Jacob is a Marine, and Patrick is an Eagle Scout. Both organizations support the idea of badges.

The Trail Badges of Merit on the PCT was a concept the two generated before starting the hike with me. In their own words:

"We had been mulling over ideas about celebrating and honoring your achievement for a while.  We had already decided that we would bring an unnecessarily heavy full glass bottle of your favorite scotch. Still, we wanted to commemorate your achievement in some other way at the finish line instead of waiting until you got home.  We discussed the possibility of having a trophy cast but couldn't decide on the size or the figure at the top.  The idea was also suggested of having a certificate of sorts framed or an authentic scroll printed, which we could unfurl and read aloud to our group.  Neither suggestion seemed practical given the space allowed in our packs or the ability to hide it from you for several days.  Beyond that, your achievement was significant because it wasn't solely about reaching the finish line as it may be with so many thru-hikers.  Your journey took years, encompassed different seasons with different challenges, and was marked by several significant life events, including retirement, weddings, and family and friends passing away.

Given the fact that there were so many things we wanted to commemorate, the inevitable idea of a merit badge came up, and we intuitively knew it was perfect.” 

Trail Badges of Merit for my nine years of the hike; What a concept. We made our camp that evening at PCT mile 2602,  calling it quits after a beautiful day of hiking on August 4. Our group found a great spot on an exposed knoll where we set up for the night. A cool breeze circled our camp as we enjoyed our evening meals.

The Painkiller Badge

To take or not to take, that is the question

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer

The scratches and pains in outrageous volume

Or to take arms against the nervous system

And by opposing, end them. To ache, to throb

No more – and by a pill to say we ended

The pain and the thousand natural hurts

That flesh is heir to. It's a consummation

Devoutly to be wished. To soothe, to sleep

To sleep perchance to dream, ay, there's the rub

For in that sleep of medicated calm

What dreams may come when we have shuffled off

This mortal coil, this reminder of our

Humanity, must give us pause

Dave will roll out some more of his Badges of Merit in future installments. The next -- The Trail Communications Badge.

[mike-jacque-c-the-world]

10/05/19 - Luray, VA - BACK ON THE AT - Driving the 105-mile Skyline Drive through the mountains of Shenandoah National Park is a great way to spend an afternoon in an Airstream as there are plenty of places with great views to pull over to eat, nap and hike in the woods. That’s exactly what we did. The best part for both of us was reconnecting with an old friend: the Appalachian Trail. Still can’t believe I thru-hiked this thing back in 2014 all of which was made possible by Jacque’s unwavering support from the Airstream. Maybe this was where she first got the bug to hike with me through Maine’s 100 Mile Wilderness and the final climb to the finish line on Mt. Katahdin. Great memories for the both of us.

[beyondmetamora]

Did you know that Tumblr still works?

Specifically, did you know that Tumblr will still let you post a thing that is just a fat block of text-- and not even jokey text-- even though absolutely everyone else in the universe just uses the site to share weird pictures?

That seems... wrong somehow, and yet here we are.

This wasn’t a planned blog post or anything, so this is all going to seem pretty stream-of-consciousness. There was a time in my life where I idolized Jack Kerouac. “First thought, best thought.” So maybe the most generous reading is that this is me doing that now. Or-- no, Mike, don’t get distracted into writing about writing. That’s the thing that I default to when I start to get nervous, and want to avoid speaking plainly and proclaiming personal details.

So, personal detail: It’s 2019. That’s not... like... a personal detail I guess, but stick with me. I’m going somewhere. 

Personal detail: I haven’t posted a single damn thing here since 2017. In point of fact, I haven’t really spent much time writing, reading, or thinking about long-form text on the web since... 2012 or so.

7 years. Is a long time. I can say that with clarity, partly because 2011 stands in my past recollection like a tall, tall mountain peak over my shoulder. That was a very good year for me. A summer where I said “best summer ever” and meant it (and still do). 2011 was the last year where I lived in Bellingham, instead of just in the orbit of Bellingham. It was my last year as a professional miller, the year where I was just starting to get good at that, but then I left it, on a backpacking trip that summer in search of something different and... “better”?

Nah, “better” is too loaded a word. I wasn’t looking for “better”. That’s not how I’d frame it then or now. I was just on a certain track back then-- a track that led to a fun-but-samey unambitious life in an obscure NW Washington town, without ever getting a chance to break out of the average-Millenial loop of tenancy & debt I’d found myself it. So, all I was looking for was a different track. It didn’t have to be better, it just had to be a path that would eventually let me do some of the wilder things that I’ve aspired to do all my life. Like: thru-hiking the PCT.  Like: traveling the world. Like: owning a boat. Like: being in a position where I can actually help out my family financially. Like: getting to run a business, not just work for one. Like: buying property in Metamora, returning to my roots.

Q: What do all of those likes have in common? A: Turns out, it’s “Figuring out how to do capitalism in a way that doesn’t make me feel like garbage.”

It’s been a looooong road to figuring that out, though, friends. If 2011 was like being on top of a mountain, 2012 felt like starting out on a trail down into the next valley. 2013, still descending. 2014 was the cool stream at the bottom. 2015 was beginning the climb up. 2016... 17... 18. Still climbing. During those years, I was living in Portland, back in school at PSU learning how to do accounting, putting all of my effort into that.

It’s a weird thing when you’re in the wilderness, climbing up out of a valley. You might get to a spot where you’re objectively way, way higher than you were on the last peak, but you’re not on the top of anything yet so it doesn’t feel as satisfying.

2019 feels like that so far. I’m living in the Skagit Valley now, just south of the Chuckanut foothills where Bellingham resides. (See, it was like... a metaphor. Accidentally.) I graduated from my accounting program with a bachelor’s degree last summer, then got a full-time job at a small 20-person company in Anacortes-- on scenic Fidalgo Island, gateway to the San Juans-- doing capitalism and feeling good about it. 

I’m saving up cash to move from the valley to the islands in November. (Kind of a lateral move that doesn’t strictly make sense within the climbing metaphor I’m building here? Whatever. Like I said, I didn’t plan this post.) Emotionally, socially, and financially, it feels like I’m on a path that’s just about to reach a broad shoulder. A good place to look back, and look ahead, and maybe even relax a bit.

Imagine that.