EMILY'S ESCAPADES

Today was day 4 of what was supposed to be a 3 day hike. Day one we didn't really hike. We just hiked in a mile and set up camp a day early so we didn't have to travel 3-4 hours then set off hiking. Even with that we were still a day and a quarter from our finish line. The morning brought decision making. Do we tap out early at the next road crossing or do we stretch our food and continue forward? Since we didn't have any cell service we could only make what-if plans. So we hiked off not quite knowing what we were going to do. The morning was cooler than the last two, a breath of fresh air. On our way up Pleasant Mountain we stopped for a brief break and just happened to notice we had a sign

Pierce Pond is a lovely place to sit, relax, camp, and enjoy a restful night on the trail. So one would hope. A sixteen mile hike in the sweltering heat and setting up your tent on the water's edge should have been a perfect recipe for corpse like slumber. Not for me! If you have followed my hiking blogs at all you will recognize my description of how I sleep on the trail, and at home for that matter. I compare it to a rotisserie chicken, Most nights I turn all night long never really going to sleep until just before its time to rise and shine. Last night was one of those nights. I was grateful we had decided to "sleep" in and not worry about the mileage we were expected to do. To stay on t

16 miles was today's agenda. We were not sure if if was going to happen or not but to stay on schedule that is what we needed to attempt. So we were up before the sun packing by the dim of our headlamps. Breakfast was a quick fix just to get sometime in to fuel us until better light. September Maine mornings are supposed to be cool and crisp. The sun burned a hole through the dewy fog and within half a mile I was sweating buckets. It was going to be a long day. Our 2.5 mile warm-up brought us to Long Falls Dam Road. At one point this was the 2,000 mile marker. Our the years the Appalachian Trail distance has changed due to land acquisition and reroutes. A very small percentage of the origina

After a long wait it was finally our time to hit the trail. Our hand-off with team 40 was at Flagstaff Road near Flagstaff Lake just north of the Bigelow mountains range. We were hoping to hit the trail early enough to get a jump on our miles but team 40 was a tad later than expected. Stacey and I decided to leave my hubby at the parking to wait for the guys while she and I at least hiked in a little over a mile to set up our tents while it was still light out. I knew of a sweet campsite where we could grab a spot. Things looked differently then they did in 2017 so I missed where I was hoping to go. Instead, we came to another spot where a couple of young gals had set up and invited us to st

T-shirt and bracelet thanks to our friend Darnel. A quick post before I head out on the trail for a quick jaunt on the Appalachian Trail with my awesome friend Stacey. We are team # 41 for the L.L.Bean AT Relay. There are only 3 teams left to complete the final leg of this awesome adventure. I am so happy to have been chosen for this event. We have been planning since last winter. As the time drew closer for our start date I have been overwhelmed with this nervous energy. I am not sure why. I have all the confidence in the world of my abilities and over 4,000 miles of backpacking experience but still this restlessness exists. I have had to hit pause, take deep breathes, and concentrate on th

Starting new adventures can be very exciting, fun, thrilling, scary, and or challenging all wrapped up at the same time. A few weeks ago I began training for a new position. I was transitioning from a customer service rep at an outlet store to a telephone call customer service agent working from home. I couldn’t wait to begin this new position. I enjoyed working with customers face to face helping to fill their wishes and my co-workers were the best. I was just getting burned out from the long drive. Working from home had a certain appeal and charm but also brought on a different anxiety and fear. I would be all alone. Yes, there is help at my finger tips as long as I navigate the phone cor