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Missing out

Man, over three years of adventures not accounted for here. How unfortunate. I went to look at my blog as a casual viewer and it said it was no longer there! Not sure if making a post will reactivate it or not but I think maybe I should try. 

I’ve been journaling this morning and thinking lately that I should try and write more of my short stories. It hit me that maybe a good place to post them would be in a blog forum of some kind. So I think I might try that. Right here, in this blog. 

...it’s worth a shot.

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14,505....nailed it! 

Mt. Whitney, California

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Trideltathon! Tex wasn’t too sure why he couldn’t come to me. And thanks to this friend who came out to support me and take great photos!

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Bartram Trail

Took a little birthday trip and completed the Georgia Section of the Bartram Trail. Tex and I did 37 miles in 4 days. Poor little bud. He did great. Talk about a tired pup! One day we will finish the trail through North Carolina.

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Little Texer Man’s first backpacking trip!

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Backpacking Guide

When you have a passion for backpacking and then you’re offered a job that pays you for it...you take that opportunity. Starting a job with a Gatlinburg, TN based guide company, A Walk in the Woods, has been an experience like no other. I have been able to expand my agricultural knowledge through the support and one on one teaching of my fellow guides. Constantly meeting new people and sharing my passion and love for the outdoors with them is reward beyond explanation. 

An opportunity accepted, chance taken and dream fulfilled.

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Great trip...as always!

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LeConte with the little ones

So when I found out Lily wasn’t going to be going up LeConte I wasn’t too excited about it. I just didn’t feel it was fair. So I carried her. It was hilarious and awesome! She and I took up the lead and since she couldn’t see anyone else she just kept asking where they were. We went through all 15+ people multiple times as we walked. Jonathan carried little Miller and not long after the bluff they both fell asleep. It is tricky business trying to carry a sleeping child in a sitting position in a backpack. Their head bobs all over the place. Miller was small enough his forehead could rest on Jonathan’s back except each time he would step Miller’s poor head would bob and then pound into Jonathan’s back. It was entertaining. 

The whole crew made it and we all enjoyed an evening of cards and relaxation in the office after we watched the sunset at Cliff Tops.

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Clare and Bob rocked it as well.

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Chattanooga Waterfront Triathlon

Movin on up. Couldn’t wait to get into bigger, longer triathlons and the Chattanooga Waterfront was the one to do. It was fantastic! Swam downstream in the river, biked along highway 27 and ran the riverwalk. It was a beautiful day!

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Yosemite!!! Quick trip to California to watch Niki run her first half marathon where she dominated! This, of course, after she hiked 13.5+ miles up and over Glacier Point. We enjoyed our cruise through Yosemite and Napa Valley in our red VW convertible bug. 

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I've always wanted to do a triathlon, more specifically an Ironman, and last Sunday I completed my second one since thru hiking. I did one a few weeks after finishing the trail with my brother, Jonathan, and then my best friend, Rachel, and I completed the Trideltathon, her first race ever. :)

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"That is why we never give up. Even though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever." 2 Corinthians 4:16-17

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Maine...

Even though Maine is the last state of the trail it’s still far from over. There are 281 miles and every one is hard. Well the trail is never easy. It’s always trying. Southern Maine is quite evil. Gaining on 2,000 miles and your body starts to really tell you about it. A few times I got pretty nervous that my body was going to give out and quit before I actually finished the whole trail. Thankfully I would be blessed with enough rest that night or a zero the next day to recover and keep going. 
Mom and Dad were waiting at the trail head in Monson, ME before the “100 Mile Wilderness.” For the next week, our last week, Dad got to experience what being a thru hiker really is. The biggest thing he discovered is that there isn’t really any “camping” involved. He was a trooper. Then we had “Pud Day” and walked into the campground on the edge of Baxter State Park. Katahdin Eve. We’d been able to see the mountain for a few days by this point and we were getting antsy. So naturally with our bodies basically failing we pulled a 20 mile, 16 hour day to finish off our 5 1/2 month epic journey on the Appalachian Trail.

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Definitely popped popcorn in my Jetboil!