It’s January 20, 2022 and my first blogpost in a while. I’m taking a week’s vacation from my park job in the warm, sunny desert of Southern California to create time with my family. I flew, literally from sea to sea, to downeast Maine where the temperature is just above zero degrees! Brrrrr! And, to top off the challenge, my family is living without their furnace because they don’t want to keep fixing it, but wait til Spring to install a new system. I’m getting to let the warmth of my heart overpower the cold air! Hat, gloves, sweaters, and tea help too!
Love Your Gear: Shoes
In my 10,000 miles, I’ve worn something like 19 pairs of shoes. Among them were 5 pairs of Vasque Breeze, but they’re no longer available. Also was a pair of used white reeboks I bought at a second hand store in a trail town because my fancy dancy trail runners were suddenly too small. I liked a pair of asolos. Now, I’m on my third pair of Oboz sawtooth. I wore through two matching pairs of a new version of Vasque breeze provided as perks for being a ridgerunner. I wear what feels right. Merrell ventilators are comfy but not sturdy enough for me on trail. My hiking partner has chosen them for 14 years. Just one pair was returned – Keenes. Don’t know why, they rubbed the tops of my feet.
My current walking shoes are Oboz Sawtooth low. I’m on my third pair, with about 1,000 miles on each pair. I like their sturdy foot base and ease of breaking in – there’s practically no break-in!
If the shoe fits , supports, and feels good, wear it. For the first few days, wear them at home, not outside. That way, they’re returnable.
Walk on!
Full Moon Watching
February 27, 2021
My fun job at Anza-Borrego Desert State Park provides opportunities to see and share amazing phenomena. Here’s one: full moon rising over the Badlands. I did livestream videos for the Park’s Facebook page on February 26 and 27. Enjoy my videos!
How Can I Stumble?
November 10, 2020
Today, I read this comment about myself offered by a friend in a women’s group. The game was to give a compliment about a mutual friend. I was deeply touched by this written by another woman entrepreneur whom I have known for over 10 years. Although we have spent little time together we have supported each other in poignant times!
How can a stumble along on my path learning that someone says these words about me??
Today, I read this comment about myself offered by a friend in a women’s group. The game was to give a compliment about a mutual friend. I was deeply touched by this written by another woman entrepreneur whom I have known for over 10 years. Although we have spent little time together we have supported each other in poignant times!
How can a stumble along on my path learning that someone says these words about me??
Regina Reitershows the courage that comes from the deep understanding of the precious and fleeting nature of life. The way she blazes new trails of beauty and understanding for herself and for others is beyond admirable
Bear Bag Hanging
Some tips for hanging a bear bag:
What I found for myself is that a rope over about 40 feet is more than I need on the AT and the extra just gets tangled up!! Nothing worse than a tangled bear rope.
Reflective is a good idea.
One thing I discovered that is very helpful is “tying” it in a daisy chain for storage. Otherwise, it just gets tangled!
Not only that, I also learned to not tie a rock to the end of the rope when tossing over a branch. Why? Because eventually, the tied rock is going to spin around the branch and be impossible to get down. I have seen many partial ropes dangling from trees. Just wrap the rope around the rock a few times. Yes, it falls off sometimes, so I gather two or three rocks. Maybe there’s a better way, but this works for me.
I hang my bear bag rope first thing when I get to my sleeping spot. In the daylight.
I HAVE had issues just a couple of times with my bag getting stuck. Check out this blogpost for this and a video on my favorite hanging method.
Appalachian Trail Beauty
What is a Reframe, Anyway?
July 28, 2020
Tell the story – our old, victim story, that is
Feel the feelings – feelings is where the energy is stuck in our physical body
Collapse the energy in the story – just be willing to be open to the idea that there may be something else going on besides what we have been attached to as our reality
Reframe the old story
Integrate the new story in our physical body
I have a client who is diligently doing Radical Forgiveness Worksheets and experiencing surprising shifts in her relationships! She came to me to work on her relationship with her husband and is discovering new openings in several other relationships as well – mostly with herself! During our third call, she said, “My mom called me! She never calls me! And, she was supportive of me too! She has rarely been supportive of me!”
How does this work, anyway? How is it that filling in the blanks in the Making Room for the Miracle Worksheet results in shifts in our situation that could sometimes be described as miracles?!!
According to the late Colin Tipping, author of Radical Forgiveness, it has to do with getting our conscious mind out of the way and allowing Spirit to guide us and to make changes in the “morphogenetic field”, the energy field that connects everything. We do that in five stages:
Night Fear
“How do I overcome my fear of sleeping out at night?”
Practice. Learn what the sounds are. Practice. Love yourself being afraid. Practice. Sit up all night and watch the night and learn it. Practice. Listen and learn the night’s rhythms and sounds. Practice. Love yourself just as you are.
Practice.
Women! How You Can Walk the Appalachian Trail
How to Start Your Appalachian Trail Walk
I’ve walked the Appalachian Trail twice, plus another 2,000 miles working as an Appalachian Trail Conservancy ridgerunner for seven seasons.. How did I start all this? By locating the nearest trailhead to my home and setting foot on the trail. That one hour greeting let me hear my call to the trail “If I just keep walking, I can get all the way to Maine!”
Next step: a half day walk with my husband, exchanging the car key in the middle as we walked in opposite directions. Over the next four years, we built up to a full month on the trail, two trips per year, from over night to three nights, a week, two weeks. There are landmark steps, I think:
- Connect to the trail.
- Stay out overnight.
- Do a resupply and go out again.
- Walk 100 miles.
I would focus on training on the trail, itself. What I discovered by talking with thousands of hikers is that those who have a connection with their Inner Journey more than the physical athletic accomplishment of the trail feel fulfilled by their walks. In addition, those having a true connection and an enjoyment of Nature seem happier and more fulfilled.
So much to talk about! Oh! One thing that makes a big difference is having a method for easily climbing mountains – a breathing technique. Contrary to a familiar saying, which I will not repeat here – “Virginia is not flat!”
Here’s the method I came up with: